Review of Psycho (2007) by Robin W — 27 Jan 2014

Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho is one of the most widely praised films ever made and with good reason. It's such a creepy atmospheric horror film that undoubtedly influenced almost all modern horror/slasher directors and screenwriters since its release. The story is probably familiar to most, but to give a swift recap. Marion Crane is a young woman who has grown tired of having to meet her boyfriend, Sam Loomis, secretely in motels and not being able to marry because of his bad economy. After a customer pays 40.000$ in cash to the Realtor's office where Marion works, she decides to not cash it at the bank, but to skip town and travel by car to Sam in Fairvale. On her way to Fairvale the weather takes a turn for the worse, so Marion decides to stay the night at the Bates Motel. Running the motel is a man named, Norman Bates, who at first seems to be a polite and kind regular Joe, but when Marion overhears a heated argument between Norman and his mentally disturbed mother who both live in a house up the hill from the motel, she decides to offer her advice on how to deal with the situation, only to get a glimpse of Normans darker side.

What the film is most famous for and with good reason is the character, Norman Bates, impeccably brought to life by Anthony Perkins, a true bravura performance. This character is such a laid-back, calculating and genuinely terrifying psychopath. Needless to say that the other characters are very memorable as well just a little outshined in this particular film and that, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles, John Gavin, Martin Balsam all embodies their characters superbly. Most films in the genre either rely on sudden shocks or eerie suspense for horror, but Alfred Hitchcock decided that his film were going to be original and have both. The suspense builds up through the entire movie and is drawn from the characters, the atmosphere, the setting and the soundtrack, but on a few occasions the suspense climaxes suddenly and unexpectedly into pure terror. A perfectly rationed mix between the two is certainly one of the factors that makes Psycho into the masterpiece it is.