Rear Window Cunning and Cleverness Quotes

Once they're sure that Thorwald is guilty, Jeff and Lisa have some leverage they can use to seal his doom. Case in point: threatening to expose him unless he leaves the apartment … which, of course, allows them to sneak in and really put those Scooby-Doo vibes to good use.

In this case, cleverness means looking at the big picture. Lisa is not worried about the cops because she's sure Thorwald did it—and more importantly, she has Mrs. Thorwald's wedding ring, which should exonerate her. Five years later, a Hitchcock character uses a similar tactic to get out of trouble. In North by Northwest, Cary Grant's character is trapped at an auction with some guys who've been trying to kill him. He starts making a disruptive scene and acting like a total bozo so that the auctioneer calls the police to remove him from the room—which is exactly what he wanted, natch.

Ah, the days before caller I.D. Thorwald nails Jeff here because Jeff assumes that Thorwald would never call him. He's been so successful so far that he forgets his quarry can be cagey, too.