Psycho (1960)
Psycho could be classified as just a good horror movie, but the description does not adequately explain a film that has scared viewers for over 40 years, inspired filmmakers, declared Hitchcock "The Master of Suspense," and spawned 4 sequels and a 1998 shot-by-shot remake. Made in black and white with a television crew in only six weeks on an $80,000 budget, Psycho has earned more than $40 million and helped generate several hundred poorly imitated films dubbed "slasher flicks."
Cast | Synopsis | Discussion | Backstage
Cast:
Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), Lila Crane (Vera Miles), Sam Loomis (John Gavin), Milton Arbogast (Martin Balsam)
Synopsis:
Sam cannot marry Marion because of his heavy financial responsibilities. To remedy this, Marion steals $40,000 and escapes toward California. She checks in for the night at the Bates Motel and is later stabbed to death in her shower. Marion's sister Lila and Sam begin a missing persons search and soon become entangled in the twisted world of Norman Bates and his mother.
Discussion:
Psycho contains many of the elements prominent in classic gothic tales: a dark and stormy night, a remote location, hidden treasure, a demented relative, and a series of bizarre murders. The most powerful elements, secrets and mirrors, perfectly illustrate Psycho's themes and showcase the meticulous detail of Hitchcock's direction.
Every character is hiding a secret: Sam and Marion are lunchtime lovers, Marion steals from her employer and lies, and Norman had killed his mother and her lover. The film also demonstrates the consequences of these lies: Marion is murdered, Sam loses his fiancee, and Norman assumes the identity of his mother in his fits of madness.
Hitchcock purposely used an abundance of mirrors as props to represent the split personality. The mirror is an image of self-awareness in Victorian literature, a topic Hitchcock voraciously studied. To see the world more clearly one wears glasses, but for an accurate glimpse of our divided selves, one consults a mirror.
Marion Crane does the most "consulting" in Psycho. She stands before a mirror when contemplating theft and then again when she's alone in her hotel room holding her stolen treasure. To make her personality metamorphosis more distinct, Hitchcock dressed Leigh in a white brassiere and slip in the opening scene (to symbolize purity) and then in black undergarments (to show that her purity has been tainted) shortly before her murder.
The third act of Psycho finally reveals the motive behind all of Hitchcock's mirrors. Lila is surprised by the double reflection of herself in Mrs. Bates' mirror. What she finds so frightening is the impression of the split or doubled personality.
Hitchcock's masterful direction also allows the audience to develop two minds. The audience roots for Marion's happiness with Sam, but they are also repelled by her theft. They feel for Norman, who appears to be a devoted son, but question this devotion when he covers up her alleged murders. They want Lila to survive Bates' killing spree, but they also want her to walk to the basement and discover what's below the stairs.
Backstage:
With Psycho, Hitchcock introduced several new elements to filmmaking. It was the first film to kill off its leading lady at the midpoint and Janet Leigh was the first actress to be seen in her underwear. Actually Hitchcock wanted Leigh topless, but the censors shot down that idea. Psycho is also remembered as the first film to show a flushing toilet on camera.
The film was shot in black and white because Hitchcock thought the film was too gory for color. Audience members still claimed they saw red blood run down the shower drain after Marion's murder. Because of its thickness, chocolate syrup was substituted for fake blood.
Hitchcock insisted that audience members only be allowed to see the film from the start and asked them not to reveal the identity of Mother Bates. The result was one of the most successful marketing campaigns for a film.