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Vertigo: The Making of a Hitchcock Classic
Alfred Hitchcock's 1958 film Vertigo--in which obsessve ex-cop James Stewart pursues troubled loner Kim Novak throughout San Francisco--is one of the most dissected, discussed, and revered movies of all time. Now, for the first time, the story of this remakable film is revealed. Writing with the full cooperation of the director's family and many crew members, Dan Auiler offers up a remarkable in-deph re-creation of Hitchcock's signature thriller. The result is one of the most thorough and illuminating studies of a single film ever published, and a testament to the enduring power of Hitchcock's masterwork of suspense.
240 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
April 4, 2015
If you have an interest or a fascination with Alfred Hitchcock's 1958 classic film "Vertigo, which many people do, you will find this book entertaining and a great source of information. It is well researched and chock-fill of facts about the making of the film. It contains insights into how Hitchcock worked with everyone connected with it, especially the writers and the actors. For example, he rarely gave the stars of the film, James Steward and Kim Novak, direction. He cast actors whom he thought were right for the roles and let them find the characters themselves. Novak asked him how he wanted her to play her role (or roles). He told her that's what I hired you for. He was also very active in the writing of the script - which was worked on for a number of years and went through many iterations. The book also has some of the storyboards Hitchcock created for the film. He story-boarded every shot of the film - something he did on all his films.
March 11, 2017
In my current phase of reading behind-the-scenes of the making of Alfred Hitchcock movies, Vertigo: the Making of the Hitchcock Classic is by far the most intriguing. I felt I learned more about Hitchcock's technique of transferring material to the screen (he always adapted previously written books), the development of plot and character, the mini-catastrophies and successes, and even Mr. Hitchcock himself, than all the other books I've read combined.
I'm not really surprised this is the book that most interested me - Vertigo is my absolute favorite Hitchcock film, if not my favorite all-time film. And, much like Psycho and the true-life serial killer Ed Gein it was based upon, Vertigo retains little of the source material, French novel "D'entre les morts" by Boileau-Narcejac. The book takes you through the various steps that change the plot, the characters (including adding and subtracting them), the location, even the basic spine, or core, of the film. Mr. Hitchcock always was quite sure what he wanted and what he didn't - and in his drive to get it, he went through several screenwriters.
Even the film stars were not the original choices. Reading some of the actors and actresses who first were considered - and/or even offered the roles! - are fun just for the sake of trying to imagine them in the roles that will forever be Jimmy Stewart's and Kim Novak's.
Because the book is mostly about 'facts,' it's difficult to write a review without giving away too much of the fun, which should be discovered along the way. So, I will suffice with a recommendation that it's a very well researched and knowledgeable background story of a revolutionary film (which was not a success at all when it opened in 1983!) which almost always shows up on any list of the 100 best films ever made.
It's well-written, clear and concise, and not dry-as-dust as some behind-the-scenes books are (I am remembered of one such book that almost entirely was comprised of contract discussions - ugh!).
I'm not really surprised this is the book that most interested me - Vertigo is my absolute favorite Hitchcock film, if not my favorite all-time film. And, much like Psycho and the true-life serial killer Ed Gein it was based upon, Vertigo retains little of the source material, French novel "D'entre les morts" by Boileau-Narcejac. The book takes you through the various steps that change the plot, the characters (including adding and subtracting them), the location, even the basic spine, or core, of the film. Mr. Hitchcock always was quite sure what he wanted and what he didn't - and in his drive to get it, he went through several screenwriters.
Even the film stars were not the original choices. Reading some of the actors and actresses who first were considered - and/or even offered the roles! - are fun just for the sake of trying to imagine them in the roles that will forever be Jimmy Stewart's and Kim Novak's.
Because the book is mostly about 'facts,' it's difficult to write a review without giving away too much of the fun, which should be discovered along the way. So, I will suffice with a recommendation that it's a very well researched and knowledgeable background story of a revolutionary film (which was not a success at all when it opened in 1983!) which almost always shows up on any list of the 100 best films ever made.
It's well-written, clear and concise, and not dry-as-dust as some behind-the-scenes books are (I am remembered of one such book that almost entirely was comprised of contract discussions - ugh!).
December 31, 2015
Full of spoilers. It was like he wrote for people that had seen and loved the movie.
August 20, 2012
By now, Alfred Nitchcock's "Vertigo," is considered a classic, arguably a masterpiece that ranks with "Citizen Kane." Predictably, its release in 1958 was greeted with some medicocre reviews. (Time Magazine, typically snide and patronizing at the time, called it " another Hitchcock and bull story." )
By now, the mesmerizing film, about an ex-cop (Jimmy Stewart) who pursues a mysterious woman (Kim Novak) in San Francisco and along the Pacific coast, is an hypnotic study of obesssion. (Perhaps it was a parable of Hitchcock's own efforts with Novak) Bernard Herrmann's great score helped enormously.
Dan Auiler is a Hitchcock scholar who, with the assistance of the director's family, has recreated the step-by-step making of "Vertigo." The storyboards, memos, telegrams, design sketches etc are fascinating -- up to a point. But Hitchcock himself remains a mystery, revealing remarkably little and staying intensely private and elusive. (For an exploration of Hitchcock himself there are some first-rate biographgies by Donald Spoto, Patrick McGuigan and others).
At times, the book is tedious. (Are we that interested in how Hitchcock found this or that setting?) But the book also has enough inside gossip to entertain. How many us know that Harry Cohn, the head of Columbia, who loaned his big star, Kim Novak, to make the film at a rival studio, was so upset when he learned that she was having an affair with Sammy Davis, Jr., that it prpobably led to his fatal heart attack?.
What led to the film's soaring reputation was its re-release in 1983, and its restoration, in 1996. Critics who dismissed it turned rapturous. Andrew Sarris, who panned the film, said twenty-five years later that Hitchcock had "found the means of pouring all the inherent ambiguities of the cinema into our collective unconscious." I'm not quite sure what he meant by that. But how many movies stir that kind of comment?
By now, the mesmerizing film, about an ex-cop (Jimmy Stewart) who pursues a mysterious woman (Kim Novak) in San Francisco and along the Pacific coast, is an hypnotic study of obesssion. (Perhaps it was a parable of Hitchcock's own efforts with Novak) Bernard Herrmann's great score helped enormously.
Dan Auiler is a Hitchcock scholar who, with the assistance of the director's family, has recreated the step-by-step making of "Vertigo." The storyboards, memos, telegrams, design sketches etc are fascinating -- up to a point. But Hitchcock himself remains a mystery, revealing remarkably little and staying intensely private and elusive. (For an exploration of Hitchcock himself there are some first-rate biographgies by Donald Spoto, Patrick McGuigan and others).
At times, the book is tedious. (Are we that interested in how Hitchcock found this or that setting?) But the book also has enough inside gossip to entertain. How many us know that Harry Cohn, the head of Columbia, who loaned his big star, Kim Novak, to make the film at a rival studio, was so upset when he learned that she was having an affair with Sammy Davis, Jr., that it prpobably led to his fatal heart attack?.
What led to the film's soaring reputation was its re-release in 1983, and its restoration, in 1996. Critics who dismissed it turned rapturous. Andrew Sarris, who panned the film, said twenty-five years later that Hitchcock had "found the means of pouring all the inherent ambiguities of the cinema into our collective unconscious." I'm not quite sure what he meant by that. But how many movies stir that kind of comment?
July 5, 2020
This was a readable, deep dive into the making of Vertigo that left me wanting more; but maybe there's not much more to say about the actual creation of the movie. While the process is interesting and involved four different writers, a change in leading lady and was interrupted by Hitch's and his wife's health problems, as the author himself says, "Readers of the book, paradoxically, will have a different kind of surprise in store for them: What many Vertigo aficionados will find perplexing are the systematic, businesslike, matter of fact circumstances under which this odd, obsessional, very un-matter-of-fact film was created." Much of filmmaking and acting is really unglamorous, hard work and sometimes boring, just like any other job.
An example wanting more and boring work is the filming of Scene 151 when Madeleine awakens after her rescue from the Bay by Scottie. The author says they had much difficulty with it filming multiple takes nearly as written, but he never says what the problems were, though maybe the production notes and the interviewees he relied on don't say.
The author approaches the process chronologically, from Paramount's purchase of the rights through the writing, filming, post-production and release to the 1996 restoration. From what I know, he presents a fair treatment of Hitchcock and highlights all the talented people Hitchcock collaborated with from writers to the cameraman who created the forward zoom, reverse track "vertigo" shot. This is definitely a book to have if you are a Vertigo fan. I plan to watch the movie as I go through the book again trying to catch some of the details about the music, writing and filming that the author points out.
An example wanting more and boring work is the filming of Scene 151 when Madeleine awakens after her rescue from the Bay by Scottie. The author says they had much difficulty with it filming multiple takes nearly as written, but he never says what the problems were, though maybe the production notes and the interviewees he relied on don't say.
The author approaches the process chronologically, from Paramount's purchase of the rights through the writing, filming, post-production and release to the 1996 restoration. From what I know, he presents a fair treatment of Hitchcock and highlights all the talented people Hitchcock collaborated with from writers to the cameraman who created the forward zoom, reverse track "vertigo" shot. This is definitely a book to have if you are a Vertigo fan. I plan to watch the movie as I go through the book again trying to catch some of the details about the music, writing and filming that the author points out.
July 11, 2013
I was hoping for more discussion about the film itself, its plot, its quirks, but instead this really gets into the nitty-gritty of the filming process - if you want to know what footage was shot on which day and how many takes, this is the book for you. It's clear the that author REALLY cares about this movie, but he doesn't really analyze it. Oh well. Still interesting!
July 2, 2022
Some good insights...however, I did not care for the Kim Novak hatchet job. Seems like D.A. did his damndest to wedge in a shitty comment or two, besmirching the actress's personal character. whenever he could. Comes off as bitterly sexist.
June 1, 2018
This book was a really comprehensive, insightful look at the history of Vertigo and Hitchcock, and I left wanting even more close analysis of one of my favorite movies ever! I am more knowledgeable about this remarkable film because of this thoughtful book.
December 11, 2018
On page 203 the author interviews an idiot who disses the 1994 remake of Sabrina. It's a small detail in an otherwise pretty good book, and on the surface it seems like it doesn't even have to do with the topic at hand, but it was enough to make me burn my copy to ashes.
April 30, 2022
I'm not actually done with this book (I'm using it for a research project) but I HAVE read it maybe a hundred times over by now so I'm going to finally mark it as read. Great resource for my project thanks Dan Auiler.
September 14, 2018
If you love Vertigo as I do, this will be like catnip for you. Highly researched and detailed with an especially fascinating look at the day-to-day shooting schedule.
September 15, 2020
An extraordinary book about the making of a classic.
August 20, 2024
Adore this book, so many details about the film that you’d never even think of!
May 26, 2025
A fan's classic!
February 19, 2017
**#16 of 120 books pledged to read/review during 2017**
November 11, 2013
Auiler's book shows how much Hitchcock shaped the writing of his films, including this one, perhaps his most personal. Auiler has access to the shooting logs, but 40 years on they sometimes they provide detail without illumination: We learn that the encounter with Novak in Stewart's apartment was filmed repeatedly, but no reason is offered. Overall, somewhat thin. Still, you'll leave with a better appreciation of the movie.
February 7, 2015
I liked it. I liked that this book mentioned how Hitch missed Grace Kelly as his blonde femme fatale, & tried replacing her with Novak, & how in Vertigo the character is also trying to mold the girl into what he wants her to be.
July 25, 2007
Decent enough, but I was overall disappointed with it for some reason I can't put my finger on.
March 10, 2010
This was my first book. Feel free to drop me a note--I love reading reviews good or bad. Just not indifferent.
July 14, 2010
I loved this behind-the-scenes look at filming Vertigo - it doesn't pull any punches, and doesn't shy away from showing the darker side of Hitchcock himself.
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July 28, 2011I've never seen the film, so I thought this was going to be about a man stuck up a tower in a storm! Pleasantly surprised though.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews