Beginning of Vertigo- 1958, Alfred Hitchock

Vertigo- 1958This movie is an American psychological thriller, it was directed by Alfred Hitchock, who is known for being the 'master of suspense'. Vertigo stars James Stewart, Kim Novak and Barbara Bel Geddes The film was written by Alec Coppel and Samuel A. Taylor, based on a novel by Boileau-Narcejac. A retired police detective, who has acrophobia, is hired as a private investigator to follow the wife of an acquaintance to uncover the mystery of her peculiar behavior. The film received mixed reviews upon initial release, but has garnered much acclaim since then and is now frequently ranked among the greatest films ever made, and often cited as a classic Hitchcock film and one of the defining works of his career.
The opening sequence begins with an extreme close up of a girl's lips, to make it seem eerie she is wearing very dark lipstick. The camera moves up to show one of her eyes. The music is dramatic and very significant in this particular opening sequence. As the titles come up the music changes, and when the titles disappear the music goes back to how it was, this is to jolt and frighten the audience. When the words 'Alfred Hitchock' appear, her eyes change to red, this signifies malice, anger and blood. The title of the movie 'Vertigo' becomes visible out of her eye. The opening sequence then jumps from a creepy and tensional opening to an action opening where there are men jumping from roofs to roofs at extreme heights at night-time, there is then a thunderous gun-shot noise. The men are risking their lives, jumping from roof to roof at soaring heights. Right at the beginning of the movie, the title is already explained, as the meaning of the word 'Vertigo' is to have a fear of heights. So, Alfred Hitchock has done a fantastic opening sequence, by merging the idea of suspense and action together.

generic conventions of thriller movies

Thriller: Generic conventions

Lighting:

Dark/noir lighting:
• To place the audience in the same position as the characters
• Evil
• Uncertainty and confusion
• Mystery/enigma
• Suspense
• The idea of nightmare

Chiaroscuro lighting:
• Extreme light on dark
• Reinforces sense of nightmare
• Illusion
• Its aesthetically pleasing

Ambient and non-ambient
• Natural and artificial lighting

Sound:

Diegetic sound:
• Sound within the mise-en-scene
• The characters can hear it
• Helps to put the audience in the character’s position

Non-diegetic sound
• Sound added afterwards
• The character can’t hear it
• Can be the added soundtrack