Note from the Author: This was written only by Allie as an assignment for her intro to performing arts class. It’s considerably more formal and more researched than most, if not all, of the other reviews will be. This could be considered an actual review and not just a chaotic good time. I don’t remember the prompt that I needed to fill with the review, but I do remember having to watch the movie twice because I fell asleep the first time.
Art is subjective, but it is hard to argue that Alfred Hitchcock is not one of the best filmmakers of all time. His distinct film style earned him numerous awards and nominations from some of the most respected organizations, such as the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences and the New York Critics Circle (Alfred Hitchcock- Awards). In 2012, the movie Vertigo topped the list of the greatest films of all time, as decided by the British Film Institute. In watching the movie, I felt and noticed many things that still continue to influence movies and television today. However, I would be hard pressed to call Vertigo the greatest film of all time, especially sixty years after it was made. Through the complex theme, genius use of music, and distinct editing style, Vertigo is certainly a movie for the books, but emotionally I did not enjoy the film.
Obsession— obsession leading to destruction— this is the main theme of the movie, as recognized by myself and multiple others, such as Peter Bradshaw in his article “Vertigo Review- Still Spinning in its Dizzying Magic.” In his article, Bradshaw notes, “… And therefore extremely applicable to this drama of obsession and voyeurism….” Scottie is driven solely by his obsession; first by his obsession to save Madeleine, and then again by his obsession to prove that Judy was Madeleine and that he was duped, which leads to Judy’s death. When Scottie first begins to follow Judy, who is dressed up and acting as Madeleine, he quickly falls in love with her. His only objective is to help her out of her “possession,” and he does this by any means necessary, even telling her she is safe and kissing her when she desperately wants to be let go. In the end, she still ends up dead because he forces her to the top of the church tower in a manic episode as he recounts how she and Gavin Elster tricked him, and after this she falls. Scottie’s obsession with her and with the truth leads to her demise, and it leaves Scottie with nothing.
Though Scottie’s obsession with Judy is the main component of the theme, Midge is also proof of how obsession can destroy the things people love most. It is known that Midge and Scottie dated in college, and it is clear through Midge’s actions and words that she still feels something for Scottie. For example, when she tells Scottie, “You know there’s only one man in the world for me, JohnnyO,” when they are first shown together in her apartment. Midge is somewhat supportive of Scottie’s endeavors with Madeleine; she allows him in her apartment, and they have easy conversations most days. That is until Midge decides to fully commit to Scottie, painting herself into Carlotta Valdes as she tries to convince Scottie that she is just as good as Madeleine, and instead Scottie leaves in a fit. Midge is upset with herself but tries again to be there for Scottie during his temporary stay in the hospital. Despite her efforts, she realizes she has lost him, and that is the last the audience sees of her. It is not Midge’s fault that Scottie has his breakdown; however, the audience does not see any interaction between the two until his breakdown after the painting incident. Perhaps the relationship could have been saved, tragically one-sided, but still existing. Due to Midge’s obsession with Scottie and her love for him, she loses him in a way similar to Scottie losing Madeleine.
As is clear from the beginning of the movie, the sound, specifically the music, is of great importance, so much so it even supports the theme. Music is used primarily throughout the film to illustrate the intensity of the characters’ feelings at any given time. At the very start of the film, during the police chase, Scottie is feeling very anxious, and this is shown as the music swells and dips to him sliding down the roof and then watching his coworker die. Another example of this is when Scottie lays eyes on Madeleine for the first time. As quickly as she comes into the shot, a light, heavenly music overtakes the scene, highlighting an almost love-at-first-sight experience, and it is clear Scottie likes what he sees. This choice affects the audience because as the music becomes more suspenseful through volume and pace, or more lustful through the use of minors or majors, the anticipation grows for all those watching just as it does for those involved. When the waves splash over the rocks, and the elegant, long phrases in Bernard Herrmann’s score wash over Scottie and Madeleine during their first kiss, it also washes over the audience, who are enthralled with the mystery and passion of the scene.
Music is also used as a foreshadowing and stylistic device; Midge plays Bach, a classical composer, during her first meeting with Scottie. She then tries to pull him from the void of his mind using Mozart later in the film. Scottie does not like the classical music from the beginning, which shows the audience that the relationship Midge and Scottie have is out of sync, and that this dislike of her music is the beginning of the two slipping apart.
Aside from the use of music, the editing styles used in Vertigo are central to how audiences perceive the film. Overlapping editing, which is showing the same action from multiple angles, is used heavily in Vertigo (Part 4: Editing). The repetitive shots allow the audience to see the same motion from different perspectives. For example,when we first watch Madeleine gaze at the painting of Carlotta and again when we watch Scottie admire Madeleine as she gazes. This creates a deeper mystery than if an audience had just seen the shot once; it creates a sense that there is something else to be looked for in the scene. As Paige Driscoll further explains in “‘The Hitchcock Touch:’ Visual Techniques in the World of Alfred Hitchcock,” “Odd angles… place the audience members in a place they don’t normally find themselves and alert them of what they may not have noticed otherwise.” It makes sense that this type of editing was used given the prominence of observation in the movie as opposed to the use of dialogue to find out information.
Not only do angles help shape the movie, but the editing of Vertigo also greatly affects its pace. The pacing connects back to the use of music because the pace of the music directly correlates to the pace of events. There are distinct changes of pace: before Madeleine dies, immediately after she dies, and at least one year after she dies. Before, the pacing is slow but tolerable. The audience watches days go by somewhat lazily despite the amount of information and intrigue that comes from them. For instance, watching Madeleine stare at the portrait of Carlotta adds to the mystery even though she is not doing anything dramatic. Scottie follows Madeleine, then Scottie and Madeleine start going out together, then Scottie goes to Midge’s apartment and relaxes with her; all of these are mundane events that at times may become hard to follow, but follow them the audience does.
Immediately after Madeleine’s death, however, things come to a screeching halt. A close shot, lasting only a few minutes, of Scottie sitting in a chair, oblivious to the world, portrays how Scottie’s life seems to have stopped after Madeleine’s death and the trial. He no longer has things to do, not even mundane things, nor does he have any motivation to do said things now that he is reeling in the loss of the source of his obsession.
Fast forward an unmentioned amount of time, possibly between six months and one year, and the pace begins to pick up, even faster than it was during the first half of the film. When Scottie speaks to people and makes observances it feels more rushed. He decides to follow Judy and enters her apartment, and then they begin to date, and then he begins to change her into Madeleine, and it all happens quickly even though the individual shots are slow. The movie crescendos as the pair once again ascends the tower steps, this time under much different pretenses, and then share a last kiss, before a nun startles Judy and she falls to her death. The pacing is somewhat disorienting; at times it feels too slow or too fast to fully absorb the major plot points, but it also makes the movie that much easier to sink into. The mundane tasks may seem boring, but they are broken up enough to keep an audience interested, and they become even more important once the plot finally is revealed, and the scenes can be revisited with a new attention to detail.
Another interesting point of Vertigo is the blocking, specifically the use of levels in blocking to emphasize a difference in power. Hitchcock often shows the one in power at a higher level than the one without, even if neither the character nor the audience knows it at the time. The first time this is done is when Galvin Ester and Scottie are talking in the former’s office. Galvin is standing as he speaks about the woes he and his wife are going through, and Scottie listens intently while sitting. As Galvin’s true motive is finally revealed at the end, it is clear that he held the true power and was only using Scottie as his puppet. Scottie briefly regains power in this scene when he forcefully stands and refuses to take the job at first. However, once he consents to following Madeleine the power is again in Galvin’s hands. This also happens after Madeleine wakes up from her dip in the bay and Scottie tells her to sit by the fire; he throws some pillows on the floor for her and then sits on the arm of his couch, studying her. He has the power then, only to lose it when Madeleine runs off into the night. The emphasis on power dynamics in Vertigo is crucial to understanding the plot, especially later in the film, and understanding why characters make the choices they do.
While everything aforementioned does make Vertigo an analysist’s dream, I did not have a positive emotional reaction to it. The film was my first introduction to Hitchcock’s work, so I came into it as a fairly clean slate apart from what I know, or perceive to know, about Psycho. I thought the first half of the film was fairly boring; the mystery did not seem to fit together in an enticing way. As time progressed, however, I began to enjoy the movie far more. When the pacing sped up was when the true story started to unravel in a way that kept my interest. In spite of my interest, however, some parts of the plot, such as Scottie’s forced recreation of Madeleine onto Judy, are hard to swallow from the perspective of a female in 2018. While I understand its significance to the plot, these actions were only partially motivated by his obsession with her. These actions were also motivated simply out of Scottie’s desire to love Madeleine, and Madeleine alone; it is hard to watch that type of assertion for any reason. That conflict specifically angered me, and washed away any positive feelings I had towards the film. I also felt the story was fairly weak in terms of writing, which made it hard to like. Instead of feeling fulfilled at the end of the film, I felt betrayed which further angered me. Emotionally I was left hanging, looking for a better explanation, trying to remember any real clues provided in the film that would have actually helped solve the true plot. I came up empty, as did some of my peers whom I discussed the film with after. The lack of cohesion in writing was irritating.
Aside from the writing issues, I do not personally connect to the film as a psychological thriller or as a film noir, which it is credited to be by American Multi-Cinema. I felt it lacked the spark that would have truly made it psychologically thrilling. None of the plot points were enough of any one thing to provide a sense of discomfort or fear or anything, really. As I watched the story unfold, I was more so looking for the next moment of conflict than feeling there was so much information I needed to solve this mystery myself. Overall, Hitchcock made many masterful decisions in his crafting of Vertigo. It is understandable, from a cinematic perspective, why it is considered one of the greatest films of all time. Nevertheless, from the standpoint of someone watching a movie for entertainment, it does lack some of the key ingredients, such as chemistry or suspense, to stand out as the best. While Vertigo aims high, I do not feel its elements were able to come together enough to hit the bullseye of greatest film of all time; Vertigo, like many of its characters, triumphed in some ways but fell in many others.
Alignment Reviews 