Veritgo

Rating: 7/10 (30 September 2013)

A man's fear of heights lead to one woman falling off a church steeple, one woman purposely falling of the church steeple, and one man getting away with murder and stealing boat loads of money. But after I watched it the first time I said aloud, "What?"
Vertigo, explicitly based off of The Living and the Dead by Bolieau-Narcjac, is based in San Francisco. To avoid spoilers, and make the movie sound interesting, a retired detective follows his lover all the way to death. But throughout the movie, it's a piece of deception, not just for the affected main character but also to the audience. You are literally blindsided at the end due to a "emotional shock" episode.
But, don't get too comfortable when you watch the movie. There are moments of high suspense with extreme darkness and extreme light. There are also odd moments of excitement. Even with these odd moments, the ending is very abrupt. Even with the alternative ending, it didn't seemed fully complete. According to Turner Classic Movies, Hitchcock was never fully satisfied with the script. Three different writers re-wrote the movie till Hitchcock was the least dissatisfied.
Odd moments like Midge (Barbara Bel Geddes) leaving the psychiatric hospital talking to Scottie's (James Stewart) doctor and the "off" transition between her and the doctor was weird. After that, it was the last time we saw Midge. After Scottie left the hospital, it was never recognized again throughout the movie. Scottie's uncomfortably close watch of Madeline (Kim Novak.) Scottie's inquiries at Agory's Book Shop, the screen suddenly get dark, making you think the brightness on your device has had a lapse.
Aside from scenes, looking at the film again, the foreshadowing is overwhelmingly obvious. Elster's (Tom Helmore) calm mode talking about his wife's, Madeline psychotic episodes, Madeline's whore-ish attitude toward Scottie, the cover of the film, and the unveiling of the deception two-thirds into the film. Even when Elster's wife jumped into the bay, her "husband" didn't care. The acting did a sure fire justice to screenplay.