Psycho

Show How Hitchcock Achieves This In The Shower Scene Of ‘Psycho’

Alfred Hitchcock, known across the globe for his famously shocking and revolutionary films. Hitchcock had an exceptional talent to make a piece of film, add some techniques and make it the most shocking piece of film in its time. In particular ‘Psycho’ was an incredibly outrageous film, which with all of its techniques blended together, working like a well-oiled machine, really did make the audience scream.

Hitchcock has an intriguing way of bringing the audience through the story line to the Bate’s Motel. Hitchcock splits the narrative into two plot lines; the first is almost just a means of getting the audience to the action.

The second plot line crushes the audience’s expectations and leaves them feeling a sense of unknown, and insecurity. The first plot line runs through Marion stealing the money, this creates the audience do not immediately assume Marion is not innocent, and the audience do not empathise with her. She then escapes with

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The black and white film produces a good effect as the dark/bright contrast is exaggerated, but if it were produced in colour then the silhouette may not appear as sinister. Hitchcock repeats this throughout the film; building the audience’s emotions toward Marion, but then subtly reminding us that she is in fact a crook, and this ‘resets’ our emotion response to the character. With each separate shot it makes the audience gasp, the blatant viciousness of each shot brings the audience to the edge of their seats and to a 1950’s audience certainly would have made them scream. Tension starts to build in the audience. Before the shower scene, as Norman walks through the house, the music creates such tension but quickly relieves it as the music slows and becomes less urgent. This reflects that Marion is not at all worried, and has no suspicion of Bates, except that he is a little odd. After the stabbing the camera pans downs towards the bathtub that is now flowing with blood, this slow panning indicates the murder is over, and displays the severity of the killing, as the chunks of flesh flow away. Marion as we know is a villain and therefore should not be linked to good through the bright white lights.

The sound track is used to heighten the tension in the audience, and in places almost makes the view feels they are part of the action. The camera stays stationary as the silhouette becomes towards the shower curtain; the tension grows more and more as the figure approaches, it is almost inevitable that the figure has hostile intent. The shots are swift and precise, each lasting no more than two seconds; this highlights the stabbing and the brutality of the thrusting knife.

As Marion washes herself the camera pans slowly about her head coming to rest pointing out past the shower curtain and toward the door. Marion’s sister’s speech and actions make out that Marion is innocent and that she is running away for her safety, not fleeing from the law. Hitchcock uses this to play with the audience’s mind, like when Marion steals the money the audience feels dislike towards her as a thief,

But Hitchcock then makes the audience empathise with her. The camera points down toward Marion, implying that she is inferior, and that she is vulnerable.

Common topics in this essay:
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Approximate Word count = 1409
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

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