Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960), contains intriguing cinematography that keeps your attention. As Kaja Silverman mentions there are moments where you are not seeing the subjects of interest and this is supposed to be what keeps you watching. Your mind wants more information and it knows that it's not seeing it all. The shower scene where Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) is very compelling. Leading up into her final moments we get a series of about ten moderately paced scenes then once her killer comes into the picture there are close to twenty cuts before we are left with longer shots as she is colapses in the shower. The actual violent act happens with limited information and quite quickly. We do not truly know who her killer is, we can only speculate.
In the end, you discover Norman Bates (Andrew Perkins) finally unraveling his conscious thoughts as his mother. We don't know that he has a psychological condition until later, although some watching may be able to figure something is different about the character's actions and dialogue. Hitchcock leaves us questioning who to root for in our own narratives. We first follow Marion, then after she dies we follow Norman. And he is the killer, or rather his mother is. It makes me question who's side am I on.
Your response to Hitchcock's film is highly observant... I especially like your final question. As a viewer, I also felt my emotions shift with the gradual increase of information we knew about each character. The fact that we can only speculate makes the film eerier!
ReplyDeleteWhile we were all waiting for the killer to appear in the movie, I felt my heart rip two ways as well. In one sense, I knew that the shower scene was coming, and it would involve a death which was intense and scary. And in another sense, her death could not come sooner because we could finally, possibly, unravel the mystery behind the actual killer.
I appreciate your wonderful analysis!
Delilah Rose
I thought your ideas were very interesting. Thinking back, I really agree with your idea that "Psycho" produced and want for the viewer to see the subjects of interest since they were not always there. Also, the ideas you bring up about the jump cuts are great. I thought they help build the suspense and bring across the panic and horror one may feel if they were in a similar situation.
ReplyDelete-Xander
I also think that the shift in how we observe the film when Marion dies is also really interesting. It's not that we actually are wanting Norman to succeed, but at some points he is the one that we're inhabiting. I find it really compelling that Hitchcock makes us identify so closely to the killer, since we are after all getting pleasure out of the horror within this movie.
ReplyDeleteInteresting point about identifying with Norman in the latter half of the film. For me, I identify with him more-so because I feel bad for him in spite of his deeds because he is clearly suffering. At the same time, though, it is unsettling to identify with a murderer.
ReplyDeleteI really like your analysis of "Psycho." Something in particular that stuck out to me was your thoughts about who to side with, Marion or Norman.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes down to it, Norman is suffering from mental illnesses as a result from past incidents that cause him to act in a way he would not ordinarily. Looking at it this way, the murders he commits are not in his control and he is struggling with an illness that is ruining his own life, along with the lives of others. However I agree with Tom in that it feels wrong or unsettling to identify with a murderer.
It is really difficult to see this issue as black and white, instead it's such a big grey area that really makes the viewer think about their morals. On the one hand, it seems wrong to sympathize with someone like Norman who has committed such unspeakable acts to other people and who have cause unforgivable pain to the victim's loved ones. It feels like we should instead sympathize with the victims, like Marion. However, it's revealed that Norman is a victim too, in a way we completely unexpected.
The confusion this moral dilemma stirs within the audience is another aspect of "Psycho" that makes it such a groundbreaking work of film.