still great

Rating: 10/10 (13 July 2010)

I've just watched this again and it still stands up as a truly great piece of cinema. Anthony Perkins is superb as the nervous twitchy Norman Bates. The conversation between him and Janet Leigh is incredibly tense as the dark under currents in Norman's psyche show through. The shower scene is still shocking and Anthony Perkin's reaction when he sees what his "mother" has done is great acting. The style of the film is fascinating as well. It has elements of Film Noir but with a 60s art house feel. It was a brave film for Hitchcock to make at that stage in his career and demonstrates what a true master he was of his craft.