Alfred Hitchcocks "Rebecca" is an iconic Gothic romance adapted from Daphne DuMauriers famous novel, and was successful enough with contemporary audiences to win Best Picture in 1940. Constructed through Hitchcocks calculated, deliberate technique, the haunting absence of Rebecca serves as a focal point of mystery and desire in the film, subtly exploring the societal and sexual role of women and questioning the ideal definition of femininity.

Salt, Barry.  “Film Style and Technology in the Forties.”  Film Quarterly, Vol. 31, No. 1 (Autumn, 1977), pp. 46-57.

Barry’s discussion of film technology includes abundant technical details regarding specific advances made in each category of filmmaking during the 1940’s.  He begins by explaining that the most widely-used 35mm camera in the 1940’s was the Cunningham Combat Camera, but after World War II, 16mm footage was able to be converted to 35mm use.  The first 16mm camera able to record synchronous sound filming was the Berndt-Maurer pro camera, but it was replaced in 1942 by the Auricon single sound system camera which is still used today.  A major trend beginning in 1939 is that toward longer takes, with a measured increase in average shot length among films progressively later in the forties.  The ability to produce longer takes arose partially due to increased camera mobility, as structures such as crab collies allowed for ease and freedom of camera movement.

Modern zoom lenses arose in the late forties, and the use of new coated lenses allowed for increased clarity in “against the light” filming situations such as the projector scene in Rebecca between Maxim and his young wife, their white faces cast starkly against a dense black background.  Also, angle-reverse angle cutting first proliferated in the forties.  Hitchcock in particular is known for using point of view shots, such as the eyeline match, more than other directors, and these make up a large proportion of his angle-reverse angle shots.  This technique was also an effective way of ensuring audience involvement, for it allows the spectator to feel as if he is actually present and viewing the scene through the eyes of a character.  Further, the angle-reverse angle shot is effective because much more emotion can be detected on an actor’s entire face than from his profile alone, so the intricacies of acting are more acutely communicated using angle-reverse angle.  Finally, this filming technique provides the audience with changing views and thus sufficient visual stimulation to maintain their interest. 

A final innovation of the forties was in the area of lighting.  In 1940, small spotlights were introduced with photoflood bulbs.  Interestingly, the most notable increase in costs for studios based on lighting was the higher wages required to pay the additional electricians on staff.  The forties were also a period of increased on-location shooting.  However, there were no major advances in optical effects or sound recording during the forties.  The increased average shot length is the most notable trend in film technique that occurred during that decade, a technique which was used frequently by Hitchcock and contributes to both audience engagement and direct acknowledgement of the feminine perspective in Rebecca.