Movie Review : ' Vertigo '

Vertigo is an extremely complex movie in many ways. It has an abundant amount of great elements to it that add a great deal of depth to the picture such as its use of mise-en-scene, cinematography, and editing techniques. By combining all of these elements together, they help to bring the films form and narrative together to show a reoccurring theme of life versus death.

In this essay I have chosen to analyse two key scenes, each from two of Hitchcock’s most critically acclaimed films, ‘The Birds’ (1963) and ‘Psycho’ (1960). Both of these scenes from both films display the female protagonists at their most vulnerable, facing the threat and fear of death.

The female counterparts also let their femininity show; yet each does in a unique way, highlighting different “strictly” feminine characteristics. The nurse does this, by taking on a care giver and motherly persona. The girlfriend represents the desire to settle down. Miss Lonelyhearts portrays the “womanly” need to have companionship, or a man to look after her, and finally, Miss Torso, embodies lust. Even though Hitchcock has all of the female characters serve specific characteristics of women femininity, he has them all take background roles to

Since it’s infancy at the beginning of the eighteenth century, horror has followed certain conventions that results in an awakening of the senses, evoking intense emotions of fear and terror in the audience. Horror feeds off triggering the primal fears embedded within all of humankind, creating a sense of menace that is the very substance of this genre. Furthermore, the central menace of a piece tends to enlighten the human mind to the world of the paranormal and the enigmatic, dark side of the unknown. The movie “Psycho” directed by Alfred Hitchcock is a perfect example. Infamous for its shower scene, but immortal for its contribution to the horror genre, “Psycho” was filmed with great tact, grace and art in regards to horror conventions.

Nature of appearances is another theme in the film. The woman at the beginning was one of them but there are more throughout the movie. When Scottie is running up the staircase in the church, his facial expressions are shown, and it is the expression of fear. Also, when Judy becomes “Madeline” again, it is a big part in the movie. Her character is nothing but appearances. She is based on the legend of a dead woman and Scottie is trying to make Judy look exactly like Madeline because he sees her in Judy. Romantic delusion is another theme in the film Vertigo. Scottie was so in love with Madeline, that when Judy comes along, and he sees something similar in her, he must make her exactly like Madeline. Also, when Judy is at the top of the bell tower in the church, she sees a shadow and she thinks it is the real Madeline returning to the scene of the crime and maybe trying to scare her or make her feel guilty.

A thriller is a type of film that usually instills excitement and suspense into the audience. A thriller is commonly described as a tense edge of the seat environment. The movie, Vertigo, is one of the most famous thrillers ever made. However, Vertigo does not fit into the stereotypical genre of thriller. Vertigo, often viewed as an experimental film because it was one of the first major thrillers of that time that used many different and innovative camera techniques. These techniques used in this film are different types of lighting, montage, intense music, etc. Vertigo is known to be one of Hitchcock’s best movies because of his unique sense of style and his famous

Another common theme in Hitchcock’s two films is the female loss/lack of identity. In “Shadow of a Doubt,” Young Charlie feels alone and empty until her uncle comes to town. Initially, she is nothing without him. Comparably, in “Vertigo,” Judy is nothing to Scottie or herself. He wants her to be exactly like Madeline and she does it for him. At some point, both women experience a lack or loss of identity.

When looking at the collection of works by Alfred Hitchcock, it is common to notice similar threads throughout his life work. The films viewed in class alone, share many things, as both Psycho and The Birds consist of more than what meets the eye. Though one may be about a killer man and the other about killer animals, both Hitchcock films develop a deep, dark string of events leading up to inevitable death. Being in touch with a great love of drama, thrill and suspense, Alfred Hitchcock leaves you on the edge of your seat, with many famous scenes and never before seen ideas, making you incapable of averting your eyes.

Hitchcock’s romantic style is evident in the comparison of the characters in Hitchcock’s films Vertigo and Psycho. McCombe reference John Calabrese who described Romanticism in Vertigo as the “dark, sinister aspect of the character that distinguish the romantic hero.” McCombe points out that those aspects and qualities are evident in Norman Bate (Psycho) and Scottie Ferguson (Vertigo). McCombe tells how romanticism entails the suspension of disbelief. The Birds plays on this element of fantasy by having the birds deviate from their normal behavior to attacking humans. Similarly, Coleridge uses the element of fantasy in the real world in “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” Next, McCombe discusses how the

Once Scottie believes he has lost Madeleine, his perfect, elusive woman, he becomes obsessed with the familiarity he finds in Judy. He expresses no interest in knowing Judy herself, as the film does not capture any of this. Instead, it captures his insatiable desire to once again discover Madeleine, the dream woman that will solve his insecurities within his masculinity. This desire is explained through his literal makeover of Judy, buying her new clothes, having her hair dyed, having it done a certain way, etc. When trying on suits an employee in the store comments that Scottie knows exactly what he wants, the disturbing problem in that being that anything less than his illusion of Madeleine will be unacceptable to him. Another way Scottie consumes Judy is through positioning in shots. Whereas Midge is seen as above Scottie, often literally as in their primary scene, Hitchcock uses the kissing scene between Judy and Scottie to show him progressively becoming literally above and on top of her, crushing and smothering her beneath him. Furthermore, Judy’s character becomes more and more corpse-like as the film progresses. When she is finally “transformed” into Madeleine, she is depicted in green and foggy light, making her appear both haunting and ghostly. Even when she is being made-over, when her hair is being died, she looks like a body being prepared for her funeral. The kissing scene mentioned earlier acts in the same way, her being crushed by him makes her appear lifeless. Whether she is dead or alive, Hitchcock shows the viewer that it does not matter to Scottie. The deepening of this throughout the film, culminating in Judy being actually dead and destroyed beneath Scottie from the window, exposes the overwhelming and unhealthy nature in his seemingly “affectionate” feelings towards

Madeline and Judy are two polar opposite female characters that are constructed from a male idea of beauty. Madeline is a typical Hitchcockian blonde: well-endowed, breathy voice and beyond reach. She wears heels, formfitting clothing and wears her hair in a tight bun. She also acts suicidal which should be a red flag for Scottie. Yet, men love beautiful woman who are a little unstable, as it inflates their ego to play the role of the savior. Judy is a beautiful and available woman. She is less classy than Madeline and is a realist, while

Midge also contradicts the male gaze because she is placed in a position of power over Scottie, as he goes to her to deal with his vulnerabilities regarding acrophobia in the beginning of the film. Midge’s position of power over Scottie is further affirmed as she refers to herself as “mother” multiple times in the film. An example is seen when Scottie mentions seeming lost in the mental hospital and Midge replies “You’re not lost, Mother's here.” Scottie’s acceptance of this represents a castration affect not typical to the male gaze, as well as the extremely atypical acceptance of a female in power in a film by a lead male.

Throughout cinema, there has always been space in our hearts for the gore and intrigue that come from horror films. Though they come with different plots, there remains “the monster”, the character that brings along disgust, horror, suspense, and even sympathy. In Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960), our monster is Norman Bates, the boy next door. This was one of the first times in American cinema that the killer was brought home, paving the way for the future of horror movies. According to Robin Wood in “An Introduction to the America Horror Film” (183-208), Bates follows the formula of the Monster being a human psychotic. This is conveyed through his normal façade portrayed with his introduction, the audience’s ambivalence, the use of

In The Uncanny, Freud discusses the different definitions and claims that various theorists have made regarding the feeling of uncanny. He defines the different factors that provoke the uncanny in humans and demonstrates how these factors elicit that strange and seemingly inexplicable feeling. Similarly, in Vertigo, Alfred Hitchcock, adopts the various factors that cause the uncanny to alter Scottie’s identity and beliefs. Ultimately, when Scottie is transformed from a rational being to a psychotic obsessive, it serves to indicate the severity of Scottie’s mental instability and his detachment from reality.

The movie Vertigo (1958) deals with a lot that would be typical of a Hitchcock film. The audience as a fear of what will happen with the dread of what could happen. Just as Scottie felt when he was hanging from the roof. With the loss of one fear, Scottie gained another. This essay will link vertigo to obsession and how Scottie was no longer suffering from vertigo he now suffered with obsession, and that he was never cured of acrophobia.