As this is a Media Blog, I am quite certain that you won't be surprised by the content of this post: I'm going to talk about my favourite film. And I will be listening to Bernard Hermann's music alongside; the choices are narrowed down. It sounds like Hitchcock, doesn't it? This afternoon, I have the pleasure to write about a piece of art: "Vertigo". It was released in the year 1958, distributed by Paramount Pictures and starred James Stewart and Kim Novak as the main characters. With a gross rental of 2.8 million dollars, some people would certainly label the film as a failure in Alfred Hitchcock's career. In fact, he himself seemed unsure about his vision of "Vertigo", and eventually blamed James Stewart's "old" appearance for its lack of success. However, others would stand up for it and even regard it as a classic. Personally, I do not share any of the two major viewpoints.
From my perspective, "Vertigo" is pure poetry. It undoubtedly has those abstract elements which make a poem worth reading, as well as emotional depth and an outstanding aesthetic. Adding to this, we can find a great mastery of cinematography and an unusual script based on Boileau-Narcejac's novel "D'entre les morts". The main actors are very convincing and the choice of setting is regrettable —the original book designated Paris as the city where the action takes place, although Hitchcock decided to shoot the movie in San Francisco because, as mentioned by Aulier, "with its vertiginous streets and hilly landscape, the location perfectly matched the film’s themes. In a city where there were such extreme physical highs and lows, awful for anyone with acrophobia, the protagonist's vertigo became a character in and of itself"—.
The storyline has an undeniable complexity: a retired detective, Scottie, is contacted by an old friend from college with the purpose of following his wife Madeleine, as he believes her to be under the influence of a spirit, Carlotta, an ancestor who committed suicide. Apparently, Madeleine wanders around town for the whole day with no other purpose than staring blankly at a portrait of Carlotta in an art museum or leaving some flowers in her grave, though it is known that she does not have any clue of the existence of her tragic relative. She falls into a state of trance on a regular basis and tries to commit suicide in various occasions. During the first attempt, Scottie is lucky enough to be around and saves her from drowning in the Fort Point bay. However, when Madeleine throws herself from a tower, by which time Scottie has fallen in love with her, he is unable to prevent her death due to his rooted fear of altitude —"Vertigo"—. She dies at the same age as Carlotta did, and everything seems to indicate that we are contemplating a ghost story with touches of romance and suspense. But this is just the first climax.
During the second half of the film, we find ourselves watching a devastated Scottie, living for the memory of his friend's dead wife. Each time that he sees a woman who resembles her, he runs into her in a desperate search for his lost lover. This happens until he finds Judy Barton, from Kansas. She reminds him of Madeleine with such intensity that he decides to drag her into an insane relationship in which he constantly asks her to change details in her behaviour and looks so that she becomes the perfect Madeleine. The second climax occurs soon. Scottie finds Carlotta's necklace, a recurring object which Madeleine used to possess and admire, among Judy's belongings. In an estate of manic rage, he urges her to return to the tower where Madeleine's death took place. The plot finally unfolds: Judy has collaborated with Scottie's friend in order to murder his unwanted wife by the means of a convincing story, some acting and a witness —Scottie—. In the middle of her confession, a nun appears in the top of the monastery's tower, and Judy, shocked and overwhelmed by her guilty conscience, falls into the void and dies, this time, for real.
The ending is the only matter that puts me off when I want to re-watch the film. I much prefer the original idea, which Hitchcock altered in his adaptation of the novel: Judy dies chocked by Scottie, who acts in a state of blind outburst. I believe that this culmination is more logical and perfectly matches the characters and the general atmosphere of the film.
Despite this elucidation, "Vertigo" is a masterpiece which would inspire any sensible viewer, containing strong images, unforgettable characters, clever plot twists and even psychological controversy. It is one of the few films I have watched which despises the dialogue for more than ten minutes and does not arouse in me any sense of boredom or impatience. I find the sentimental element unquestionably interesting: a man loves a woman who is an illusion, the real woman loves him, and he destroys both without being guilty of no crime. Furthermore, the technique is innovative and the famous "vertigo effect" was developed during the film —a zoom forward while tilting the camera backwards—, as well as the psychedelic approach which is chosen to depict Scottie's nightmares.
Each shot is full of detail and each time you see the film you get to appreciate its nuances with more accuracy. The air of disorientation is successfully achieved by both of the main actors, who play characters that live in an uneasy discomfort, each one in different ways. It is a movie which requires your full attention but, once you commit to that, "Vertigo" will become an obsession almost as dangerous as Scottie's delusion.
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertigo_(film)#Reception
http://mentalfloss.com/article/69070/11-dizzying-facts-about-vertigo
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052357/reviews?ref_=tt_urv
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