Known as "The Master of Suspense", Alfred Hitchcock crafted a pantheon of thrillers, romances, and mysteries with a skill and eye for detail that has never been repeated. He's consistently rated as the greatest director in the history of film, and he was incredibly popular in his heyday (unlike many directors who only receive acclaim decades after their death). Hitchcock, along with his wife Alma, crafted some of the best films of their era, and continue to inspire countless directors with their unique perfectionist styles, and attention to the nuanced aspects that make suspense work so well. Every decision he made was carefully planned, and no one knew how to craft a masterpiece quite like him. It's natural for every academic film course to feature at least one movie from this prolific director.
Why do you think Professor Ratekin chose Vertigo as the definitive Hitchcock to view? Sure, it's received much critical acclaim in recent years. But out of all of the Master's films, why Vertigo? Psycho, Rear Window, or North by Northwest are arguably better, and more popular, choices. Even the lesser known films like Marnie, Notorious, Rope, and Strangers on a Train demonstrate Hitchcock's signature style better than Vertigo.
But, maybe this is what Ratekin intended. The movie is so much different than other Hitchcock pictures, as the mystery is solved in the middle and the romance does not work out in the end. It's a thought-provoking, almost dream-like movie in it's lucid qualities and bizarre twists of fate. Whether you liked it or not, Vertigo is a movie you'll grow to love the more and more you learn about it. What was your initial reaction to Vertigo?
The score is a haunting rendition by Bernard Hermann, who next to John Williams is the best film composer of all time. You'll have that song stuck in your head for weeks, and it makes you feel as obsessed as Scottie. The music is absolutely genius, and Martin Scorsese sums it up beautifully. Did the music stand out to you? Was it familiar or different from other musical scores you've listened to before?
The opening credits, designed by Saul Bass, are regularly cited as some of the best ever done. From the woman (not actually Novak), to the spinning circles of desires, it is a haunting opening that sets the tone for the rest of the picture. In addition, the use of color in the film is fascinating; in particular, the green hue is striking when Judy walks out for the first time as Madeline, in the grey suit with the crafted hair.
The casting is infamous for the debacle of who would play Judy/Madeline, with Vera Miles initially attached but becoming pregnant right before production. Alfred Hitchcock ultimately cast Kim Novak, which, according to legend, was to spite Miles for choosing family over fame. Many people believe Novak was also chosen because she was such a bad actress, and that Hitchcock did this on purpose to show her character as a little off. Was Novak more believable as Judy, or Madeline? Why? Watching Novak in Vertigo seems to be a work of dramatic genius, but as her later career shows, this was by and large her one-hit-wonder.
Jimmy Stewart is much different here than we're used to seeing him; he's not the nice guy best friend (The Philadelphia Story), nor is he the good all around guy (It's a Wonderful Life). Instead, he's a sexist, obsessive old man who falls in love with a picture. We're not used to seeing Stewart damaged (or in color, for that matter), so his casting seems bizarre when we first watch the movie. Stewart, despite being a Hitchcock regular, never worked with the director again after Vertigo, as the director credited Stewart's old age and lack of familiarity in color to the film's financial failure. Did you like Jimmy Stewart's character? Or, for that matter, did you think Jimmy Stewart was good in the picture?
Despite recent academic discussion, Vertigo was considered a bomb when first released. Alfred Hitchcock believed it to be his masterpiece, the one work which will send him to artistic fame. However, the film was a bomb at the box office, barely breaking even, and saved solely by Hitchcock's name. Critics had mixed feelings about it, citing it's overly long narrative and excruciating slowness as the biggest complaints. Why do you think people originally felt this way? Does it "feel" like a Hitchcock movie?
But after Hitchcock's death in 1980, French academics began revisiting his works to judge him artistically rather than popularly. They found Vertigo to be the greatest of his films, with so many symbols and cinematic innovations that were overlooked in 1958.
I really enjoyed watching Vertigo, as this was my first time watching the film, I found myself taking notes questioning the mystery that was unfolding as well as the cinematic elements. Through mise-en-scene, music, acting, camera angles and symbolic clues, I felt deeply engrossed in not only the murder mystery, but the mystery of the sanity of the characters. I was wondering what was real and what was not, was Judy real, was Madeline possessed, was Scottie sane enough by the end of the movie to believe anything? Since the movie was told through the point-of-view of Scottie, who was losing his sanity, the movie felt like a dream, or a nightmare. The music stood out especially to me, because not only was it beautiful and haunting, but it also conveyed the mood or the scene and the emotions of the characters. The music acted as Scotties inner dialogue and conveyed the mystery and danger of Madeline while she did not talk for the first 30 minutes after she was seen at Ernies. The background was also important, as it was filmed on location in San Francisco and the many church steeples foreshadowed to madelines death while the hills of San Francisco added an element of vertigo on their own.
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Charlotte Mays- This film was by far one of my favorite in the class. Although I have heard of Vertigo and knew it was a mystery, this was my first time watching the film. In the beginning during the opening credits (the close up of the woman, and the spinning visuals) I felt myself becoming quite anxious and found it to be very haunting. The music during the opening definitely increased those feelings. So for me it definitely set the tone for the rest of the film. I knew this was not going to be a “typical mystery” film, but rather a “psychological mystery.” As mentioned in the lecture notes, the film doesn’t focus on Madeleine’s murder (like most mystery films). But instead focuses on Scottie and his vertigo (his psyche).
ReplyDeleteThe music in the film definitely stood out to me. The use of the music in scenes such as when madeleine jumps into the water, runs towards the ocean, or when she “jumps” from the bell tower, generates a sense of urgency and fear as to what was going to happen. The sudden heightening in the volume of the music dramatically increases the anxiety and anticipation during the film, because for most we are figuring out the answers alongside Scottie. There are no hints or clues revealed to the audience that Scottie doesn’t already know, so the music gives the audience the same feelings/emotions that Scottie is experiencing in each scene.
In the film, Novak was more believable as Madeline. I think a large part of this has to do with experiencing Novak as Madeline for most of the film. This made it difficult for me to see her as a character like Judy. Her act as Madeline was so convincing and so well done, that it was hard to accept her as someone entirely different (perhaps that’s similar to what Scottie experienced in the film). The two characters contrasted each other completely, that it was hard to see her as Judy when she tricked Scottie (and the audience) that she was someone totally different.
I really enjoyed Jimmy Stewart’s character and thought he was great in the film. At each moment in the film, the confusion, anxiety, fear, obsession, and anger his character experienced was easily felt by the audience.
I think the movie experienced so much criticism because everything Scottie was finding out, the audience was finding out with him. There was no foreshadowing, no ideas given to the audience about what is actually happening. Or at least until towards the end when Judy begins to write Scottie a note about the truth. The audience is brought through Scottie’s entire thought process during the film, which is slowly unraveled. For me, this is what made the film so great.
I agree that this movie was an odd choice. Having seen other Hitchcock movies before, I find that Vertigo doesn't live up to them. Coming off of the Bicycle Thieves however, I appreciated the choice of movie. As mentioned above, the mystery is solved relatively early and the romance ultimately fails. For that reason, it makes the movie much more realistic. Even with the the whole supernatural undertone, I think the movie could happen in real life. A guy becoming obsessed with a woman to the point of delusion sounds really realistic too me. The choice of Novak as well made the movie realistic. As said above, she wasn't the greatest actor that could've been chosen for the role. But she had a quality that made her seem more real to me, even if her acting wasn't as great. This movie isn't a lot better than the others and my attention drifted away a little, but it was captivating enough that i wanted to finish the movie and see what happens in the end.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely loved this movie!! It was very confusing, with a bit of an alternative way to it. It is interesting, the effects of spiriling and almost "trippy-like" that was used. It is also ironic because only a couple years down the road, a lot of music artists (like Pink Floyd nd the Beatles) became intrigued with special effects like that to put with their music. It was something really different, that I would not have expected with this movie. But I do think Hitchcock did a fabulous job. James Stewart is also an incredible actor. I have seen him in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and he can be completely two different characters.
ReplyDeleteI thought this movie was so-so -- however I have always enjoyed Hitchcock films. The physiological twist Hitchcock provides is always interesting. I personally enjoyed witnessing beautiful San Francisco during the 1950's -- that was quite enjoyable. Beauty and perceived innocence have incredible influence on the human mind. It took me a while to fully understand this movie -- nevertheless, it was quite interesting. I thought the acting was spot-on.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this movie. The score was really well done, and helped illustrate Scottie's feelings for Novak's character, as well as his fear and panic. I really enjoyed the twists in the movie and appreciated that it was more of a psychological thriller than focused on the mystery.
ReplyDeleteI think Novak did better as Madeleine, because it was easier to believe her slightly wooden behavior as a woman who was possibly posessed, especially since she was supposed to be elusive and draw Stewart's character in. As Judy though, Novak's comparative lack of ability shone through a little more when her character had more room to be genuine and had to show more emotion, so her portrayal just felt a bit off. Jimmy Stewart is a great actor, and I think he did a pretty good job in the film, but I can see why Hitchcock blamed him for being too old. It just looked odd to see him next to Novak who was so much younger than he was, and even stranger to see him next to Barbara Bel Geddes, since their characters were supposed to be roughly the same age. He just looked out of place for much of the movie, and he seemed a bit too old for his character to be jumping around rooftops in the first place.
I enjoyed watching this film, especially due to the plot twist of Madeleine/Judy identity. I was fascinated by the array of shots he used, especially the dolly shot used for the shooting the moving stairs. I feel like it was a Hitchcock movie because of the novel techniques, such as the 360 degree shot of Judy and Scottie kissing. The acting was amazing, the scenery was gorgeous, and the plot twists kept me engaged.
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