I'm At A Place Called VERTIGO

This would have to be my new favourite film! Even as I’m writing this blog, only just having finished watching it for the first time, Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 masterpiece, Vertigo, will be indelibly etched on my mind! I’m still shaking from this beautiful nightmare of obsession....with a killer twist!

Set in San Francisco, James Stewart portrays an acrophobic (someone with an irrational fear of high places...you’re welcome!) detective hired to trail a friends suicidal wife (Kim Novak...hotototototot!) After he successfully rescues her from a leap into the bay, he finds himself becoming obsessed with the beautifully troubled woman.

What makes this film outstanding to me is yes, it’s full of Hitchcock’s masterful camera angles and special effects, but what I see in Vertigo is a story with true human emotion which no other Alfred Hitchcock movies offer, adding a new creatively pleasing dimension to his work.

Jimmy Stewart is wonderful yet again and portrays his most brilliant and complex character. He represents everyman and is incredibly easy to identify with.

The most exciting element in this film for me is The “Vertigo Effect”. As a filmmaker this shot, used to dizzy the audience and thus put them in the characters perspective, is worthy of inspiration and imitation. And it has been imitated by the best. Steven Spielberg used this shot in JAWS...in the beach scene. The famous Vertigo shots were done with miniatures laid on their sides, since it was impossible to do them vertically. The view down the mission stairwell cost $19,000 for just a couple of seconds of screen time.

Nuns scare me...so I found the climax scene disturbing. Kinda had to turn my lamp on a little...

Vertigo is one of cinema’s most chilling romantic endeavours: it’s fascinating myriad of haunting camera angles shot among some of San Francisco’s renowned landmarks. This film is a must see for movie buffs! A genuinely great motion picture that demands multiple viewings!

Cymbals the Symbol...

It seems to be Hitchcock month here at the moment. Has nothing to do with me and my current tastes it’s just that Hitchcock has so many films that have made it onto the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list! With a single crash of cymbals the life of an American family is turned upside down in 1956’s The Man Who Knew Too Much.

James Stewart and Doris Day, in a rare dramatic role, are superb in this brilliant suspense thriller from the undisputed master. Stewart and Day play Ben and Jo MacKenna, innocent Americans vacationing in Morocco with their son, Hank. After a French spy dies in Ben’s arms in a Marrakech market, the couple discovers their son has been kidnapped and taken to England. Not knowing who they can trust, the MacKenna’s are caught up in a nightmare of international espionage, assassinations and terror. Soon all their lives hang in the balance as they draw closer to the truth and a chilling climatic moment in London’s famous Royal Albert Hall.

I wasn’t fully getting into this film when I first started watching it and I must admit I didn’t think it was anything that special. But 20 minutes into the film I was hooked. I was tense and nervous, on the edge of my seat to use the cliché. The plot development was masterful and completely compelling.

The whole cast are superb, giving incredibly naturalistic performances - see the scene in the Moroccan restaurant, which almost seems ad-libbed. The absolute stand out in this film for me however is Doris Day! Originally production had doubts about whether she could pull off the serious dramatic elements the script called for, after all, Day was used to playing in Hollywood Musical Comedies. But Day delivers the impossible 110% in this film. Her emotional breakdown scene after discovering the kidnapping of her son is superb.

At first, Day refused to record "Que Sera, Sera" as a popular song release, dismissing it as "a forgettable children's song." It not only went on to win the Academy Award, but also became the biggest hit of her recording career and her signature song.

As usual, there are the elaborately staged set-pieces, beautifully choreographed blend of music and images building to the pivotal crash of cymbals in the film’s climax. This is one of Hitchcock’s best.

Rear Window Ethics

I often have this debate with my somewhat overbearing mother as to the ethics of spying on the neighbours. Do I really want to know what they’re doing? To know that the old man to our left pays for the company of younger women or the woman to our right enjoys the old puff every once in a while? The answer is...yes! How fun it is to play the voyeur!

None of Hitchcock’s films has ever given a clearer view of his genius for suspense that 1954’s Rear Window. When professional photographer J.B Jeffries (James Stewart) is confined to a wheelchair with a broken leg, he becomes obsessed with watching the private dramas of his neighbours play out across the courtyard, when he suspects a salesman may have murdered his nagging wife, Jeffries enlists the help of his glamorous socialite girlfriend (Grace Kelly) to investigate the highly suspicious chain of events...Events that ultimately lead to one of the most memorable and gripping endings in all of film history.

This is a great film, although it does take a while to get into. It’s full of sumptuous, witty dialogue, especially between Stewart and Kelly, and Classic one-liners not likely to forget.

The performances are masterful. Thelma Ritter as Nurse Stella is fantastic. Kelly is profoundly beautiful as always! She frequently played the same characters...but boy! Is she good at it! Stewart is great too and he was looking fine until he took his shirt off and I got an eyeful of old man boobs!

The sub-plot of Miss Lonely Heart will tear at your emotions with its sad and tragic events...so be warned.

The entire picture was shot on one set, which required months of planning and construction. While shooting, Alfred Hitchcock worked only in Jeff's "apartment." The actors in other apartments wore flesh-coloured earpieces so that he could radio his directions to them. Keep a sharp eye out for the piano player! That’s Ross Bagdasarian, creator of Alvin and the Chipmunks.

This film is an undeniable classic. It’s inspired many a rip off. The Simpsons for one and DJ Caruso’s film Disturbia with Shia LeBouf is a modern retelling of the story. Enjoy the Voyeurism. Seeing isn’t always believing.

The King of Movie Musicals!

Singin’ in the Rain....Without a doubt, hands down the greatest Hollywood musical ever made in the history of everness!! And I will fight every single one of you Neanderthals who disagree!! Not only does this movie mean so much to me personally it also reflects the Golden Age on Cinema at its toe-tapping best.

Silent movies are giving way to Talking Pictures – and a hoofer-turned-matinee idol (Gene Kelly) is caught in that bumpy transition, as well as his buddy (Donald O’Connor), prospective ladylove (Debbie Reynolds) and shrewish co-star (Jean Hagen).

I cannot help but smile at the film’s beginning! Then I find my smile doesn’t fade throughout the films entirety! 1951’s Singin’ in the Rain really is the King of Movie Musicals. Kelly captivates me with his wonderfully inventive and incredibly athletic dancing. He really was a true mater of his craft and made it look so easy. When teamed with O’Connor you can expect some brilliant choreography that will leave you breathless.

This film is full of classic songs that it’s impossible to pick a favourite! (It’s like being asked to name your favourite child!) All I Do Is Dream of You, Make ‘em Laugh, Moses Supposes, Good Mornin’ and the legendary Singin’ in the Rain...you’ll be singing along like a Disney movie!

The first sound recording scene with Kelly and Hagen is comedy gold and guaranteed to make you chuckle. I’ve always skipped the soundstage number with Kelly and Reynolds it’s too slow and lovey-dovey for me...a real lull in the film’s action.

As I watch this film I am saddened. Gone are the days of actors with real talent like Kelly, O’Connor and Reynolds. Artists who could sing, act and dance! We don’t have star like that in this day and age anymore. But their legacies are left on film for audiences to enjoy over and over again. What a Glorious Feeling!!

Hand Me A Rope

I first heard of Rope when I was on the set of one of my short films. My lead actress told me of the play “Rope’s End” by Patrick Hamilton; a sinister tale of murder and intrigue. It aroused my interest so I did my research and found that Alfred Hitchcock’s 1948 film Rope was the most well know filmed version of the play. I didn’t get what I was expecting!

Two...let’s call them friends (wink wink to the major homosexuality theme throughout the film)...strangle a classmate for intellectual thrills, then proceed to throw a party for the victim’s family and friends – with the body stuffed inside the trunk they use for a buffet table. As the killers turn the conversation to committing the “perfect murder”, their former teacher (James Stewart) becomes increasingly suspicious. Before the night is over the professor will discover how brutally his students have turned his academic theories into chilling reality.

Nothing in this movie works for me. The film is based on a play and I feel like I’m watching a play. Hitchcock films the entire movie in ten minute segments in an attempt to make the film run like one continual shot. The problem is he has to do these ugly and completely ridiculous close ups into the backs of characters costumes to mask the cut edits! There’s no fancy Hitchcock camera work and the sense of macabre that the movie promises is lost on me a little. The odd softly whimsical music during the opening credits doesn’t quite fit the mood of the film. 20 minutes in and I wish the movie would kick into some form of gear!

Thank God Jimmy Stewart finally arrives at the party! Things are beginning to look up! Stewart is endearing and witty, grabbing my full attention...but alas! He can’t save this film for me.

The idea of this film does excite me; I know who’s done it, I’m just waiting for the lead character to figure it out. However, I think a lot of the tension was taken out of the film by Hitchcock showing the murder in the first scene. If the audience had been left to guess whether there indeed was a body in the chest or not the picture would have been a lot more riveting.

A Comedy of Murders

In Monsieur Verdoux, a suave but cynical man turns to crime to support his family after he is laid-off from his job as a banker. He begins marrying rich women then murdering them for their money but is caught out as two ladies prove to be serious occupational hazards.

Written by Chaplin from an idea by Orson Welles, the 1947 comedy was nominated for an Academy Award and is one of the first films to feature Chaplin out of his Tramp persona.

The first thing to be seen in the film...Monsieur Verdoux – A Comedy of Murders; accompanied by dark strings...it’s hard to believe this films a comedy. It seems an absolute contradiction! Then Chaplin’s startling and creepy narration commences. It’s time to admit...you’re kidding yourself if you expect a slapstick filled film!

You can notice that Chaplin was a slapstick director though. A lot of the shots in the film are long shots designed to canvas the entire bodily action of the actors on screen. And what strikes me is Chaplin’s constant breaking of the fourth wall! He regularly looks at the camera as if appealing to the audience to see the reasons behind his wicked acts.

This film is filled with little treasures! There is nothing more delightful to see Chaplin pruning roses whilst his latest murder victim burns away behind him in the incinerator. The money counting motif is sure to make you chuckle as well as the boat scene with the yodellers.

Only when Chaplin began to talk did we realise how deep and philosophical he was. Deep down this film is a social and political commentary with a powerful ending speech and a strong atheistic theme. And as Verdoux walks away to his execution and that slightly demented Tramp walk shines through I realise this film deserves to be listed with the greats.

The Greatest Film of All Time!

This would have to be, without a doubt, one of the hardest films to review! Every critic worth his salt under the sun has branded this film the greatest ever made. How do I know this? ...It's written on the back cover of the DVD... But if you ask my 2009 advanced English class you will find a small group who would rather stab themselves in the eyes then watch Orson Welles' 1941 classic - Citizen Kane.

This timeless masterwork (#1 in the American Film Institute’s list of Best American Movies) is more than a groundbreaking film. It is also grand entertainment, sharply acted and superbly directed with inspired visual flair. Depicting the controversial life of influential publishing tycoon, Charles Foster Kane, this Academy Award winning film is rooted in the themes of power, corruption, and vanity – the American Dream lost in the mystery of a dying man’s last word: “Rosebud.”

I love Orson Welles’ and respect him as a groundbreaking actor and visionary director. Every piece of dramatic work he has produced is brilliant. His work in this film is no exception. His portrayal of the monolithic Kane is gripping as you follow him from a young, handsome and likable college freshman to an old, tired and pitiable recluse.

I make films myself and I often have cursed sets where nothing goes as planned. It was a comfort to find as I was researching the film that Welles chipped his anklebone halfway through production and had to direct for 2 weeks from a wheelchair. When he was called upon to stand up onscreen, he wore metal braces. The injury occurred in the scene where Kane chases Gettys down the stairs and Welles tripped. Thank God! I thought it was just me!

This film just has too many fantastic scenes in it. It deserves all the accolades it has received over the years and I have no doubt it will continued to be studied in English classrooms for years to come.

Hitchcock's Rebecca

I think Tim Burton when I see the model opening to Alfred Hitchcock's 1940 film, Rebecca. A wonderful opening sequence with a haunting, dreamy voice over by Joan Fontaine. I see a little Ed Wood in the intro as the camera slowly manoeuvres its way through an intricately detailed miniature set. Hitchcock has my attention!

A shy ladies' companion (Fontaine), staying in Monte Carlo with her stuffy employer, meets the wealthy Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier). She and Max fall in love, marry and return to Manderley, his large country estate in Cornwall. Max is still troubled by the death of his first wife, Rebecca, in a boating accident the year before. The second Mrs. de Winter clashes with the housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, and discovers that Rebecca still has a strangle hold on everyone at Manderley.

What strikes me first about the film is the two powerful leads steering it; Fontaine and Olivier. Fontaine is strangely beautiful and delightfully awkward, like a small fish in a very big pond. Olivier is his usual brooding, elegantly sophisticated self. But it's the maid that steals the show!

Judith Anderson as the delightfully twisted Mrs. Danvers adds a lot to this film. You hardly notice the other characters when she's in the scene. Mrs. Danvers is hardly ever seen walking; she seems to glide. Alfred Hitchcock wanted her to be seen solely from Joan Fontaine's character's anxious point of view, and this effect tied in with her fear about Mrs. Danvers appearing anytime unexpectedly.

Some highlights of the film include the scene in which Mrs. Danvers shows Fontaine Rebecca's room for the first time - brilliantly unnerving. And the imaginary murder re-enactment in which the camera shows where Rebecca would have stood and leave the audience to use their imaginations to determine how it all played out! A genius Hitchcock moment. And I need to mention the unforgettable dramatic ending...it's a must see!