MovieChat Forums > Vertigo (1958) Discussion > Some gaffes?

Some gaffes?

posted 8 years ago by Erniesam
4 replies | jump to latest

Absolutely love this movie. Seen it many, many times. Just beautiful. That said I do have a couple of questions about some things. It's always fun to scrutinize movies and practically every one has got some errors. Don't know if the following are errors, they just seem odd to me.

1. Scotty has acrophobia and yet he lives in San Francisco. At one time, when he's following Madeleine, we see him driving down a pretty steep hill. Doesn't his acrophobia kick in than? And what about all the other steep hills in the city?

2. How did Scotty manage to get both his and Madeleine's car to his apartment?

3. When Scotty and Judy / Madeleine drive towards the Spanish monastery they drive on the left side of the road. Besides that: Scotty says he likes to go for a drive, but to the monastery it is 100 miles. Some little drive if you ask me.

Besides this there are other things. Like the woman in the hotel telling that Madeleine didn't come in. How did madeleine go past her and how did she get away? Or is the woman in on the fix and paid by Allister?

Or continuity errors like the doctor having his hands down and in the following shot folded. Just fun stuff.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

I don't know.

[–] Thaisticks (2531) 4 years ago

No. 2 is the most egregious. There are also others, which you can see a list of on IMDB (a long list). One that I would like to point out is that early in the movie, when "Madeleine" is stopping at a store, she pulls up to a side door in an ally only wide enough for one car, right next to an entrance. Scottie pulls up behind her in the same ally. Obviously, this could not really be "Customer Parking," as the sign says which they show on the side of the building--obviously put there for the filming. How can you possibly have customer parking in a narrow ally where one car parking will block any other car from getting through the ally? Another amusing aspect was how easy it was for them, no matter where they went in San Francisco, to park on the curb at the front door of any establishment (in the 50s, SF had already reached its maximum pop. of roughly 3/4 million).

[–] greenbudgie (2355) 4 years ago

Agreed. Also about that alley scene. I can't believe that an upmarket store would have such a grotty back entrance. Trash cans and a whole array of neglect. Then entering such a glitzy-looking store.

[–] Thaisticks (2531) 4 years ago

Oh yeah, "alley." The older I get the worse my spelling gets!