It could be argued that without psycho we may never have gotten some of the great slasher movies of the modern era. It could also be argued that eventually someone would have cracked the code and it would have come to the for front. Either way with the way things turned out we all know that every movie about a man with a blade in some small way owes a debt to the original gangster none other than Psycho.
This masterful film follows Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) who absconds with forty thousand dollars and is on the run from her boss and the authorities who are chasing her. She is driving to meet her boyfriend when she stops at the Bates Motel during a rainstorm to stay the night. She checks in meets the nice owner Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) and retires early to get a jump start on the morning driving. Before heading to bed she decides to take a shower.
Now this film is over fifty five years old and if you don't know what is going to happen next I not only envy you but also hope that this amazing second act of the film does not get spoiled. So we will leave the summary of the film here and just let you watch at your own time of choosing.
Alfred Hitchcock will certainly be remembered as one of the greatest living directors of all time. The man earned the title the master of suspense with several films including Rope, Rear Window, Vertigo and North by Northwest. However in 1960 he had seen several problems with several films not garnering commercial success or being overlooked by critics. It was only the success of his television show that was keeping him afloat. He was desperately looking for his next big hit when he came across the Robert Bloch novel Psycho. Hitchcock fell in love with the book and optioned it for a film. It was a this point he did two things that helped him make the film. He bought every copy of the book so no one could spoil the ending of it. Two he used all of the sets from his TV show to shoot on so he could cut costs. Hitchcock was playing the odds on this one. He knew that if the film didn't work it might be one of the last times he worked. Hitchcock guessed correctly as the film success and it opened to massive appeal and huge praise as one of the best he had ever done. Once the film had opened Hitchcock implemented the third part of his brilliant plan. He made a very clear deceleration to all movie goers that they would not be allowed to see the film once it had started. If you arrived late you had to wait for the next show time. This had a two pronged affect on the film. One it kept anyone who would dare show up late from being massively confused between first and second act. It also added a kind of marketing saying that this movie was worth being early and on time to. It created a frenzy to see it which paid off.
Hitchcock was not only an amazing filmmaker but he was also a guy who knew how to treat an audience and keep them dancing to the tune he would play at any given moment. He can set the tone of a scene and make you feel uncomfortable or nervous at the drop of a hat. The opening credits of this film alone are scary as all get out.
I encourage you to watch Psycho and try to tell me it does not scare the hell out of you. So we are out of the shower and now we are headed to look at the scariest movie involving faith. For High Weirdness I'm Benjamin Kolton reminding you "It's Only a Movie." "It's Only a Movie."
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