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Kim Novak Sizzles as Clever "Dumb Fox"
Pervenia - wrote on 04/09/09
In Alfred Hitchcock’s thriller, Vertigo, Madeleine Elster/Judy Barton (Kim Novak) is the ultimate femme fatale. Using beauty and the vulnerability of men to her advantage, Madeleine succeeds at getting two things: money and power.
Eventually, Madeleine's needs drive her to collude with Gavin Elster (Tom Helmore). Elster, then convinces his friend and retired detective, John ‘Scottie’ Ferguson (James Stewart), to monitor his wife's comings and goings, claiming Madeleine is mildly unstable and needs to be watched.
The business of following around another man’s wife struck John oddly at first. But after catching a glimpse of Elster's wife from a surreptitious distance, John is intrigued by her beauty.
Soon, John’s intention to investigate Madeleine’s strange behavior becomes anything but business. His fascination with Madeleine’s aloof innocence and devil-may-care demeanor is the bait. And, when John rescues Madeleine from drowning in San Francisco Bay, his heart-throb turns into obsession. Moreover, his prying observations that led to this heroic act, begin affecting him in obvious ways.
Suddenly, John becomes reticent and unavailable to former companion, Midge Wood (Barbara Bel Geddes). Later, he calls on Midge, using her networking connections for his own private agenda.
Consumed with passion for Madeleine, John devotes much of his time and effort trying to liberate the distressed damsel from her inner demons. Ultimately, John’s desperate attempts to get at the truth cause him to overstep a sacred boundary—marriage—all in the name of love.
Madeleine’s fatal flaw—an obsession with the illusion of romance—exposes the extent to which both she will go to get what she wants. Madeleine is impulsively clever and succeeds at outfoxing John, until the end.
Seducing a self-proclaimed Casanova, Novak sizzles and is irresistible in this Hitchcock masterpiece.
