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Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo": The Greatest Film Ever?

Gaith

Gaith

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So, as you may have heard, the latest once-in-a-decade Sight and Sound Magazine poll of critics and filmmakers has declared that Vertigo is the Greatest Film Ever Made, supplanting the fifty-year placeholder Citizen Kane, and beating out such other contenders as The Rules of the Game and Fast Five.

I'm a bit conflicted about this.

On the one hand, I'm delighted that this honor goes to a movie about my hometown, arguably the world's greatest city. It could certainly never have worked in any other American setting; and maybe not even anywhere else, though the source novel was set in Paris.

On the other hand... While I've come to appreciate its virtues, I don't think Vertigo is at all a perfect movie. Never mind the plot, which makes Prometheus look sensible... or even the ludicrous courtroom scene. What annoys me most is the Barbara Bel Geddes character, and all the screen time she gets. She serves a purpose, sure - showing that Scottie isn't without a ready (and fairly pretty) alternative to his Madeleine fixation - but her scenes get repetitive, and the one in which she meets with Scottie's head doctor is totally unnecessary. Moreoever, I'm not at all convinced that the story wouldn't be just as poignant if she weren't around as an easy alternative parter.

Also: Vertigo, better than Notorious? (Let alone Psycho or North by Northwest?) I guess I'll have to content myself by reminding everyone that if it is, it's only because of its San Francisco flavor.

And, truth be told, I haven't yet seen Citizen Kane (I'm waiting to see it actually projected, as I did Casablana), so I can't debate that point. And it's worth noting that Vertigo is considered the most European/literary of Hitchcock's American movies, which may have influence over the British Sight and Sound and the poll's European contributors. But, hey - where is Casablanca, anyway? Not on the Top Ten. Casablanca not as good as 2001 or The Searchers, really? I haven't seen the latter, but Ingrid Bergman at her best sure beats John Wayne at his best in my book.

Of course, Muppet Treasure Island was overlooked, also. C'est la vie.

Let the debate begin! :bolian:
 
I think Rear Window is a better movie, not even considering non-Hitchcock films. Vertigo might be more ambitious, but it falters occasionally in constructing a plot around all of its themes.
 
It's not even Hitch's best movie, IMO, but anything that breaks the imposed stranglehold of Citizen Kane...
 
Vertigo is great, no question, but I prefer Rear Window and Shadow of a Doubt, with North by Northwest also in the running.
 
Well, it's interesting, Vertigo has had a kind of slow but steady climb in critical popularity. I remember it as a great movie but it didn't grab me; I haven't seen it since the mid-'90s theatrical re-release. Better than "Kane," though? I don't see it, but I should probably re-watch.

But, hey - where is Casablanca, anyway? Not on the Top Ten. Casablanca not as good as 2001 or The Searchers, really? I haven't seen the latter, but Ingrid Bergman at her best sure beats John Wayne at his best in my book.
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I love Bergman, she may be my favorite actress. But for a character who has "stared into the abyss," Wayne in The Searchers is hard to beat and pretty amazing. I think his dark portrayal is what stuck with guys like Scorsese and Spielerg who saw The Searchers on TV back before it was critically praised. It's not my personal favorite from Ford (which is Fort Apache) but I've got no problem if someone says it's his greatest. It's certainly a beauty on the big screen; it rankles me a little that I will never see it in VistaVision.

Justin
 
Hitchcock was a mystery movie genius. Although I would have chosen North by Northwest or Rear Window, it's okay that Vertigo has the top spot.
 
Nobody loves Hitchcock more than I, but the unofficial remake of VERTIGO, which is 1976's OBSESSION, is even better.....thanks mainly to Genevieve Bujold.

Here it comes.:cool:
 
Vertigo is one of my two or three favorite films of all time, but I'd never put in a top ten list let alone call it "the best film of all time."

I think the "critics" were really reaching on this one.

I would also agree with those that say Rear Window is probably the better film. The the artistic nuance of the cinematography and mise en scene alone are enough to justify it as a ten best.

But the Tokyo Story addition says a lot about the list. While it's certainly a great film, I just don't see it reaching the levels people attribute to it. But it's been really popular as of late (especially in certain 'hipster' circles), so of course it gets a nod because they're being trendy. :rolleyes:

And any list without a Lang film I just can't take seriously. When approching film strictly as an art form (both visual and aural) no one ever got it better.

But it in the end, the whole Casablanca thing is a non starter. It is the "complete package." It encompasses all artistic facets of film making while being historically, socially, and culturally significant. And it was popular.

I really don't know what they were thinking, but then these things are subjective--which is why I never really understood the need for them.
 
Kirkman1987 said:
I think Rear Window is a better movie, not even considering non-Hitchcock films. Vertigo might be more ambitious, but it falters occasionally in constructing a plot around all of its themes.
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This. I think structurally and artistically, Rear Window is a far superior film. But, to be honest, I still think Citizen Kane deserves the top spot.
 
It's certainly brilliant & I consider it one of my favorites of Hitchcock, but North By Northwest is better imho. It's more cohesive, well written, just as iconic, & for what it's worth, more entertaining

Sometimes I wonder how they come to these judgements though
 
I've always disagreed with the assessment of Citizen Kane as best movie...but while this is a great movie, I don't even think it is Hitchcock's best...let alone the best ever.

I think Rear Window, North By Northwest, and Psycho are all better than Vertigo.
 
1. It's not the best Jimmy Stewart movie. i prefer Rear Window and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
2. Any list like this that doesn't include The Godfather in the top 10 starts with two strikes against it.
 
It's important to note that the voting changed a little bit this time around; in the past multiple films in a series (like the first two Godfather films or the Three Colors trilogy) could qualify as one of a critic's ten choices. This time critics had to vote for the individual films separately, or pick one. This explains the absence of Coppola's films on the list this time around. Both The Godfather and The Godfather Part II received a number of votes, but now separated, they didn't receive enough to break the top ten (both films still made it into the top fifty, however).

The other important thing to note is that the votes aren't ranked. Critics vote ten times, they don't vote for their top ten in any order. So, a lot of critics might have thought Vertigo was the tenth best film of all time, not the first, but due to the total number of votes for the film it tops the list.

Personally, I prefer North by Northwest, but it's easy to see why Vertigo gets so much critical attention. One, it wasn't a popular hit when it was released (critically or commercially), so there's been a movement to "rescue" the film from relative obscurity (Hitchcock even had the film removed from circulation for a number of years after it's initial release). Second, it rather dramatically personifies some of Hitchcock's own personal obsessions. These often manifest in his movies, but rarely as clearly as they do in Vertigo.

Here's a link to the Sight & Sound results -- not just the top ten, but the top fifty: http://www.bfi.org.uk/news/50-greatest-films-all-time
 
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