Hitchcock's best...one of the greatest movies

Rating: 10/10 (28 August 2005)

Screen legend James Stewart plays Scottie Ferguson, a detective who is afraid of heights. You'll see why in the opening minutes of the film. He's hired by Elster, an old acquaintance, to follow Elster's wife, Madeline played by Kim Novak. Stewart falls in love with her. To tell more of the plot would ruin the movie because it's complicated with many twists and surprises. The film takes place in San Francisco and along the California coast.
If you like Hitchcock's films and the movie Vertigo run out and get Donald Spoto's book "The Art of Alfred Hitchcock" and read his detailed essay on Vertigo. It reveals all the symbolism and underlying structure of the film which you're not aware of as you watch. When you see the film again you'll be amazed at the complexity of the movie and what it really is about. I had no idea of what Hitchcock was doing in his films until I read the essays in Spoto's book. They're a real eye opener, especially the essay on Vertigo.
Vertigo is #61 on the American Film Institute's 100 greatest films list.
If you like Vertigo check out the 1955 film Les Diaboliques by Henri Georges-Clouzot. It was based on a book by the same author, Pierre Boileau, who wrote the book on which Vertigo is based. Hitchcock tried to get the rights to make that movie but was narrowly beat out by Clouzot.