Hopeless, Romantic

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It's Kim Novak's 80th birthday today, and while she did other work of note - Picnic and Bell Book and Candle spring to mind - if we're gonna talk about Kim Novak here at MNPP we're gonna be talking about Vertigo, which I mentioned last year has probably surpassed Rear Window as my favorite Hitchcock movie (making it my second favorite movie of ever after Rosemary's Baby).

It's weird, I suppose it says something about me, but when I think of this performance all I want to talk about is the scene that I've called "The Saddest Thing I Have Ever Seen" - the part where Judy says she doesn't care about herself anymore, that she'll let him make her over into that ghost if he'll love her then. (As a related aside underlining what a depressive weirdo I am, Requiem For a Dream came up in conversation last night and all I want to do is quote from "the red dress" monologue whenever it comes up - I am addicted to misery.) Anyway, in the spirit of this movie always giving me a bad case of the sads, here are five other moments from Miss Novak that set my tear ducts to on.

The little smile that Judy gives when she finally finishes the second iteration of her make-over and she can see the love (or what passes for love in this movie) in Scottie's crazed eyes.

"One shouldn't live alone..."

The way her voice breaks and you hear an early hint of the real Judy under the cool Madeleine for a moment when she's telling Scottie "It's not fair, it's too late. It wasn't supposed to happen this way, it shouldn't have happened!" before running up to the bell tower the first time.
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When Judy let's Scottie into her hotel room, when she can't say no, even though she knows it'll ruin everything.

"Scottie, please! You love me now! 

Love me! Keep me safe!"

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