Vertigo
Caution. Age: 18+. A Catholic review of this movie for parents.
Our review
A retired detective named Scottie is afraid of heights. A friend asks him to follow his wife, and Scottie becomes far too attached to her. The story is a dark mystery about lies, a crime, and a man who cannot let go. This film is for grown-ups, not for children. Vertigo is one of the most admired films ever made, and it is a hard film morally. Scottie falls for a woman he believes is another man's wife, then tries to rebuild a dead love by forcing a living woman into her clothes and hair. The film shows this as ruin, not as romance to copy, and the last scene in the mission tower plays like a judgment. But nobody repents, nobody is forgiven, and the story ends in death and emptiness. That is why the verdict is Caution: a great work for a formed adult, with nothing here for children or young teens.
For parents
Adults. Common Sense Media says 13 plus, but the content is not the issue. The ideas are. If an older teen studies it for a film class, watch it together. Name the first sin plainly: Scottie gives his heart to a woman he thinks is married. The Church calls adultery an injustice against the marriage covenant (CCC 2380-2381). Name the second: he does not love Judy. He uses her to get back a fantasy. Desire cut off from the good of the other person is lust (CCC 2351). Talk about the lie that drives the plot. A lie does real harm to the one deceived (CCC 2482-2486), and here it costs lives. The talk of a dead woman's spirit taking over a living one is a trick inside the story, but tell your teens the Church rejects all dealing with the dead and with occult powers (CCC 2116-2117). Ask: what would repentance have looked like for Scottie? For Judy? Why does the film end with a nun and a bell?