When larcenous real estate clerk Marion Crane goes on the lam with a wad of cash and hopes of starting a new life, she ends up at the notorious Bates Motel, where manager Norman Bates cares for his housebound mother.

A retired San Francisco detective suffering from acrophobia investigates the strange activities of an old friend's wife, all the while becoming dangerously obsessed with her.

Richard Hanney has a rude awakening when a glamorous female spy falls into his bed - with a knife in her back. Having a bit of trouble explaining it all to Scotland Yard, he heads for the hills of Scotland to try to clear his name by locating the spy ring known as The 39 Steps.

A wheelchair-bound photographer spies on his neighbors from his apartment window and becomes convinced one of them has committed murder.

A British ex-convict in colonial Australia and his fragile wife, haunted by the past crime that binds them, struggle to rebuild their lives when a young newcomer stirs long-buried passions and secrets.

A struggling actress tries to help a friend prove his innocence when he's accused of murdering the husband of a high-society entertainer.

On a train headed for England a group of travelers is delayed by an avalanche. Holed up in a hotel in a fictional European country, young Iris befriends elderly Miss Froy. When the train resumes, Iris suffers a bout of unconsciousness and wakes to find the old woman has disappeared. The other passengers ominously deny Miss Froy ever existed, so Iris begins to investigate with another traveler and, as the pair sleuth, romantic sparks fly.

Story of a young woman who marries a fascinating widower only to find out that she must live in the shadow of his former wife, Rebecca, who died mysteriously several years earlier. The young wife must come to grips with the terrible secret of her handsome, cold husband, Max De Winter. She must also deal with the jealous, obsessed Mrs. Danvers, the housekeeper, who will not accept her as the mistress of the house.

American crime reporter John Jones is reassigned to Europe as a foreign correspondent to cover the imminent war. When he walks into the middle of an assassination and stumbles on a spy ring, he seeks help from a beautiful politician’s daughter and an urbane English journalist to uncover the truth.

When a priest hears a murderer’s confession, he becomes bound by his vow of silence—even as circumstantial evidence turns suspicion toward him. Torn between faith and self-preservation, he faces public scandal and trial for a crime he cannot reveal the truth about.

An ex-tennis pro carries out a plot to have his wealthy wife murdered after discovering she is having an affair, and assumes she will soon leave him for the other man anyway.

Following his great success with "North by Northwest," director Alfred Hitchcock makes a daring choice for his next project: an adaptation of Robert Bloch's novel "Psycho." When the studio refuses to back the picture, Hitchcock decides to pay for it himself in exchange for a percentage of the profits. His wife, Alma Reville, has serious reservations about the film but supports him nonetheless. Still, the production strains the couple's marriage.

When Dr. Anthony Edwardes arrives at a Vermont mental hospital to replace the outgoing hospital director, Dr. Constance Peterson, a psychoanalyst, discovers Edwardes is actually an impostor. The man confesses that the real Dr. Edwardes is dead and fears he may have killed him, but cannot recall anything. Dr. Peterson, however is convinced his impostor is innocent of the man's murder, and joins him on a quest to unravel his amnesia through psychoanalysis.

本书是法国电影导演弗朗索瓦·特吕弗与世界级悬念大师阿尔弗雷德·希区柯克就电影艺术问题进行的对话录。这是一本最具“挑战性”的书，它揭示了希区柯克这个易受攻击而又敏感的人的真正本质，也记录下了自默片时代起便活跃在影坛上的这位大电影艺术家行将消逝的艺术秘密。这场交谈进行了四年，希区柯克回答了特吕弗关于自己电影生涯的500个提问。特吕弗以俄狄浦斯求神示的方式向他发出询问，试图通过希区柯克的全部作品去搞清“希区柯克式电影语言”的独特架构——正是这种架构形成了他不可模仿的风格。

阿尔弗莱德·希区柯克是举世公认的“悬念大师”，也是当代最杰出的电影艺术家之一。他一生导演监制了50多部电影和300多部电视剧。 他生于伦敦，1920年进入电影界，担任字幕设计。1921年希区柯克担任制片和导演工作，1925年开始独立执导电影。1939年应邀去好莱坞，次年拍摄了《蝴蝶梦》，获该年度奥斯卡最佳影片金像奖，从此定居美国直到逝世。为了表彰他对电影艺术作出的突出贡献。1979年，美国电影艺术与科学学院授予他终身成就奖。1980年，英国女王伊丽莎白二世封他为爵士。 希区柯克作为“悬念大师”的最大与众不同处在于：他总是在作品的一开始就把危险通知他的观众，而且，希区柯克的名字保证了你将永远在高潮里。在希区柯克的作品里，生活永远不平庸，不宁静！这就是希区柯克的悬念的独特之处！

希区柯克的电影一直广受世界影迷的热爱，对其电影的研究现已具有高度的复杂性和广泛性。拉康是结构主义精神分析学派的主要代表，他在思想界的影响也是世界性的。看起来他们之间谁和谁都挂不上关系，怎么作者会把他们强行拉到一起呢？而且有这样一个说法——不敢问希区柯克的，就问拉康吧。
齐泽克是斯洛文尼亚卢布尔雅那大学社会科学研究所的教授，是近年来国际上非常活跃的学者，他因为对拉康理论的精深阐释、准确使用而知名，同时，他对大众文化现象也很有研究，尤其是对希区柯克的电影也有着深入的研究。本书就是他对拉康理论和希区柯克电影的双重研究互证，从立意到编纂结构都颇有后现代风格，既具有理论的洞察力和前沿性，又不枯燥，从阅读角度讲，还可以算一部可读性和趣味性均有的作品。
本书是对拉康理论和希区柯克电影的双重研究互证，从立意到编纂结构都颇有后现代风格，既具有理论的洞察力和前沿性，又具有丰富生动的可读性和趣味性。本书分为三个部分和一篇导言，共17篇文章。第一部分为普遍性的论题，从悬疑风格、对象处理、空间体系和视觉结构等方面对希区柯克的电影进行了总体性的关照。第二部分为对特定影片的具体分析，不同作者对希区柯克的多部影片进行了多角度的透视。第三部分为编者齐泽克撰写的长文，从个人视角出发，深入探讨了作者最感兴趣的体现在希区柯克电影中的“凝视”问题。