Masterpiece of cinema that is still unequalled!

Rating: 9/10 (22 August 2000)

Well, what can one say that has not already been said about this undisputed Hitchcock masterwork. Having watched most of the Master's films post-Rope, I had contented myself that North By Northwest would never be beaten, until I clapped eyes on this strange, neurotic, surreal, romantic, haunting drama. Never before in the cinema has there been a story that could wrench at the heart and leave the viewer shaken by its power. Stewart, the one-time All-American Hero of Capra, gives his greatest screen performance as the admittedly sickly minded cop smitten with the mysterious Kim Novak, who never again would get a role this good. Both stars exhume passion, almost burning the celluloid of the print, and Hitch never once loses focus of the story. His surprise revelation of the plot about 2 thirds of the way in may destroy the suspense but it increases the tension in the viewer. HE doesn't know her real identity and SHE only wants him to love her for who she is, not because he is in love with a dead woman who transfixed him. For me the final thirty minutes are probably the most poignant moments the screen has to offer. When the film ends, the viewer is shattered by the tragedy, but goes away enriched with what the cinema can offer, but cannot even come close to achieving again. For me, Vertigo is the best film I have ever seen and, no matter how many times I see it, I still come away with the same reaction - goosebumps and a lump in the throat. Cinema alchemy on a grand scale and Hitch is king of directors!