A Terrifying Horror Film, and A Compositional Masterpiece

Rating: 9/10 (1 October 2015)

Psycho is a classic horror film, directed by "The Master of Suspense" Alfred Hitchcock. Chosen to be shot in black-and-white rather than color, the tone is often terrifying, and the acting is chilling as well. The film is loaded with symbolism, and terrific composition that is just subtle enough to not give away the plot, but tells an educated audience member everything they need to know from a single frame.
Psycho benefits from masterful direction from Alfred Hitchcock, who embodies what is considered perfect mise en scene, by making almost every object in frame important in some way. The composition of the film is extremely dense, whether it be symbolic, or narratively relevant, almost every frame is crucial for the film. A great example of this is the parlor scene, in which we see Norman Bates invite Marion into his parlor. One could argue the plot of the rest of the film is told through symbolism, and composition. In the scene the composition very heavily foreshadows the coming events of the film, as we see predatory birds and predatory sexualized paintings in the parlor, concurrent with Norman. As the audience sees a large Owl, in attacking position, on eye level with Norman, the meaning is clear. This composition is consistently used throughout the scene. Another example is Marion is usually in camera with ravens, very clearly foreshadowing her fate. It's this dense and brilliant composition that makes Psycho a great example of Alfred Hitchcock's genius. Another thing that is evident throughout the film is Hitchcock's style, whether it be his obsession with birds, his love of particular shots, or his undeniable voyeuristic use of the camera. Composition is the director's most direct route into the mind of the audience, if one knows what to look for they can learn about a director from his composition. What we see is Hitchcock likes shots that feel as if the audience is looking at the characters through something, whether it be a windshield, window, or hole in the wall. Using these shots Hitchcock almost makes the camera feel like another person viewing the film. It's the use of voyeuristic shots, and the attempt to make the camera feel like another character that subtly brings the audience to Norman Bate's level, at one point we even see shots from his perspective. I suspect this was done to muddle the message of who is right, and who is wrong, because the audience is both off put with the creepiness of Norman, but is also lead to be sympathetic. In essence Hitchcock makes a movie where we see no truly good characters, but no truly bad characters either. In the end Hitchcock created a masterful horror film that could still stand as one of the best all time. The black-and-white color, dense composition, and uneasy score make Psycho all the more terrifying. All-the-while setting the standard for how filmmakers would develop characters for years to come.