The film was adapted from a novel by Narcejac and written for the big screen in 1958 by Taylor and Coppel.

The film’s location in California is a backdrop for many iconic images such as the Golden Gate Bridge and the mission San Juan Bautista and other classic scenes. It was mainly filmed in the bay area and there are many images from around San Francisco including Mission Dolores, Coit Tower and the Legion of Honor.

The film’s plot is filled with many surprises and moments that will keep you guessing and it is well worth seeing. As a result it has been classed as one of the top hundred movies of all time.

The main protagonist nicknamed Scottie is exposed to the traumatic death of a colleague who falls from a rooftop. He is unable to cope with the vivid recollection of the scene and retires from the police department. He is plagued by vertigo, a dizzying disorder, when exposed to heights. A request from an old college buddy, Gavin, makes Scottie pick up one final investigation.

The pace picks up as Scottie is hired to tail Madeleine, Gavin’s wife. She is obsessed with a woman named Carlotta Valdes and visits her grave and portrait each day.

Scottie continues to follow Madeleine and sees her jump into the bay at Fort Point. He prevents her from taking her own life, they form a rapport and she tells him that she is afraid that she is going insane. She has a recurring dream that plagues her.

They figure out that this landmark is in a small town, San Juan Bautista and Madeleine is convinced to face her fears and see if this can stop the nightmares. When they arrive she flees to the top of the tower. Scottie’s vertigo will not allow him to climb higher. He hears a scream and witnesses a body land at the bottom.

He is beside himself with grief. Everyone he thinks he sees her. One day he meets a woman, Judy, who looks exactly like Madeleine. They form a relationship and he has her dress like Madeleine, dye her hair blond and go to the same places they went.

A chilling moment is when he sees that Judy is wearing a necklace from the Carlotta Valdes portrait. Here he makes the connection that they are one and the same woman.

He revisits San Juan Bautista with Judy determined to get the truth. He finds out that they are the same woman. The whole thing was a plot to murder Gavin’s first wife, the woman that actually fell from the bell tower.

In a tragic twist, Judy is startled by a nun at the top of the tower and really plunges to her death. Scottie is now cured of his vertigo.

This roller coaster of a film is an absolute must for Hitchcock fans and is a classic film which can be enjoyed by everyone.