VERTIGO (1958) Movie Reaction - FIRST TIME WATCHING
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- čas přidán 18. 11. 2021
- Hello Everybody!
I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS TWIST
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Starring:
James Stewart, Kim Novak, Barbara Bel Geddes, Tom Helmore, Henry Jones, and Raymond Bailey
Written by:
Pierre Boileau, Thomas Narcejac, Alec Coppel, and Samuel A. Taylor
Directed by:
Alfred Hitchcock - Krátké a kreslené filmy
Vertigo is finally here and I loved it! The lighting in this thing is phenomenal!!! The GREEN representing Madeleine and how it infuses her room with green when she is in hiding and she is always incorporated with something green. The twists as well were amazing and I never saw any of them coming!!!
Thanks for watching! Have a great day!! :)
lol if you had to do this over would you have chosen green????
Hello; you can also watch "North by Northwest", "Psycho" and "The Birds"; they are also very famous.
My friend Dorothy's father did the music for Vertigo.
RolyPolyOllie Reactions Scotty's DeSoto is also green, and so is Midge's Karrmann Ghia.
My italics didn’t get reproduced. The next to last sentence should be: “This is, to take your perspective on opening portions of his movies, VISUAL character development; he enters another world.”
The beggining of Matrix with the police following Trinity by the roof is a tribute to the first Vertigo scene.
Good new Hollywood. No original thoughts.
@@billolsen4360it’s an homenage c’mone, that’s not lack of originality + many classic gems are book adaptations (like vertigo)
@@angienoexiste Very distant from the book by Pierre Boileau and Raymond Narcejac "d'Entre les morts"! rewritten several times by Hitch's rewriters, scenarists etc ! It took almost 2 years !
Don’t forget, he stands out on the ledge and looks down at madeleine, meaning his vertigo is cured as well..
At least Gavin & Judy did that much for him
There's a LOT of subtext about the tragedy of romantic relationships. I really like Midge. She's a pivotal character for the first half of the movie, and then she disappears from the story completely. She loves Scotty, she's there for him when no one else is. But she is not Madeleine/Judy, even though she tries to get Scotty to see her that way (her 'self-portrait', which he brutally rejects). But this movie is about Scotty's sickness-- his vertigo has nothing to do with his acrophobia, it's how he becomes completely disoriented by a beautiful woman. He wasn't even interested in Judy herself, just in the fantasy woman he fell in love with. He changed the woman to fit his fantasy instead of accepting the love of the real woman in front of him.
Thank you for sharing your reaction to this fantastic film! I do appreciate the great content you create here. :)
PS- My favorite Kim Novak movie is "Bell, Book, and Candle"-- also stars James Stewart & well worth a watch!
It's interesting how - again - the emotional abuse of Scotty by Judy is not mentioned.
@@haps2019 Judy played a role, no doubt, but it's Scotty's college buddy who set up the whole charade in the first place. He was never, ever held accountable for putting Scotty in that position-- Judy paid for those sins. But was she really the villain?
@@anniethenonnymouse Yes, she was A villain. She manipulated and abused Scotty, and she was an active part in a murder ploy. I'm starting to find it really disgusting how everybody sees her as the poor, poor girl. But then, it's of course a question of gender...
@@haps2019 I appreciate your passion for the topic, and I'm not disagreeing that Judy is not an innocent. What I'm saying is that the true catalyst for Scotty's re-traumatization was his college buddy, Gavin Elster. Gavin, full well knowing of Scotty's trauma, hired him to "rescue" his poor bewitched wife. Gavin, seeking to rid himself of his marital burden, hired a young & likely-hungry girl, Judy, to play a part in his plan. Judy is not innocent-- she agreed to deceive a man she didn't know, just for a few bucks (maybe Gavin promised her more?). But it was Gavin Elster who laid the plan, Gavin Elster who achieved his goal, and Gavin Elster who got away with murder. Judy was a pawn in the game of both Gavin and Scotty, regardless of her "innocence".
Thank you for engaging with me in this discussion-- I'm really enjoying the exchange of perspectives!
@@anniethenonnymouse And I appreciate your answers, thank you! I just think she wasn't just a pawn, she was an active part in this murder. Was Elster the guiltier (more guilty?) part? Yeah, perhaps. It just annoys me that Scotty's suffering, his post-traumatic stress and his feelings of guilt are usually ignored, and that most critics see him just as the ultimate creep (you know: dominance, obsession, "male gaze", and whatnot) who tortures this poor little girl. Yes, this film has, of course, its own gender clichés, but this new interpretation is not much more than another cliché, and it does not do justice to the story and the characters, imo. Sorry, this is not an attack on you, I just wanted to explain why I reacted, perhaps, a little passionate about the topic.
When he repeats to her "You were a very apt pupil..." imho that's Stewart's finest acting.
Stewart at his darkest. But after all, Scottie's entire adult career had been devoted to solving crimes and preventing crimes, so to be used as a patsy for a friend committing a murder for profit has got to be the unkindest cut of all.
I love watching your reactions SO much because you really catch so many "filmmaker" details - this is my fave Hitchcock after repeated viewings and I still never connected all the green with Madeleine/Judy's wardrobe! I was always so fascinated with the lighting that it never occurred to me until watching your analysis that the first time John/Scottie sees her in both her incarnations, she is wearing green! (and notice that both characters have multiple names - that could be a thesis right there). Incidentally, the green light is traditionally the light associated with ghosts, and the Hitchcock's jokey original title for this movie was "To Lay a Ghost" - kind of a funny double entendre. Scottie's obsession with raising Madeleine from the dead really does border on necrophilia, and we really do start to sympathize (once again, as in a lot of Hitch's films) with the "villain", Judy. Bernard Herrmann's score is one of the best EVER and has been recycled in such movies as The Artist and elsewhere, and I love that you give it its due credit. I do have to disagree with you about the opening being too slow - one of the uncredited stars of this film is the city of San Francisco, and it was chosen very deliberately because of the winding, vertiginous streets. . . it's the filmmaker starting to mesmerize the audience into the fever dream that the movie becomes and making the city itself one of the characters. The McKittrick Hotel scene is still a mystery - was the woman at the desk paid off? Was there a back window fire escape? Was it in his imagination? Hitch, like Kubrick in his films, doesn't explain everything, and that scene just makes it more creepy and thrilling when Madeleine disappears briefly behind the tree in the forest.
This movie is considered to be one of Hitchcock's most personal films. It reflects and comments on the attitudes of Hollywood's treatment toward women, and how the studio moguls - and by extension Hitchcock himself - used to take a fairly ordinary woman and make her up to an almost grotesque degree, to create this illusion of someone that doesn't exist: thus creating a movie star, and in Hitchcock's case, the sexy cool blonde that inhabits most of his films from this era. That is what makes this movie great, and more than just an entertainment - it delves deep into many layers of psychological and sociological meaning, beyond what even Hitchcock probably was aware of.
I can't wait to see your reaction to The Birds! :-)
I think the only blonde that escaped Hitchcock's manipulation and fiddling was Doris Day. Probably because nobody messes with Doris Day. She had well established her own image and persona.
It's true. He really "gets" a lot of the subtleties that the filmmakers put in there!
Nothing to compare with Vertigo !
kim novak and james stewart always have palpable chemistry, same as in 'bell book and candle'. but man vertigo is forever my favorite hitchcock. it's so lush, unrushed and unruly in its story of love and possession/obsession and madness.
for sure, I was greatly surprised to see them match so well in the movie. the scene at the bell tower in the end when they’re going ul the stairs is magnificent, impeccable delibery and chemistry.
as a 76-year-old movie fan, I notice how all the people (most of them very young) that review movies in this series of watching for the first time, always express a certain degree of impatience with certain slow scenes or long expositional opening scenes, when back in the 1950s that was the last thing negatively commented on. People seemed to have more patience than I think because we're so saturated nowadays in the entertainment world with immediately gratifying excitements.
Even the car chases in this film are slow...but, rewarding.
so true
Making a book or a movie is an art. The problem is nowadays movies have to be either Star Wars, marvel, or now something called dune. Never did see that one either.
I love seeing all the shots of old San Francisco. And funny how I feel nostalgic for the SF of the 1950s-60s just like the guy feels nostalgic for SF from even earlier days.
Just watched _What's Up, Doc?_ in the theater last week.
@@RaymondHng LOL "I am not A Eunice Burns. I am THE Eunice Burns!" RIP Madeline Kahn
@@billolsen4360 Judy: You don't wanna marry someone who's gonna get all wrinkled, lined and flabby!
Howard: Everyone gets wrinkled, lined and flabby!
Judy: By next week?
"Am I on drugs?" XD
This is my favourite Hitchcock =) And yes, you should rewatch it. More than once.
everytime this movie does a special screening i'm there. i've been 3 times and the 4th time I couldn't go because of a unforseen snow storm. I own it also
Music by Bernard Herrmann. One of the greatest film composers of all time. And now you know.
If your a fan of Hitchcock and James steward you should check out the Man who knew to much, very good film, has one of the most tension filled scenes ever filmed in my opinion.
the disappearance was never explained on purpose by Hitchcock but he said there are clues to figure it out. my best guess is there obviously was a back entrance which another scene referred to that. the question I have is was the woman payed off to say she didn't see her or was she able to sneak in with another key
I always assumed that it was that a good innkeeper doesn't give away the guests' secrets. After all, that was Grandma Walton.
I reckon the hotel keeper was paid off by the murderous husband.
Gavin Elster hired Judy to pose as Madeline so he could get away with her murder. Judy is herself when she meets Scotty. She falls accidentally from the tower. Kim Novak was a huge star.
“How would it not matter? It’s literally her hair.” Yes, Scottie is disturbing.
At the McKittrick hotel, she snuck in unobserved by the hotel manager, then snuck out with no one seeing her leave.
And actually, she was Judy. We never actually saw a living Madeline.
That was a dream sequence, pointing towards John's fall into needing to be institutionalized.
Or may she slipped the hotel's owner a nice crisp Fifty and told her to play dumb about her being there.
Stop explaining it to us as if we were trisomic or autistic people! we've got brains !
Despite the heartbreak and loss in this movie, (Midge loves Scotty; looses Scotty, Scotty loves Madeline; looses Madeline, Judy/Madeline loves Scotty, but was an accomplice to a murder, had to die or go to prison or both), Scotty accomplishes the goal he sets out for at the beginning of the movie which was to get over his acrophobia & vertigo. Notice at the end of the movie he is standing out on the ledge looking down without symptoms of acrophobia. Great and fun reaction; so glad you enjoyed this film (one of my favorites since I first saw it on TV as a kid back in the 60's.) Another 1958 movie that James and Kim starred in is the sophisticated rom-com, BELL, BOOK and CANDLE. Set in NYC, Kim's a young, hip witch who casts a love spell on James, as her book publisher upstairs neighbor. Elsa Lancaster plays Kim's aunt and Jack Lemmon plays her brother; hilarity ensues! Oh! And her cat, Pyewacket and the tune Kim hums to it. YOU"LL LOVE THIS MOVIE!!! 🔔📖🕯🐱 Also, two Hitchcock films that definitely move from location to location are SABOTEUR (1942) and of course NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959.)
Kim Novak shows off her acting skills here like never before. She was great in the movie Picnic too. Liked Stewart best in this one, It's A Wonderful Life and How The West Was Won. 15:51 That's our favorite spot in San Francisco, down the Old Fort where you can look up at the bridge.
I really enjoy your reactions. You've got a keen eye for film and your post-film comments are always interesting and entertaining. Keep up the good work!
The production codes at the time required that on screen criminals pay for their crimes in some way. That’s the real reason Madalyn/Judy had to fall off that tower in the end. It had to be baked into the screenplay to pass the censors.
But Gavin apparently got away scot free
Green is typically a color associated with jealousy and envy. And of course being jaded.
After they finished Vertigo James Stewart and Kim Novak wanted to do a light romantic comedy. The both starred in Bell Book and Candle. It's a cute sort of Christmas movie. If you want to watch a different uncomplicated fun holiday movie check it out.
One of Martin Scorcese's personal favorite movies. It did well at the box office but the critics didn't like it. It is considered Hitchcock's masterpiece. Nice reaction 👍. You need to do 1975's original Stepford Wives. From the same author as Rosemary's Baby. She had to lay there in her phony trance and allow him to take all her wet clothes off.
Critics are generally wrong.
Great comments, dude. "Always green, ever living" motif, and particularly in this place, is missed by many experienced professionals. Vertigo is full of visual stuff like this, Hitch doesn't give a damn about the plot.
Vera Miles was cast as Madeleine/Judy. Her performance in Hitchcock’s “The Wrong Man” earned her acclaim. Hitchcock wanted to turn her into a star and the next Grace Kelly. (IMO Miles was a better actress then Kelly.) Miles became pregnant. Hitchcock famously said to her. “Vera, don’t you know it’s in bad taste to have more than two?” Hitchcock was pissed off and replaced her with Kim Novak. Miles could have filmed it. But Hitchcock didn’t forgive her for wanting a family. He did cast her as Lila Crane in Psycho. And Miles does appear in Vertigo. She’s the portrait in the museum that Novak is looking at.
The Man Who Knew Too Much with Jimmy Stewart and Doris Day is pretty awesome! Hitchcock did the movie twice, once in the late 30s with Peter Laury and then remade it in the 50s with Stewart and Day. I was never interested in the one from the 30s because the 50s version is so good! Also "Strangers On A Train" with one of the Lead Actors from Rope is an excellent film.. Vertigo is very beautiful and artisticly done but I agree with you, it's not my all time favorite Hitchcock film. I would lean towards the other two movies that I just mentioned.
Vertigo is possibly the best American movie ever. It just gets better with further rewatches and when you look up articles/CZcams videos about the movie’s themes, storytelling and filmmaking. North By Northwest (Hitchcock’s most conventionally entertaining movie and a precursor to the 007 movies), Strangers On A Train, Notorious, The Birds, Rebecca and Frenzy are also all essential Hitchcock movies that you haven’t reacted to. He really made a lot of quality, influential films.
Recently knocked Citizen Kane off of the top spot on sight and sound's top 10 list. Not my favourite Hitchcock but it is a fascinating movie!
This is a brilliant classic. but I, personally, think that "North by Northwest" is his best. There are a lot of brilliant Hitchcock films.
The purpose of the animation was to show that Scotty was having highly disturbed dreams, to indicate that the experience had almost driven him crazy.
By the way, if I hear another millennial say that a movie is slow, I'm going to throw up. This movie was made in a time when audiences didn't require instant gratification.
There's a difference between a slow burn, which you describe, and a slow bloated mess, which describes this movie.
@@BigGator5 The "slow, bloated mess" had a 94% on RottenTomatoes based on 75 reviews, so, basically, the whole world disagrees with you.
@@BigGator5 Wow, Big Gator. You're entitled to your opinion but you sure got this wrong. You've been demoted to Little Gator.
North by northwest is definitely best, rear window second.
@@BigGator5 Slow? Holly molly, I’d hate for you to ever suffer through the experience of reading novels.
Watch Notorious. Another Hitchcock masterpiece.
Partially because Hitch knew how to cast the major roles: Ingrid Bergman, Cary Grant & Claude Rains.
Hitchcock is one of the elite class of directors where his directorship is more important to the public than who the stars of a film were. At any given time, several of him films will be in the Top Rated 100 films of all time on IMDb.
Most folks would say Psycho, Vertigo and Rear Window are among his best. You've already covered all of those. There's also Rebecca, Dial M for Murder, North By Northwest, and The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934 and 1956 versions).
The Birds... eh, not in my top tier, but some people like it a lot.
Hitchcock's Sabotage (1936) Has one of the most horrifying scenes in it that you never see. My jaw was on the floor for at least 5 minutes. You can't believe he did that.
My rationalization of the hotel scene is that Elster must have paid off the woman at the hotel to tell Scottie that Madeline/Judy wasn't there, while Madeline went out a back entrance.
You mean Judy/Madeline/Carlotta? lol
It's really a detail! discussing for hours and hours about what is just a small "event" to just add some strangeness to the scenario !
Right now you think this may be your third favorite Hitchcock movie, but give it time. There are layers upon layers of subtle depths that you can only perceive through multiple viewings. With each viewing your appreciation of the movie increases. Rear Window and Rope do not have nearly as many layers of meaning. Vertigo is like coffee. It becomes your favorite only after you tasted it many times.
Oooooh, I love your coffee reference. I hated coffee the first time I had it. But now I love it. I liked this movie the first time I saw it. I was confused and didn't get a lot of it. I was young when I first saw it, like early twenties, and didn't get it. I am now 47 and have watched Vertigo at least 50 times and it keeps getting better and better. It is now my 2nd favorite movie of all time behind only The Shawshank Redemption!
The most entertaining Hitchcock movie is North by Northwest. A must watch!
Family Plot is fun too. It's quite lighthearted though.
Favorite Grant line of all time, "I've got a job, a secretary, a mother, two ex-wives and several bartenders dependent upon me."
I keep thinking about the hotel scene as well and have some theories. One would be that the lady at the desk was in on the deal, being paid off by Elster. Madeleine could easily have hidden in another room and someone else moved her car. Scotty never saw her return home with it. Another possibility is that there is a second exit to the hotel, not unusual in old houses and she slippped out and away while he was talking to the desk lady.
Another point I'd like to make is the fact that Gavin Elster is often dismissed and that is exactly why the first half of the movie is developing so slowly. He set up a charade for Scotty to bear witness to the unstable nature of his wife's condition which was not true at all. The pace was slow not only to convince the seasoned detective but the entire audience, and to distract the observer from questioning not only Madeleine's sanity but also her identity. The real Mrs Elster did not even reside in the city so Scotty never met her. A piece of information as to the why is given early which is that Gavin's wealth came from his wife's inheritance. After her death he clearly states he is leaving for good, probably living a lavish life in the South Americas by the time his accomplice met her fate.
The initial Gavin scene is fascinating because the first half seems like pointless, get to know you chit-chat, and the second half, where he describes the story of Carlotta, is mysterious and inviting us to be invested.
But on second viewing, the back half is all gobbledygook to trick Scottie, while the first half reveals a great deal. Not only do we learn about Elster, his wife, and her dead family (no one to miss her), but he laments the current, "modern" San Francisco and agrees to Scottie's proposal that he'd have preferred to live there in the 1870s, where men were ALLOWED to be powerful.
Note a couple scenes later, when the historian describes the story of the real Carlotta, and how taking advantage of a young woman and then throwing her away was something "a man could do back then," showing how Elster actually views the women in his life. Aside from taking a child, it's exactly what he does to Judy.
The spelling of "fowl" as opposed to "foul" suggests ducks and chickens at play, rather than homicide. Of course, that would also make the world a better place.
My psychiatrist told me that, so it made me think he was a quack, but your explanation brings it all into perspective, even if you're just winging it.
a FOWL is the baby of a horse ! to foul = to trick,
Another Hitchcock masterpiece that I think you would enjoy is Spellbound. There are certain parallels. Gregory Peck and Ingrid Bergman have perfect chemistry. Intrigue and suspense.
Yes she slipped at the end. Back then in movies you had to pay for your crimes one way or another, she was a participant in a murder earlier.
The ex-cop that she'd played for a fool wasn't going to let her get away with that either. He won't believe her protestations that she's still in love with him. He's turning her in.
@@billolsen4360 ??????????????
@@billolsen4360nah. Scottie was twisted/damaged enough that he'd try and keep Judy in Madeleine's form and continue a relationship with her like that. Look at the way he kisses her even after his angry rant. The man is utterly at the mercy of his fantasies. No chance he turns in someone who gives him that level of sexual gratification
Please try the English/ early Hollywood ones… the 39 Steps, The Lady vanishes, Foreign Correspondent, Lifeboat etc… I think the nun appearing out of nowhere at the end is her inescapable guilt and that’s what kills her in the end…
Barbara Bel Geddes (Midge) was the mom in the tv show Dallas.
AND????????
Sometime you should watch the late 1980s miniseries 'Tales of the City', based on the first volume of Armistead Maupin's newspaper-serialized novels about San Francisco from the early 70s through the 90s. One of the prominent features is that in the course of the story one character follows another around the city, and most of the iconic filming locations from 'Vertigo' are featured in some way.
Earlier . . . Like a lot earlier, Hitchcock's films were shown either on TV which took out a lot of them obviously or in cinemas (hard to find the films back then) and some of them had been forbidden to screen before the 80s. Now it is really awesome to see them on BLURAY or 4k. I wonder if anyone has watched the paintings and pictures and photos in his films more closely or any themes in his cameos. He was so visual and storyboarded in advance all of them.
I love watching these because fresh eyes bring out things I've not noticed in dozens of viewings! Like I got green was important, but not red, which is the complimentary color of green! Not a mistake, I'm sure.
The theory on the hotel is the rubber plant lady was paid off by the husband, to support the "my wife killed herself because she thought she was possessed by a ghost" storyline.
Many like myself theorize Midge broke her engagement as she realized she didn't meet Scottie's ideal. She is a "plainer" and grounded version of his "ideal" mysterious blonde. And yes, she still loves him.
Also, on multiple viewings you get Judy's hints she was probably sexually abused by her stepfather and people think that's why she was susceptible to abusive men.
There is no answer to the hotel scene. Hitchcock intentionally created a mysterious situation that does not make sense and has no answer. This is a movie that demands that you watch it over and over again. It gives more with each viewing. The entire first half of the movie plays very differently when you know what is going on.
I don't love this film as much as many people do. I have always considered Rear Window (which I know you have already watched) as his best film. But still, the movie making genius on display here is undeniable . . .
I agree, ive seen it numerous times but parts of it are still confusing for me
I assume Elster paid off the old lady to lie about her being there. It couldn’t have been too hard. Dude was paying a girl to pretend to be his wife.
A good storyteller like Hitchcock leaves you with so many questions at the end that you can't get his telling out of your mind.
@@Traveltheme706 THAT'S THE GOAL !
Great to watch your reactions. At the hotel, she might have sneaked out the back. The hotel lady manager could have been paid off Madeline, or the 'husband' to say, "No one came in." Many viewers believe the nun started Madeline and she stepped back too far.
your reactions were fun to watch - so many people who see this for the first time are shaken by it - yet they declare it is one of the best films they've seen - it wasn't greeted so enthusiastically in 1958 - american audiences preferred happy endings - and they preferred formulaic plots - and this busted so many rules - that many were disturbed - - today - audiences are more used to shocking twists - and to encounter this one - as part of an emotionally powerful and beautifully laid-out journey - brings more appreciation
as for the 2 scenes that have you befuddled
first - the ending - Judy is surprised & frightened by the shadowy figure (it's not recognizable as a nun at that point) - and forgets where she is - she flees the apparition - by turning away - blindly rushing out the belfry opening - and down - symbolically recreating the murder she participated in - and as punishment for it
the hotel scene seems more like a loose end since there's no explanation - Madeleine went there since it was Carlotta's old home - but the hotel manager must have been on Gavin's payroll - and she insists the Madeleine hadn't come that day - for - no - good - reason - plot-wise - - there wasn't a need for Scotty to be fooled by a ghost - the issue of Madeleine's possession would be enuf - but it does serve to throw the audience for a loop
your obsession with color/colour makes you a good viewer of Hitchcock films - like many cinema auteurs - he carefully controlled the use of color - you notice things other viewers aren't aware of
Vertigo is a masterpiece! I know you loved Kim Novak's performance as (Madeline & Judy) She worked a lot in the 50's and 60's. In the same year she and James Stewart starred together in Bell, Book and Candle. Love this film. A fun romantic comedy. You will enjoy. Besides Kim & James Stewart the film has a wonderful cast...
Gray symbolizes ghosts and anonymity. The fake Madeline is neither Judy nor Madeline. The petals breaking apart in the dream is the loss of his love (the fantasy "Madeline" as played by Judy). It is the bouquet object purchased, carried, and symbolic of "Madeline". When it breaks apart in his nightmares it is the mystery, anxiety, heartbreak that his troubled mind experiences. It is brutal when he drags her up the stairs. That scene is specified as one of James Stewart's most dark. Right when the nun starts out of the alcove you can only see a black figure gliding forward like a ghost. Perhaps Judy fears it is a spectral Madeline seeking ghastly retribution. It is in the midst of John's indignant confrontation and we know already that Judy feels very guilty. Easy to imagine she backs away instinctively, dooming herself to fall.
Kim Novak was famous, especially from this role. It has been noted that Kim had, prior to this movie, been a name used for both boys and girls (e.g., Kim Philby) but that afterward was only a girl name.
Btw Your silly teeshirt helped keep the mood lighter!😂
Great movie. Love to see, as well, how everything was in the late 50s: cars, trains, telephones, streets, etc.
i think if he watched this again and maybe again and again, it would have become his favorite
This is one of the best movie reactions I have seen on CZcams.
I think you got the ending right, along with some calothocism thrown in that the nun represents since their relationship couldn't be since it was based on lies. I would have included that last scene climbing the stairs where Scotty realizes he has conquered his vertigo.
This movie is also about obsession...which could be very personal for Hitchcock since Hitchcock is always obsessed with the cool blonde that is in every one of his movies. Whether its Rear Window, The Birds, NxNW, its the same cool blonde in every movie. He must have fallen in love with Grace Kelly in Rear Window and he tried to duplicate her in every film since.
The animation was a nightmare he was having. It was actually designed by the famous surrealistic artist Salvador Dali.
Personally I would do North by Northwest next..it may be the most entertaining film ever made. I'm not a fan of The Birds but that's just me.
Hitchcock was raised Catholic, so he sometimes throws in a reference to his denomimation here & there
The animation in Vertigo was not designed by Dali, you are confusing it with Hitchcock's earlier (1945) film Spellbound with Ingrid Bergman where Dali designed the dream sequence.
To be fair, I doubt there are many people who wouldn't fall in love with grace Kelly in rear window
At the very end it seems you got a basic wrong, but you've probably figured it out by now. it was Judy the whole time. She was an accessory to Madeline's murder, and the entire story about Madeline being possessed by Carlota was concocted just to lure Ferguson into witnessing what appeared to be a suicide, with Judy dressing herself to resemble Madeline. You'd think Ferguson, as an ex-cop, would have checked out photos of what Madeline really looked like, but instead he just trusted everything Elster said without questioning it. Personally I think the spirit of Carlota story is more interesting than the whole thing being staged for Ferguson for the first 1/2 of the movie. But you really have to go with Martin Scorsese's assessment of the movie that the plot really doesn't make any sense... it's just something that you hang other things on.
The older Lady at the Hotel who said " Madeline not been here today ' i think was payed to say that by Gavin Estler, to make Madeline more Mysterious & confusing to Scotty . At the end Judy got startled by the Creepy Nun and fell backwards obvious when you think about it. As for the physcodelic Amination whilst having a nightmare when Scotty was in the hospital it explained perfectly his Mental breakdown. Watch it again it will become clearer.
The hotel lady wasn't speaking about Madeline, remember. She only knew her as Miss Valdes. Why do you think the nun is "creepy?"
The old tenant cannot say "Madeline is not here today" since she knows her as CARLOTTA VALDES ! you need to follow the dialogues !
In final scene, did Judy get scared by the ghost of Madeleine and fall, or did Judy use the distraction to commit suicide? This will probably be debated forever.
You're right about that, Glenn. IMHO, Judy didn't kill herself...remember, she screams as she falls. Also, what happens after the final scene of The Birds?
I like Rear Window, Psycho, and North By Northwest the best out of his films.
Thanks for covering this film. Certainly a film I need to watch again. It’s not my favourite Hitchcock either but I love the plot and it still excellent . Good luck with The Birds, look forward to your reactions on that!
your the first reactor who didn't notice it was the same actress. I didn't know until the reveal also however when I was at the movie with my sister she noticed right away as well as a ex. the other reactions I've seen they also figured out it was the same actress one thinking she was a twin
so far of the hitcock movies ive seen i go birds, vertigo and psycho
So happy you liked this one! I love the visuals in this, and the performances. It's not my all-time fave Hitchcock, and it's not the one I suggest people start with....but once you've got the basic lay of the land with his work, it's fun to see "Vertigo" and watch him stretch his muscles. "Stranger On A Train" and "Shadow Of A Doubt" are definite top shelf Hitchcock, I think those two movies will be a breeze for you.
I didn't like this movie the first time i saw it because the ending was too jarring. I do consider it his best now. I love the slow pace of the beginning, it's a travelog love letter from Hitchcock to San Francisco, and a great time capsule for us. Years ago I had some friends write up the vertigo tour for me which was great.
Watch it again, you'll come to very much appreciate this film. Rear window is very fun with great characters and dialog but vertigo stays with you. Also a very interesting contrast of characters for Mr Stewart.
A truly great movie and one of the most beautiful soundtracks ever, though my favorite Hitchcock is Shadow of a Doubt.
Watching the film again, the manager of the McKittrick Hotel (played by Ellen Corby) is a very intriguing character- I wonder what her backstory is, as she must have been in on plot twist, right?
IT'S JUST A RED HERRING !
@@Fanfanbalibarit doesn't matter if it's a red herring, this is about the feasibility of the scene. Logically, the manager would have had to have been in on the scheme. Judy/Madeleine wasn't an actual ghost, so in order for what we see to make sense, she'd have required the cooperation of the manager to leave the room unlocked and lie for her
Great reaction dude! Check the music video "Last cup of sorrow" by Faith no more, it was completely inspired on this movie.
At this point it's hard to tell which Hitchcock's movie is the best but definitely Vertigo is on the top three.
Absolutely loving your Hitchcock journey. My all time favourite Director, can’t wait til you get to North by Northwest, my personal favourite.
Other recommendations would be Lifeboat, Notorious, Strangers on a train, & The man who knew too much (Hitchcock filmed it twice, once in England and again in Hollywood with James Stewart)
always loved N by NW, especially when Cary Grant tells the spymaster Leo G Carroll, who has just asked him help the government pull off some espionage, "I'm an advertising man, not a red herring. I've got a secretary, a job, a mother, two ex-wives and several baaaartenders dependent up on me and I have no intention on disappointing them by getting myself slightly killed."
Many people don't realise that "Midge" (Barbara bel Geddes) played Ellie, matriarch of the Ewing clan in the series "Dallas".
AND WHAT THE HECK ?
Andbesides, is it worth mentioning all the future movies or TV shows Stewart and Novak would do later on? That's not the subject matter !
I had to watch Vertigo two times before I actually understood what happened. It's actually kind of a disturbing movie.
A Hitchcock movie is "disturbing?" Yes, Alfred relied on the advice an older director gave him once, "The audience should suffer as much as possible."
I think you've forgotten, or haven't put enough stock into what was established in the first few minutes of the movie. John (Scottie) is a detective. I believe that a lot of the things you are questioning can be explained by the fact that the detective in Scottie, on a subconcious level, knows that Madeleine's suicide just does not add up. He spends the rest of the movie, at least subconciously, trying to figure it out. That explains some of his insistance in making over Judy so that she looks like Madeleine. Yes, he does love her, but it's his subconsious that is trying to make sense of everything that happened.
MAYBE.......... Once in Heaven, ask Sir Alfred !
Everyone keeps forgetting that Madeleine Elster was murdered and Judy helped doing it. She doesn't deserve a happy ending. Bad for Scotty though but I believe he knew or at least had a hunch that he had been used the moment he saw her again in the street.
Good idea but I'm not certain. I think Scottie gets the authentic revelation when Judy puts on Carlotta's necklace.
@@billolsen4360 - that's correct - it was the only reveal - made by Scotty at the end - he never admitted to being suspicious when spotting her on the street - and it would interfere with the story's trajectory - of a man who becomes so obsessed with a woman he lost - that he tries to make someone who looks like her - into her - not knowing they are one and the same - - some people like to over-think things - and want the make-over part a scheme of his - but that depletes that portion of the story of the emotional depth of a man obsessed
@@billolsen4360 OF COURSE !
When he's going up the tower for the second time, going through it again in the end, he repeats a lot of the same lines twice to match that.
Have you seen “Sunset Boulevard?” Written and directed by the great Billy Wilder?
Such a great movie. I tend to associate VERTIGO with another movie by Stanley Kubrick called EYES WIDE SHUT. This one is about a mysterious woman, while EWS is about sexual disturbance in a marriage, but both follow a man's confused journey through jealousy and fear and they both feel like dreams are being equated with reality.
If you liked the chemistry between Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novack, watch "Bell, Book, and Candle. It is a bit of a comedy and a romance. Watching Kim Novack gives me goosebumps, but in a good way.
At the end, Madeline sees the shadowy figure and runs away from her Guilt!! (but in so doing, she ends off going off of the Tower to her death!!). The Shadow turns out to be a NUN!! (who says "I heard VOICES." A subtle Hitchcock "Catholic Guilt joke." And then Scotty (James Steward) is seen coming to the very edge of the Tower -- and he is CURED fully of his Vertigo!!
So good! And i love your reactions. And one thing i notice surprises people is how supposedly fast people fall in love but it was a thing, specially during the war and people that had been through the war, people really did marry/fall in love sometimes even after a few days.
By the way, you use the expression "to FALL" in love, so it's something very fast ! see Judy falling from the bell tower
Vertigo is my personal favorite film and I'm very glad you liked it.
I disagree with the aspects you criticize. The first half hour is undoubtedly relatively slow, but that doesn't bother me. The scenes with Stewart stalking Novak are mysterious and I think have excellent suspense building.
I love the surrealistic scene with the animation shots of flowers and for me it is one of the highlights of the film. Especially when the woman in the painting suddenly stands in front of the window next to Jimmy Stewart, I found it very disturbing and unsettling the first time, more so than most jump scares in horror movies.
Vertigo is intriguing and impressive, especially on a first watch, but I think Vertigo gets better every time, because you discover new things and start admiring certain points you didn't like before. That's what happened to me too, I used to think the ending was too abrupt, now I love it.
It is possible that you may appreciate the points you criticize in a rewatch. :)
The first half is slow in order to build up sexual tension between the principals.
Also noted the long scenes without dialog, that's Hitchcocks background in silent movies, the skills to tell a story without words
If you liked Stewart and Novak you should see Bell, Book, and Candle a comedy about witches.
It's not exactly she got scared, it's a mix of her getting scare and guilt/the murder haunting her... She thought it was the ghost of the wife
30:35-30:45 >> incredulous descending voice...so entertaining and funny! great reaction!
Hitchcock used grief as the plot-device to reflect about the obsession of some image that can haunt you(fetishism)....or further the illusionary quality of obsession and the pain, grimness and ultimately unfullfillment theirein..(not real,hollow,shallow)...she(madeleine) was like dead from the beginning...an idea and deceptive figment first,then she died in his understanding of the events and than she became the same idea(not real=dead) in his head and finally she,or better:the idea of madeleine died irrevocably...
judy truly died and never had a chance to live... for John Madeleine was dead in reality and analog but unconscious in his psychological,emotional relation to "Madeleine" ...the end makes perfect sense in that regard : the meta-statement.
He was possessed from -and tried to breathe live into- an idea that was dead(=not real) from the beginning.
The nun at the end was like the shadow of guilt( Judy only saw the growing shadow) that suddenly appeared like a manifestation to her,so she tried impulsively to escape and flee..
the genius of this movie lies in the parallelism of reality and idea(in this movie-idea of reality!) =meta!
...hope to see you react to "Rebecca". ;))
The movie has indeed many layers and it is worth watching it several times. I agree, the woman Scotty loved never existed. Madeleine Elster he never met and Judy was never herself with him. I believe the realization of it saved Scotty so he would be able to move on.
You must also watch "The Birds", so much fun.
My reaction to Rear Window is already up on the channel!
Just FYI - Hitchcock was obsessed with Grace Kelly. She did 3 films for him and he had many plans for her. Then in 1956 she married the Crown Prince of Monaco and became a genuine princess. Because of her duties she couldn’t continue as an actress. Hitchcock was devastated. For years Hitchcock was essentially turning his lead actresses into Grace Kelly. This movie is psychologically very autobiographical as regards Hitchcock. But then, all of his films are so incredibly complex. And I agree with several other commenters, you should watch The Man Who Knew To Much. Jimmy Stewart and Doris Day are fantastic together. Also, I enjoy very much watching your screenings. My request, for what it matters, is please watch David Lynch’s The Elephant Man. One of the greatest films ever made, with performances from Anthony Hopkins and John Hurt that will rip your heart out. And the musical score is amazing as well.
I checked out The Man Who Knew Too Much about a year ago and you can find it on my Hitchcock playlist on the channel! :)
@@RolyPolyOllieReactions : I discovered that and am watching it now. Lol. But trust me - The Elephant Man will blow you away. It’s based on a true story. Oh and I worked with Tippi Years ago. I’ve worked in the biz since 1984. So it’s a joy watching someone your age really enjoying so many classics!
I'm waiting for my own personal favourite Hitchcock movie, Frenzy.
Lovely.
It was Hitchcock's return to form after a few subpar films, and an update of his British sound film period.
You weirdo
Rear Window is entertaining but it's very straightforward, not that much surprise or maybe that much to think about.
Hitchcock set up Scottie's seeing the deceased character everywhere so we think he is just doing the same again at the hotel. When I first saw it I didn't realise it was the same actress either.
The dream sequence animation is interesting, including the figure falling (who was like the man falling at the start).
It's interesting that the lead isn't all sympathetic. Her accidental death at the end is a striking end, is it a punishment for her, him or both?
The Birds is a cult film, some like it some don't. I actually think Psycho goes better with Vertigo, if you haven't seen it you should.
Psycho is up on the channel and The Birds is coming very soon!
Now I wonder how Lars Thorwald was going to explain the disappearance of his first wife to friends, family, coworkers, the landlord? How was he going to legally collect insurance, legally remarry? I guess he murdered her in a fit of anger & wasn't thinking about the future at the time.
@@billolsen4360 I don't think any of that matters in the film, he's a pulp fiction baddie and we only care about how dangerous he will get.
1. The hotel manager was obviously paid off, told to leave that room unlocked and lie to Jimmy Stewart about Judy's entrance. Judy herself went up to the room, opened the blinds so Jimmy Stewart could see her, then snuck out a back/side entrance and drove away
2. She was scared, took an involuntary step away from the nun's shadow and fell. I'm honestly shocked by the number of reactors that don't grasp this. She's just had her nerves frayed for the entire drive and for the duration of Jimmy Stewart's ranting. She's in a very fragile mental state. Not to mention that she's in the same room from which she and Elster consummated a murder plot, with the throwing of his real wife from the church tower. Anyone would be fragile in that situation, so for a strange shadow to come out of the darkness (potentially the ghost of Madeleine for the morally inclined), it's not a surprise at all for her to be startled and step back
For another film that centers in San Francisco, watch _What's Up, Doc?_ starring Barbra Streisand and Ryan O'Neal.
And Madeline Kahn together with Kenneth Mars, Mabel Albertson, Sorrel Booke, John Hillerman and Liam Dunn at the end! Pure comedy genius.
The animation was him dreaming about Madeline
If you liked Rope, you should see Strangers on a Train. Very similar theme but a more compelling presentation. As for Vertigo, I like it but I agree with you that it's not Hitchcock's best. The score by Bernard Herrmann is masterful, of course, but the film overall feels a bit overripe to me and it seems like the elaborate staging of the murder of the first wife and the scheme to pin it on James Stewart's character strains credulity. It seems like an awful lot of trouble to go to just to bump someone off and take over her estate. And the dream sequence is pretty Disneyesque imo compared to something you'd see in a Bunuel movie. Great location shots in San Francisco though. Interesting fact: the authors of the book Vertigo was based on, Entre Les Morts, were also behind one of the greatest French horror films, Diabolique.
Can I recommend other Jimmy Stewart films? The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The Greatest Show on Earth, The Flight of the Phoenix, Mr. smith Goes to Washington
YOU FORGET THIS SUPERB ONE SHOT BY OTTO PREMINGER "Anatomy of a murder" !
Great reaction!
Frequently in Hitchcock films, characters represent other people, such as Hitchcock himself and The Audience. In this film, the first half shows Jonny as The Audience. We identify with him, he pulls us along. Gavin/Madeline represent Hitchcock, manipulating the audience. Halfway through, it changes. We start to dislike Jonny's obsession, as you mentioned, he's manipulative. Kinda like a film director manipulating his actors. Judy thus represents both the actors and the audience in the 2nd half. And the true life factor of Hitchcock manipulating Kim Novak throughout the filming only serves to reinforce this interpretation.
In the Hotel scene, add 2 + 2 together. The Husband was paying Judy to set up his wife all so he could get an alibi via her seducing some patsy (John). So, I imagine he paid for the Hotel woman, in some manner, to play dumb. Nothing else adds up. He wanted to make John think this couldn't be real, to keep him digging.
I get no sinister vibe from the hotel woman. It had to be sweet Carlotta/Madeline/Judy telling the desk clerk to deny any knowledge of her movements or whereabouts if a cop or investigator should show up.
Just reflect that by some, not the least considered among them, count Vertigo as the greatest movie ever made. I’m quite close to considering myself among that number. But this has been an evolution of receptive response over 45 years. Do you understand? I’m not just talking about this movie or movies as such or any other easily identifiable embodied medium. Do you understand? You’re too smart and too appreciative not to make the hazzard. Thank you for your response. I wish your journey, intellectual and otherwise, the best.
Here's a link to the trailer for Mel Brooks' "High Anxiety" a comic tribute to Hitchcock's films. czcams.com/video/QrtPz_ziwds/video.html
It's a mistake to believe anything after the opening rooftop scene is real. Scotty dreamed the whole Madeleine thing up in the moments before falling to his death at the beginning of the movie. Madeleine is a dream vision of his mother.
This is literally the stupidest shit I've ever seen
This guy is master of suspense by people who haven't seen many Roman Polanski movies. Or movies by Michaelangelo Antonioni. I'd trade all of Hitchcock for The Pianist and Blow--up any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
Wrong choice of colour: it HAD to be RED or GREEN!!!
blessings!
rope is also a good movie
The hotel proprietress was obviously paid to lie.
you gotta watch notorious
I agree the ending is a tad off, but I cannot think of a better on.
Do you know about the Hayes Code? It’s a set of morality rules that the movies had to follow from 1934 tom1968.
Is that the thing where criminals had to be punished for their crimes on screen? If that is it then I only very recently learned of it!
You can start calling him Jimmy Stewart now that you’re on movie no. three ;)
I like ur comments / analysis. I felt terrible for Scottie. No, he was going to love her. At the end they are kissing. She really did love him. Movie is good, buy the endingsucks cuz Madolyn died.
She made a horrible mistake aiding in the (cover up of wife's murder - is already dead), but she honestly loved Scottie.