Wednesday, June 26, 2013
How scary was Psycho?
I have been wondering this for awhile. My mother tells me that the original Exorcist is the scariest movie she has ever seen. When I watch it I am not so sure that is true. Our generation of movie watchers seems to be desensitized over the years. Me especially, because I play a lot of video games. My question to you is, how scary was the film for you?
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The first time I saw the film, I thought it was pretty scary. the thought of a seemingly normal person who actually has multiple personalities that murders people at a motel just outside of reach for interstate travelers is a bit terrifying. The realism is what makes it so uncomfortable for me, as well as the use of various points of view in the film. It is a scary moment in Hitchcock's Rear Window while we watch from Jeffries' point of view as Thorwald approaches him in the dark. For me, Hitchcock's mastery of suspense lies in the angles and points of view used in his films, combined with realistic terrors. The taxidermy discussion also made me a bit uncomfortable.
ReplyDelete-Aaron Swaidner
I saw this film for the first time a few months ago and still remember how it made me feel, especially after re-watching it last night. This film was different than what I expected due to the heightened nature of Hitchcock’s films. I thought the gory aspects would over shine, however it’s the suspense that really got me. Music plays a critical role in Psycho. The way Hitchcock played off of sound is what really captured me as a viewer and simultaneously that is what also startled me in the scenes that were supposed to produce a frightening feel. If we were to take away the sounds, or say watch it with the volume turned off, Psycho produces a completely different feel.
ReplyDeleteI challenge someone to watch the shower scene for example, with the volume off and tell me if the once horrifying scene still has the same amount of horror?
It wasn't necessarily scary for me. The scariest part of the film, for me, was the fact that Norman truly thought of his mother as being alive still and continuing to live through him. The movie was more creepy in the sense that no one knew what was going on, especially first time viewers.
ReplyDeleteI agree that our generation and future generations are definitely desensitized to video violence. I believe part of this reason is because of the removal of the Hays Code. If that were still in effect today there would not be many video games or movies, for obvious reasons. I also think that our generation gets scared by different things. For instance, I was super freaked out by all the Paranormal activity movies even though there were no blood and guts. I think as time went on psychotic people were less scary and paranormal entities were much scarier.
When I first saw Psycho as a child on TV I was frightened, and I was also surprised by the 'twist'. Last evening was the first time I had seen the theatrical version - and on a big screen - so I enjoyed the film for its incredible music theme, Tony Perkin's performance, and for the durability of the story and direction.
ReplyDeleteWhen it was over, and everyone clapped at the end, it was just as I felt: Psycho is still a thrill ride after all these years! -PK-
We've kind of touched upon the fact that we seem so desensitized to violence before. It can be a lot of things in my opinion. We have violent movies and video games that we grew up with. We also have a million cable channels where we can see all of the awful things happening in real life right from our living room. Even as recent as WWII most of the world had no idea what was happening in the death camps (or that there WERE death camps). Information just wasn't as available. The word genocide hadn't even been coined yet. We also have the internet where anything can be seen.
ReplyDeleteI didn't find Psycho scary the first time I saw it, but I was 16 and had been watching scary things for years. I love horror movies, but tend to find stuff that isn't categorized as horror scary. I find stuff that can actually happen far more terrifying. I guess the suspension of disbelief makes it easier to just sit back and enjoy something that should be scary to me.
To me even though that was my first time to watch Psycho was scary to me except the suspense that was driving the sense of an old woman who will become so energitic when it comes to stabbing the victim. I just did not know the perpetrator until when Norman starts feeling nervous when Sam decided to engaged him to help Marie sister search the mansion.
ReplyDeleteI think it's true that Psycho is so well known by many even if they haven't seen it, it may be hard to feel it's anything but a movie. However, I doubt to many look into the eyes of Perkins at the end and don't feel a twinge of something.
ReplyDeleteIt's also hard to catch, but just as the shot of the car being dragged out of the swamp appears, an image of Mother's skull is superimposed over Norman's malevolent stare.
I think that the scariness of a movie is based on the age you see it, as well as how much exposure you have had to similar movies. I saw this movie when I was around 13, and was entertained, whether it be the funny scene where Norman is taken down by Sam and his wig is falling off or the eeriness of an eyeball looking through a peep hole. The reason this movie was scary is because it was one of the first of its kind in the horror category. The murder scene in the shower is very creepy because she thought she was alone and in a casual, relaxing environment. This scene made viewers feel like they could be vulnerable even in their own home. This movie kept me on edge, but more so as a thriller, rather than being scared out of my mind. When walking to my car last night, I comfortably drove home with little fear of what I had just watched.
ReplyDeleteI know nearly the whole theater laughed at the scene when Norman enters the fruit cellar wearing his mom’s clothing… I’m sorry, but I thought that was terrifying! His face! Ugh.So.creepy.
DeleteFor me, it wasn't really scary, it was just suspenseful. The moments that got me were when the mother appeared suddenly or when something happened suddenly. But I'm very jumpy when it comes to movies.
ReplyDeleteLike others, I had already seen the film when I was young. I don't particularly remember being frightened by it but I did find it to be throughly entertaining during both viewings. I agree with the desensitization of violence and taboo scenes in horror films although I do remember being frightened by Night of the Living Dead as a child. That film seemed to have some of the modern themes society still finds frightening (particularly the scene where the little girl stabs her mother). While Psycho isn't exactly horrifying it is a lot of fun to watch and even more engaging than it was during my initial viewing.
ReplyDeleteIt was very suspenseful. I think it's one of those movies that takes you on a ride with many twists and turns, very entertaining. I think it was scary at that time it was directed. Now it's just embedded into our culture and in especially movies, we can brush it off now.
ReplyDeleteI would agree that the end with Norman's face is scary. I think the shower scene is kinda scary, no one expects to die as they shower.
I have seen this film before when I was younger and really wasn't creeped out by it. However, in this sitting I was really wigged out in a mystery suspense type way not so much of a horror exorcist scare.
ReplyDeleteI didn't think it was scary but I did think it was suspenseful and that had a lot to do with the score. It was a great score for the film and whenever it came on you just felt like something was happening, something ominous was approaching. The cop for example early on, I just kept wondering if he was going to do something. It was a good job of making you feel the paranoia that the Janet Leigh character was feeling, her acting was great
ReplyDeleteI agree with Kiowa, the score of this movie is fantastic. It goes between unsettling worriness and distress... to absolutely menacing. I remember this movie terrified me as a child with the fact everyone kept chasing the money and Norman’s mother, both of which no longer existed nor had a factor in any of the madness! My favorite line is “These were crimes of passion, not profit.” It’s a quick assumption that someone could kill for money.
DeleteI wouldn't necessarily call the movie scary, disturbing I believe is a better word for what I experienced while I was watching. The very last scene when the mother is speaking through her son basically was the most disturbing for me personally. On a side note, I found the look Anthony Perkins gives at the end of this speech (laced with the skeleton of his mother) was absolutely perfect.
ReplyDeleteThis was the first time I saw the movie too. I was too afraid to watch it as a kid because I didn't like those types of movies and all the stuff people said about it. I have to say that I laughed, or at least chuckled, most of the movie and couldn't see what was the big deal. I think it's a combination of becoming desensitized over the years, change in movies I like, and over the top expectations. I really enjoyed the movie and Normans expression at the end is priceless. I can see why so many people were creeped out by it, especially back then. I think what stood out the most was so many set-ups as if something was going to happened but didn't. Mastery on Hitchcock's end. He knew people had become conditioned to expect something scary at certain times, but psyched you out to turn round and catch you by surprise.
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