Vertigo – Hitchcock Defying Genre
“…alternatively, a film can revise or reject the conventions associated with its genre” - Bordwell
Based on the French novel D’Entre les Morts by Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac, Vertigo is arguably one of Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpieces and the “strangest, yet most hauntingly beautiful film he had ever made” (Adair, 2002). At the time, its far-fetched plot drew a mixed response from critics – Time magazine called the movie a “Hitchcock and bull story” – but today most agree that it is one of the director’s most deeply felt pictures. Vertigo very easily categorized into a specific genre – Thriller, a genre of movies that, in many ways, Hitchcock played a major role in defining. Thrillers are
…show more content…
He finally settles down onto the couch, facing away from the toilet door, waiting. As the bathroom door opens, he turns to his left, and we only see his left profile (Fig 1.), a mirror image to the first time he set eyes on Madeleine in the restaurant – unsure, and this time, full of anticipation. We are reminded of the green motif, by the neon light outside Judy’s apartment. As Scottie turns around to fully see the resurrected Madeleine, he slowly stands up and at this point the music starts to pick up, leading us to the point at which he sees his beloved. The camera tracks into a close up of Scottie’s face, with the green light reflecting off his eye, he almost looks like he has tears in his eyes (Fig 2.). Cut to Judy/ Madeleine stepping out of the toilet, it is Scottie’s POV of Madeleine bathed in ghostly green light. Similar to the scene in the cemetery where Madeleine was shot through a fog filter, which gave her the green glow, Judy/ Madeleine now had green light superimposed around her body, which gave her the appearance of a blurred, ghostly figure (Fig 3.). This reflected Madeleine coming back from the dead, now a ghost, as green is usually used to represent ghost or spirits in film. She then slips out of the blur and into focus, Hitchcock used this to indicate Scottie’s come back to reality, coming to his senses as he spots the locket in the next scene, realizing that Judy has been tricking him all along (Truffaut, 1985).
Recently while watching two old film classics, Vertigo and Notorious, I found myself thinking of other movies directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Most of his movies have many things in common, while remaining completely independent of each other. These two films have different plots, actors, and most obvious one is filmed in color the other black and white. Which leads me to believe that Alfred Hitchcock really knew what he was about; as a result his films all a have a distinctive theme about them. Both films keep you in a state of anticipation as the stories unfold and reveal the twist and turns that Alfred Hitchcock was famous for. Notorious was written in 1946 a year after World War II came to an end and the
The colors are demonstrated in such a way that symbolize the double personality that is played by Judy through her impersonation in the first half of the film as well as during the second half of the film when the truth is revealed to first the audience and later to Scottie. First seen in the restaurant with the prolonged profile shot of Madeleine and later with the green wardrobe choices of both Judy and Scottie, it becomes clear that the color green is representative of the double life each of these characters play. Scottie is perceived by Midge from his “good old college days” (53) only as a retired detective who suffers from severe acrophobia. In contrast, the audience views Scottie as a possessive and controlling psychopath after the reveal that he has fallen in love with an imposter who helped his old friend stage a murder. Following his mental breakdown and hospitalization, his obsession of sex and domination over women intensifies and reveals to the audience the two-sided persona that Scottie has likely been living with his whole life. Once again, Hitchcock presents his audience with a chance to acknowledge the multiple sides of their own personalities and how these differences parallel the bidirectional aspects of both Judy and Scottie’s
Francois Truffaut, when referring to Hitchcock said that “he exercises such complete control over all the elements of his films and imprints his personal concepts at each step of the way, Hitchcock has a distinctive style of his own. He is undoubtedly one of the few film-makers on the horizon today whose screen signature can be identified as soon as the picture begins.” Many people have used Hitchcock as the ultimate example of an auteur as there are many common themes and techniques found amongst his films. Even between the two films “Shadow of a Doubt” and “Vertigo,” many commonalities occur.
Alfred Hitchcock was known as the “Master of Suspense” for the psychological suspense in his
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.
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.
For this paper, I have decided to compare two Hitchcock films. Ever since I can remember, I have seen Alfred Hitchcock films; Psycho, The Birds, North by Northwest, I enjoy his work because I like the suspense, and visual effects that he was able to accomplish. Out of all of his films, I believe that my favorite Hitchcock films would have to be Rear Window (1954) and Vertigo (1958), because I think that the two incorporate everything that is “Alfred Hitchcock”. Hitchcock films are known for being mysterious, cynical, as well as suspenseful and they are all similar because of his use of symbolism, light, repetitive actors, and repetition of theme.
Like many of his films, Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window (1954) is an intense study in the sometimes-jarring idiosyncrasies of its main character, L.B. Jeffries (James Stewart). Jeffries is an observer by nature, a professional photographer confined to his apartment by an injury, with only insurance company nurse Stella (Thelma Ritter) and his girlfriend, Lisa Fremont (Grace Kelly) for company. This limitation impels him to begin observing his neighbors, and he witnesses events that lead him to believe Lars Thorwald (Raymond Burr) has murdered his wide. However, Jeffries’ watchful habit raises serious questions about the relationships between neighbors and ethics of observation in densely-populated urban settings. Rear Window uses set design and disparate camera techniques to codify the acceptable and unacceptable ways in which a city dweller might observe their neighbors, based largely on level on intent.
Vertigo (1958), directed by Alfred Hitchcock, is an American psychological thriller film that communicates ideas, themes and issues through the use of its visual style. The visual stylistic choices enable the exploration of madness, scopophilia and feminist film theory within the film. This paper will critically analyse how this is realised mainly through the use of “the Vertigo effect”, spirals as a motif, the male gaze and colour. The theme of madness is a centerpiece to the film.
Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 drama Vertigo explores the mystery and relationship through ex-detective Scottie and elusive Madeleine. Although some see it as a love story hidden within a psychological thriller, it is also a critique of cinema, gender, and the sexist issues of the time. The dynamics between Scottie and Midge and Scottie and Madeleine/Judy demonstrate these issues. Hitchcock uses Scotties character to portray the uncomfortable male-centric viewpoint of most films through plot, mise en scene, and character blocking.
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
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
Am I really awake typing a paper for philosophy? Did I just watch the Hitchcock film Shadow of a Doubt or did the “not so supremely good God” plant a reel of thoughts in my head (Descartes16)? That would be ironic since the themes of the film are based upon human understanding of doubt, dreams, good, evil, ignorance and knowledge. The film portrays a neat staircase that leads into the house of an all American family and a rickety set of stairs off the side of the house that are private and used for escape. After watching the deep hidden meanings and symbolism in the film, one could perceive the image of the parallel staircases like a metaphor for the human mind. This would bring the audience into a deeper place, dark,
Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, is the story of a photographer named L.B. Jeffries who is currently confined to a wheelchair because of a leg injury and therefore unable to leave his apartment. Out of boredom, he begins watching his neighbors, going as far as to name them and come up with scenarios for them. He seeming has all control and all from the comfort of his apartment. His girlfriend, Lisa, whom he deems “too perfect” and is unable to commit to her fully, is not as interesting as the lives of his neighbors; that is until she herself becomes interested in them as well. Laura Mulvey and Tania Modleski have both written about Rear Window and the way it either follows the normal gender roles or contradicts them. Despite being interested in similar subject matter, the two women have differing opinions on the approach of the film; is Lisa the passive object or the active agent? (Modleski, 723). The arguments presented by both women cause the viewer to not only see this film as a critique on movie viewing but on the male gaze and whether or not the man is truly in control of the world he sees around him.
The lighting used by Hitchcock also serves to portray Madeleine as a fantasy woman, using the lighting to highlight her face. As Madeleine passes by Scottie in the restaurant she is bathed in a soft light which makes her all the more noticeable against the backdrop of a dimly-lit restaurant. Furthermore, as she passes by him, she is shown in a full body shot in the center of the frame, which Hitchcock uses to create an overwhelming sense of romance. Here, Madeleine is the desired object clearly separated from her mundane surroundings. The viewer is aggressively confronted with Madeleine’s image and this allows us to be swept up in the romantic fantasy along with Scottie. The lighting used in this scene actively draws the viewer to her features and ensures that all attention is on her. The audience are enticed and seduced by her and this stretches to Scottie as well as we can see that he is drawn to her and has to make an effort to be covert.