After Thoughts...Psycho [1960] (spoilers)

          FROM NORMAN TO NORMAN

+ If you have never seen Psycho and don't know what happens turn away now!!!  I would hate to be the cause of spoiling it for anyone.

Norman Bates is nothing I imagine a serial killer would be.  He is a shy and bashful; a young rather good looking guy who spends his days managing the family motel for his ailing mother.  But then again, after revisiting Psycho, Norman might just be everything I imagine a serial killer to be- he is shy and bashful, and awkward, reclusive and very, very creepy.

Revealing the timid and sincere Norman Bates as the psychotic, two-faced transvestite serial killer might be one of the greatest surprises the movie have ever given us.  Remembering all those reprimanding conversations overheard from his mother, the reveal comes as disturbing and the sympathy, out the window.  But for horror junkies watching the movie again, there could be a small sense of delight.  Watching that severely awkward dinner of sandwiches and milk as you wait for Marion Crane to step behind the shower curtain.

Anthony Perkins gives the performance of a life-time, one that many say he was born to play and never quite left behind.  Perkins took part in three more Psycho sequles, even directing the made for TV Psycho IV in 1990, 30 years after the release of Hitchcock's classic.

When the script was in the process of adapting Robert Bloch’s 1959 novel, Norman had to be changed drastically to suit Hitchcock’s liking.  The Norman Bates of the book took the form of an overweight 40-something year old man with drinking problems.  Inspired by real-life serial killer Ed Gein, also the inspiration for the equally creepy characters of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Silence of the Lambs, there is nothing subtle about Bloch’s literary Norman Bates.

 But the legacy of the film rests largely on the unexpected reveal at its end, where we find out the boy next door is really a perverse maniac.  Everything we thought was true is now not, exactly how Hitch wanted it.  The film, while typically considered a horror piece or even slasher is one of the great psychological thrillers ever made.  But it is only until after its over do you realize this.  If Hitchcock’s Norman stayed true to the novel, none of that would have been possible.  The reveal would have more obvious and the thrill, much less thrilling.  I doubt Psycho would have been a bad movie if Hitchcock retained the character written by Bloch,  but it certainly would not possess the legacy it has today.  Sure, we would still have the infamous shower scene and Bernard Herrmann's screeching violins, but no Anthony Perkins, and frankly I cannot imagine a Psycho without him.

Reel News...First Look At ScoJo As Janet Leigh In The Upcoming "Hitchcock" Biopic

First things first, a lot of buzz has already surrounded the upcoming Alfred Hitchcock biopic, (simply titled Hitchcock, based on the book) for a good number of reasons.  It has a number of Hollywood A-listers singed on that includes Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Scarlet Johannson, Toni Collette and Jessica Biel among others.   The movie, being one of two Hitchcock-related films that are currently in production, is based on the book Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho and I assume it will portray exactly that.  About a month ago,  a photo of Anthony Hopkins portraying Sir Alfred Hitchcock was released to the public and the results were near perfect.  Oscar talks are already there from the one shot.  

In similar fashion, a new photo of Scarlet Johansson has now hit the internet and gone viral for all cinephiles and Hitchcock lovers to enjoy.  Seen most recently in the summer Blockbuster The Avengers, Johansson's role in Hitchcock will be portraying Psycho actress Janet Leigh, best known in the word of film for her fatal shower scene in the 1960 Hitchcock classic.  Just like Hopkins, ScoJo looks spot on in her character, perfectly capturing the seductive charm of Leigh's fatal Marion Crane.  The project keeps getting better with each new picture, making the wait all more suspenseful, as the real Mr. Hitchcock would no doubt approve of.  At this point, all I want is to see James D'Arcy pop up as Norman Bates.

Reel News...Two Hitchcock Movies in The Works

      Its only fitting that I come across news of not one, but two Hitchcock films currently under production after returning from a screening of Psycho.  Its not breaking news of any sort, word has been out about both projects for a few months now, but new information has surfaced lately generating some buzz for the two upcoming movies.

      One is a biographical drama simply titled Hitchcock, which is set for a release sometime next year.  It will be based on the nonfiction book by Stephen Rebelo called Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho.  The role of Mr. Hitchcock will be played by legendary actor Anthony Hopkins.  A new picture was released showing Hopkins in character as Sir Alfred, and I have got to say his look is spot on.