Mother Knows Best...

Rating: 9/10 (24 March 2014)

Still considered a ground-breaking film today, Psycho shocked audiences when it was released back in 1960 because they had never before seen a graphic murder scene shot with such brutality, intensity and at the same time discretion. Though the infamous "shower scene" does not reveal a plunging knife nor a single bare breast, it still manages to be unsettling nonetheless due to its sheer realism and plausibility. The plot of Psycho comes with many twists and turns and is pretty unpredictable seeing as how it starts out very simple. A Phoenix secretary steals forty thousand dollars and takes off. But when she runs into Norman Bates, the peculiar owner of a small motel who is very attached to his invalid mother, things get complicated. The acting in this movie is nothing less than phenomenal. Janet Leigh does not have a large role but still was able to make the most of it. As previously stated, the acting is phenomenal-in the case of Anthony Perkins' Norman Bates, a little too phenomenal. I felt he truly could have been a great actor-had it not been for his disturbingly convincing performance in Psycho. He makes you believe he really is a psychopath. Perhaps one of the most disturbing moments in the film is when he stares directly at the viewer, his eyes glowing with evil mischievousness.
Psycho is a disturbing but interactive film that tests the viewer's knowledge. Shot in gritty black-and-white, the cinematography only adds to the unsettling nature but it also adds to the artistry of it as well. When one tallies up its great acting, haunting atmosphere and twisting plot, it is easy to see why Psycho is ranked amongst the greatest films ever made.