|
As he follows her around the city the detective discovers
she is going back to places that were significant to a woman
who had committed suicide in the previous century.
When Madeleine tries to drown herself Scotty comes to the
rescue and then realizes he is in love with his friend's wife.
Being an Alfred Hitchcock fan I used to await with eagerness
his latest picture.
I have to confess Vertigo was not one of my favourites; too
slow and enigmatic. Therefore when I sat down to view it I
was ready to be bored… my expectations were totally false;
the film is entrancing.
Viewing the restored pictures for the first time with the
breadth and rich colour that Hitchcock intended gives a totally
different perspective. Freed from the constraints of cinema
projectors incapable of showing Vista vision, washed out prints
reduced to 16mm for television and, without commercial breaks,
it soars.
So does the brilliant musical score by Bernard Herrmann as
it leads and follows Scotty's odyssey through the streets
of San Francisco and the dark recesses of his mind.
James Stewart's acting is spectacularly good. He portrays
a man driven by guilt, longing, despair, obsession and barely
controlled rage. Any residual thoughts of him as the bumbling,
stammering good guy are gone after the opening scenes.
Kim Novak too is convincing in her dual role. With all the
best talent of the movie industry employed in this production,
this is still one man's picture; it belongs to Alfred Hitchcock
alone.
Some commentators believe Vertigo is a personal statement
about how men (and film directors) can manipulate women to
match their own ideal.
My view is that Hitch is having the last laugh, as usual,
and keeping us all guessing what it's all about.
Conclusion: Movie 95% Extras 80%
Continued:
DVD details at a glance >
|
