The movie stars James Stewart as Johnny (Scottie) Ferguson, Kim Novak as Madeleine Elster/Judy Barton and the city of San Francisco as itself.
According to Herbert Coleman, Vertigo's associate producer, Hitchcock often picked a location and then developed a story to be filmed there. He liked to show a familiar location and introduce a twist of malice. When he first saw San Francisco, he said it would be a good place for a murder mystery, and he chose a French novel, "D'Entre les Morts"(From Among the Dead). It's a story of deception and obsession, of love lost and regained, and of course, Hitchcock's signature plot twist at the end.
The movie was not well received when it was released in 1958, but it has developed a following in the last 15 years. Martin Scorsese describes it as "like being drawn into a very, very beautiful comfortable, almost nightmarish obsession". Classic film expert Brad Lang, says "I still haven't quite come to a conclusion about the film, but regardless of whether you think the film is Hitchcock's masterpiece, or a confusing trip through his twisted psyche, you have to admit that it shows off a lot of San Francisco landmarks."
