CFR's Vertigo essay

CASEY FORD ALEXANDER • Essay: Vertigo, The greatest film of all time or "The Female Phallus"


 From the essay:

The Female Phallus by Casey Alexander

During the opening credits of Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo, a female eye stares directly into the lens. This image marks the birth of Vertigo’s distinct visual vernacular. Inherently, the eye has three distinct and powerful meanings. First, it possesses a strong sexual significance. Its sensitive lids mimic the tight labia majora, as we are born with closed lids, which open upon entrance into the world, yet reflexively close shut at the moment of any sort of penetration. Furthermore, its cavernous pupils expand during arousal caused by sexual intercourse, sexual thoughts, or sexual images. Second, the eye reflects the image of the person looking into it.