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Post by slayrrr666 on Nov 9, 2005 11:58:02 GMT -5
 I continue my "Never-ending Shame" series with one I was supposed to have put up a few days ago. I had wanted to put it up, then thought I didn't finish it and it stayed on my computer loger than it should've: “Psycho” is one of cinema’s classic horror films. **SPOILERS** Marion Crane, (Janet Leigh) is increasingly annoyed at her job and decides the best way for that to happen would be to steal from her boss (Vaughn Taylor). After picking the perfect moment and taking $40,000, she flees and winds up at the Bates Motel. While staying there, she over-hears the caretaker, Norman Bates, (Anthony Perkins) argue with his mother, who lives at the motel. Later that day, however, she is killed in her hotel room shower. When Norman finds her body, he thinks his mother did it and cleans up after her. Back in town, Marion’s sister Lila, (Vera Miles) and her lover Sam Loomis, (John Gavin) is worried that she hasn’t showed up for several days. Det. Arbogast (Martin Balsam) a private detective, over-hears Marion’s case between the two and asks to be involved in the case. His case leads him to the Bates Motel, and when he disappears as well, Sam and Lila decide to check out the Bates Motel for themselves. The Good News: This is one of the best Black & White horror films ever made. The cinematography is so gorgeous and so sparse in that we see so little that the suspense is just dripping off the screen. One of my favorite examples of this isn’t the shower scene, but the death of Det. Arbogast. He walks up a set of stairs to investigate, and he’s just calmly walking up the stairs when we see a door open ever so slightly on the balcony, unseen by Arbogast. He reaches the top of the stairs, and then the killer walks out and stabs him, which causes him to fall down the stairs. The way that he falls is so creepy because he falls in such a supernatural way that it just sticks out in your mind. I think of that one as a highlight just as much as the infamous shower scene. A sexy scene that includes probably the most famous death scene in film history, and you’re knowledge of it is probably going to get you amped up to see it better than I can describe it to you, so I’ll just let you see it without my ranting on it. A great scene, without violence or obvious nudity (they sneaked some in, check the IMDb Trivia section to find out how) really shows the genius that Hitchkock was for the time it was made. Many people know of the relationship between Norman and his mother, and the very first time we know of her, when Norman is talking with Marion about her is one of the creepiest scenes ever filmed. You can tell that the way he’s saying things and how he’s saying them, you know something is off, and yet he keeps an air of respectability that lends itself perfectly to his character. Even the motel where they’re staying is like that. The dark interiors, the weird stuffed animals along the walls, and the secrecy that surrounds it is remarkable that most of the time we are wondering the secrets behind it. That is a sign of good film-making: giving the viewer very little information about a location, but what we have is just enough to give them a little jolt whenever it comes into question with the rest of the scene. Perhaps something that can easily help a film build suspense is it‘s score, and the screeching violins playing in the background of so many scenes is the perfect way to build suspense. It has the effect of being able to draw in a viewer and then fading away while the suspense is dripped out of the scene. Very rarely do I actually like a musical score for a film, but this is one of the few exceptions. And the last five minutes? Wow, I really doubt that anyone else in history has ever finished a film as shocking as this one. This, before the time of the twist ending common in many horror films, may have been started here. Even the general format of a slasher film may have been invented here. I really can’t think of too many films before this one that features the template for a slasher film, and that Hitchkock invented both of them. That is a great achievement for one man. The Bad News: Anyone who refuses to watch this because it is in B&W is really missing out on a great horror film. The Final Verdict: “Psycho” is one brilliant movie. The fact that something like that could come from one man’s mind is a testament to the creativity of mankind. It goes for both ends of the spectrum: both psychological scares and Boo scares and pulls both off very effectively. See this or do not call yourself a horror fan. Today’s Rating: PG-13: Implied Violence and off-screen Brief Nudity |
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Post by Quorthon on Nov 9, 2005 19:22:24 GMT -5
So you finally caught one of the greats. I read an article once, and referenced it for a report for college, that Psycho and Night of the Living Dead were the most revolutionary horror films of the 1960's, and easily the best of that decade. They were credited with making horror "modern." As in, they pulled horror movies from the realm of "gothic horror" in which the genre had been muddling for decades--and in which it was stagnating.
My Storyboard/Principles of Animation teacher for college spoke on end of the constant references to "birds of prey" in Psycho. In (I think) the first shot of Norman Bates, he's standing below a stuffed owl and the shrieking violins were supposed to be reminiscent of the shrieks of birds of prey hunting. All to reference that Norman Bates was also a predator--a bird of prey.
Ahh dammit, I really need to get off my ass and own this movie. Is there a box set of the four of them?
Also, glad to hear you liked the movie. Apparently you are more than just a violence/gore-hound!
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Post by Bartwald on Nov 10, 2005 2:14:59 GMT -5
Ahh dammit, I really need to get off my ass and own this movie. Is there a box set of the four of them? Yup, there is one - I bought it recently and pretty cheap, too. The first film was also re-released as a 2-disc SE (including a chat with Hitch and a supposedly interesting featurette) and as an R1 Collector's Edition (which includes Making Of the SE lacks). |
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Post by slayrrr666 on Nov 10, 2005 9:59:02 GMT -5
So you finally caught one of the greats. I read an article once, and referenced it for a report for college, that Psycho and Night of the Living Dead were the most revolutionary horror films of the 1960's, and easily the best of that decade. They were credited with making horror "modern." As in, they pulled horror movies from the realm of "gothic horror" in which the genre had been muddling for decades--and in which it was stagnating. My Storyboard/Principles of Animation teacher for college spoke on end of the constant references to "birds of prey" in Psycho. In (I think) the first shot of Norman Bates, he's standing below a stuffed owl and the shrieking violins were supposed to be reminiscent of the shrieks of birds of prey hunting. All to reference that Norman Bates was also a predator--a bird of prey. Ahh dammit, I really need to get off my ass and own this movie. Is there a box set of the four of them? Also, glad to hear you liked the movie. Apparently you are more than just a violence/gore-hound! There's a bunch of Trivia notes about the "bird of prey" imagery, Q. Will have to post it soon. BTW, I'm starting to get into suspense more because of this one. I'm glad I finally saw it. What the hell was I waiting for? One of my favorite pre-68 horror films, though I saw The Birds before it and like that one a little more, but this one is still a classic. Can you believe some of my friends ,who are horror fans as well, will not watch this one because it's in B&W? They will only see the colorized remake. Sounds like I need new friends. |
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Post by Quorthon on Nov 10, 2005 11:38:01 GMT -5
I knew a guy that only watched movies in color--he hated black and white. When I learned that, I completely ignored any opinions he had on movies.
Pi was in Black and White, and Pi is one of the best movies of the last 10 years.
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Post by slayrrr666 on Nov 10, 2005 12:04:16 GMT -5
I knew a guy that only watched movies in color--he hated black and white. When I learned that, I completely ignored any opinions he had on movies. My friend thinks that the Savini remake of Night of the Living Dead is better because it's in color, and he also has the original in the colorized VHS form. Rest assured that bastard is no longer on my good graces, unlike all of you here. I at least respect most of you, unlike that prick. |
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Post by Quorthon on Nov 10, 2005 12:32:32 GMT -5
I saw that colorized 68 NotLD at Best Buy and was actually offended. Suddenly, the world didn't make sense! I wandered for hours lost in a sea of confusion! When I awoke from that trance I found myself to be surrounded by nude women at a lard rendering plant....
...but that's another story...
But that colorized '68 version--retarded.
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Post by slayrrr666 on Nov 10, 2005 12:35:58 GMT -5
Hey Q, here's few more bird references:
Begins in Phoenix, with an opening shot that floats down as a bird would
major characters with surname "Crane"
stuffed birds decorate parlor of the motel building
pictures of birds outside bathroom door of Marion's motel room
when Bates enters the bathroom right after the shower scene he knocks a picture of a bird from the wall
Norman's line "they cluck their thick tongues and shake their heads"
Norman tells Marion that she eats "like a bird."
There's more, but these were the most obvious one's I could find.
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Post by Quorthon on Nov 10, 2005 12:38:28 GMT -5
A mark of an expert filmmaker, indeed. Imagine if Friday the 13th had that depth...
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Post by slayrrr666 on Nov 10, 2005 12:43:29 GMT -5
A mark of an expert filmmaker, indeed. Imagine if Friday the 13th had that depth... Then it would've been the Psycho of the 80s, Q. D'uh. I think that's obvious. |
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Post by Quorthon on Nov 10, 2005 12:46:37 GMT -5
A mark of an expert filmmaker, indeed. Imagine if Friday the 13th had that depth... Then it would've been the Psycho of the 80s, Q. D'uh. I think that's obvious. Smartass. |
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Post by Heineken Skywalker on Nov 11, 2005 12:12:54 GMT -5
Excellent film. Glad to hear you enjoyed this one, as I was seriously starting to wonder about you after your ALIEN review.  People who prefer color films over B & W, just because they're in color, are not true film fans. They can still hang out with me, but we will never truly bond. |
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Post by Quorthon on Nov 11, 2005 12:47:40 GMT -5
People who prefer color films over B & W, just because they're in color, are not true film fans. They can still hang out with me, but we will never truly bond. I hear that. You ever notice that people that automatically discount a B&W film just because it is Black and White generally have really awful taste in movies? I've noticed that. |
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Post by slayrrr666 on Nov 11, 2005 12:51:36 GMT -5
I know. I can't stand those kinds of people. Those are generally the same kinds of people who think "From Justin to Kelly" is a brilliant piece of film-making.
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