Considered the greatest film of all time Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece Vertigo was not taken very seriously at all when it first came out in 1958. Had we been covering it — or were it opening today — it would be chewed to pieces. This should give SOME comfort to filmmakers whose films were misunderstood by critics of that time but were rediscovered later as their resonance outlasted that early criticism.
It also is a good reminder of how unimportant it becomes, over time, to judge a film whether Oscar voters will go for it or not. I feel culpable in helping to build this ugly beast but now, when I go to read commentary on Gone Girl, I almost always read people saying things what the Academy will or won’t do, measuring success with yet another barometer. Let’s see, the gauntlet is as follows:
Get the movie made – almost impossible. The money, the international bankability, the money, the time, the money. One fight after another. Years and years go by – and finally the film gets made. Then you have to:
1. worry about opening weekend. Did it pass or fail! Oh my god, did John and Jane Popcorn shell out what remains of their income to actually go to the movies? Did teen boys go? Tell me, did the 13 year-olds turn out? Did women go? Women were our target demo cause you know, they like “airport reading.” Did the women pull themselves away from Kim Kardashian’s Instagram long enough to go out to a movie that wasn’t necessarily a romantic comedy?
2. The gauntlet of YELP in place of actual film criticism. Vertigo had about three or four reviews to deal with, plus Hitchcock fans. Movies now? A twitter tsunami of amateur box office analysts (CINEMASCORE!!), the social justice bloggers, the old school critics who still command authority and influence dozens of those beneath them and then the awards analysts. Everyone is one now. And everyone holds their breath to SEE WHAT THE ACADEMY IS GOING TO DO?!!!
3. It gets made. It makes money. It barely squeaks by the amateur professionals online. It earns a pretty decent B Cinemascore and opens the weekend, showing it has good word of mouth and legs. Wait, the social justice bloggers are saying it’s misogynist — wait, no, it’s feminist. Wait no it’s none of those things it’s just a hollow pointless amalgam of crafts with nothing whatsoever to think about. It’s an airport movie! A popcorn movie. The Academy will NEVER GO FOR IT IN A MILLION YEARS.
By the end of it, everyone is looking at each other like they just did eight rounds of cocaine off a hooker’s thigh in a pink motel on San Fernando road. The high has worn off. The jiz long since dried up and brushed away. All that’s left is awkward conversation and mild confusion: what just happened there?
But back in 1958, things were very different. Perhaps the end result will be the same — a couple of tech nods and a happy consensus that gave Gigi the clean sweep!
Back in 1958, Vertigo came out amid much gossip surrounding the decision to cast Kim Novak over Vera Miles. Hitchcock was known as a box office king, not yet an auteur. People went to his movies for thrills and chills, not for Gigi-like deep thought. Thus, the movie didn’t hold muster with some critics, like Variety and the LA Times.
Variety writes:
“Vertigo” is prime though uneven Hitchcock and with the potent marquee combination of James Stewart and Kim Novak should prove to be a highly profitable enterprise at the box-office.
And:
Miss Novak, shopgirl who involves Stewart in what turns out to be a clear case of murder, is interesting under Hitchcock’s direction and nearer an actress than she was in either “Pal Joey” or “Jeanne Eagles.”
But the best quote is this:
Unbilled, but certainly a prime factor in whatever success film may have, is the city of San Francisco, which has never been photographed so extensively and in such exquisite color as Robert Burks and his crew have here achieved.
Through all of this runs Hitchcock’s directorial hand, cutting, angling and gimmicking with mastery.
And then…
Unfortunately, even that mastery is not enough to overcome one major fault, for the plain fact is that the film’s first half is too slow and too long. This may be because: (1) Hitchcock became overly enamored with the vertiginous beauty of Frisco; or (2) the Alec Coppel-Samuel Taylor screenplay (from the novel “D’entre Les Morts” by Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac) just takes too long to get off the ground.
Frisco location scenes – whether of Nob Hill, interior of Ernie’s restaurant, Land’s End, downtown, Muir Woods, Mission Dolores or San Juan Bautista – are absolutely authentic and breathtaking. But these also tend to intrude on story line too heavily, giving a travelogueish effect at times.
Despite this defect, “Vertigo” looks like a winner at the boxoffice as solid entertainment in the Hitchcock tradition.
1958: Nominations: Best Art Direction, Sound
The funny thing about that review is that he (or she) isn’t wrong. It’s merely that, over time, those so-called defects are forgiven to make way for the riches the film really does have to offer.
It’s difficult to find many reviews about Vertigo but there is also this one from Bosley Crowther, an opening paragraph that could have easily been written about Gone Girl:
YOU might say that Alfred Hitchcock’s latest mystery melodrama, “Vertigo,” is all about how a dizzy fellow chases after a dizzy dame, the fellow being an ex-detective and the dame being—well, you guess. That is as fair a thumbnail digest as we can hastily contrive to give you a gist of this picture without giving the secret away. And, believe us, that secret is so clever, even though it is devilishly far-fetched, that we wouldn’t want to risk at all disturbing your inevitable enjoyment of the film.
His review is quite positive, though nowhere in it would you ever, in a million years, know that it would one day be considered by over 200 film critics to be the best film of all time, followed closely by Citizen Kane.
From Wikipedia:
The Los Angeles Times admired the scenery, but found the plot “too long” and felt it “bogs down” in “a maze of detail”; scholar Dan Aulier says that this review “sounded the tone that most popular critics would take with the film”
Also from Wikipedia, again which echoes what people are saying about Gone Girl and Fincher’s work:
Additional reasons for the mixed response initially were that Hitchcock fans were not pleased with his departure from the romantic-thriller territory of earlier films and that the mystery was solved with one-third of the film left to go.
Orson Welles disliked the film, telling his friend the director Henry Jaglom that the movie was “worse” than Rear Window, another film that was not a favorite of Welles’s.
In an interview with François Truffaut, Hitchcock stated that Vertigo was one of his favourite films, with some reservations. Hitchcock blamed the film’s failure on Stewart, at age 50, looking too old to play a convincing love interest for Kim Novak, who at 25 was half his age
Whether the reviews sunk the movie or the fans were “disappointed” with Hitchcock’s change in tone, the film did not make as much money as Hitchcock’s other films, apparently, which is where the Vertigo/Gone Girl comparison stops. Gone Girl IS making money. Lots of it.
The 1958 Oscars came nowhere near honoring Vertigo, as it was considered to be what many are dismissing Gone Girl as – a “popcorn movie.”
The sad lament is, of course, Gone Girl has women in it! It’s about a woman! And in 1958 there were lots of movies about women in the Oscar race for Best Picture: Auntie Mame, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Separate Tables and the only one that could be considered an all male joint, The Defiant Ones. Contrast that to 2014.
So you’ll shriek your fists furiously and and say “I know Vertigo and Gone Girl is no Vertigo.” I completely agree. They are very different films but the reception to them is quite similar. My question to you is, how can you possibly know whether any film is any good or not when Vertigo was this misunderstood and this revered now?
When you judge a film, any film, on its Oscar prospects it immediately takes a nose dive. If it will appeal to Oscar voters it’s written off as cheap Oscar bait and not respected by critics. If it’s popcorn entertainment, suddenly the Academy has such good taste they would not deign to reward such a thing. And indeed, perhaps there was nothing “important” about Vertigo. And perhaps there is nothing “important” about Gone Girl.”
Now, Gigi. There’s an “important” movie.
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1. Rear Window
2. Psycho
3. Vertigo
4. Strangers on a Train
5. Shadow of a Doubt
6. Foreign Correspondent
7. Spellbound
8. Suspicion
9. To Catch a Thief
10. Dial “M” For Murder
Honorable mentions for North By Northwest and The Lady Vanishes
1-Rear Window
2-Psycho
3-Notorious
4-Rope
5-North By Northwest
6-Strangers on a Tran
7-Rebecca
8-Vertigo
9-Sabotage
10-The Wrong Man
1. The Lady Vanishes
2. The 39 Steps
3. The Lodger
4. Sabotage
5. Frenzy
6. The Man Who Knew Too Much (’34)
7. Stage Fright
8. Blackmail
9. Secret Agent
10. Young and Innocent
(see what I did there?)
Hitchcock made more classic movies before age 35 that most directors of classics make in their entire careers.
Are we really doing this?? Ugh.
1. Rear Window
2. Psycho
3. Vertigo
4. Notorious
5. Rope
6. The Birds
7. Strangers on a Train
8. I Confess
9. North By Northwest
10. The Wrong Man
This is irresponsible!
“As for Hitchcock films, Vertigo is — I think — his most accomplished work. That does not diminish his other great films – the ones I love best are”
Sasha, this reminds me of how I feel about Steven Spielberg. His most accomplished film is Schindler’s List. It probably will never be topped. But my favorite is Jaws.
And p.s. the whole ‘Gone Girl isn’t Vertigo’ thing merely proves my point. No one would have said Vertigo was Vertigo in 1958. No one could have possibly known how great it would sit over time. Think, people, think.
“Only Gone Girl isn’t Vertigo. Not even close. If you’re asking me if in 50, 60, 70 years time that GG will be as beloved and remembered as Vertigo, the answer is no. I like Fincher just as much as the next guy, I do. I rally, rally do!! This is the part where I love you Sasha, at the very same time as you’re driving me nuts!! It’s your prerogative, of course.”
See, what’d I tell you. Like clockwork. Tried to head it off at the past but it came speeding right for me anyway. I addressed this at the end of my piece but sadly you would have had to read it to get that.
As for Hitchcock films, Vertigo is — I think — his most accomplished work. That does not diminish his other great films – the ones I love best are:
1. Psycho
2. Vertigo
3. The Birds
4. Notorious
5. Strangers on a Train
6. Rear Window
7. North by Northwest
8. I Confess
9. Rebecca
10. Marnie
Psycho will always remain among my favorite films of all time. It can’t be beat.
For me, “North by Northwest, “Psycho” and “The Birds” are my favorite Hitchcock films. Now and forever.
I’ve seen each many times and still glean enjoyment. I love it when I discover something I had missed upon previous viewings.
“Veritgo”? Not one of my Hitchcock favorites.
But I do think it contains one of James Stewart’s better (and underrated) performances.
The plot of GG is a lot like Rebecca, actually. The public image of a perfect marriage that isn’t one, with a manipulatively evil wife and a man who can’t run from it.
Fine! I’ll tell you how it should have gone down in ’58. All in all, maybe the best year since 1999.
1. TOUCH OF EVIL, Orson Wells
2. VERTIGO, Alfred Hitchcock
3. THE BALLAD OF NARAYAMA, Keisuke Knoshita
4. IVAN THE TERRIBLE, PART II, Sergei Einsenstein
5. ASHES AND DIAMONDS, Andrzej Wajda
6. THE DEFIANT ONES, Stanley Kramer
7. MON ONCLE, Jacques Tati
8. A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, Roy Ward Baker
9. THE HIDDEN FORTRESS, Akira Kurosawa
10. THE MAGICIAN, Ingmar Bergman
11. LE BEAU SERGE, Claude Chabrol
12. CAT IN A HOT TIN ROOF, Richard Brooks
13. EQUINOX FLOWER, Yasijiro Ozu
14. A TIME TO LOVE AND A TIME TO DIE, Douglas Sirk
15. THE MUSIC ROOM, Satyajit Ray
16. MURDER BY CONTRACT, Irving Lerner
17. MAN OF THE WEST, Anthony Mann
18. GIANTS AND TOYS, Yasuzo Masumura
19. THE LOVERS, Louis Malle
20. DRACULA, Terence Fisher
21. SOME CAME RUNNING, Vincente Minnelli
22. THE LAST HURRAH, John Ford
23. RUSTY KNIFE, Toshio Masuda
24. THE BIG COUNTRY, William Wyler
25. THE 7TH VOYAGE OF SIMBAD, Nathan Juran
John, I’m with you and Ryan on that one. Two movies released around the same times were ones that I loved: Lovely Bones and The Fountain. Both got basically bad reviews. I felt a bit bad about myself years ago because I thought, “There’s something wrong with the way I’m interpreting movies. Can I be so wrong? Am I not doing it right?” As the years wore on The Lovely Bones is still something I admire but do not quite love still. The Fountain, however, is something I’ve come to accept as a full blown masterpiece…with flaws. It’s a movie that Aronofsky was on the right tracks with but there were just a few things I would change about it. I loved it when it came out and tried to ignore the reviews. Then I bought the graphic novel/comic and it only reaffirmed how great the story is. Then over time I’ve seen a bunch of people either still love it or are now coming around to it. Some movies do fumble out of the gate and I used to take critics reviews much more seriously back then. Ebert was always my favorite critic but even I disagreed with some of his choices. Did I love Synecdoche NY? Yes, immensely. Was it the best of the decade as he said? Not to me. Did I think Dark City was the best movie released that year, or Crash? No, but I liked them. Ebert also gave a 4 star rating to Knowing, which I enjoyed on some level even though I know (pun) what kind of movie it is. Some of the best critics out there know what they are talking about, they also have guilty pleasures, favorite genres they will be more lenient to and some things they just won’t like for whatever reason. It’s easier to read a single review or two to get a basic understanding of how well a movie is made.
Only Gone Girl isn’t Vertigo. Not even close. If you’re asking me if in 50, 60, 70 years time that GG will be as beloved and remembered as Vertigo, the answer is no. I like Fincher just as much as the next guy, I do. I rally, rally do!! This is the part where I love you Sasha, at the very same time as you’re driving me nuts!! It’s your prerogative, of course.
I get fairly depressed/down when I love a movie that has received poor reviews. Like Ryan, I look for the few good reviews to prove that I’m not crazy and, if they are exceedingly well-written, put forth good points, etc …. then I feel so, so much better about life. Sounds pathetic, doesn’t it? Ahhh, such is the life of a film lover and/or Oscar watcher.
I’ve seen I CONFESS nine times so what?
I’d actually agree that Vertigo is kind of sluggish at the beginning–it isn’t until Scottie rescues Madeleine from the Bay that the film really gets cooking for me–and on the whole, good as it is, I think Rear Window is much better. How Rear Window got a Best Director nomination but was passed over for Best Picture is beyond me.
Being designated the greatest film of all time is certainly an honour, especially as you watch the list change over the decades. It’s more reflective than definitive, but it proves one thing: that film you love that got ignored by Oscar and dissed by the critics? Hang onto that affection because you are not the one who was wrong about it.
I’ve only just read all the other comments so I thought I’d write in support of Vertigo. It’s my favourite film of all time, not just my Hitchcock favourite. Although Hitch is my favourite director, so I do love lots of his other films as well. I can also take the point that Vertigo is slightly hokey, and has dated moments. Just because you love a film doesn’t mean you cannot accept it’s (very slight) flaws as well as it’s perfections. But you have to take into consideration the time in which it was made. What isn’t dated however are it’s themes, which are universally relevant and timeless. That’s why Vertigo still influences films today.
Reading that information about Orson Welles’ opinion of Vertigo, makes me even more happy that Vertigo finally displaced Kane.
Awards Daily three days ago: “Critics give ‘Gone Girl’ rave reviews!”
Awards Daily today: Critics often get it wrong about movies, so who cares what they think?
me, at Award Daily, always: I agree with some critics sometimes and I disagree with other critics at other times. I speak highly about the critics who like the movies I like. I can’t help frowning about critics who bash the movies I like.
If I never read another movie review in my life, it would not interfere with my ability to know which movies I like. (Except for what Sasha writes, I’ve read less than half dozen reviews top to bottom all year long).
I’ll admit if I’m feeling beat up about a movie I like that nobody else I know seems to like, then I’ll go seek out a review by a major critic who agrees with me — so that way I know I’m not crazy.
Awards Daily three days ago: “Critics give ‘Gone Girl’ rave reviews!”
Awards Daily today: Critics often get it wrong about movies, so who cares what they think?
Vily, not a single nomination for one of my favorites, Rush, either. As much as there is a romanticism to a movie getting a ton of Oscars, there’s also a romanticism to a movie not even being nominated for a single one.
I’ll sum it up for you: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button vs Zodiac!!!
3 Oscars vs Not even Single Nomination!!
A Disgrace! If there is anyone that can look me with a straight face and say that that’s not an injustice, then I don’t know what is. So don’t be surprised about Gone Girl. Just like Zodiac, Se7en, The Shining, Vertigo and North by Northwest before it, we shoudn’t be surprised. And how about Prisoners? That was an awesome movie as well but no one talked about it also!!! That’s life! Move on!
As someone who has seen over half of Hitchcock’s extensive filmography I too have a different opinion. Vertigo is a great film no doubt but my favorite is Rear Window. Also, since when is Vertigo considered the greatest film of all time? I thought that distinction has belonged to Citizen Kane for like ever…
I will say though if the consensus is Vertigo now I am far more pleased, I never understood what was so special about the former aside from the performances and technical aspects. The story leaves much to be desired among other things…
I completely agree that Vertigo is the best film of all time. I’ve never felt comfortable with Citizen Kane having that honor before, but everything to me about Vertigo.. from how Hitchcock took his time telling the story to how San Francisco became a vital part of the storyline – is PURE PERFECTION.
Not a fan of Vertigo. I think it is dated and convoluted, but this brings up a point. The resurgence of a film as a classic by critics years later says little more than the Academy. Critics opinions are only still opinions and thus not definitive. Gone Girl is not a perfect movie. People are allowed to criticize movies you love. It’s okay!
ok, longer thoughts on this now that I am home and not typing on my phone:
1 – though I would not dream of putting Gone Girl anywhere near Vertigo as far as great movies go, even when you put time in perspective – and this is someone who has placed The Social Network among his favourite 15 films of all time (agree with Sasha that it is very much a “perfect film”) – the former just doesn’t come even close. HAVING SAID THAT, I think the only current director who is close to Hitchcock is Fincher himself. Fincher is an absolute master because he is able to use a VERY classical approach to blocking and cutting scenes all the while melding them with VERY modern editing speed and lighting techniques. he breaks down his scenes very much like Hitch did. and no other film of his does that more than Gone Girl. some compositions in this are so very hitchcockian, they make my heart swell.
2 – whoever equates “Academy Approval” with “Quality Cinema” is just not paying attention to what is being made outside the Academy’s view. hell, if you take into account the vast number of movies that get made yearly, it’s only a ridiculously small number that gets in. it doesn’t make the films that got in “good”, nor does it make the ones that were left out “bad”.
and, most importantly
3 – regardless of what the Academy does or says, audiences LOVE this film. I’m a massive Fincher fan, so take my opinion with a grain of salt: this is the first film since “The Fountain” that I’ve gone to see in theatres more than once. even more so, I paid to see it 3 times over the course of one week. and it’s not even my favourite of the year! yet it is infinitely entertaining and (re)watchable. not only that, all 3 times, EVERYONE in the (mostly full) shows I attended adored it.
ultimately, that’s what lasts. not that an Oscar doesn’t matter or that it is not enjoyable to see a film and/or filmmaker you like get recognised. sometimes a film will come out and people will LOVE it. and sometimes that love will overlap with the films the Academy loves.
but ultimately, everyone remembers the films they love. and people REALLY love Gone Girl. =)
Chiming in that Vertigo (which I liked) is probably my 5th or 6th fave Hitchcock (Notorious ad Read Window are tops for me). I agree with the list that Josh provided above. And, as of right now, I prefer GG to Vertigo.
Good article, as usual. Pretty funny!
I adore Vertigo, but I still think that Citizen Kane is the greatest film of all time. It’s certainly the best film that I have ever seen.
Tell me, did the 13 year-olds turn out?
There are approximately 2.5 million 13-year-old boys in America.
Let’s assume (for some unknown reason) that every one of those 13-year-old boys has the exact same taste and they all go to the same movies because they have the same IQ and same interests and same behavior. I don’t know why we want to assume that, but anyway, lots of people seem to think that this crazy evaluation of the 13-year-old brain is true, so it makes our calculation really simple. Simple: that’s we we love, right? Simple excuses? Simple targets to blame for everything?
Any studio, any director, anyone anywhere who thinks 2.5 million 13-year-old boys with their measly $20 million is the lifeblood of vampire Hollywood is betting on a very small very weak pony. (assuming, for some reason, that every one those 2.5 kids all buy movie tickets every weekend — which I guess might adds up to a substantial sum, if every 13-year-old boy in America spends $520 of his allowance every year seeing 52 shitty movie every week for 52 weeks…?
Those 13-year-olds with their shitty taste. I’m sure we all remember how stupid we were when we were 13, yes?
(I swear to god I was in 7th grade when I wrote a term paper for English class about Citizen Kane. But all the rest of you were stupid at age 13, right?)
Are there studio execs in Hollywood who wonder if 13-year-olds went to see Gone Girl? Is it legal for 13-year-olds to go see R-rated movies in Hollywood?
(Does this mean the dreaded 14-year-old boys are off the hook this month?)
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every weekend, 55% of the audience for nearly Every Movie is over the age of 25.
We’re always proud that 52% of movie tickets are sold to women, yes? Do we not think there are ever any women buying tickets to blockbuster tent-pole movies? I wonder. These are facts that are easy to look up.
39 million Americans have bought tickets to see Guardians of the Galaxy — 44% of them were women.
That’s 17 million American women buying tickets to see Guardians of the Galaxy. That is a fact.
Are we still assuming that every single 13-year-old brat in America went to see Guardians of Galaxy? All 2 million+ of them?
If so, then even if EVERY 13-YEAR-OLD BOY in America went to see Guardians of the Galaxy, then the WOMEN in the audience at Guardians of the Galaxy would still outnumber the 13-year-old boys 7 to one.
That’s 7 women lining up for the tent-pole for every single 13-year-old boy in America. Fact.
If that 7 to 1 ratio of women to pubescent boys had been happening in theaters when I was 13, then I might not have turned out so gay.
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If we could win the war against 13-year-old boys and kill every one of them tomorrow, I’ll bet studios would still make movies like Guardians of the Galaxy because 17 million American women would still spend $145 million every time a new one came along.
$145 Million. That’s how much American women have spent on tickets to see Guardians of the Galaxy (so far). These numbers are not a secret, they’re easy to find. Studios know about these numbers.
“So you’ll shriek your fists furiously and and say “I know Vertigo and Gone Girl is no Vertigo.”
I agree, GONE GIRL is no VERTIGO
“They are very different films but the reception to them is quite similar. My question to you is, how can you possibly know whether any film is any good or not when Vertigo was this misunderstood and this revered now?”
THIS is spot on. There have been so many movies that have garnered mixed reviews upon release that eventually became classics, I remember quite fondly writing my thesis on this particular topic when i was in film school …. quite a few years ago 😉 Off the top of my head, here are a few films that were neglected upon release:
BLADE RUNNER
THE SHINING
2001 A SPACE ODYSSEY
CASINO
MODERN TIMES
THE MATRIX
THE BIG LEBOWSKI
SE7EN
THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
FIGHT CLUB
ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA
LEON
AMERICAN HISTORY X
TERMINATOR 2
THE 25TH HOUR
DONNIE DARKO
THE GREEN MILE
AI ARTIFICAL INTELLGENCE
Also, I lived across the street from the ‘Vertigo house’ in San Fran on Lombard which coincidentally was right by the house used for Real World San Francisco (with Puck and Pedro) and also a block or two from the curviest street.
Count me in as one that likes Vertigo but do not understand how it’s the greatest film ever or even Hitchcock’s best. Give me Psycho, Rear Window, Notorious, North By Northwest any day. And I would put Strangers on a Train up there as well. And I love Rope even though it’s not as well received.
I dunno how come the spam filter is so overactive tonight.
Meanwhile the spam filter allows “zombie diary 2 hack download” to run rampant.
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Posts like this address one of my favorite topics: the way some movie “experts” who think they’re so smart have no idea how dumb they will look in the future.
God bless you for beating me to that comment, Bryce!
@ Bryan: I’m not too sure actually, my post disappeared :p
What the fuck is going on in this thread
The other thing is that there was no critical framework for dealing with a film like Vertigo in 1958 (or perhaps it was too new). It would be like asking why the the Academy failed to nominate Tony Scott films prior to Vulgar Auteurism championing them.
I’m past the Vertigo phase. Notorious is similar and a better film.
I like Vertigo as well but I agree that it’s not even Hitchcock’s best film, so I was a bit taken back when I saw it outranked Citizen Kane on Sight and Sound’s last poll. My personal favorite of Hitchcock’s work is North by Northwest, but that’s just me.
I don’t think Vertigo is even Hitchcock’s best film. I think Psycho is. I’ve seen Vertigo a few times, and I didn’t love it either.
I’ve never understood why Vertigo is held in such high regard. When I saw it a few years back I thought it was a complete bore. Perhaps it requires a second or third viewing before one can truly recognize it as a work of art.
Gigi: everyone should listen to “thank heaven for little girls” and then thank heaven that such a film would be considered 100% creepy today.
But in a way, “thank heaven for little girls” is the secret sauce in the appeal of Vertigo and Gone Girl. A young pretty blonde is in trouble! Oh no! The real Gone Girls are international celebrities like Natalee Holloway and Amy Smart, while black girls go missing in anonymity all the time. You’d like to think that Gone Girl is commenting on this, but Amy’s parents and Amy and Flynn and Fincher all have something in common: they dangle the lovely young blonde female in front of us to get our attention. Hard to comment on the sickness of that when you’re doing it yourself. I doubt, say, Kerry Washington was considered for the role of Amy.
Back to the point of Sasha’s piece: do we really think any movie today is going to be ravaged by critics then reclaimed a decade later? Last one I can think of was Big Lebowski. My students like to talk about this when I show “Rules of the Game” and, yes, Vertigo. You said it Sasha: there were only a few critics to get through then. Maybe bigger crowds mean more representative samples…maybe not.
Vertigo had a great twist, but you almost felt it could have worked without it…Madeleine could just have gone missing or something. Gone Girl IS ONLY its twist. Every other bit of realism – Nick telling the media the truth or them finding it out anyway, Amy’s odd motivations – are sacrificed to that twist. I’m not even saying Vertigo was better. But Scotty Judy Gavin and Midge always behaved rationally based on their information (I mean, Scotty stalked, but that’s not the same as irrational.) Nick and Amy? Come on.