Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5817 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-10-17
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English, French
• Subtitled in: English, German, French, Portuguese, Swedish, Danish, Polish, Dutch, Finnish, Czech
• Dubbed in: German, Italian, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 124 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Dreamlike and nightmarishly surreal, Vertigo is Hitchcock's most personal film because it confronts many of the convoluted psychological issues that haunted and fascinated the director. The psychological complexity and the stark truthfulness of their rampant emotions keeps these strangely obsessive characters alive on screen, and Hitchcock understood better than most their barely repressed sexual compulsions, their fascination with death and their almost overwhelming desire for transcendent love. James Stewart finds profound and disturbing new depths in his psyche as Scotty, the tortured acrophobic detective on the trail of a suicidal woman apparently possessed by the ghost of someone long dead. Kim Novak is the classical Hitchcockian blonde whose icy exterior conceals a churning, volcanic emotional core. The agonised romance of Bernard Herrmann's score accompanies the two actors as a third and vitally important character, moving the film along to its culmination in an ecstasy of Wagnerian tragedy. Of course Hitch lavished especial care on every aspect of the production, from designer Edith Head's costumes (he, like Scotty, was most insistent on the grey dress), to the specific colour scheme of each location, to the famous reverse zoom "Vertigo" effect (much imitated, never bettered). The result is Hitch's greatest work and an undisputed landmark of cinema history.

On the DVD: This disc presents the superb restored print of this film in a wonderful widescreen (1.85:1) anamorphic transfer, with remastered Dolby digital soundtrack. There's a half-hour documentary made in 1996 about the painstaking two-year restoration process, plus an informative commentary from the restorers Robert Harris and James Katz, who are joined by original producer Herbert Coleman. There are also text features on the production, cast and crew, plus a trailer for the theatrical release of the restoration. This is an undeniably essential requirement for every DVD collection. --Mark Walker

Video Description
DVD Special Features:
"Obsessed with Vertigo" featurette (29 mins)
Feature Commentary
Theatrical Trailer
Production Notes
Cast and Filmmakers' Notes

1.85:1 anamorphic
Languages: Dolby Digital 5.1 English, 3.0 Surround German, Mono French, Italian and Spanish
Subtitles: English, French, German, Dutch, Portuguese, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Danish, Polish, Czech

Synopsis
VERTIGO is Alfred Hitchcock's haunting tale of deception, madness, and death, a masterful exploration of fantasy and anxiety. The film ranks with REAR WINDOW as one of the director's most closely studied films for its psychological complexity, while the obsession of its protagonist--John "Scottie" Ferguson (James Stewart)--can also be seen to parallel that of Hitchcock's own fascination with the icy-blonde leading lady he recreated at the center of so many of his films. Scottie Ferguson is a retired detective, his career ended by the onset of a paralyzing fear of heights. An old friend, the wealthy Gavin Elster (Tom Helmore), hires Ferguson to follow his wife (Kim Novak), whom, he explains, has grown obsessed with an ancestor of hers. The assignment draws Ferguson out of his comfortable role as observer and into a complex web of intrigue, mingled with the detective's own fantasies and fears. Stewart gives an exceptional performance as the disintegrating detective, while Novak, who was left largely undirected by Hitchcock, conveys a subtle and powerful psychological journey. Another star of the film is its San Francisco setting. VERTIGO is considered one of Hitchcock's finest and most complex films.

Customer Reviews

Breathtaking
In the documentary, 'Obsessed With Vertigo', the restorers of the film say that they are envious of those who are able to watch the restored version of Vertigo without ever having watched the film at all before. Well, I am one of those people and I was awestruck by it.

Every aspect of the film is stunning: the directing, the acting, the sets, the music etc, but in my mind it is the cinematography which stands out. The clarity of colour and the lack of fog to create this dream-like vision of '50s San Franciso added a quality to this film that I can't really put into words. Some credit must go to those who have painstakingly restored this cinematic classic, because if it hadn't been for them I might not have been so struck and impressed with what I was watching.

But, having said that, I can't even comtemplate not being mesmerised by this film. As I said, everything about Vertigo is stunning. It is one of those rare things where everthing flows together seamlessly. Each separate bit of the movie has its own time to shine, its own time to stand up to be noticed. It is the kind of movie that knows where it is going, and is going to hook anyone and everyone into watching it as it slowly weaves and winds its way through towards the end. I love to watch these kind of movies, the kind that rope you in slowly, movies that at times move along at a snail's pace - not having to be concerned with the introduction of action sequences and things blowing up, movies that increase the tension little by little until the climactic crescendo at the end is finally reached. Sadly this is all too rare in modern cinema (The Shawshank Redemption is a fantastic exception), but from watching Vertigo and subsequently Rear Window, it is obvious that HItchcock was the supreme exponent of these kind of movies.

I love every minute of Vertigo, and I've never tired of watching it simce. The term 'a piece of art' has become over-used in recent years, but in order to find the words to descibe Vertigo I can find no better phrase. It is breathtaking and I urge you, as a person who is now 'obsessed with Vertigo', to watch it.

A truly great film
I first saw this film when I was about 17. I expected it to be a classic Hitchcock chase thriller. What I actually saw was a strange, mesmerising meditation on obsession that inexorably drew me in, and took me over for two hours.

It is the deceptively simple tale of a man called Scotty, who is asked by an old school friend to follow his wife, a beautiful, quintessential Hitchcock Blonde. The friend believes that his wife, Madeleine, is obsessed with the past and is going slowly mad. Scotty follows the woman and observes her from afar, and slowly becomes as obsessed with her as she apparently is with the past...

This film is mesmeric. It hypnotises you and draws you into the obsession of the main character, an ex-cop played brilliantly by James Stewart. Hitchcock's direction lovingly bathes the beautiful San Francisco setting in a dream-like haze. Bernard Herrmann's excellent score sounds old-fashioned and overwrought in places, but on the whole it perfectly complements the sense of foreboding and the confusion of dream and reality in the film. After just a few minutes of watching this film, I found myself becoming as obsessed with it as Scotty is with Madeleine.

"Vertigo" is often thought of as the ultimate expression of one of Hitchcock's deepest feelings about the tragedy of life and love. By most accounts, Hitchcock had the kind of tragic view of love and desire that you would expect of a grossly overweight, uncommunicative man who had come into contact with some of the most glamorous leading ladies of American cinema. He was always behind the camera, observing their beauty, and the women in front of the camera must have seemed so near yet so far... In the movie, Scotty is consumed by his obsession with the cool blonde, and then by the desperation he feels when he has this beauty snatched away from him, firstly by death, and secondly by the suspicion that it was all a cruel illusion. It was obviously a very personal film for Hitchcock, but the theme also works as an accurate depiction of the darker elements of male desire.

Scotty, with his refusal to accept cold reality, is reflected in men who are afraid to commit, afraid to move in with their girlfriends, afraid of intimacy. They're all chasing a dream, secretly waiting for that Hitchcock Blonde to come along, and they're afraid that accepting reality will close the door forever on the miniscule hope that someday, somehow, they might have her. This is not to say that "Vertigo" is an arty, conscious attempt to deconstruct the essence of male desire, and I doubt Hitchcock really had that in mind when he made the film. It is a thriller, albeit very slowly paced by today's standards, and the plot has some of the usual Hitchcock twists and turns. It's easy to forget that Hitchcock made the blockbusters of his time, and his films were as eagerly awaited as "Lord of the Rings" movies are today.

This is a truly great film, and the critics don't just vote this one of the greatest films ever in poll after poll because they feel they have to. Being a Hitchcock film, it's technically accomplished, and it's famous for the strange zoom effect used to show Scotty's disorienting vertigo. The locations are beautiful, and the cinematography creates out of them a strange place of dream and illusion, seemingly disconnected from the real world. James Stewart and Kim Novak are exceptional as the main characters, and the power of their performances somehow makes an improbable story more believable. The only drawback is that the film is so old (it was made in the late 50s). As the years go by, it gets older and older, and it loses more of its power as the 50s become more of a distant memory, but it is still highly recommended to those who are willing to set that aside and enjoy some great, intelligent storytelling.

By far the greatest film ever made . . . .
I know it's all to easy to label a film 'greatest' and maybe it's a pointless thing to do. But in all my days, I have never seen a film that is so complete as Vertigo is. It is Hitchcock's most personal film and I think it is the only one of his films that truly contains all the unique qualities he brought to the big screen. The plot is simple enough; Retired detective is hired by a supposed old school friend to follow his myserious wife. Detective falls in love with wife, she meets a tragic end that the detective cannot prevent owing to his vertigo. Well, that's only half the story! I won't spoil it for you! James Stewart and Kim Novak are brilliant in the film and together they create a love story that will both shock and amaze you. Hitchcock makes superb use of colour in the film (remember the green and red used in the restaurant!) and also is not afraid to use only music (and a brilliant score it is too!) at times, to drive the story on. When the film first came out in the late 50's, it died a death in the US. But in France, many considered it a masterpiece (Which is funny, because the story is based upon a book by a French author/s). After the original release, the film was shelved for almost 30 years until Hitch's daughter allowed it to be re released. This remastered version makes the film look better then ever! It's a film you can lose yourself in, a film that is like no other, a film that you will never forget. Every great artist is always remembered for his one truly great work, this is Alfred Hitchcock's. In all honesty, I do not have the words to really do the film its proper justice. If you have never seen this film before, I envy you. I would love to see it for the first time once again!