what can you say, it's the master, Alfred Hitchcock

Rating: Null/10 (4 October 2004)

The movie, 'Vertigo', directed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1958 is classified as a male gaze movie. The term, 'male gaze', is used to describe the way a male stares at the female image. It starts out on a rooftop. The rooftop scenes are similar in shots to another of Hitchcock's films 'To Catch a Thief'. The audience is shown how 'Scottie', his real character name is John Ferguson portrayed by James Stuart, is stricken with acrophobia that gives him vertigo. The trauma of hanging for dear life from a gutter at the top of a building and the policeman that tries to save him falling to his death is detrimental to James Stuarts character. As a detective, Gavin will later use this to his advantage. In the later 50's when the movie was made, sexuality was more conservative than today's standards. Sex was more of a behind closed doors mentality. This film was one of the films that made a turning point in discussing sexuality in society from a conformist standpoint; sex was starting to become more open to discuss in the major cities. These boundaries where not especially broken in film. For instance, any husband and wife scene in the bedroom were two single beds, the actors were fully dress, and if the woman was to get into bed the husband could not sit on the bed. Women were exploited sexually in humor. Having funny mentalities, but adding obsession to the table was taboo. Women's sexual ownership was not explored in a dark manner till this movie. Scottie asks how Midge's love life is. She replies, 'normal.' Gender roles are even switched when Midge is working and Scottie is lying at her feet. Scottie also falls into Midge's arms, portraying Scottie as the weaker sex between them. Scottie also treats Midge like a pal, or another guy, rather than a woman of interest. Later in the movie, the long dramatic shot of Gavin's wife, Madeleine at Ernie's restaurant and the shot of how Scottie is looking at her for that moment is considered the 'male gaze'. And then there's the coy game we play, Scottie uses this to not get caught looking at her in the traditional male act. A strong example of 'voyeur' is brought up in the film with him spying on the wife, for example, looking through a cracked door with just an eyeball and a shadow of a face looking at you. Another image is of Scottie walking around a corner at the Golden Gate bridge, Madeleine is by the water and Scottie is starring at her again is a gaze.
'Male gaze' is considered ogling. Ogling is 'looking at somebody for sexual enjoyment or showing sexual interest, having a prolonged flirtatious or desirous look at somebody'. There are specific poses that enhance this gaze or ogle. One example of this gaze is when we see Scottie playing naive and ogles at a brassiere. The deliberate sexual condensations that a military man designed it in his spare time implies that the brassiere designer enjoys testing the product, having many women try the brassiere on and off, making for a lot of late and sleepless nights for the designer. Giving the impression that he works and plays at the same time. Sex sells and is one thread that ties the human race together. To have beauty is a form of power over someone. That is what makes people want to be you and or like you. It is a feeling of empowerment over woman, and to look at woman as a sense of property and a piece of meat. The director is trying to seduce the view using Kim Novak as Madeleine to entice Scottie and the male target audience, and this form of voyeurism will never disappear in the media. There are sexy, nasty, naughty and innocent positions looks that immediately entice the male viewing audience to start to ogle at woman. Alfred Hitchcock was aware of these positions and using to his advantage, he had Madeleine/Judy portray, sexy and innocent, by having Madeleine/Judy shake her hips more walking down the street, standing in the wind to having her hair move and glisten in the wind and shaking her hair when she is in Scottie's arms on the mountain side. And in that same scene she is wearing white to portray her innocence. Throughout the movie there are shot revolving around a ruby necklace with a low cut neckline dress showing a lot of skin. All the shots had the same angle, capturing the neck, chest and cleavage. This was a close-up ogling shot if I ever saw one. In other scenes Alfred Hitchcock would have the actress Kim Novak wear a gray suit to give her a mysterious look, though gray is always a bad color for blonde's. Sexual advances are thought of only having the time of day. Most men have the fear of missing out and use this to entice the eyes. Men are stimulated & aroused visually and not emotionally like woman are. It is easier to stimulate a man's libido that a woman's. The male gaze is trained and honed since we were wee little lades. Men are the hunters and woman are the prey. In this sexual lustful gaze men revert to primal thought. These images instigate dreams and fantasies of woman will enter ones head and a sense of gratification come over the viewer. The words 'only if' come to mind in this gaze. Phrases like 'smack that ass', 'faster harder', 'shake that ass' refer to positions sexual movements. A beady-eyed man will undergo a tunneling effect with a 'male gaze', soaking up all the glory of what the man looking at. Tasting the sweet nectar from your eyes. Women were considered to be the property of men not to long ago and some men still have this same mentality today.