Alfred Hitchock's Vertigo - overrated?

[Kevin]

I find Vertigo to be one of the more over-praised Hitchcock films.

First, the good parts,

-James Stewart gives a performance worthy of praise in the movie.

-Bernard Herrmann's score works wonderfully in the picture.

-The cinematography of San Francisco is lovely.

-Up to the first death, it's a great movie

-The final shot of Scottie looking downward, now cured of his acrophobia and vertigo, is quite potent.

Now, the parts that had problems.

-I felt that the main drawback of this story is the pacing of it. The early scenes of Scottie watching Madelene in her 'crazy' stages could have been trimmed down more.

-The character of Midge Wood and the subplot dealing with her are somewhat superficial and don't really play any part in the overall story.

-Plus, the story has a few plot-holes that are left unexplained (dealing with Elster's real wife and the complexity of the murder necessary).

-The plot twist is given away probably far earlier than it could have.

-That dream sequence is pretty feeble.

[Andrew Forbes]

-The character of Midge Wood and the subplot dealing with her are somewhat superficial and don't really play any part in the overall story.

Midge grounds Scotty in normality. Without her, Scotty's transformation into a controlling obsessive would seem less like the corruption of an ordinary man than the fulfilled potential of an inherently damaged pervert. She's also representative of the lost romance right under his nose.

-The plot twist is given away probably far earlier than it could have.

If the movie were about the plot, and not about Scotty's obsession. The murder--and the details of the murder--are relevant only in so far as they drive Scotty's final actions.

-That dream sequence is pretty feeble.

The dream sequence is f***ing rad unless you view it through the anachronistic lens of 60's psychedelia.

[Burson_Fouch]

-The character of Midge Wood and the subplot dealing with her are somewhat superficial and don't really play any part in the overall story.

Midge grounds Scotty in normality. Without her, Scotty's transformation into a controlling obsessive would seem less like the corruption of an ordinary man than the fulfilled potential of an inherently damaged pervert. She's also representative of the lost romance right under his nose.

-The plot twist is given away probably far earlier than it could have.

If the movie were about the plot, and not about Scotty's obsession. The murder--and the details of the murder--are relevant only in so far as they drive Scotty's final actions.

-That dream sequence is pretty feeble.

The dream sequence is f***ing rad unless you view it through the anachronistic lens of 60's psychedelia.

The whole plot of Vertigo is Hitchcock's most elaborate use of a McGuffin.

[Andrew Forbes]

The whole plot of Vertigo is Hitchcock's most elaborate use of a McGuffin.

Word.