since everyone knows the story, let's talk about camera angles and such...

Rating: 10/10 (14 July 2005)

I checked the spoiler box because I think that even any discussion about camera angles will give the ending away. For starters, when Marion and Norman first meet, you can see Norman's reflection in the window, as if there's two of him. When Marion and Norman are eating dinner in the room with the stuffed birds, you can see that some of the birds are positioned so that their beaks look almost as if they're pecking at both Marion and Norman; something is eating at Norman, and we get to see a premonition of Marion's impending fate. When Norman looks through the hole (which incidentally is behind a picture of two people attacking a woman), we get a POV shot; when Marion is in the shower, we get a POV shot. When Norman pushes Marion's car into the swamp, half of his face is in a shadow, as if he has two sides.
On the subject of those birds, there are several references to birds throughout the movie: Marion's last name is Crane, she comes from Phoenix, and finally, the stuffed birds. The truth is, Hitchcock had a keen interest in avians; in "Sabotage", a woman finds her strength after watching "Who Killed Cock Robin?", then the bird references in "Psycho", and finally, the ornithological uprising in "The Birds". Speaking of the characters' names, there's Crane (a bird), Bates (bait), Loomis (gloom), and Arbogast (aghast).
Another thing that Hitch does in this movie is play with the audience. First, the movie focuses on Marion. When she steals the money, you're not sure whether to root for her, because she is the main character and you want her to succeed, but do you want her to steal? Then, the movie focuses on Norman. When he hides Marion's murder, you want him to succeed, but succeed in hiding a murder? Finally, the focus shifts to Lila.
Everyone remembers the shower scene, but what does it mean? It seems as though Marion, by flushing the paper down the toilet, was washing away her misdeeds, and taking a shower consecrated that.
The dialogue is of course a key part. Obviously, "Mother...what's the phrase...isn't quite herself today." and "A boy's best friend is his mother." are premonitions, but there are others. In the discussion of institutions, Norman talks about "...the cruel eyes studying you." Then, when he looks through the hole, his eyes study Marion. At the end, you might say that there are three explanations: first, the bombastic psychiatrist explains Norman's mental state; then, "mother" describes how her son is guilty; and finally, the car is towed out of the swamp, as though they have dug into the putridity of Norman's mind. They have penetrated Norman's mind, just like the knives penetrated Marion's and Arbogast's bodies.
On the DVD, you should watch the original trailer, which has Hitch showing us around the motel and house. He was really playing with the audience there. First off, he looked into a toilet. No movie had ever portrayed a toilet (but everyone knew why toilets existed), so what must the audience have thought about that? Also, he looks in a closet, looks surprised, and closes the closet. Did he see something in there? I try to imagine being someone who saw that trailer, and then saw the movie, waiting to see what would happen.