Vertigo (Collector's Edition)
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Movie Reviews of Vertigo (Collector's Edition)
Movie Review: Most emotional picture I've ever seen
Summary: 5 Stars
Enough has already been said about the story of this movie, so I will not go into details. I'm sad however at how much people have already given away. The power of Vertigo is seeing it for the first time and being surprised. It always leaves me asking deep human questions. True the story is simple, but its also human. The reason this film has become popular is because it reaches people emotions and isn't so far fetched from our own experiences. A lot of people, I believe, can identify with some part of this story, bring home the fact it's meant to be personal and not just get the plot right.
I love the music, U might say I'm obsessed with it. The music adds to the emotionality of this movie and is like another character. There is definitely a theme song throughout the movie but it stays so unique that one never notices the similarity because it is masterfully woven together with the movie itself. Color is another character and is musical in an ethereal way. Red and green are the dominant colors but a whole array of colors are used in this film.
Jimmy Stewart....one of the greatest actors of all time and my personal favorite actor...he does play the everyman in this film, because he's human. He struggles with fear and illusions and obsessions and other powerful human struggles and this makes Stewart great in this film. Kim Novak is spellboundingly beautiful! Her blonde figure, particulary stands out against greens and reds, which I'm sure Hitchcock planned out. Stewart is the more extroverted and Novak is the introvert. Their opposite personalities add to the drama of the story and make it what it is...a masterpiece.
Movie Review: Don't look down!
Summary: 5 Stars
Vertigo is one of those rare films that runs on atmosphere. This film pushes you into a a world of murder, lust, lies and a dream like state so real It's as if everything around you disappears and you're in a dream and not watching a flick at all. Stewart is Ferguson a cop who is afraid of heights after he watches his partner fall to his death while they chase a suspect, after this he retires and then is hired to watch over a friends sucidial wife (Novak) who he comforts after she throws herself into San Fransico bay! When the wife dies suddenly Stewart is left heartbroken and finds a new love who reminds him of th egirl he lost. The film pushes into overdrive but in a subdued and calm manner. Vertigo is pure cinema at it's most daunting and magical. Not for a second do you believe anything that is happening on the screen. If someone was to tell you this story over the phone you would probably laugh till you wet your pants-but have you ever had dreams where the same person vists you over and over again or a case of deja-vu, then this film isn't so funny anymore. Hitchcock takes these elements of illusion and throws them at us one after another for the entire film. Stewart is brilliant the drawl in his voice underlies his paranoia perfectly and Novak shines as an uneven object of desire. Novak gives the best performance of her carreer. Vertigo leaves you spun and weak after each viewing because to watch it, a little bit of you has to belive what is going on and you have to just let go and fall into the film's premise and if you are afraid to do so-well then you have the flick Vertigo my friend!Movie Review: Do Yourself a Favor: Just Buy It.
Summary: 5 Stars
Just take everyone's word on this one: go out and buy yourself a copy of VERTIGO. That's right. You can walk right by the rental store and purchase it for yourself. You'll thank me. VERTIGO is one of those films that I can watch many times (even in a relatively short time span) and not get tired of it. There is just something about it that keeps me coming back. Maybe it is the way the storyline manages to "hook" you, dragging you further and further into the main character's obsession. Perhaps it is the beautiful camera work, the glorious colors, or the very haunting soundtrack. This transfer is excellent-much better than the older version I can remember watching as a kid. Or perhaps it is the way that Hitchcock manages to transform a rather simple murder-mystery into something that stabs a knife into all of our hearts. Whatever it is, VERTIGO has it in spades.
James Stewart and Kim Novak are superb in this film. In fact, both of their performances seem effortless. I kept getting the feeling while watching this film that I wasn't watching a movie. It seems too real, too penetrating for cinema. It's like we've been invited along for a two hour ride inside of Hitchcock & Stewart's mind, inside the mind of a man possessed by a dream. Perhaps what is so engaging about the plot is the fact that we can all relate to such obsession. It is painful to watch in the same way that it is painful to watch loved ones decline (or it is to watch ourselves descend into madness).
As I said before: you have to see this film. It's as simple as that. Period.
Movie Review: Stunning
Summary: 5 Stars
To say that VERTIGO is merely good is an understatement of the first order. It is arguably the crowning achievement of Alfred Hitchcock's career and indisputably the greatest example of pure emotion expressed in cinematic form from among his fifty three films.A basic overview of the story: Scottie (Jame Stewart), a retired detective, is hired to investigate the daily routines of Madeleine (Kim Novak), a former collegemate's wife. Madeleine, according to her husband, is haunted and possessed by the vengeful spirit of her suicidal grandmother. As he follows her around varying locales of San Francisco, Scottie becomes evermore intrigued by her strange behavior. Soon he finds himself rescuing her from the waters below Golden Gate bridge in what was an apparent suicide attempt. Things quickly get complicated.
Although there are several well-executed plot twists, they are not there as the main focus of the film. Rather, like the cinematography, acting, and wonderful score by Bernard Herrmann, they serve to establish the raw emotions of Scottie onscreen. These elements work in perfect harmony to convey the growing, and ultimately tragic, obsessiveness that consumes him. This obsession becomes almost tangible in the way that it enthralls the viewer as well. We are privy to the mental state of Scottie, and like him, we are drawn in, not by the Madeleine he knows, but by the Madeleine that is constructed in the images and sounds of cinematic perfection.
I give VERTIGO my highest recommendation. The extras on this DVD are very good as well, and simply icing on an already delicious cake.
Movie Review: Bernard Herrmann's Best with Hitch
Summary: 5 Stars
Everyone in the world is probably familiar with Bernard Herrmann's score for "Psycho," particularly the music from the shower sequence. And his scores for films like "North By Northwest," "Citizen Kane" and "The Day The Earth Stood Still" rightfully place him at or near the top of the list of the worlds greatest film composers. However, nothing matches "Vertigo" in terms of raw emotive power. If "Vertigo" is Hitchcock's most atmospheric masterpiece, then Herrmann should be given credit for much of the atmosphere and dramatic impact. How else could 10 to 15 minutes of Jimmy Stewart wordlessly following a dazed woman be so riveting?Fortunately, in this restored DVD release of Vertigo, the music is given a prominent place in the mix (only occasionally hampered by the sometimes awkwardly recorded new foley effects), which really supports the dreaminess of it all.
Some of the most groundbreaking and progressive music of the 20th century was written in the context of film scoring, and Bernard Herrmann was a giant in his field. It's truly a shame that he and Hitchcock had a falling out prior to the completion of "Torn Curtain" (I might add that if Herrmann's score for "Torn Curtain" had been used, which he did write, the movie might not be considered one of Hitch's lesser pictures today).
Between the exotic, lovely, deeply color-saturated and newly restored print and Herrmann's own film score, "Vertigo" as presented in this DVD package is mesmerizing. Very, very highly recommended.