By ERKIN ESENGELDIEV
Staff writer
Today I wanted to talk about Alfred Hitchcock’s horror masterpiece, which has been a classic for over half a decade now – “Psycho”, released September 8, 1960. “Psycho” is a movie in the mystery genre, being one of the first suspense-based films ever created. The picture is focused on a murder of a woman named Marian Crane, who desperately tries to flee the state of Phoenix, with a bunch of money, which isn’t hers.
By that time, the name Alfred Hitchcock had already been established as the blueprint of the thriller genre. Releasing movies such as “Vertigo” (1958) and “Rear Window” (1954) gained him a lot of traction as a virtuoso in this sphere. But no movie had this influence on modern cinematography as “Psycho”.
Static shots are prevalent in the movie, the only time the camera is visibly unstable is when the suspense has gone to the point when it’s impossible to sit still in your seat. It has an effect on the viewer – the less something is moving, the more impact the release of that suspension has. This effect can be seen in one of the most recognizable scenes in the movie – the murder in the bathtub. Still, scenes have their own action within them: Hitchcock masterfully plays with lights, shadows, shapes, and edges. The hill house’s sharp and almost mischievous-like architecture gives it a personality, the personality that is evil and full of mysteries. The Bates Motel is always seen at night, the only light source being the bulb’s striking glow, its resident(s)’s bodies often absorbed by the darkness. Of course, the main reason for that was the black & white formatting of all movies those days, but here the director made the imperfections serve a purpose, which is more than inspiring.
The plot of the piece is amazingly crafted, making the audience gasp, question, and scream in horror when needed. The actors’ work is also highly worth noticing. Anthony Perkins did a great job slowly transforming from the friendly dorky guy to a menacing atrocity of a man, and Janet Leigh’s Marian, although being murdered in the first 30 minutes of the movie, is actually convincing and you can empathize with her.
This film is timeless, being a subject of study for more than 60 years.