psycho is the "mother" of all modern suspense films (Psycho [1960] (DVD))

Member Name: Tablehead

Product:	Psycho [1960] (DVD)
Date:	21/07/09 (20 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: the soundtrack for the film is outstanding

Disadvantages: Lacks graphics but good for a black and white film.

Alfred Hitchcock's complex psychological thriller, Psycho (1960) is the "mother" of all modern horror suspense films. It single handedly brought in an era of "Slasher" movies with gruesome graphics and horrific killings (e.g. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) and Halloween (1978). This was Hitchcock's first real horror film yet he has been mistakenly labelled as a horror film director ever since. In fact, he filmed it in black and white so that the blood didn't make it look too gory (the blood was actually chocolate sauce!). This super-thrilling, low costing film is widely regarded as Hitchcock's best film and the plot is second to none; it keeps you guessing all of the way through.

Marion crane (Janet Leigh) is a working girl fed up with having to sneak away during lunch breaks to see her lover, Sam Loomis (John Gavin) and they cannot even get married as Sam has to give most of his money away in alimony to his ex wife. One Friday, Marion's employer asks her to take $40,000 in cash to a local bank. Desperate to make a change to her life, she impulsively leaves town with the money, wanting to start a new life with Sam in California. When night falls and rain stops her from driving, she turns off the highway. Tired from the long drive and the stress, she decides to spend the night at the desolate Bates Hotel. The hotel is run by Norman Bates, a strange young man who is controlled by his mysterious, unknown mother. After Norman fixes her a light dinner, Marion goes back to her room for a shower...

Although it was a good film with an ingenious plot, it was very cheap to make. The film had a low budget of $800,000 and that was cheap, even back in 1960 - it still made a tidy profit of around $40 million! The black and white film came after Hitchcock's earlier Technicolor hits Vertigo (1958) and North by Northwest (1959) and was made with the crew from his TV show - Alfred Hitchcock Presents. The soundtrack of screeching violins was an original all-strings piece by composer Bernard Herrmann. The music vastly intensified the scenes and added tension and atmosphere. For example: when Marion is driving in the car there is music in the background which lets you know how she is feeling. Bernard Herrmann has also written music for other films such as "Fahrenheit 451" and "Sisters and Obsession". After the film, Hitchcock quoted "33% of the effect of psycho was due to the music".
For his film, Hitchcock used most of his actors from "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" and hired two well known actors; Janet Leigh and John Gavin. They actually got paid 1/3rd of their usual salary as the film had such a low budget - As you can guess, they weren't very happy!
Psycho is mostly remembered as having one of the most famous scenes in the history of films; "The Shower Scene" (or maybe the fact that it was the first film to show someone flushing a toilet).

On a serious note, it was genius the way Hitchcock killed off his main character half way through the film without ruining it. Hitchcock also uses several motifs through the film such as Circles, Eyes and Birds and if you look behind Marion when she is talking to Norman, there is a bird behind her with its claws out, as if attacking her.
In fact, Taxidermy is one of Norman Bates hobbies; the other one is talking incessantly about his "Dear old mother". Anthony Perkins, who plays Norman, is actually one of the stars of the film with an outstanding and convincing performance in a career-defining role.
There is a part in the film which shows Norman looking through a peep hole into Marion's room which shows how strange and withdrawn he is. This also shows Hitchcock's sly and slightly sadistic humour.

Norman also becomes nervous under pressure . When Marion's absence is noticed her sister Lila (Vera Miles) hires a private investigator, Milton Arbogast (martin Balsam), to find her. He goes to the hotel and questions Norman, who becomes nervous and starts stuttering and mumbling . That is when Arbogast becomes suspicious so he decides to have a look round and he uncovers more than a few unpleasant surprises...

There are lots of interesting camera shots in the film. In the shower scene alone, there are 90 different shots (this scene took 7 days to complete!). The film opens with a camera showing the city from above and then slowly zooming in, and ends up inside the hotel room - which is where we first meet Marion. There is another clever shot which Hitchcock executes perfectly. When Marion is swapping her car at the auto traders, the policeman is on the other side of the road, leaning against his car. Hitchcock set it up perfectly and everything was right; from the lighting to the policeman's sunglasses (they were circular: another motif).
When Marion and Norman are talking in the office, the camera is quite far back so both of them are on view. When the conversation gets more intense (Marion is commenting about Normans mum) and Norman gets angrier, the camera zooms in to their faces to show that its getting more heated. This scene also shows us how easily angered Norman is and how quickly he can change.

Personally, I think this film is outstanding. My favourite character is Norman Bates; who was funny, mysterious and, most of all, weird!
My favourite scene is at the end: the "Twist". I won't ruin it for you but lets just say you meet Norman's Mum!

Overall, I would highly recommend this film. If you like a horror suspense film with a twist, then Psycho is for you. It is funny in parts, strange and is sure to keep you guessing till the end. A true Masterpiece by Hitchcock.

Summary: probably one of Hitchcocks best films