What makes it great

Rating: 10/10 (9 September 2001)

I normally do not like horror films, but this is a perfect example of how style and craftsmanship can overcome what is basically a mediocre script.
The thing that really makes this movie for me is the way it is filmed and the way the music is used throughout the film. The visual style can compete with "Vertigo" as Hitchcock at his most artsy.
SPOILER: Another innovative technique is leading up to the "shower scene," Janet Leigh is in every scene and almost every shot. The movie is about her and it is being shown from her point of view. Then we have the famous "shower scene" and suddenly the movie is no longer about her; it is about Norman Bates. Hitchcock makes this transition with such incredible ease that there is no loss of coherence.
This movie is a real work of art. What is even more incredible is that Hitchcock was able to make something so artsy, yet make it appeal to a wide audience. That is the tightrope that today's film makers do not seem able to walk.