Psycho (1960) Film Image Analyses

Here is a still shot from the famous montage shower scene from Psycho (1960). Hitchcock is well known for his use of montage in order to create emotion. This is very visible in this scene as he uses slow montage before and after the attack but then incorporates quick montage for the main attack. He also reflects his auteur style well in this scene to show his bizarre sense of humour. He did this by using freezing cold water in the scene and was obsessed by tormenting the blonde women who appeared in his films. He is also known for being the ‘Master of Suspense’ and did this by dragging out tension within his films. In this scene we can see how there has been an impact from the Hays Code as restricted narration has been used where by you do not ever see the knife actually entering into Marion. This helps to include restricted narration and is perhaps not a negative as this allows the audience to use their imaginations causing unpleasant images in their minds. This particular image is back lit creating a shadow like silhouette which adds mystery and threat. There is good use of parallel music with the high pitch screeching violins of the iconic theme as Marion is being stabbed. This increases our heart rate and makes us feel panicky. A clear ideology of this character is presented to the audience in the form of misogyny playing into the idea that Norman has a sexualised nature and is sexually repressed much like other serial killers and Hitchcock himself.