Film Review: Vertigo

Director: Alfred Hitchcock

I recently went through a phase of watching old classic movies, many of which I had never seen before. It was time to see whether some of these films that are constantly at the top of the all-time movie list are worth of the accolade. So I started with Vertigo, Hitchcock's psychological thriller about a retired police detective who suffers from acrophobia. On release the film opened to mixed reviews but over time became one of the greatest films Hitchcock ever made. The screenplay was actually adapted from a French play called The Living and the Dead that was written by Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac.

The iconic movie poster for Vertigo

John ''Scottie'' Ferguson (James Stewart, simply brilliant) is a retired police detective who suffers from acrophobia following the death of a fellow police officer whilst on duty. A friend, Gavin Elster (Tom Helmore) asks him to follow his wife, Madeleine Elster (Kim Novak), around due to her strange behaviour and report back with his findings. After Scottie saves Madeleine from drowning when she throws herself into the bay at Fort Point in San Francisco and develops a strange intimacy which is threatened by Madeleine's suicidal tendencies.

The scene depicted in the picture below at Fort Point in San Francisco under the Golden Gate Bridge is a classic scene in the world of film. It is a beautiful location used to film an important scene. The Mission San Juan Bautista is also a stunning location where the crucial scenes of the movie take place (I won't ruin it for you). The beautiful bell tower that Scottie struggles to climb due to his acrophobia is actually out in California but isn't as tall or in such a lovely setting in real life which is a shame.

Madeleine Elster (Kim Novak) and John ''Scottie'' Ferguson (James Stewart)

The tension created in the early scenes when Scottie is trailing Madeleine are superb as he drives around downtown San Francisco, you are taken by the feel of the city whilst wondering what is going to happen. The plot twist within the movie is actually quite clever even by today's standards and hasn't suffered too much over time. My only criticism would be that James Stewart is slightly too old to be love interest for Kim Novak, the age gap in real life is around 25 years but this is only a small detail in what otherwise is a superb film.

4/4 an old classic with a superb plot twist.