Rope
Brandon and Philip are two young men who share a New York City apartment. They consider themselves intellectually superior to their friend David Kentley, and as a consequence, decide to murder him. Together they strangle David with a rope and placing the body in an old chest, they proceed to hold a small party. The guests include David's father, his fiancée Janet, and their old schoolteacher Rupert, from whom they mistakenly took their ideas. As Brandon becomes increasingly more daring, Rupert begins to suspect.
Working with a modest budget of $1.5M, the film achieved a respectable showing with $2.2M in global revenue (+47% profit margin).
4 wins & 3 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Rope (1948) demonstrates meticulously timed story structure, characteristic of Alfred Hitchcock's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 13-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 20 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 5.7, the film takes an unconventional approach to traditional narrative frameworks.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Brandon and Phillip strangle David Kentley with a rope in their Manhattan apartment. The killing establishes their world of intellectual superiority and contempt for conventional morality.. Of particular interest, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The First Threshold at 18 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 23% of the runtime. This illustrates the protagonist's commitment to Rupert discovers the rope used in the murder and begins to suspect something is wrong. His intellectual curiosity is triggered, transforming him from dinner guest to detective. The game shifts from Brandon controlling the party to Rupert investigating., moving from reaction to action.
At 36 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 45% of the runtime—arriving early, accelerating into Act IIb complications. Structural examination shows that this crucial beat Most guests depart, but Rupert returns unexpectedly, claiming he forgot his cigarette case. This false defeat for Brandon raises stakes: Rupert is now alone with them, actively investigating. The social camouflage of the party is gone., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 54 minutes (68% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Rupert forces open the chest and discovers David's body. The intellectual game dies, replaced by the physical reality of murder. Brandon's artistic pretensions collapse into common criminality. Death is literally revealed., demonstrates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Synthesis at 59 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 74% of the runtime. The three men wait in silence for the police. Brandon plays piano, detached. Phillip stares in shock. Rupert stands by the window, bearing moral witness. Sirens approach. The finale resolves both the crime plot and the thematic question about intellectual superiority., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Rope's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 13 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs systematic plot point analysis that identifies crucial turning points. By mapping Rope against these established plot points, we can identify how Alfred Hitchcock utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Rope within the crime genre.
Alfred Hitchcock's Structural Approach
Among the 20 Alfred Hitchcock films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.6, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Rope takes a more unconventional approach compared to the director's typical style. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Alfred Hitchcock filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional crime films include The Bad Guys, 12 Rounds and A Bronx Tale. For more Alfred Hitchcock analyses, see Family Plot, To Catch a Thief and The Trouble with Harry.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Brandon and Phillip strangle David Kentley with a rope in their Manhattan apartment. The killing establishes their world of intellectual superiority and contempt for conventional morality.
Theme
Brandon articulates their Nietzschean philosophy: "Murder can be an art" for superior beings. This states the central theme about the danger of intellectual arrogance divorced from human empathy.
Worldbuilding
Brandon and Phillip hide David's body in a chest, then prepare for their dinner party. Brandon insists on serving buffet from the chest containing the corpse. Phillip's nervousness contrasts with Brandon's cold excitement. The apartment, the relationship dynamics, and their twisted game are established.
Resistance
The party unfolds in real-time. Guests discuss David's absence and debate murder as an intellectual exercise. Rupert, their former teacher, recognizes echoes of his own academic theories. Phillip grows increasingly unstable while Brandon plays the perfect host, dropping hints about their "work of art."
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Rupert discovers the rope used in the murder and begins to suspect something is wrong. His intellectual curiosity is triggered, transforming him from dinner guest to detective. The game shifts from Brandon controlling the party to Rupert investigating.
Mirror World
Rupert engages with Janet and the others about David, revealing the human cost of treating people as intellectual abstractions. Janet represents the emotional/moral world that Brandon has rejected, forcing thematic contrast between philosophy and feeling.
Premise
The cat-and-mouse game intensifies. Brandon continues dropping provocative hints while Phillip unravels. Rupert grows more suspicious, engaging Brandon in philosophical debates about murder and superiority. The premise promised is delivered: watching the murderers host a party over their victim's body.
Midpoint
Most guests depart, but Rupert returns unexpectedly, claiming he forgot his cigarette case. This false defeat for Brandon raises stakes: Rupert is now alone with them, actively investigating. The social camouflage of the party is gone.
Opposition
Rupert methodically interrogates Brandon and Phillip, piecing together evidence. Brandon, thrilled by the intellectual duel, continues to verbally spar. Phillip breaks down under pressure. Rupert's moral certainty strengthens as he realizes the horror of what his teachings may have inspired.
Collapse
Rupert forces open the chest and discovers David's body. The intellectual game dies, replaced by the physical reality of murder. Brandon's artistic pretensions collapse into common criminality. Death is literally revealed.
Crisis
Rupert confronts Brandon and Phillip with their crime and his own complicity in teaching the philosophy they perverted. He experiences moral anguish recognizing how his academic ideas enabled murder. Brandon remains defiant; Phillip is shattered.
Act III
ResolutionSynthesis
The three men wait in silence for the police. Brandon plays piano, detached. Phillip stares in shock. Rupert stands by the window, bearing moral witness. Sirens approach. The finale resolves both the crime plot and the thematic question about intellectual superiority.
Transformation
Police sirens grow louder as the camera pulls back from the window showing the apartment in the New York skyline. The opening's intimate murder has become public justice. Brandon's arrogant experiment ends in capture, transforming "art" into crime.