As an 11-year-old who can get scared rather easily and who just finished the movie a few hours ago, I think that any 10-year-old would love it. Though I thought it was very suspenseful, and a little creepy at times (such as the rolled up mattress), nothing actually shown on screen was all that scary. I'd recommend it to any kid 10 and/or above for sure!
Rear Window (1954)
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Is it age appropriate?
About our ratings -
Is it any good?
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Common Sense says
Hitchcock masterpiece stars peeping Jimmy Stewart.
Why We Rated This 
for Ages 12 and Up
What to watch out for
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Violence:
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Sex:
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Language:
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Consumerism:
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Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
What Parents Need to Know
This review of Rear Window (1954) was written by Charles Cassady Jr.
Parents need to know that the theme of this classic, besides a neat little murder mystery, is voyeurism -- spying on peoples' private lives, customarily without their knowledge. Alfred Hitchcock depicted this tastefully, within the restrictions of the old Hollywood studio censorship code (unlike later R-rated movies like Sliver, Blue Velvet, or Hollow Man, in which guys watching in secret got the full eyeful of sex, nudity, and explicit perversion), and in some Canadian territories this got a "G" rating. Still, the viewer is made to take the POV of a character who likes to watch things he's not supposed to see. While suspenseful, the plotline is necessarily low on action (unlike other Hitchcock masterworks like North By Northwest and The Birds), but a pet dog is killed offscreen. You might tell kids this was the direct inspiration for the 2007 teen-bait thriller Disturbia.
Families Can Talk About
Talk to your kids about the media in their life. We have more tools and tips that can help
- Families can talk about the alienation of urban life, about people living on top of one another in high-rises, yet remaining strangers. Jeff and his motivations are a big part of this movie's intrigue. As a photographer, he has to compose images for a living. When his broken leg means he can't do his job, can he be excused for continuing to habitually watch ordinary people? How do TV, Web sites, video blogs, and especially reality TV add to the movie's theme about the ethics of scrutinizing real people for entertainment?
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More on Rear Window (1954)
What’s the Story?
Jeff (James Stewart), a photojournalist, is confined to a wheelchair after breaking his leg shooting a car race. Now he recuperates in his Greenwich Village flat, getting occasional visits from his gorgeous model-girlfriend Lisa (Grace Kelly) and putting up with a visiting nurse. Bored by immobility and equipped with an arsenal of binoculars and telephoto SLR lenses within reach, Jeff amuses himself by spying on his neighbors across the courtyard, from his rear window. Jeff finds that each tenant, some lonely, some oversexed, embodies a different pathology of male-female relationships. At first it's funny to Jeff, seeing a newlywed woman wearing down her husband with frequent lovemaking and a solitary bachelorette going dateless night after night. But then there's a burly guy named Lars (Perry Mason's Raymond Burr), unhappily married to a nag. Jeff becomes convinced that Lars has just snapped and murdered his wife, then possibly dismembered her body in packing cases. But is Jeff correct? And how can he convince someone? And what if the menacing Lars discovers he's been watched?
Is It Any Good?
Whole college courses have centered around Alfred Hitchcock's fiendish, compact, and sometimes lighthearted REAR WINDOW. The tension gets so exquisite that viewers unaware of this film's reputation might almost miss the cinematic gimmick that made Rear Window quite an achievement: it never leaves Jeff's room. Not once. The POV outside Jeff's rear window into the other windows is like looking into an array of TV screens (or comic-strip panels), the little New York stories unfolding in each one, often simultaneously (and, yes, that's Ross Bagdassarian, creator of the cartoon characters Alvin & the Chipmunks, as a songwriter).
Throughout his career James Stewart was an a boyishly all-American good guy, though there were a few exceptions, and Hitchcock especially likes to tap into an inner darkness using the wholesome actor. Though he's partially a victim of his disability, Jeff does seem to enjoy being what could be called a "peeping Tom," and there's a question of whether his new pastime of voyeurism is a healthy one or not -- never mind the crime-solving fringe benefits -- and what's the deal with him enjoying looking at strangers, but avoiding intimacy with the beautiful, accommodating Lisa? If wanting to watch makes Jeff some sort of pervert, what does that make us, the audience? We're watching him -- watching them!
Movie Details
Studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Run time: 112 minutes
Theatrical release: 08/01/1954, DVD release: 03/06/2001
MPAA Rating: PG for parental guidance
Run time: 112 minutes
Theatrical release: 08/01/1954, DVD release: 03/06/2001
MPAA Rating: PG for parental guidance
Our Members Say
See all 10 member reviews
Most Recent Reviews
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I rate this title on for age 10 and give it
Great for 10+
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I rate this title on for age 11 and give it
One of the best movies ever. OK for older kids.
I saw Rear Window when I was about 10, and even though it scared me a little, I absolutely loved it. This still remains one of my favorite movies - nail-biting suspense, plenty of quirky Hitchcockian details, and charming characters. A masterpiece!
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I rate this title iffy for age 9 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
No "Rebecca" or "Vertigo" by any means
But I still was very much held in suspense. It is a marvelous thing, all these Hitchcock movies, and how all of them were nearly perfect in all senses of the word. Not meant for children less than, I'd say 10.
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I rate this title iffy for age 8 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
GO ALFRED
YOU ROCK I KNOW YR DEAD BUT YOU STILL ROCK AND I LOVE YOUR MOVIES AND THIS IS ONE OF YR BEST YET YOU RULE (THROWS CONFETTI FOR ALFRED HITCHCOCK)THE SUSPENSE IN THIS MOVIE WAS GREAT THE ACTORS ARE AWESOME TOO (GRACE KELLY!)THIS MOVIE RRRRRROCKS
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I rate this title iffy for age 11 and give it
- My concerns are:
Alfred Hitchcock does it again!
Rear Window is my new favorite movie! I was literally on the edge of my seat watching this. But not for kids- all the suspense. Plus a little dog is strangled which I thought was so sad.
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I rate this title on for age 15 and give it
Besides Notorious, this is my favorite Hitchcock film.
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I rate this title on for age 10 and give it
The greatest psychological thriller of all time!
This film is another famous Hitchcock thriller, but this time it is psychological! This movie is brilliant from beginning to end and all is mild in this film with G language, mild discussion of the murder, and the murderer attempts to subdue Jimmy Stewart but fails. Over all this should be ratede G and for 10 and up.
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I rate this title on for age 12 and give it
A Thrilling and Old-Fashoined Thriller!
If your kids want to see a cool thriller, but you are cautious around big-budget slasher flicks, rent this from Blockbuster and watch it together on a Friday night. Everyone will enjoy themselves, and you won't have to worry about what they're seeing, as this film has little sex, language, and no violence. Language consists of some "hells" and few "d**n"s. There is some playful sexual innuendo between Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelly (it isn't exactly beating around the bush, but it isn't vulgar at all) that runs along the lines of her spending the night and there only being one bed. A beautiful ballerina exercises in her underwear, and a man attempts to force himself on an unnamed girl (it appears to be more of an embrace gone too far than an attempted rape).
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
This is a masterpiece, and my favorite film of all time. It's a rare type of film that manages to be unbearably suspenseful and fascinating using a minimum of sex and violence, which is quite refreshing. It's an absolutely amazing movie that perfectly blends thrills, romance, and even touches of comedy...a must-see. Good for kids 10+
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
One of the best movies of all time!
Rear window is an absolute masterpiece. The story is well written and the characters well acted and believeable. While the movie shows no sex or violence on-screen, the overall theme is quite mature. There are several very tense scenes including one where a woman attemps suicide. The main character spies on his very attractive neighbor as she dances about in her underwear. The ethics of the story are also questionable. Sure the man solved a murder, but should we really be peeking into other people's personal lives? Best for teens and up. Many younger kids will be either scared or bored.
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