Psycho II: 22 years later…

So here we are for Psycho II (1983), the cult classic continues. This sequel to the original by Hitchcock was directed by Richard Franklin who was a Hitchcock student who studied the master.  Franklin contacted Hitchcock’s daughter and she gave the go ahead and told him she thought her father would have loved it. Tom Holland wrote the screenplay with deep respect for Hitchcock.  Robert Bloch, who wrote the original Psycho, had written Psycho II in 1982 but the studio didn’t like it.

The movie was filmed in 32 days at the same Universal Studios lot (you can still see it today when you take the tour).  The film made $8 million in the first weekend of it’s showing and in the end, $44 million.  Not bad for a sequel!

The cast was comprised of Anthony Perkins, returning as Norman Bates (it just had to be).  His first response was to turn down the role but he later agreed.  Meg Tilly was cast as Mary (Lila’s daughter). She had never even seen the original Psycho and Anthony Perkins wanted someone else but she ended up staying.

So here we go!  Norman has spent the last 22 years in a state mental institution and is in court to be granted his freedom.  When they decide to let him to back into society, Lila Loomis is outraged (see picture #2 above).  She thinks he will kill again.  He killed her sister, Marion Crane in the first movie. It’s interesting to note that Lila married her sister Marion’s boyfriend seen in the first film.  She is now Lila Loomis.  Interesting name Loomis as we discover later in the film, she “looms” about.  Her daughter is Mary Samuels (Meg Tilly).  In the first Psycho, Marion signs in at the motel under an assumed name (Marie Samuels). So far, I like the way they are keeping with the clever Hitchcock themes.  You’ll see later that there are more clever names.

Norman leaves the courthouse with Dr. Raymond.  He walks through the house and comes up the stairs and looks at the phone.  There is a note under it that reads, “I’ll be home late. Fix my dinner!”  We hear that “mother voice”.  He is standing in front of his mother’s bedroom.  As he looks at the door, he hears his mother’s voice again saying, “What did you put in my tea? I’m gonna get you for this!” (In the original Psycho, he put poison in her tea and killed her).  He sees a reflection of himself as a boy in the door panel and on the doorknob.  His mother always talked to him so terribly and always made him feel like a stupid little boy.  The feelings were coming back.  He was so taken aback that his suitcase fell down the stairs, just as Mr. Arbogast did in the first movie.  (Those stairs have and will have a lot of mishaps and blood).

I will leave you at this point but know this:  there will be knives, sandwiches, shadows, shovels, mirrors, another shower (oh yes), notes and phone calls from “mother”, tea and toilets, circles and birds again, and 6 murders in this sequel.  It will not be easy to figure out who is doing the killings.  Stay tuned until next time…

 

Birds Everywhere!

Hitch had a thing for birds~

As we finish with Psycho the movie, we can’t stop without mentioning Hitch’s thing for birds.  His next big movie was The Birds (1963) but even before the movie he had bird themes in Psycho.  Was he preparing us?

Birds everywhere:

• The movie begins in Phoenix, AZ and is printed in bold letters on the screen (a phoenix is a bird).
• Marion’s last name was Crane which also is a bird.
• Norman’s hobby was taxidermy (in the book he had a stuffed squirrel but Hitch changed his hobby to stuffed birds of all breeds).  These can be seen throughout the movie and especially in the sandwich scene with Marion.
• When Marion is eating Norman comments that she “…eats like a bird”.  Very clever of Hitch to throw it in verbally.
• There are framed pictures of birds everywhere if you look for them (see picture #4 above).
• There is a scene where a bird is knocked over.
• In picture #1 above there is a photo of Hitch reading a book about birds and in picture #2 there is a press release photo of him with a raven.
• In picture #3 Norman is petting one of his prize pet birds (nice little birdie).

Why birds everywhere? Why taxidermy? Maybe in preparation for stuffing his mother after digging her up?  And why didn’t he stuff those that he murdered? I think I know why, do you?

Spoiler alert:

Well, we find out at the end of the movie that Norman has been dressing up as his mother and committing the murders.  In his mind, he thinks his mother did it and he was helping to keep her out of a mental hospital by covering up for her.  In the end we realize that Norman is “psychotic”  (to say the least) and is sent away.  But for how long?  You’ll find out later…

This movie gets a 5 star rating from me:  *****   It’s perfect in black and white, the suspense stays with you through the whole movie, and the cleverness of themes and only implying murder and stabbings is superb!

What did you think of it? What was your favorite part?  What do you like most about Hitchcock?

Do you want to know what surprised me? There are MORE Psycho movies (I had no idea):

1. Psycho II (1983 where Anthony Perkins returns as Norman)
2. III (1986 in which Anthony Perkins, our favorite little psycho directs)
3. IV (1990)
4. A remake of the original Psycho with Anne Heche (1998)
5. Psycho the Legacy
6. Hitch (2012) which I did know about and it was the movie that got me started on my Psycho obsession
7. The Bate’s Motel (a TV version currently being filmed)

So what do you think I’ll do now? I’ve already done it.  I bought Psycho II, III, and IV that comes in one DVD from Amazon.  I watched Psycho II last night and I must tell you that most sequels never live up to the first right? Well this one was well done and portrayed lots of clever themes that Hitch would have been proud of.  It kept me hooked the whole time so get ready…it’s next on my hit list!  It’s 22 years later and Norman is released from the mental institution.  Anthony Perkins reprises his role once again.  Wait until I tell you what happens…next time!

Circles in Psycho

There are many circle themes in Psycho.  Hitchcock was fascinated with themes and connections and incorporated them wherever he could so let’s look into the circle theme:

1. The ominous close up of the cop and his sunglasses.
2. The shower drain where the blood, or chocolate syrup, swirled into.
3. The focus on Marion’s eye when she fell and died on the bathroom floor.  The movie slowly moves toward her face and ends up in her eye.
4. The camera spent time on the round shower head as the water sprayed out (just like the blood that would later spray out).
5. The peephole Norman used to watch her in the next room.  A peephole was also incorporated in Hitch (2012).

All of these contributed to the elements of suspense in the movie and there are more circles in the movie.  Can you find them? Take a “peep” and see what you can see.  Let me know what you find. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 

Infamous Shower Scene Secrets

Somebody’s coming! Watch out!

After having sandwiches with Norman, Marion Crane just wanted a nice shower and she would be heading back home tomorrow to return the money but someone had other plans for her.

In pictures 1 and 2 above, Marion was enjoying her shower.  In pictures 3 and 4, Marion is aware that a shadowy figure of a woman with a knife is coming for her.  In picture 5, she is dead and laying on the bathroom floor.  She is no longer enjoying her shower.

Filming secrets:

• This scene took one week to film and only seconds to watch.
• Hitchcock didn’t want any sound during this portion of the movie but the music director insisted.  They filmed it 2 ways:  one with no music and one with.  (You can hear/see both versions at the end of the DVD under Bonus Features).  Hitch was amused with the piercing violin music and kept it in the movie.  The violins are perfectly scary for this scene.
• They used a melon for the slashing sound of her flesh.  In the book, her head was cut off.  In the movie she was just stabbed at and no body parts were “removed”.
• Since the movie was filmed in black and white (which I love), they used chocolate syrup for the blood that went down the drain and covered the bathroom.
• The censors were very worried about what would be shown with regard to nudity and slashing.  They didn’t need to worry because Hitch created an illusion of nudity and the horrific act.  Nothing was ever showed directly–not a stab or inappropriate body parts.  He was the master of suspense remember?

All of this is a bit funny because in years past when I watched this movie, I always covered my eyes during this part.  Now I know that I didn’t need to!  Now that’s a real master when you can create a scary slasher movie using only camera angles and sounds.  Compare that with the movies of today!  They go above and beyond to create the terror and Hitch knew how to do it without actually showing a thing.

I hope you enjoy your next shower!

Psycho the Movie Directed by Alfred Hitchcock (1960)

And so we begin at the beginning of the original movie! If you haven’t seen it at all or not for a long time, you will want to rent it, buy it on Amazon or EBay (my copy was $1.85).

Hitchcock read the book Psycho by Robert Bloch (1959) which was based on a true story and he was determined to make this, the first of all slasher movies.  The difference between the slashers of today and Psycho is this:  a slasher movie today will show all the gory details and Hitch showed nothing! It was all an illusion of terror.  The movie was nominated for 4 Academy Awards (yet didn’t win any but should have by many opinions, including mine).  It cost Hitch $800,000 to make and it earned 7 million back in the day.

It begins with Marion Crane stealing $40,000 from her employer so that she can help her boyfriend out of debt so that they can marry.  After stealing the money she winds up at the Bate’s Motel, a place that she will leave, dead, and buried in a swamp.  Hitch had her boyfriend, Sam, make a clever comment at the beginning of the movie during a regular conversation they were having, “When your time is up, it’s up!”  How true that would turn out to be.

Today I will focus on the false suspense or elements of surprise as Marion leaves town with the money:

1. She had left work early with the stolen money informing her employer that she had a headache and was going home to rest.  As she was driving a short time later, she stopped at a light and suddenly saw her boss in the crosswalk.  Uh oh…
2. When it got dark she pulled over and slept the night away in her car.  In the morning she awoke to a very intense police officer knocking on her car window which startled her.  You can see the photo above.  He asked her some questions and let her go but his face, those sunglasses were intimidating and she was feeling very guilty.
3. She later pulled into a car dealership and bought a used car as quickly as possible.  She saw the same police officer across the street watching her.  The car salesman said, “I don’t want no trouble” and as she began to pull away, he yelled, “Hey!” which filled her with fear.  But all he wanted to tell her is that she forgot her suitcase in the trunk of her original car.  She couldn’t wait to get out of there.  She felt that everybody must know something.  Hitch and his suspense at work.
4. When she arrived at the Bate’s Motel in the dark, of course it was raining, and that always brings a sprinkle of suspense to any good slasher movie, especially when you look up the hill and see a spooky old house.

One more thing before I close for today, Hitchcock always planted himself in each of his movies in a very subtle way.  Did you see him in the beginning scene in her office?  Look outside the window.  He’s always lurking somewhere, just for fun.  That’s one of the reasons I love his movies.  There are always themes, clues, symbols…something to look for.

Next time we’ll talk about the infamous shower scene and there’s a lot to talk about!  Get the movie I tell you! Watch it again! You’re going to love this and all the rest that is to come–circles, birds, clever names, peepholes, censors, etc……………………………

Hi Mrs. Bates!

Let’s talk about the end of Psycho by Robert Bloch!  Mother finally makes her appearance! Let’s see how it all…came…down.

So Lila was searching the house for Norman’s mother and she knew something wasn’t right. She became scared but thought to herself that she shouldn’t be foolish about this and she’d “keep her head”.  (Love these clever lines from our author–they’re fun to locate throughout the book).

Anyway, she finally made her way to the fruit cellar, heard the door shut behind her and the sound of footsteps walking away.  She continued looking around and found Mrs. Bates as pictured above!  As she yelled out for Mrs. Bates, a female voice came from behind her in a high shrill voice, “I am Norma Bates.”  At the same moment she saw the flash of a knife.  Luckily, Sam showed up and grabbed Norman/Norma who was wearing a dress and a wig.  Sam twisted the knife out of his hand and a hysterical female scream came, but not from Lila, from Norman/Norma!

In the last part of the book, a psychologist breaks down what happened.  Norman had killed his mother years ago, missed her, dug her up from her grave and used his taxidermy skills to stuff and save her (what any normal son would do right?).  He dressed her each day as if she was alive, carted her around the house and had conversations with himself as Norman the little boy, Norma Bates, and the third aspect might be called Normal (the adult Norman Bates).  In the end after his capture, he integrated all his personalities into one, Mrs. Norma Bates.  The horror wasn’t really in the house, it was in Norman’s head (yes, we get it, he’s psycho!).

And what in the world would they do with Norman/Norma now?  He/she would be placed in the State Hospital as a psychotic.  Strangely, Lila was okay with him not going to trial for murdering her sister.  She thought, “We’re all not quite as sane as we pretend to be.”  What do you think she means by this?

At the very end of the book, the author switches to Norman’s/Norma’s point of view.  You can hear her thoughts:  Norman killed those people.  I (Norma) was only watching.  She sat there wrapped in a blanket in a room and decided she wouldn’t move.  If she didn’t move, they’d know that she was sane, sane, sane.  A fly landed on her hand and she didn’t even swat it.  If they were watching they would see that she was harmless.  “Why, she wouldn’t even harm a fly…”

So what did you think of the book?  I thought it was suspenseful and an intense quick read.  My copy was only 175 pages and I read it easily in 2 days.  If you haven’t read the book, I recommend it.  It’s fun to catch all the clever phrases.  How many can you find that I didn’t?

I give it 4 stars (out of 5)  ****  Get your own copy and see what you think!  It’s been fun sharing the book with you.  Next we will move into the original movie version of Psycho directed by good old Alfred Hitchcock in 1960.  Join me won’t you?

Norman and His Mother

Norman’s a little messed up! What’s the deal with his mother? What’s really going on?

As I continue with the book Psycho by Robert Bloch, let’s delve into his “mother issues” and there are MANY!  After “mother” murdered Mr. Arbogast, Norman rolled the man into a rug and took him to the swamp and this time, it was very easy, “practice makes perfect”, he thought.  Mother was in her room while he was taking care of this.  Here are some of Norman’s crazy little thoughts regarding good old mom:

• He didn’t want mother around to make him feel like a little boy because he had a grown up man’s job to do (you know, the usual, just throwing a dead body into a swamp).
• He had to protect his mother, as well as himself (interesting thought), he was just watching out for her so that she wouldn’t get into any trouble.
• He had to move her out of the house so when the next round of visitor’s questions came, she couldn’t be found.  He had to protect her, it was all about her (supposedly).  He made up his mind and carried her to the famous fruit cellar (it will be famous later for many reasons).
• Mother protested and said, “What are you going to do? Bury me in the swamp too?”  Then she cackled in an evil way.  Mother was a sick dangerous psychotic he thought, and then she said that Norman didn’t love her anymore (what’s not to love?).
• He told her that if he didn’t love her and protect her like this, she’d be in the State Hospital for the Criminally Insane!  (Oh no, they’re both perfectly normal).
• As he closed the door he could hear her soft voice in the darkness say, “I suppose you’re right but I wouldn’t be there alone.”
• And as he ran up the steps he was sure he could hear her chuckling gently into the dark.  (She’s such a warm, loving mom don’t you think?)

But what is interesting about mother is this:  when Marion’s sister and Sam talk to the sheriff about wanting to talk to Norman’s mother, the sheriff tells them that Norman Bates has no mother…and he is sure of it.

What do you think is going on here? Is the book the same as the movie? Mother, Norman, insane asylum, fruit cellars, swamps?  Please leave your comments and we will see about that next time!

Norman

He’s a little messed up!

What happened to Mr. Arbogast?

Let’s just say Arbogast asked Norman too many questions and he should have just gone away…but he didn’t so here we go~

Arbogast wanted to go up to the house to talk to Norman’s mother. Eventually Norman gave in and raced up to the house to “tell mother”.  Mother said she was getting dressed and would take care of the matter.  Norman felt faint.  He knew that mother was opening the door and all he could see was a something bright and glittering.  It was Norman’s razor and it ended up in Mr. Arbogast.

Mother seems a bit brash don’t you think?  After all, Arbogast didn’t even get to say anything!

Well next, let’s talk about the “mirrors”.  So many mirror references like:

• As Mary drove she glanced into the rear-view mirror and saw her reflection which reminded her of…what?  “In the mirror after Mom died, when you went to pieces—“
• Norman thought the mirror was all wavy lines and lights that made him dizzy and it was hard to look.
• Norman only shaved one day a week because the mirror had wavy lines that hurt his eyes.
• When he was a boy he used to enjoy looking at himself in the mirror but that was BAD!  His mother caught him and hit him with a hairbrush! Bad Norman! Bad boy!
• From then on, every time he looked in a mirror he got a headache.
• Norman wiped his hands and turned away from the mirror, forget the past, bury the dead.  Sure, that’s a normal Norman reaction.

There are many more mirror references in the book but you get the idea.  Mirrors=bad boys! So as you’re reading the book or watching the movie, have fun looking for mirrors because they’re everywhere!  Can you comment on some that I haven’t? Are you a bad boy or girl? Do you actually look in mirrors?  Shocking!

 

Filming the shower scene

Hitch had to get in the shower and show her what he wanted her to do because she wasn’t getting his vision correctly. Since it was a black and white movie (which I am a big fan of), they used chocolate syrup to represent the blood going down the drain when she was attacked!