65 Years After Its Release, Filmmakers Julie Pacino and Joseph Kahn on Why Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho’ is Still ‘Scary As F—’
Alfred Hitchcock‘s “Psycho” is widely regarded as one of the greatest horror movies ever made, and 65 years after its initial release, it continues to scare audiences.
“This is the first slasher,” said director Joseph Kahn, one of the panelists for the screening. “This is a straight up, a knife doesn’t penetrate, but it’s slashing on the screen in a way that you’ve never seen before.”
Kahn was speaking at the Variety 120 Screening Series presented by Barco, a summer-long program hosted by Jazz Tangcay that celebrates Variety‘s 120th anniversary by showing iconic films such as “All About Eve” and “It’s a Wonderful Life.” He was joined by filmmaker and director Julie Pacino, who described Hitchcock’s directing as “scary as fuck.”
The film stars Janet Leigh as Marion Crane, who checks into the Bates Motel after stealing $40,000 from her office. Anthony Perkins stars as Norman Bates, the motel clerk who isn’t what he seems. Norman is suffering from dissociative identity disorder and has taken on his mother’s personality. As Marion settles for the night, she takes a shower and is savagely murdered by “Mother.” The 40-second shower scene has an enduring fright factor.
Pacino joked, “I’ve been afraid to take showers ever since. If there’s ever a shower curtain, I feel certain that I’m probably gonna get stabbed to death that night.”
Kahn explained Hitchcock’s meticulous visuals and use of a subjective camera leading up to the scene. Because we see so much of the movie from the perspective of Marion Crane, Kahn argues, “by the time we get to that shower scene, we are Marion Crane. That’s why that shower scene is so effective, because it’s not just some random girl.”
The pair discussed the effectiveness of the film’s pacing. When Norma Bates, as his mother, kills Marion Crane, and he goes back to clean the body, there’s a pivot shot. “He walks in, and all of a sudden the camera tracks with him,” Kahn said. “The pacing feels faster even though it’s the same amount of stuff that’s happening. But because the camera is now integrated with him, we are now taking that journey with him. We are feeling the pressure of every movement, so that when he exits the room, we are exiting the room with him. When he goes to pick up the body, we are tracking with him to pick up that body, and when you’re in motion with him, time speeds up.”
Pacino spent time re-visting Hitchcock’s classics recently and watched “The Birds” and “Vertigo,” noticing a pattern in the filmmaker’s pacing. “He gives the audience that time to sit with it and unpack it,” she said. She went on to compare it to modern day horror movies where directors are more “in your face, and you see a knife go through someone’s mouth. That’s not scary. Scary is sitting with something as it unfolds, and there’s nothing you can do about it.” She added, “There’s the technical side of it, but I think it’s in the writing as well. It’s just being able to build those stakes up and take your time with that world-building.”
The Bates Motel and the house are both considered characters within the film. Pacino said, “Location as a character is incredible, especially in horror. As soon as you see that house, immediately, you’re tense. It’s just incredible the way that he was able to do it.”
Bernard Hermann’s unmistakable score was a huge contribution to the psychological terror. Kahn pointed out the second to last credit in the film’s opening is Hermann’s title card. “That shows you his contribution.”
Pacino nailed the heart of the score, and why it’s unforgettable. “It’s the strings, it’s quintessential,” says Pacino, “It gets your heart pumping and it’s unsettling and it creates the tone.”
Watch the video above.
“This is the first slasher,” said director Joseph Kahn, one of the panelists for the screening. “This is a straight up, a knife doesn’t penetrate, but it’s slashing on the screen in a way that you’ve never seen before.”
Kahn was speaking at the Variety 120 Screening Series presented by Barco, a summer-long program hosted by Jazz Tangcay that celebrates Variety‘s 120th anniversary by showing iconic films such as “All About Eve” and “It’s a Wonderful Life.” He was joined by filmmaker and director Julie Pacino, who described Hitchcock’s directing as “scary as fuck.”
The film stars Janet Leigh as Marion Crane, who checks into the Bates Motel after stealing $40,000 from her office. Anthony Perkins stars as Norman Bates, the motel clerk who isn’t what he seems. Norman is suffering from dissociative identity disorder and has taken on his mother’s personality. As Marion settles for the night, she takes a shower and is savagely murdered by “Mother.” The 40-second shower scene has an enduring fright factor.
Pacino joked, “I’ve been afraid to take showers ever since. If there’s ever a shower curtain, I feel certain that I’m probably gonna get stabbed to death that night.”
Kahn explained Hitchcock’s meticulous visuals and use of a subjective camera leading up to the scene. Because we see so much of the movie from the perspective of Marion Crane, Kahn argues, “by the time we get to that shower scene, we are Marion Crane. That’s why that shower scene is so effective, because it’s not just some random girl.”
The pair discussed the effectiveness of the film’s pacing. When Norma Bates, as his mother, kills Marion Crane, and he goes back to clean the body, there’s a pivot shot. “He walks in, and all of a sudden the camera tracks with him,” Kahn said. “The pacing feels faster even though it’s the same amount of stuff that’s happening. But because the camera is now integrated with him, we are now taking that journey with him. We are feeling the pressure of every movement, so that when he exits the room, we are exiting the room with him. When he goes to pick up the body, we are tracking with him to pick up that body, and when you’re in motion with him, time speeds up.”
Pacino spent time re-visting Hitchcock’s classics recently and watched “The Birds” and “Vertigo,” noticing a pattern in the filmmaker’s pacing. “He gives the audience that time to sit with it and unpack it,” she said. She went on to compare it to modern day horror movies where directors are more “in your face, and you see a knife go through someone’s mouth. That’s not scary. Scary is sitting with something as it unfolds, and there’s nothing you can do about it.” She added, “There’s the technical side of it, but I think it’s in the writing as well. It’s just being able to build those stakes up and take your time with that world-building.”
The Bates Motel and the house are both considered characters within the film. Pacino said, “Location as a character is incredible, especially in horror. As soon as you see that house, immediately, you’re tense. It’s just incredible the way that he was able to do it.”
Bernard Hermann’s unmistakable score was a huge contribution to the psychological terror. Kahn pointed out the second to last credit in the film’s opening is Hermann’s title card. “That shows you his contribution.”
Pacino nailed the heart of the score, and why it’s unforgettable. “It’s the strings, it’s quintessential,” says Pacino, “It gets your heart pumping and it’s unsettling and it creates the tone.”
Watch the video above.