I recently re watched two of my favorite movies that showcase the relationship between people whom live within close proximity to one another. Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window (1954) and Joe Dante's The Burbs (1989). Both films are from two different eras of cinematic history with two different plots. However, the similarities between the films is evident. Both movies showcase individuals living in a community. In the case of Rear Window, it's a high rise apartment complex. In the case of The Burbs, it's the suburbs, hence the name of the film. In addition, both films showcase individuals perusing something that does not seem right within their community. InRear Window, Jimmy Stewart's character, along with his friends, begin noticing peculiar behavior from a man whom lives in a high rise across the street. Things begin to heat up as the man's wife disappears and a rearrangement of the man's apartment occurs. In The Burbs, Tom Hank's character, along with his neighbors, begin noticing extremely peculiar behavior from a new family that has moved into the neighborhood. The family barely comes out of their house during the daytime and some in the neighborhood claim to have seen them digging deep holes in their backyard in the middle of the night, even amongst a heavy rainstorm. Things take a turn as one of the neighbors suddenly disappears and the new family on the block are suspected of foul play due to their idiosyncracies.
First, I would like to point out some of the parallels I found between my own life and Joe Dante's film. In The Burbs, the film takes place on a cul-de-sac, which I currently live on myself. Living on a dead end street, it's easy to notice every car and person that passes by. I'm just stating the obvious. In addition, one of the characters in the film is an older man with a small dog. I have a neighbor that lives across the street with me that is an older man with a dog. However, I can openly admit that this is one of the only neighbors I have a close relationship with. That's certainly not an insult to people that do live in my neighborhood but I'd say its a reflection of how are society has become, for better or worse. That is the main point of this article. Neighborhoods and communities are almost gone!!
As stated, both Rear Window and The Burbs are from two different eras. However, I would say that both are from eras in which neighbors had closer relationships with one another. In Rear Window, the film takes place within an apartment complex in a big city. Even amongst the metropolitan lifestyle, the majority of the people in the complexes both know and are congenial to one another. In The Burbs, the suburbanites have close relationships with one another and certainly know anything and everything about what's going on within their street. I'm starting to think that these types of bonds among neighbors is becoming something of the past. Sure, there are online community boards. However, the physical interaction between neighbors has become very limited. In The Burbs, the skeptical neighbors even offer to go over to the peculiar family's house to welcome them to the neighborhood with food. This is something I rarely see happening anymore. People are still aware of when a house is sold or rented. However, there are no more formal introductions made by people to welcome newcomers into their community, at least that I see. Unlike the characters in Rear Window, apartment complexes, both in big and small towns, are now rampant with total strangers living in the same building.
Of course, there are various things that have contributed to this lack of community that has prevailed in the 21st century. Sociological changes have occured that make people feel threatened by others. In addition, rampant crime has made people want to keep to themselves. Even as much as I use it and find it beneficial, technology has certainly contributed to this downfall of the community. Even though I grew up with cable television and video games, I still played outside with other children. When I was a young child, though, people didn't have over 300 channels unless they had a satellite. There also weren't six different video game systems and a new one that came out every two years. The internet was still in its infancy and not everyone had a cell phone. Both children and adults were forced to create ways to be entertained. Most importantly, people didn't have a virtual means of communication to fall back on to contact one another.
I'm not sure if the idea of the 'neighborhood' in a traditional sense is becoming extinct. However, based on my own assesment, I can say that it has been on a downward spiral. Not as many people know one another nowadays. Sure, people may wave at one another when driving by or say hello when passing each other on the street. However, that's the extent of the communication. Many times, people can live in the same neighborhood for years and still not know the actual names of the people they greet. Neighborhood children don't seem to play with each other the way the used to. I'm concerned that their imaginations may disappear. Only time will tell how this decline of the neighborhood will affect society as a whole. I certainly don't think that people should spy on one another the way Jimmy Stewart did in Rear Window nor do I think people have to get know people they deem questionable like the people in The Burbs. However, there needs to be more of a bond between neighbors. If we as people keep on operating the way we have the past 20 years, there may very well be no more 'neighborhood'. We may then be forced to watch classic films that showcase a time when they truly existed. One phrase I know of that many people grew up with was from one of the one and only Mr. Rogers whom said "Won't you be my Neighbor!!" That's something I haven't heard in a while!!!
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