Vertigo

Synopsis-
Hitchcock's romantic story of obsession, manipulation and fear. A detective is forced to retire after his fear of heights causes the death of a fellow officer and the girl he was hired to follow. He sees a double of the girl, causing him to transform her image onto the dead girl's body. This leads into a cycle of madness and lies.

Vertigo was based on the 1954 novel "D'entre les Morts" (From fighting among the dead) By Pierre Boileau and Pierre Ayraud.
The Screenplay was written by Alec Coppel and Samuel Taylor.

Themes and scene examples
Religion- The nun at the end of the movie links to the theme of Guilt.
Obsession- Scottie's obsession with Madeline.
Voyeurism- Scottie following Madeline and falling in love with Madeline.
Guilt- Scottie feeling guilty for the officers death and 'Madeline's' death.
Desire- Scottie's desire to be with Madeline.
Illusion- Vertigo
Romance- Between Scotty and Madeline, but also Scotty and Judy.
Romantic Delusion- Scotty falling in love with Judy because she reminds him of Madeline.


The themes and ideas and in Vertigo are very typical in Alfred Hitchcock movies. For example, Hitchcock was repeatedly accused of being a misogynist because in a lot of his films, the female characters often find themselves in vulnerable and violent situations. Moreover, Gavin's Elster's wife is thrown of the church bell tower. in Psycho, Marion Crane is slashed in the shower. 


One of the main themes in Vertigo is Voyeurism. Laura Mulrey's Male Gaze Theory is a key feature throughout the film. Furthermore, in film the male gaze occurs when the audience is put into the perspective of a heterosexual man. 
In Vertigo, the male gaze comes in when Scotty obsessed over Judy's appearance with her hair, make-up and dress sense. He wants her to look like Madeline.

Symbols
Spirals- Link to the idea of Vertigo
Green- Ghostly. Also the colour that represents Madeline.
Red- Represents lust but also danger. Is the colour that represents Scotty.
         
As the narrative develops, we see how the colours green and red intertwine. To illustrate, after Scotty saves Madeline and then brings her back to his house, Scotty wears green and Madeline puts on his red. The purpose of this is to highlight how the characters are connecting and becoming more involved in each others lives. 
  
Jimmy Stewart
Audience at the time were hostile as Jimmy Stewarts character was not the classic Jimmy Stewart character and people were not satisfied. Hitchcock would cast known Stars because the audience already knew them and could relate to them on some level. Therefore, there would be an emotional link between the character and the audience. Jimmy Stewart was know as the 'every man' which explains why the audience were not impressed with Vertigo as Stewarts character was unexpected and less relatable.

MotifMany of the motifs in Hitchcock's films are sometimes rightly or wrongly attributed to Hitchcock's own upbringing and career.
Hitchcock consistently uses doors, mirrors, windows and frames to enhance his motif of voyeurism and develop this film of obsession and illusion.
 Birds are a reoccurring motif in Hitchcock's films. In Vertigo it's the name of Scotty's college friend; Gavin 'Elster'. 
'Elster' is German for the word Magpie. A Magpie is a bird known for it's intelligence and ability to identify itself in the mirror. 
Other motifs are;
-The wrong man 
-The Perfect Murder
-Blonde Women
-Guilt
-Silent Scenes
-Falling
-Staircases
-Perhaps the mother figure. For example, Midge's is often scene as the mother figure which explains why her and Scotty cannot get together.
-McGuffin, in Vertigo the MacGuffin Is the necklace as it drives the narrative forward.

Filming Vertigo was filmed fro 16 days on location and the rest of the film was filmed in the Paramount studios in Hollywood. Hitchcock liked to film in studios as it allowed him to have full control of the environment so he could get the shots he wanted, exactly. 

Creative Team

Alfred Hitchcock had his own creative theme that he worked with on his films as they knew the way he worked and what his aims were. His team was made up of people such as; 
Composer- Bernard Hermann who worked with him on,
                   -The trouble with Harry (1955) 
                   -The man who knew too much (1956)
                   -The wrong man (1956)
                   - North by northwest (1959)
                   - Psycho (1960)
Editor- George Tomasini
Associate Producer- Herb Coleman
Head Costume Designer- Edith Head
Cinematographer- Robert Borks