SSC Film Studies

Doppelgangers within Vertigo

Vertigo has a wide array of doppelgangers and all of them are quite important but none are more important that Madeline and Judy and this is because they are the exact same person but they are actually quite different. This is because for Scottie and the whole of the audience Madeline represents virtue while the loveable Judy represents vice. Now this is important because when we see Madeline come out of the bedroom after she has woken up we know that Scottie has repressed feelings about here and that he wants to act on them and instead he decides not to and this is because she is to masculine for Scottie at this point so he has not earned the right to actually act on his desires. But Judy actually represents the vice this means that Scottie is actually able to take control of Judy and make sure that he is able to act on his desires as he is not the more masculine figure.

The doppelganger effect is represented perfectly by Alfred Hitchcock and this is because he actually repeats the same sequences that have happened already in the film when we first see Judy and this is because. When we first see a close-up of Judy it is the exact same portrait shot that was done in Ernie's restaurant earlier in the movie with Madeline when we see her for the first time. Then when we see Scottie follow Judy back to her place the same technique is used by Alfred Hitchcock that was used when Scottie follows Madeline into the cemetery. This is not a coincidence and is instead done on purpose to show that the events are playing out again.