Alfred Hitchcock's 'Psycho' - Classic Horror

Rating: 10/10 (6 October 2005)

Alfred Hitchcock's 'Psycho' is arguably one of the most classic horror movies ever made. A great deal of iconography associated with the horror genre these days, for example eerie orchestral soundtracks and use of shadows and simplicity, appear to have originated in this movie.
The narrative follows Marion, a young female secretary, who steals a large sum of money from her employer and runs away with the intent of building a new life with her lover. On her journey to her boyfriend's place of work, however, she decides against this action but as it is too dark to either go home or continue the journey she stops to spend the night at a motel. Namely the 'Bates Motel'...
Many of the scenes that follow have become infamous in the world of cinema. When Marion is being shown to be stabbed in the shower very little is seen of the murderer and there is very little noticeable blood. Hitchcock clearly knew the way in which to create real horror is through what is NOT seen. Audiences' imaginations tend to scare them the most.
The film continues to scare the audiences until the very last scene, which is unusual for a horror film. In typical, mediocre, horror films a new equilibrium is usually created and the horror dead or over. But although the film does typically end on a note of normality (albeit with characters having been murdered) Norman Bates is still alive and as creepy as ever, if not more than to begin with. The film works on a number of levels. It fulfils many different categories of horror, in the sense that it displays blood and murder, but also has psychological disturbances and thriller tendencies. It has continued to scare from the sixties to the present day and i am sure it will carry on scaring future generations to come.
I am currently making a Horror Film Trailer for A Level Coursework and will try to feature many ideas from this film in my project! A classic horror film that could only be made by someone of Hitchcock's genius.