Must-See: Vertigo

When trying to think of the perfect movie to start off a series of must-see movies, Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo very quickly came to mind. Beside the fact that I consider it a perfect movie, it's one of those flicks that us film fanatics take for granted. While I, for example, have seen it several times and have read untold numbers of analyses and write-ups on it, there are a great many average Joes who may know of Hitchcock and star Jimmy Stewart and maybe even the movie itself, but who have know idea what it's even about.

The 'Must-Sees' series will be a way for me to gently urge my readers who haven't seen some of these movies that enthusiasts have long ago accepted as masterpieces to give them a chance. I know there are a lot of people who wish they could be in your shoes in watching a classic like Vertigo for the first time. And for people who have seen the movies I include here, maybe this can be a reminder of just how great they are. Sometimes we film addicts will watch a great movie once cause we're supposed to and never revisit it, forgetting how much fun great movies can be.

The format of these Must-See posts will be short and simple. These are the kind of movies that don't need any help from me in convincing anyone that they're great, so I'll refrain from long essays of analyzation and waxing philisophic. I will merely answer a few of the questions that I imagine a normal movie-watcher may ask about a movie that they may have always heard of in conversations of all-time greats, but don't know if they would actually enjoy.

First off, what's it about? Vertigo concerns a private investigator named Scottie who, at the beginning of the picture, witnesses his partner fall off a roof to his death, and very nearly does the same himself, while in pursuit of a criminal. He now experiences intense vertigo anytime he is in a remotely high place, and therefore retires. He is talked out of retirement by an old college friend who hires him to follow his wife Madeleine, who is acting kind of crazy. As Scottie learns more about her, he gradually falls for her, which leads to deadly circumstances.

Who's in it? The star is James Stewart, who plays the detective with all of the actor's usual qualities, allowing us to like him even when his character ends up doing rather unlikeable things. Many people, including Hitchcock himself thought that Stewart was wrong for the part, the most brought up reason being that he was nearly twice as old as his co-star. I think that he's great in the role, and the age difference actually adds an extra level of appropriate discomfort to the manipulative proceedings that make up the second half of the movie.

Forgotten star Kim Novak plays the girl and, like Stewart, has been long thought to be wrong for her role. And again, I think she's great at portraying exactly what the character would be going through. For those of you who haven't seen it, her character says she believes she is possessed by a ghost. Watch her performance as if it were someone trying to stop another person's personality from coming out.

I also like Barbara Geddes as Midge, Scottie's ex-girlfriend who remains friends with him, and provides the audience with at least one sympathetic character. She is always pining and always being neglected, and Geddes is good at making her character sad without being too pathetic.

So, what's so great about it? Vertigo is widely considered one of the greatest films of all time (In Sight and Sound magazine's most recent prestigious top ten list, which is compiled every year by polling hundreds of critics all over the world, Vertigo ranked #1.) and is also thought to be Alfred Hitchcock's best movie, which is interesting cause it's one of his most unique. While it is undoubtedly suspenseful, it is suspenseful in a much different way than the usual Hitchcockian thriller. Also, it's dreamlike nature and the fact that the mystery is even more mysterious than a traditional whodunit and the fact that the protagonists are very flawed individuals, all adds up to a riskily artistic endeavor that alienated its original audience, though it has earned the adoration of modern critics.

The story has a couple major twists that are sometimes called out as implausible, but Hitchcock said he specifically wanted to make a movie that had more visual power than narrative. The photography, which was done by Robert Burks is now legendary, and includes many tricks and compositions that have been so frequently copied and paid homage to that they have become part of common cinematic language. Most impressive is the famous shot when Scottie loses his balance looking down a long flight of stairs. You've probably seen the same effect used elsewhere. Also legendary is the score by Bernard Herrmann, one of the greatest film compositions, which is quiet and mysterious at some points and incredibly powerful when it needs to be.

Yeah, but is it any good? I find Vertigo to be a truly thrilling experience, partly because it is so spectacular on a cinematic level. Everything from the cinematography to the music to the acting ticks to the costumes to the colors to the sound design is just so perfectly and carefully put together that I daresay it's impossible for a true cinephile not to enjoy it. On a different level, I truly think the story is very enjoyable on its own. Twisty movies like this have always been popular because audiences like trying to figure out what will happen, though it can be a problem if the audience thinks what does happen is unbelievable.

I know that I had no idea what was going on the first time I saw Vertigo, so I reacted with all the surprise Hitchcock intended me to have (It will work best if you know as little as possible about it before you see it). I also find that it holds up really well on repeat viewings, because it becomes more of a psychological study. Once you know what's going to happen, you can focus more on what's driving the characters to make it happen.

There are a lot of people who don't think Vertigo is anywhere near as good as I do. This is understandable because it takes a fairly cold approach to its story and characters, which can be offputting for pure mystery fans, but rewarding for fans of pure cinema. However you end up feeling about it, there is no question that Vertigo is a must-see.

Where can I watch it? It's available on DVD and blu-ray from Universal, and it is available to rent physically and digitally from all the usual places.

Here's some more thoughts on the film, though I don't recommend reading them until you've seen it: http://filmaddictatlarge.blogspot.com/2015/09/more-on-vertigo.html