Psycho

Psycho

Starring Anthony Perkins, Vera Miles, John Gavin, Janet Leigh
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

When you consider the incredible, indisputable handiwork of the great Sir Alfred Hitchcock, it's almost impossible to pick his magnum opus, his grandiose masterwork that rises above all others.  "Rear Window," "The Birds," "Vertigo," "The Man Who Knew Too Much," "Dial M For Murder," "Rope," and North by Northwest" could all be strong contenders, but ultimately it's one of his lowest-budget films, a classic that he shot with a shoestring budget and without his ordinary flare, a movie that's more reminiscent of an exploitation film than an epic masterpiece.  That movie is "Psycho."

Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) is a lowly secretary who wants to marry her boyfriend Sam (John Gavin), but they're both poor.  When a wealthy real estate client leaves her with $40,000 to deposit in the bank, she sees this as the beginning of her new life, and runs off with the money to drive from Arizona to California to be with Sam.  While driving, she comes across a vicious rainstorm and takes refuge at the Bates Motel, run by Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) and his seclusive mother.  What starts off as a night of hopeful rest turns to terror for Marion, as Norman's intentions are revealed and we see the true chaotic nature in his being.

"Psycho" was released in 1960, sixty years ago, so any discussion about possible spoilers are rather moot a this point - even if you haven't seen it, you know pretty much everything about it already, so there will be spoilers discussed.

"Psycho" is simply a film that would never had been as successful now as it was back then.  Now films are valued by their special effects, their copious amounts of blood, their big-name actors, and nonstop action.  "Psycho" fails on all these levels (with the exception of Janet Leigh, but anyone going in expecting to see her as the heroine will be surprised), but only in the first-rate hands of Hitchcock could he not just pull it off, but turn it into a timeless masterpiece and the patriarch of the slasher genre - and also managed to earn four Academy Award nominations in the process.

Since the film is sixty years old, it's obviously dated and you can clearly see how poorly it was done compared to today's standards, but that in no means detracts from anything you see on screen.  Yes, Marion is "driving" a car but not really moving because you can tell the background isn't real.  Yes, the Bates manor is pretty much just a shell with the inside looking totally different.  Yet it was a marvel of its time, and still holds solid in the face of CGI effects and big-budget spectacles that won't be remembered months after they're released.

When you think of bathroom scenes in films, the shower scene in "Psycho" clearly stands above them all, and remains the most iconic moment in horror film history, as well as film history in general.  It was the scene that made Janet Leigh not want to take showers anymore, as she realized how susceptible someone is while showering, and took baths for the rest of her life.  When the film was re-shot in 1998, it was done in color and offered more blood, and the result is that film still being lauded and laughed at for its absurdity, as you can never re-create an original showpiece.  Yet seeing the shower scene now looks rather tame, as there's no nudity, the knife doesn't slash the skin, and there's very little blood - but the impact is timeless nonetheless, thanks to the performance of Janet Leigh, the god-like visionary direction of Hitchcock himself (the scene of the water and blood swirling into the drain juxtaposed with Marion's unblinking eye is still haunting), and the insurmountable talent of composer Bernard Herrmann (interestingly, Hitchcock at first didn't want any music playing during the scene, but changed his mind after hearing Herrmann's score).

When it came to big-name actors of their time, Hitchcock included them all in his works, but with "Psycho," he brought in mostly no-name people or those who appeared on television shows to make it a more personal feel, as he was getting tired of creating big-budget films.  Anthony Perkins will always be remembered as Norman Bates, because he wasn't really known for anything else before then, and everything after was overshadowed by his memorable performance.  Janet Leigh was the most famous of them all, and this showcases his own brilliance - people going into the film thought she would be the heroine, as the film opens up with her story and follows her all the way to the Bates Motel.  Then Hitchcock throws the biggest twist in cinematic history by killing her off a third of the way through the film, a move that shocked audiences then, a move relatively unheard of at the time.  Leigh's performance itself is critically praised (as she received her only Academy Award nomination for her performance), as she managed to show Marion as a strong female character who has a deep moral compass even though she stole money to further her life, she eventually grows a conscious about it.

Along with dazzling special effects, big-name actors, and boatloads of blood, audiences nowadays enjoy films that are wall-to-wall action.  "Psycho," like most of Hitchcock's other works, fails to deliver on that end.  This is a film where there's long stretches of no dialogue occurring, or even anything of substantial value if you're an average movie-goer, but each scene is intricate and important, like the smallest pieces of a puzzle that combines to form an immortal monument.  The film was also ahead of its time in its discussion about multiple personalities, transgenderism, and sexuality in ways that don't exploit them but rather sheds light on their importance and their value to the story as a whole.

Sixty years ago, Alfred Hitchcock brought forth his ultimate magnum opus in "Psycho," a film that'll remain as relevant and memorable sixty years from now, offering an invaluable look into the history of cinema and the timelessness of its story.

The Score: A+