Rating: 
Summary: "He Was Always BAD!" -- (But This Movie Certainly Isn't!)
Review: Ever since first seeing Alfred Hitchcock's masterwork, "Psycho", it has firmly held down a high ranking in my "Top Films Of All-Time" category. "Psycho" began scaring audiences when it first hit theater screens in June 1960, and it's doing the same thing even today, many decades later. This motion picture has a way of "sucking you in" almost right from the start. I'm not quite sure why, but (for me) when watching "Psycho", I always begin to start squirming in my seat just a wee bit during the film's second scene, when the man with the wad of cash enters Janet Leigh's office. It's a feeling that seems to be inherent to a Hitchcock film. It's probably part psychological on the part of the viewer. Since we know we're seeing a Hitchcock picture, we automatically tend to feel slightly ill-at-ease at almost every turn. Hitch no doubt *knew* his audiences would feel this way, and took advantage of it with a masterful subtleness in much of his direction and in the scripts he ultimately brought to the big screen. The plot in "Psycho" is relatively simple (so it seems), but in the hands of "The Master" (aka: Mr. Hitchcock), the film takes a drastic turn 47 minutes in, with 57% of the movie still in front of us. I'm sure you know what this "turn" entails. If not, buy this DVD post-haste, because you're one of the very few who evidently has not basked in the beauty of this motion picture. Between Mr. Hitchcock's inimitable style of direction, and that unforgettable Bernard Herrmann music score, how could this film be anything but what it is -- an unsurpassed horror/suspense icon. There's a veritable laundry list of memorable moments in the film that are almost instantly recognized as distinct "Psycho" signatures. Such as ----- > The spooky old house on the hill, which seems to be "watching" all that happens below from its lofty perch. > "Bates Motel -- Vacancy". > The staircase. > "Mother" moving past the window. > Marion's "eye". > That knife-stabbing music. > "Cabin 1". > "Just sandwiches and milk". > Mrs. Bates in the cellar. > And, of course, that dreaded "shower". All of these set-pieces add up to the whole that is the magnificence of "Psycho". The video quality on this non-anamorphic DVD looks exceptionally good for an older (1998) DVD release. You can freeze-frame an image in almost perfect, undistorted clarity anywhere on this disc (which is unusual for non-anamorphic video material), indicating a solid transfer. The image ratio here is the Widescreen OAR (Original Aspect Ratio) of 1.85:1. The audio you hear comes from Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono soundtracks. It would be great if there had also been a Stereo re-mix done here, so that Bernard Herrmann's always-effective music score could be "expanded" upon in the realm of Stereo (or even a Surround Sound format). Still, this original Mono track does very well for itself. This single-disc DVD "Collector's Edition" of "Psycho" from Universal Studios does the movie proud. It's brimming over with fulfilling bonus supplements, including a scrumptious feature-length documentary, "The Making Of Psycho", which runs for 1 hour and 34 minutes. This feature is chock-full of useful behind-the-scenes tidbits and goodies that should delight any fan. I particularly enjoyed the interview segments with "Psycho" screenwriter Joseph Stefano. This "Making Of" is one of the best of its kind to ever come down the pike for any DVD release (IMO). It's very nearly a "second" movie on this disc. But the producers of this Universal Digital Disc didn't stop with just placing on it a terrific and stylish movie-length documentary feature. No, there's a lot more where that came from. The disc also contains: >> Newsreel Footage: "The Release Of Psycho". -- This splendid bonus, which has a run time of 7:42, is an "Advanced Press Book on Film" (a quote from this newsreel). This feature (I assume) was distributed to theaters around the U.S.A. before the film's widespread initial release in the summer of 1960, to demonstrate, as stated in the newsreel, "the care and handling of Alfred Hitchcock's 'Psycho' ". It's a truly fascinating glimpse into the world of promotional advertising for a major motion picture, circa 1960. This short film looks sensational too. Remarkably pristine and clear. >> The "Shower Scene" (with and without music). >> Multiple Photo Galleries, featuring gobs and gobs of great-looking production stills and poster art from the film. >> "Shower Scene" Storyboards. >> Theatrical Trailers. -- Including the Hitchcock-hosted "Tour of the 'Psycho' Set" Trailer, which is practically a "mini featurette" all by itself, sporting an elaborate running time of 6.5 minutes! One of the lengthiest trailers I can think of. >> Some very detailed text-only sections: "Production Notes" and "Cast And Filmmakers Biographies". Also included is a very handy and informative multi-page, fold-out booklet -- which has Chapter Lists for both the film and the "Making Of" (26 Chapters each), several nice photos, and some very lengthy and informative Production Notes. Universal has, in my considered opinion, done itself a great disservice via a woeful lack of useful information on the back cover of the packaging regarding this DVD's excellent bonus material. Not a single word is printed on the back (or front) cover telling of the bountiful supplements contained on this disc. A person who didn't know what a great batch of extras was on this disc might be inclined to skip this release, and wait for (perhaps) a 2-Disc Anamorphic "Psycho" DVD version. (Which, in fact, I imagine *will* be offered up by Universal eventually. However, it would be very difficult, in my view, to top the Special Features contained in this "Collector's Edition".) This classic piece of cinema deserves to be re-visited a minimum of a couple times per year (possibly more if your nerves can tolerate the abuse). And that's easy to do with this very satisfying DVD on the shelf. Any true collector of horror films that does NOT have this Hitchcock spine-tingler in his/her DVD collection should be "Psycho"-analyzed -- and then pointed in the direction of this Amazon webpage ASAP! *wink*
Rating:
Summary: I have to put to rest the 1 star reviews
Review: After reading some of the 1 star reviews, I have to write something positive. There are younger people here who will tell you that the remake is better. Don't listen to them. The remake sucks. I think that this one is classic. One of the best movies I have ever seen. Anthony Perkins does a great job (just as he did in the sequals). I'm very disappointed that Janet Leigh got such a small part, especially when she gets top billing. Plus she's pretty and a great actress. After watching this on AMC, I think that it was well thought out. It was just well done. I recommend you see it. It's one of the best horror movies.
Rating:
Summary: "We All Go a Little Crazy Sometimes...."
Review: By now, the storyline of 1960's PSYCHO and all of its once-surprising plot elements are well known, but the film nonetheless continues to frighten audiences and thereby maintains its reputation as a masterful bloodcurdling thriller. That's largely because of the skills and sensibilities of auteur Alfred Hitchcock, specifically his deftness at manipulating audience expectation. Hitchcock deliberately gives PSYCHO the look of a cheap B-movie exploitation flick by filming it in black-and-white and employing not his usual cinematic crew, but instead the crew from his popular TV show ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS. As for the plot, he sets up the Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) story as if it will be further developed and continue to the conclusion of the film. When Marion steals a large sum of untraceable cash from her employer and then drives off with plans to meet her lover in another town and start a new life, the film is obviously a straight-forward heist drama, right? Well, just when the audience thinks it knows where this plot is heading, a deranged killer gets thrown into the mix. Suddenly the film's timbre changes and the story abruptly shifts direction, thereby disrupting viewer expectation and, in turn, invoking tension and apprehension in the audience members. And of course, this primes the audience emotionally for the unexpected scares yet to come. "I was directing the VIEWERS," Hitchcock once told fellow director François Truffaut. "You might say I was PLAYING them...like an organ." PSYCHO was based on Robert Bloch's popular pulp novel, which itself was inspired by the exploits of Wisconsin killer and ghoul Ed Gein. After Hitchcock purchased the film rights from Bloch, he engaged the services of screenwriter Joseph Stefano--who would later develop and work on the classic 1960s TV genre series THE OUTER LIMITS--to adapt the novel to the screen. Stefano's screenplay was relatively faithful to the source material, with two notable exceptions: middle-aged, balding Norman Bates was transformed into a handsome younger man; and the murder of Marion in the shower, described in the novel as one swift thrust of a butcher knife, was expanded into a major scene in which the young woman's body is violated by multiple knife thrusts that allude to the action of a rape. Speaking of that infamous shower scene, the relatively short sequence took nearly 7 days to film and required over 70 camera setups and 90 editing cuts. Since red appears nearly black when filmed in black-and-white, copious amounts of chocolate syrup was effectively substituted for blood. The sound FX for the stabs involved the shoving of a knife into a ripe melon, a technique that went on to become the standard for future slasher flicks. And layered on top of it all was Bernard Herrmann's shrieking violin-heavy musical score. The final result is extremely effective, and few cinematic sequences before or since can dole out the visceral wallop that this scene delivers. As with many of Hitchcock's films, PSYCHO was groundbreaking cinema. When that knife pierced that shower curtain and continued right on through to lovely Marion, horror was yanked from the realm of supernatural fantasy and firmly grounded in real-world possibility. The monster was now the human mind. Friendly, good-looking young men like Norman Bates could have nasty skeletons bursting forth from their psychological closets, and no longer was it a guarantee that the protagonist would survive all the way to the closing credits. The Collector's Edition DVD from Universal studios is a digital treasure trove. The transfer of the film itself, though offered in non-anamorphic letterbox widescreen, is clean and crisp, with pristine continuous-tone grays and dark, rich blacks. Included in the delightful supplements is a 94-minute making-of documentary, the original 6-minute theatrical trailer in which Hitchcock himself takes viewers on a tour of the Bates Motel, newsreel footage, and much more. This disc belongs in the collection of any horror fan or film aficionado.
Rating:
Summary: Warning: You Are about to Read a Comment not a Review
Review: I just heard about an exhibition called, "24 hour Psycho" where the Hitchcock film is shown at such a slow rate that it runs for 24 hours. But what is at work in Psycho beyond murder and cross-dressing that makes such a concept possible? Surely there is the technical brilliance that makes the film so watchable but more than that "Psycho" captures the moment we lost our innocence as citizens and were re-born as consumers. Its an old and sad story now but there is both recognition of and longing for our simpler selves in the story of roadside madness played out in that bypassed California motel. The rap on Hitchcock has always been that he is a crowd pleaser, incapable of offending his audience. And in "Psycho" Norman Bates is caught and incarcerated so once again Hitchcock gives us a "happy" ending. But along the way he made us, his audience, root for the murderer. The pivotal sequence is when Norman runs back to the motel and sees what "Mother" has done to Marion. Norman does more than clean up the murder scene and dispose of the body. He provides the audience, just shocked and saddened by the death of the leading lady, an opportunity to shift allegiances to him, the good son who knows how to mop a bathroom floor. The fact that we are led to believe he has done this before is no deterrent to our desire root for Norman. So by the time Norman stands at the edge of the swamp watching the car sink into seeming oblivion, we share his anxiety when the car stops sinking and his intense relief when its starts sinking again. In that sequence Hitchcock takes us from being innocent bystanders to accomplices to a shocking murder. It is the same dynamic at work in advertising and exploited by mass media. We are lulled into accepting Norman as a good boy because we see him clean up the bathroom. Had we glimpsed his face while stabbing Marion Crane in the shower that wouldn't have happened. If the makers of SUVs showed us the emissions from the exhaust pipe in the ad where SUVs climb mountain peaks, these vehicles might not be so popular. The movies, as Hitchcock knew all too well, depend upon the willingness of the audience to suspend its disbelief. But the audience will only do that when its given something worth the price. By suspending our disbelief for a price, no matter what the story; murder, rape or corruption, we act out our role as a consumer in an area of our lives when there is no exchange of hard currency. Hitchcock turned us all into voyeuristic consumers and we just think we've seen a good flick.
Rating:
Summary: He was flirting with you..........
Review: This movie is by far the best Hitchcock film, in a world where there are so many to choose from. There is something about this movie that stands out above all the rest.
Yes, it is missing the vibrant color of Vertigo, and claustrophobic feel of Rear Window. That does not matter. Although i am a huge fan of Mr. Hitchcock ( he really is the master ), this film just stands out to me. First off it did introduce me to his work, so right there it holds a bit of a tug at my heart. I founded his other great films because of watching this film.
The story takes you somewhere and leaves you, and then takes you somewhere else....you have to see it ,to understand what i mean. I do not mean at all that it takes you somewhere and leaves you in a bad way, at all. Just the opposite. It's all for the good. It was and still is a shocking tale, based loosely on true events from the novel of the same name by Robert Bloch. Which is disturbing enough to know that it could have been real, but oh well. Just see it. I hope you will not be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: We all go a little crazy sometimes
Review: Regenerated in many other movies, the legendary 'shower scene' will always be carved in the mind of every horror flick fan as the best horror film in the vault. Hitchcock knew what he was doing when he created the film "Psycho". Hitchcock brings an eerie, yet attractive feeling to every aspect of the stimulating film. The audience, surprised at every twist and turn of the film, was kept in suspense. The suspense is surprising for such a seemingly simple plot. The plot, acting and suspense are the best aspects of this film.
Janet Leigh's character, Marian Crane, stole 40,000 dollars from the Phoenix real-estate office she worked in. Marian took her newly embezzled money to California to surprise her boyfriend. They would use the money for their new life together. On the way to California, she got caught in a storm. Pulling over, Marian found an old, vacant motel. Norman Bates, Anthony Perkins's character, manages this motel for his overbearing mother. Soon after Marian came up missing, Norman became skittish as police began to investigate her disappearance. His character developed throughout the rest of the film, as the truth became closer and closer.
The acting in this film is original because it pulled the audience in with its reality. Anthony Perkins's performance was unbelievable. His mood swings and quietness led the audience wondering what was going on in his mind. His eyes shift and are uneasy at every question. Hitchcock made the audience feel as though they were sitting there with Norman and Marian having a conversation. In the later version of the film the acting did not make the audience feel as though they were in it.
In the 1998 version of the film, the actors and actresses spelt out what they were feeling, leaving nothing for the imagination of the audience. The acting was very unrealistic. The new version, throws in more (...) advances and striking images than the original, which took away from the movie. It tried to shock the new viewers in the way that the original had when it first came out, but in doing so, the quality lacked.
The original was in black and white, but still it was one of the best films I have ever seen. The absence of color helped to bring the audience back to earlier days; when blood and gore weren't the only thing a horror film was good for.
With only two murders within 60 minutes of each other, it set the standards for today's horror films. A little sex and violence was the first layer to the horror film 'cake'. Today's horror films have too much frosting. The film "Scream" glorifies bloody murder and gory scenes, which pulls away from the basic plan, the cake. It is refreshing to watch a simple and beautiful horror film.
The lack of surprise is one of the best things that Hitchcock could have done for the film. Surprise can make the audience jump, but that is a short thrill. Suspense creates a long lasting thrill that will keep the audience guessing. In the shower scene Hitchcock shows the murderer slowly walking towards Marian. We, the audience, know Marian is going to die but the suspense of not knowing when is invigorating.
"Psycho" is definitely a classic and deserves to be called so. The film exposed the thoughts of psychological issues, setting our own traps, and cold-blooded murder. Images from this film will stick in the audience's minds. Hitchcock is a brilliant man. I suggest seeing any Hitchcock film out there. His films are marvelous works of art.
Rating: 
Summary: so so
Review: [WARNING: movies spoilers ahead] Recently I watched Psycho, Vertigo, Rear Window, and The Birds. Out of these four, I only liked Vertigo... the other was not much of anything new, probably due to so many other movies imitating it... but god... even if none did that, can Rear Window be so highly acclaimed as it is? It feels only like a low budget Hong Kong black and white movie made in two weeks. The plot sucked. Maybe Schizophrenia was a brand new thing in 1960 and a lot of people are surprised by it. But it isn't anymore now, so the surprise element goes away. Even some re-run of Hitchcock on the TV that is 30 minutes long have more twist and surprise and ending better than The Birds, Psycho, and Rear Window.
Rating:
Summary: It's called "Psycho" for a reason
Review: Warning *SPOILERS*! The main one is in this review. So I advize you if you have not seen it, do not, I repeat, DO NOT READ THIS! If you do it'lljust ruin, the twist,so as a movie watcher I ask to not read this if you haven't seen this. Let me start off by saying, I am 10 years old,and from what I've noticed other kids don't have respect for classics. I took this to my friends house, and she's 13, first she said the music in the beggining was awsome (which is true) but 20 minutes into the movie, she said "This is boring." I know she has her own opnion, and blah, blah, blah. But this aint her review. It's mine, hense, I tell my own opnion.HA! So I looked at her in disguest. She obviously has no respect for horror/thriller/study into paranoi, movies. She's more into slashers. Which I'm all for, but sometimes they overdo the gore. I like slashers yeah, I mean, my personal favoirte horror movie is "A Nightmare on Elm Street." Yes that is a slasher, BUT, it has a psychologocal depth. Same with Final Destination, because in that slasher, people get killed, and there is no killer. You Have to see it to understand. Whatever, but the worst part was she said the shower scene was crap! ARGGGH!It was 1960! Don't expect as much blood as you did in Scream. Well that is done. But here is the spoiler, so if you haven't seen it yet DO NOT read this. Okay. You know how at the end the guy was just really a well...Psycho...because he was a skizo and one of his personalities is "His mother". Well, when the shower scene first came on, I was watching this movie with my mom and I said, "YOu know what'd be weird? If the guy was a skizofrenyic and thought he was his mother." And oh my god! I was right. I swear to god, it was so weird, but so cool! Okay so overall, the movies really good, and is worth watching. Maybe I am "Psych"ic
Rating:
Summary: The Absense of color
Review: The Absence of color The movie Psycho directed by Alfred Hitchcock was filmed in the 1960's. It is a black and white horror film that is filled with suspense and a color that is not shown. This was an excellent movie even though it was shot on a low budget and lack of color.
The movie starts out with two characters Marion Crane (Janet Lee) and her divorced lover Sam Loomis (John Gavin). They are in a hotel room talking about how they wish they could be together and not have to meet in secret. Money problems keep them from being together. Marion then gets her hands on $40,000, money she steals from her employer one afternoon rather than banking it. This is where things take a turn for the worse for Marion. She runs off with the money at the chance of being with the man she loves, but instead runs into Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins). Bates is the owner of Bates Motel, a secluded old motel that hasn't had many costumers in years. When Marion comes along, things begin to twist in a new direction. The money does not seem like such a big deal with this twist in the plot. The second half of the movie consists of Marion's sister Lila (Vera Miles), Sam, and a private investigator Mr. Arbogast (Martin Balsam) trying to find Marion.
The movie was filmed in black and white. Even, though most of Hitchcock's films are in color. This black and white technique makes for a serious horror film. The way that the film is portrayed with no color is useful in this horror film; by not having color makes the movie more intense and thrilling. The entire look of the movie is the same. The characters resemble each other differently even though they have different visual roles. The lack of color makes the intense scenes more exciting, as in the famous shower scene. The dark shadow of the killer coming near is used expertly, against the lightness of the bathroom; it disguises the character and leaves the viewers uncertain of whom the killer is.
Compared to modern horror films that are in color Psycho displays Hitchcock's artistry through what we don't see. When a character is shown covered in blood from either being the victim or finding the victim, the use of the red brings out a gory aspect to the movie. This can be seen in the movie Scream. In the beginning of the movie, the killer strikes the high school girl and she is hanging from the tree outside. She is covered in blood and the redness that is shown on her clothing makes the scene horrifying to watch. If this film were in black and white, this scene along with others in the movie would not have been so grotesque and at times unbearable to watch. In Hitchcock's film we do not see this color of the red blood; this makes the viewer more interested in the plot rather than the color of the blood.
Psycho being filmed in black and white helps with the suspense that the movie portrays. A reoccurring theme in the movie are close ups of the eyes. When something was going to happen to one of the characters, the heart racing music would start and then there would be a shot of the characters eyes. The use of the black and white film makes the eyes look horrific, since there is no color present it gives off a dark and tense mood, the music helps portray this dark mood of the scene. The absence of color brings out a mysterious sense to the film like the close shots of the eyes. You did not know what to expect next.
The fact that there was no color made the movie and scenes in the movie have a dark and tense mood. The shower scene is a helpful example, the shot of Marion's dark eyes was a striking way to end the scene and grab hold of the audience's attention and a curious transition as to what was going to happen next.
Psycho provides a thrilling, suspenseful mood with scenes that are unforgettable.
The soundtrack is relentless and adds to this horror film. This movie is different from other horror films these days; it's less predictable. You may think that some of the events that take place have something to do with the plot, but then find out that it has nothing to do with it at all. Those who like to watch movies that make you think and have you at the edge of your seat should see this film. After viewing the film you may be strangely left with the question what is normal in a colored world?
Rating:
Summary: Psycho Review
Review: .In the beginning of the film "Psycho," by Alfred Hitchcock, was a film that didn't catch my attention. The film seemed to be moving by with out a lot of excitement in the start and really felt as if it was getting no where. Astonishingly towards the end of the film I found myself getting into the movie and realized that it had some great suspense. In the beginning the main female character, Marion Crane (played by Janet Leigh), is trusted to deposit 40,000 of cash in to the bank for her employer. Once she has a hold of the money, Marion plays a fake sickness and is supposed to be heading home after the deposit, only that's not what happens. Marion is quick to high tail it out of town with her hopes of starting over with a new life in Arizona. She is heading towards Arizona for the fact that she wants to be with her divorced lover Sam, whom has only been meeting her
secretly in cheesy hotels, yet he has no idea she is coming. This part in the film was unsurprising, from one scene to another, I knew what was going to be happening before it even happened. A movie that is so predictable isn't worth watching. As Marion is on the run she is pulled over by a police officer. The acting in this scene is what made me angry with the character of Marion. Although she was trying to act innocent, she practically told the officer - I'm guilty. It's like when you see someone do something and then confront them and they deny it even though you were there. They try and hide the fact that they are lying, but you can see right through them. He of course got this impression right away also, but surprisingly she gets away with out much questioning. In need of a place to rest for the night, the famous Bates Motel is the choice for our female runaway. Even though the creepy look of the motel would be enough to make me jump in my car and drive away as quickly as possible, the young man Norman Bates
(played by Anthony Hopkins) enters, fears are calmed by his charms. A long chat between these two characters Marion and Norman, showed Norman had a bit of a spark towards Marion, but because everything was so quiet and lifeless during this scene, it left me in a bore and almost asleep. The scene seemed to last a half an hour when it was probably only around seven minuets. As Marion is brutally murdered in the famous shower
scene, after her conversation with Bates, and her body disposed of, the movie seemed to have nothing left to go off of since the main
female character was now dead. Since Bates's mother was confirmed the killer by Norman himself during some shouting from the house when blood was discovered gave this away. But oddly enough, when someone did come, detective Arbogast was also killed by the mother. Little did I know that my views on this movie were about to change. "Psycho" constantly lead me astray from what I
assumed was the truth, and the film became a lot more appealing than what it seemed earlier on. It was now not just some horror movie, but a thriller too. The suspense started to manipulate my views and caused doubt as to what really happened to Marion when she was killed in the shower. I wondered who the killer is really. The twist in the end of this film was great. It was
something that I didn't even think about as I was trying to solve the mystery. As a first time viewer of any of the Hitchcock films the twist alone is what makes me want to watch another one of his films. Just to see what other kinds of stories he has come up with.
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