In his mind, only one woman in the world could have turned him on the way she did. He tries to go back to her but ironically, through some twist of fate, she is the one who is killed in the last scene, not Judy. He discovers Judy on one of his prowls, keeps hounding and hounding her to dress up like Madeleine and finally, because she loves him so much, she decides to cave in to his sick sexual demands. It’s this compulsion that leads Scottie to finally discover the murder plot involving Mrs. Elster. Incidentally, although this idea is pretty famously ascribed to Hitchcock, I have not found a reliable citation to the context in which he actually said it. Let’s imagine Vertigo with this theme in mind and how it could’ve played out. Those other films may have been dull, plodding and lifeless but at least the script and the storytelling were competent. By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Cookie Policy, Privacy Policy, and our Terms of Service. First-time viewers tend to focus on the plot, its implausibilities and a twist that seems to end the movie half-way through. I believe it is supposed to be sunlight, coming through the windows. I have seen theories excusing this scene, some claiming that the concierge might have been in on the conspiracy or that Madeleine snuck past her. Although I’m relieved that the title was taken away from Citizen Kane (1941), I found this new choice just as troublesome. But she was not the villain. To explain why I feel this way, I’m going to start from the smallest issues that mar the film and work my way up to the largest and most egregious. He becomes emotionally devastated that his fantasy woman turned out to be a fake and an accomplice to murder. Learn how your comment data is processed. He begins to think, “There’s something fishy going on here. Clarity goes over spoiler fear. What? On top of that, the movie almost casts Judy as if she were a witch who had cast Scottie under a “spell”; her death then becomes necessary to free him of his neuroses. As far as a literal plot explanation goes, my best guess is that the receptionist is probably in on the plot. Then comes the most important, and interesting shot in the sequence. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. There is more light on the top than the side facing us). Consider that, when he spends time alone in Judy's room while she's getting the makeover, he doesn't appear to be snooping...just waiting. He has “gotten over” his vertigo and neurotic obsessions because Judy’s spell has been broken with her death. Not a matchbook from a hotel, a slip of the tongue or an alibi that falls apart. Of course, Scottie has no idea who is really turning him on. It doesn’t get any worse than when Scottie grouses, “What about my acrophobia?”. At the time of the film's release, it was not a box-office hit, but has since been regarded as one of the greatest films ever made. Edit, The necklace was handed down to Madeleine, and Elster gave it to Judy as payoff. Where is the MinimalCd / mini.iso for Groovy Gorrilla? All of this criticism sounds like I hated Vertigo. To understand what that compulsion was, let’s take a look at the so-called “romance” between Scottie and Madeleine. The disappearance of Madeleine and her Jaguar suggests that there must be another entrance/exit in the hotel. xi-xiii. It’s as if she had never existed. At this point, it seems that there might be some metaphysical explanation, that maybe he'd been following a ghost or something. Let’s take a look. You were the victim. planned it so well; he made no mistakes. At first, it seems as if Midge is going to be there as the second banana or may become part of a love triangle, but then something weird happens. But on the other hand, something about the way she is turning him on is telling him on a subconscious level that it’s Madeleine. How much time passed between Scottie's fall into depression and his running into Judy? (This was actually a transparency. "How did Kim Novak vanish from the hotel? As you look at this sequence of images getting progressively darker, don’t just focus on the characters in the interior. But she was not the villain. For one, chasing after someone like that is just setting yourself up for disappointment, because the Dreamboat is always based on a complete and total fantasy. There isn’t even so much as a passing reference to her in the rest of the movie. It is also worth noting that there is no particular reason to mention any of these clues if Hitchcock merely wanted to create a mysterious scene. You are the man!”. I fell in love. I know it’s crazy but if I didn’t know any better, Judy and Madeleine might be the same woman. Look at the timing of Scottie having his epiphany and figuring everything out. Another opportunity to hock my old topic: How does Madeleine disappear at the McKittrick Hotel? Plot elements, technical elements, psychological undertones; this movie has everything. A year later, when Judy meets him, she thinks that she can enter a relationship with him without him figuring out that she is Madeleine. Case in point: Judy Barton as Femme Fatale. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. Or perhaps something else? It screwed up what would’ve been one of the most brilliant twists on the film noir genre itself, something that I’ll explain in more detail below: How does a film noir murder mystery usually play out? So, it's plausible Madeline/Judy slipped by her. Vertigo is one of the most discussed and dissected Hitchcock films of all. Just as things reach a crescendo, for no reason that can be explained, Midge literally disappears from the movie as soon as the second half of the movie with Judy starts. It’s this compulsion that leads Scottie to finally discover the murder plot involving Mrs. Elster. But Scottie doesn’t know that he’s feeling a pull towards her because she is the very same woman he had an explosive sexual chemistry with a year earlier. If this was done by some other director I probably wouldn't have given this much thought but Hitchcock was a perfectionist (especially for this film) so I never understood the significance of this scene other than to mislead the audience (with a cheap ploy IMO). ", and eventually committing suicide. I don't believe it's a plothole. Seen in this light, the clues seem to fall into place. Forcing her to remain in costume wasn’t so much about Scottie forcing her to confront her role in the Elster murder plot, but Hitchcock forcing Judy to become the Elusive Blonde Bitch Goddess archetype that he has confused for being in the film. He becomes emotionally devastated that his fantasy woman turned out to be a fake and an accomplice to murder. When he finally sleeps with Judy, he thinks he’s climaxed because she fulfilled his fantasy of sleeping with Madeleine. However, in terms of personality and compatibility, she couldn’t be a more perfect match for Scottie. Scottie sees Madeleine enter the hotel and open the curtains of her room. Then, BAM! ( Log Out /  When asked about the scene in Vertigo when Madeleine mysteriously, and impossibly, disappears from the hotel that Scottie saw her in, he responded by calling it an "icebox" scene, that is, a scene that "hits you after you've gone home and start pulling cold chicken out of the icebox." Hitchcock next cuts to the bookshop interior. The camera is just inside the door, showing all three characters in a long shot. How could the receptionist not have seen her? The director may have had the last laugh with his cow stunt, but this was a case when the studio was 100% right and Hitchcock was dead wrong. The manager maintains she had been putting olive oil on her rubber plant leaves and wouldn't have missed her. Unfortunately, Hitchcock and his writers never saw the potential to explore this theme and unceremoniously dumped Midge halfway into the movie. The film's sanitarium scenes are similar to the scenes in Vertigo, with the same overwhelming sense of helplessness in the face of psychological crisis; yet there was little occasion for Vera Miles to do much else on-screen to make an impact. This confusion on Hitchcock’s part is why, in the film’s last dramatic scene, Judy is forced to keep wearing the wig and remain as “Madeleine”, even though she doesn’t want to. Not Midge, not some random blonde down the street or a busty brunette with ta tas out to there. I could kiss you! She falls, and that’s it. The scene at the McKittrick hotel is puzzling. But believe it or not, it’s not the blondeness of Madeleine or her mystique that’s turning Scottie on. Yes, that’s right. love me again, as I am for myself... and so forget the other and When Scottie found out the truth, he told her "It's too late." But the more she titillates him the exact same way Madeleine did, the more he is reminded of Madeleine. After a long moment: As Scottie follows her, and gets to know her, he comes to believe that she is possessed by a ghost of a relative/descendant of the family, whom died in tragic circumstances. He begins to think, “There’s something fishy going on here. This insanity of making Judy the arch villain and having her pay for the murder of Mrs. Elster while allowing Gavin Elster to run free was not lost on anyone, which is why the studio forced Hitchcock to shoot an alternative ending. forget the past. Why that moment? ROPE Deconstruction of a Scene: A trunk, a talk and a hat, Hitchcock on Hitchcock Volume 2 – Edited by Sidney Gottlieb, MARNIE Deconstruction of a Scene: Marnie steals the money, PSYCHO Deconstruction of a Scene: Arbogast questions Norman Bates, Footsteps in the Fog – Alfred Hitchcock’s San Francisco by Jeff Kraft and Aaron Levanthal, VERTIGO Deconstruction of a Scene: Argosy Book Shop, SHADOW OF A DOUBT Deconstruction of a Scene: Signature Scenes, HITCHCOCK AND SELZNICK by Leonard J. Leff, SABOTEUR Deconstruction of a scene: The Statue of Liberty finale, SHADOW OF A DOUBT Deconstruction of a Scene: Signature Scenes, REAR WINDOW: Deconstruction of a scene - The death of a dog, NORTH BY NORTHWEST: Deconstruction of a Scene (The crop duster sequence), THE BIRDS (1963): "Birds just don't go around attacking people without no reason. Then it turned out he wasn’t crazy. Vertigo (1958) is one of Alfred Hitchcock's most powerful, deep, and stunningly beautiful films (in widescreen 70 mm VistaVision) - it is a film noir that functions on multiple levels.

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