Runtime: 128 minutes
Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Starring: James Stewart, Kim Novak, Barbara Bel Geddes, Tom Helmore, Henry Jones
From: Paramount
Why is Turner Classic Movies showing 48 hours of Alfred Hitchcock movies in a row? Beats me but I'll take advantage of it.
A few days ago I discovered that TCM has this as programming for the entire weekend. The reason for the tribute is unknown to me as it's not his birthday (or even the date of his death); in any case, the next few days will be devoted to reviewing his work, as the DVR will be getting a workout. In addition, I will revisit a movie or two but not discuss it here.
I was excited to finally give Vertigo another shot. It was only seen once before, ages ago; my opinion was that it was liked more than loved, which will be blasphemous to many here. I'll discuss why in a bit, along with why my viewpoint has not changed. Not that long ago I saw about a minute of it in a recent TCM showing and from the print quality, they must be using the new 4K scan that can be viewed on 4K discs; on a 4K TV the picture will look great. This movie has a lot going for it: a twisty and turny plot, mirrors appearing often, the frequent usage of red and green, an awesome score from Bernard Herrmann, great Saul Bass opening credits, and a capable cast that tries their hardest.
Regrettably, the story I just don't care for, and likely never will. Someone becoming obsessed with a person's significant other after being asked to tail them for the purposes of investigating their whereabouts is fine as honestly, most people have become obsessed with a person, even if they are already romantically entangled w/ someone else. But there's a tease of reincarnation/possession and a whole lot of nonsense, some of which will forever be baffling to me. That's not even factoring in the lead's increasingly disturbing behavior, especially towards the gal known as Judy. Controlling your loved one's behavior will forever be creepy to me, even if it's done by Jimmy Stewart. I know, I know... this movie was basically Hitchcock playing out his id and he actually treated actresses like that, but that's pretty rotten and ever since discovering that and other unsavory stories, I was better off knowing less about the personal life and peccadilloes of a legendary director.
Most will disagree but the movie is just not that enjoyable for my tastes no matter if everyone else finds it to be a masterpiece. Instead of being haunted by this fact, I won't worry about ever watching Vertigo again and instead there will be the satisfaction that there are many Hitchcock films that are more enjoyable, fun, and even thought-provoking which are more worthy of revisit.
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