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Alfred Hitchcock Vertigo Analysis

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Released in 1958, Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo was a film centering around lies and obsession. After being released from his job as a detective after he got acrophobia, John “Scottie” Ferguson is asked to follow his friend’s wife, Madeleine. Scottie starts up an affair with her, being drawn to her mystery. After she commits suicide, Scottie struggles with guilt. When he sees another version of Madeleine, his obsession pushes him to remake the woman into Madeleine. His obsession leads him to uncover the lies of his friend and eventually leads to his downfall. Through purposeful coloring of the background and costumes, Alfred Hitchcock connects color to Scottie’s loss of individuality and varying mental states with blue representing Scottie’s sense …show more content…

The viewer is first introduced to John “Scottie” Ferguson as he rushes to stop a criminal. Hitchcock films this scene in blues. Scottie wears a blue suit and hat, and manages to stand out against the night sky which glows blue. Even the policeman who is helping Scottie wears a blue uniform (3:00-3:17). As this is the viewer’s first impression of Scottie, they can’t help but be overwhelmed with the colors and the situation. This scene shows Scottie at his prime because his psyche was crippled by acrophobia. The blue represents his undamaged mind and how he has a firm grip on his individuality with no connection to Madeleine. When Scottie visits his friend, Midge, he sits in a red chair in a room with yellow and blue wallpaper. Midge wears a yellow blouse as the two of them Scottie’s acrophobia (4:32-9:42). Hitchcock easily connects Midge and Scottie’s relationship to the easy connection of blue and yellow. As Midge often acts as a motherly character in the eyes of Scottie’s character, she is depicted wearing yellow which carries the connotation of optimism and loyalty. Scottie sitting in a red chair surrounded by blue wallpaper shows he still strongly connects with his life as a detective but realizes his crumbling mind will not allow his to hold onto that part of his

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