" Why, she wouldn't even harm a fly..."

Psycho

Perhaps Alfred Hitchcock's most well known piece of work, Psycho is a film about passion, tragedy, deceit, mothers and of course murder. The film follows a young office worker, Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) who sets out to start a new life with her lover Sam (John Gavin) after stealing $40, 000 from her employer. On her way to meet Sam, Marion comes to rest at a motel off the beaten track owned by the lonely Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) who appears to have an unhealthy attachment to his mother.

First off all lets talk about the shower scene. The scene has become an honorary part of pop culture due to its spine tingling score and that famous scream, and for good reason. The scene acts as the chilling turning point for the movie and propels the movie into further mystery and suspense. I have seen a few Hitchcock movies now and this would have to be the darkest movie I have seen, the murder itself has scared audiences to go back to their showers for over 50 years but its the suspense achieved after the initial murder that makes this one of Hitchcock's most unnerving films. As the characters and audience are left working out the mystery the tension continues to build until all is revealed in the brilliant conclusion.

There is no doubt that Hitchcock was ahead of his time his camera techniques and use of mediums such as music and light make his storytelling a joy to watch. The story itself based on the novel by Robert Bloch was revolutionary creating such an identifiable villain and a twist that has since influenced countless movies. Hitchcock didn't have to rely on explosions or guns to create suspense instead he uses gripping monologues that can last for up to 10 minutes and long enduring scenes that truly capture the mood. For a movie that takes place over mainly one location Hitchcock has been able to create a film that was so memorable that it remains an influential piece of cinema 50 years later.

Every character in the movie has a role that is integral to the movie, with everyone giving a fine performance. The movie is stolen by Anthony Perkins who delivers such a memorable performance of Norman Bates that his character has gone down in history as one of the best villains of all time. For Hitchcock enthusiasts his cameo appearance which is present in all of his movies is during the start of the film, he can be seen through the window of Marion Crane's workplace.

The only negative I have regarding the movie is its 1998 shot-for-shot remake by Gus Van Sant starring Vince Vaughn as Norman Bates, the movie symbolises how Hollywood has such little regard for classics. Some movies need to be left alone or before we know it we'll be seeing classics such as Star Wars or Forest Gump remade. For anyone contemplating whether or not to see this movie, I highly recommend you see it as well as any other Hitchcock movie you can find, after seeing many of his movies I have yet to be disappointed.