The movie franchise that is Psycho has sent chills down the spines of movie goers ever since the first thriller in 1960. The Granddaddy of Horror movies was originally based on a novel by Robert Bloch. Robert Bloch's novel was inspired by the true events of Ed Gein. Gein is known as America's first serial killer and was also found to be psychotic. Bloch's approach was to write about a man next door who may seem quiet and to himself but at the same time be a psychotic monster. Norman Bates is brought to life and the rest, as they say, is history.
The Psycho saga started in 1960 with sequels Psycho II in 1983, Psycho III in 1986 and Psycho IV in 1990. A remake of the original was made in 1998. If my kids become interested in Horror Films I will have them watch these movies first. These films truly exemplify Horror and honestly, where else would a Horror fan start?
Psycho
In 1960 Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece had audiences coming in droves only to be scared out of their wits. Starring Anthony Perkins as the simple-minded but very troubled Norman Bates and Janet Leigh as the ill-fated traveler Marion Crane, Psycho definitely put horror movies on the map. ALFRED HITCHCOCK: "I don't care about the subject matter; I don't care about the acting; but I do care about the pieces of film and the photography and the soundtrack and all of the technical ingredients that made the audience scream".
The now infamous "shower scene" certainly made the audience scream and then some. It took seven days to shoot, seventy camera setups for the forty-five seconds of footage. As powerful as it was, even more remarkable by todays standards is that there was no nudity nor is there a plunging knife in the final cut (pun definitely intended) just illusion through montage. Of course the music playing during the scene didn't hurt either. Anthony Perkins on the "Shower Scene": "It is actually a very chaste scene. There is no violence in that scene, it's all implied. It's all good angles and clever music and very artful intercutting. It's very discreet and I think that's one of the reasons it's been a famous and successful scene; it doesn't grab the audience and shake it by the throat. All the violence in it is really more what one brings to it as an audience, rather than what is actually on the screen". One of the smartest movies ever made, Psycho was made with a very low budget and didn't need all of the blood and gore we see in horror movies nowadays. Hitchcock's main satisfaction was that Psycho had an effect on the audiences. Boy, did it ever. The Shower Scene
My personal favorite scene in Psycho
Psycho, Anthony Perkins, 1960
Psycho II
After almost 25 years Anthony Perkins is back as Norman Bates in the second installment of the Psycho movies. The second film picks right up from where the first one let off.
It is now 1983 and Norman has been in a Mental Institution for the Criminally Insane receiving treatment and is finally ready to rejoin society. He tries to lead a normal life but just can't quite elude the voice and demands of "Mother". Soon, Norman and "Mother" are back to their old ways of killing anyone who comes close to their home and Motel. Norman sincerely doesn't want to hurt anyone but "Mother" slowly gains full control in this terrifying sequel. The Trailer for Psycho II
Bates Motel
Psycho III
The third chapter in the Psycho series comes to us in 1986. This time however, Anthony Perkins not only stars in this sequel but also directs.
After years in prison, Norman Bates returns home to the Bates Motel. He seems to be rehabilitated but it doesn't take long for "Mother" to gain control of Norman's mind once again.
Will Norman ever escape the grasp "Mother" has on him or he is he doomed to do his "Mother's" bidding? Find out in this shocking third installment of the Psycho series. Psycho The 3rd Chapter
Psycho, Anthony Perkins, 1960
Psycho IV
The fourth and final installment of the Psycho series sees Norman Bates reliving his childhood and the trials he underwent growing up with his widowed schizophrenic mother. It all starts when Norman listens to a late-night call-in radio show and is drawn to call in. He calls in calling himself "Ed".
Upon doing so the host encourages Norman to share his views on matricide (The murder of a mother by her own child). Also on the radio is Norman's psychologist. Norman is just recently once again released from the mental hospital and is trying lead a normal life. But Norman must be careful that these memories of the past don't rekindle his urge to kill. Psycho IV was released in 1990 and is considered the prequel or backstory to the original Psycho.
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