Nicholas Baker Unit 4 – Written Assignment 01/03/2012

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A Critical Analyses of Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho’ in terms of

Story and Structure

By Nicholas Baker

Figure 1 - 'Psycho' Poster Art

Nicholas Baker Unit 4 – Written Assignment 01/03/2012

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Contents Page

Introduction Page – 3

Main Essay Page – 4-7

Conclusion Page - 8

Bibliography Page - 9

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Introduction

This assignment will go through the film ‘Psycho’ directed by Alfred Hitchcock and the

impact it has on the audience from the story and structure, from the use of certain camera

movements and shots to editing and order of the scenes. Evidence that will help back up

this assignment will be Michael Bay’s ‘How to Turn Your Boring Movie into a Hitchcock

Thriller’. This will help analyse the way Hitchcock structures his films so well with the

techniques of editing and camera movements. Kakoudaki’s ‘Hitchcock’s Narrative Style of

‘Psycho’ will help evidence how Hitchcock envisioned the famous shower scene in the movie

‘Psycho’ and the techniques taken to give off the best effect to go down in history within

filmography. Finally Vanneman’s ‘Alfred Hitchcock: A Hank of Hair and a Piece of Bone’ will

help point the comparison of Hitchcock’s story and structure within the film Psycho to give it

such suspense.

Definitions:

Story - “A narrative, either true or fictitious, in prose or verse, designed to interest,

amuse, or instruct the hearer or reader; tale”. (Story, 1979).

Structure - “anything composed of parts arranged together in some way; an

organization”. (Structure, 1979).

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Main Essay

Alfred Hitchcock, master of suspense from his ever popular films such as Rope, Vertigo, The

Birds, Psycho and many more. Hitchcock has left a massive impact on the way the film

industry combines its story and structure to create immense films which give off such thrill

and eye popping techniques with the uses of editing and camera movements to make any

scene look more dramatic. Vanneman’s states that “The brilliance of the shower scene is

that it keeps us relentlessly in the very middle of a horrifying event — we feel as if we are

seeing "everything," far more than we want to see — without ever becoming merely sadistic

or gruesome. In part, we are caught between two desires, the desire to see the naked body

of a beautiful woman, and the desire not to see a brutal murder”. (Vanneman, 2000).

Hitchcock’s techniques of editing and camera adjustments have made the shower scene be

remembered throughout film history and parodied by many shows, the effect that this gives

editing gives off seems confusing from its quick changes to Marion’s face/body to the knife,

shower, black figure and blood making it a unique type of editing to form a strong structure

that keeps the audience intrigued.

Figure 2 - Psycho 'Shower Scene Montage'

The film was portrayed in black and white to give a silent movie effect that Hitchcock was

going for. The image above is montages of the ‘shower scene’ were Marion’s murder is

taking place. Each scene gives off an iconic frame for the scene making it look confusing and

quite a struggle for Marion during the attack as it then cuts to the final frame off the

Marion’s eye indicating her death as the scene ends with the emphasis of fear and horror

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beaming out in the lost few shots making this an original and outstanding structure from the

mind of Hitchcock.

With ‘Psycho’ being a suspense roller-coaster throughout the film to the audience, the

question comes to mind, is it just the basis of the story that holds it all together or the

structure from the editing or camera movements that have made an impact to make it a

well known and loved movie. Kakoudaki states that “For Hitchcock, such an arrangement

often depends on allowing the audience to see or know certain parts of the story, even know

the course of the unfolding crime or plan, before the characters, or some of the characters,

do. This emotional and narrative preparation of the audience becomes precisely the

structure that Hitchcock can then upend, disrupt, challenge, or redirect, rigging the balance

between the expected and the unexpected”. (Kakoudaki, 2010). Story and structure are core

components throughout all productions of films and within Hitchcock’s films the way the

story and structure intertwine with one another build the suspense and what way he wants

the audience to feel. The combination of both these components in ‘Psycho’ throughout the

film brings it to a whole new level.

Figure 3 Norman and Marion Scene

Norman Bates the murderer and doppelganger in the film ‘Psycho’ gone crazy over the

death of his mother as he is the owner of the motel that Marion stays as she is his new

victim. Hitchcock made Normans characteristics to be quite normal at first but as the film

continues his traits off insanity start to slip as things start to get too much for him when

questions are aroused about Marion’s whereabouts. The way the suspense builds for

Norman’s character through the story works well and hides the impression that he is the

murderer and the doppelganger of his mother.

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Hitchcock is notorious in the film industry for his originality and the way he can make any

scene have more to it with adjustments in editing and camera movements to give off more

depth, meaning and suspense which has made his a legend in the film industry and a master

of suspense. The techniques he uses have passed down through history and are still used to

this date in film production. Michael Bay states: “Hitchcock used this theory of proximity to

plan out each scene. These variations are a way of controlling when the audience feels

intensity, or relaxation. Hitchcock compared this to a composer writing a music score -

except instead of playing instruments, he's playing the audience”. (Michael Bay, 2004).

Bringing emotion to the audience was the key technique Hitchcock liked to use by making

sure what he put into his scenes/frames the audience would get the right emotion he was

looking for to get the best outcome for each scene to make the movie more than just a film

but an experience that the audience could leave the theatre guessing and wanting more

depending on the films outcome.

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Conclusion

The structure of the infamous ‘shower scene’ in the film Psycho has gone down in history

and is well known for its montage of frame by frame edits of the murder of Marion making

the audience imagine a different way of how she died for each person from the stabbing

motion. Hitchcock has made a name for himself in the film industry for his techniques of

camera movements, frame to emotions and edits to the story and structure to make it the

best that it could be, hence his nickname ‘Master of Suspense’. So in conclusion the story

and structure throughout ‘Psycho’ is a well-balanced amount at the start but starts to

unravel as Marion gets to the motel as the audience is then taken on a roller coaster of

thrills, fear and shock as they are entertained from start to finish. Also adding that the

techniques and effects he used are still used to this day as he is an icon to many young and

famous directors as his techniques live on.

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Bibliography

Sources

- Kakoudaki, D. (2010) “Get Out of the Shower”: The “Shower Scene” and Hitchcock’s

Narrative Style in ‘Psycho’. http://www.popmatters.com/pm/feature/126713-get-

out-of-the-shower-or-surprise-and-suspense-the-shower-scene-and- (Accessed on

14/05/2012).

- Michael Bays, J. (2004) How to turn your boring movie into a Hitchcock thriller.

http://borgus.com/hitch/hitch2011.htm (Accessed on 14/05/2012).

- Vanneman, A. (2000) Alfred Hitchcock: A Hank of Hair and a Piece of Bone.

http://www.brightlightsfilm.com/28/psycho1.html (Accessed on 14/05/2012).

Dictionary

- Story. (1979). In: Collins English Dictionary. 10th ed. Glasgow: HarperCollins.

(Accessed on 14/05/2012).

- Structure. (1979). In: Collins English Dictionary. 10th ed. Glasgow: HarperCollins.

(Accessed on 14/05/2012).

Illustrations

- Fig 1 - Psycho Poster Art. (1960) From: Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho’. On: collider

http://collider.com/alfred-hitchcock-the-essentials-collection-dvd-review/126485/

(Accessed on 14/05/2012).

- Fig 2 - Shower Scene. (1960) From: Psycho. On: stevestudios

http://steveostudios.tv/2011/10/best-of-alfred-hitchcock/ (Accessed on

14/05/2012).

- Fig 3 - Norman and Marion Scene. (1960) From: Psycho. On: criticafterdark

http://criticafterdark.blogspot.co.uk/2010/07/psycho-alfred-hitchcock-1960.html

(Accessed on: 14/05/2012).