Alfred Hitchcock’s film Essay

By referring closely to two scenes from Alfred Hitchcock’s film ‘Psycho’ (1960), give your views in detail on how the director uses the soundtrack and the camera to create fear and suspense in the audience. ‘Psycho’ is one of Alfred Hitchcock’s most well known and famous films. The film was made in forty-one days and at a cost of 80,000 dollars. It was shot in black and white to save money but also to create more impact. The film opens with a black background to create fear in the audience. We then see the director’s name, Alfred Hitchcock and the title of the film in the centre of the screen in medium, white text against a black background. The title then splits repeatedly, horizontally and vertically to reveal the rest of the credits. The horizontal and vertical splits suggest and already prepare us for the split personality of Norman Bates. Piercing, high-pitched notes of violins and the deep deafening notes of the cello are introduced to break the silence. The tempo of the music is rapid and frantic to generate terror in the audience. The staccato rhythm of the string instruments also adds to create tension and a perturb feeling. It also makes us feel alert and anxious. The credits and background fades with the music to unveil a panoramic view, which is at a high angle and an extreme close up shot of a city. The camera then pans across the skyline of the American city. Words are super imposed and displayed giving us the precise place, date and time producing the feeling that the audience are there and that it is actually happening, ‘ ‘Phoenix, Arizona, Friday December Eleventh, Two Forty Three pm. ‘ Numbers are displayed in letters to emphasise the date and time and to make sure the audience knows when this is occurring. As the camera pans over apartment blocks and rooftops of buildings, the camera steadily zooms in from a long shot to a medium shot to a close up on apartment block windows. Then the camera zooms in into one particular window, which is slightly open, making the audience curious. It gives the audience a question, where are we being led? We are made to be voyeurs as we are invited and entering the lives of a middle aged man and woman. In this scene, we see the relationship between Marion Crane and Sam Loomis. Alfred Hitchcock gives us the impression of ‘normal behaviour’ in which Marion and Sam present love and affection towards each other. Marion wears white underwear to symbolise purity and innocent whereas later on in the film after she has stolen the money we see her wearing black underwear to symbolise deceit and betrayal. It is in this scene we enter Marion Crane’s life and see everything from her eyes and her point of view. We observe her world and are put into her world. Hitchcock lets us see, hear and think what she sees, hears and thinks. Later in the film, we see Marion driving away from Phoenix with the stolen $40,000. The camera views her face as a close up where we hear a voice over of her thoughts and fears. This technique allows us to enter her mind and feel what she is feeling. As she carries on with her journey, we hear the penetrating and piercing rhythm of the string instruments from the theme tune. This creates awareness and alertness in the audience. In this scene we see an extreme long shot of Marion’s car, which is parked at the roadside in the countryside. She has stopped for a rest. The car is positioned in the bottom right hand corner of the frame. There is no one or nothing to be seen. This makes her seem isolated and deserted and where anything could happen. There is nothing to be heard but the natural sounds of the countryside. We suddenly hear an unknown car coming into the frame from the bottom right hand corner. The unknown car appears to a police car. The car drives past Marion’s car however, reverses behind Marion’s car. The next shot is a medium shot, which is filmed from a low angle and is shown from the side of Marion’s car. As the police officer opens his car door, we see the police badge printed on it. As the officer exits his car, he is walking towards the camera. This effect makes the audience feel that he is walking towards us. The low angle shot is used to convey his authority. This creates fear and makes the audience feel threatened. This scene is made up of many short, sharp cuts, mainly in big close ups. All natural sounds are heard to build up tension and suspense. As the police officer is at Marion’s car side, he knocks on her window. In this shot Marion is lying down. As she hears the knock, she wakes up immediately and abruptly with panic. As she looks at the officer, she appears to very nervous and overcome with anxiety. Her eyes are extremely wide and bold as she is filled with fright. This scene cuts to Marion and then to the officer many times. The camera shows a subjective shot, from Marion’s point of view so when he is looking at her it appears to the audience that he is looking at us. This makes us feel what she does. Dark sunglasses blank the police officer’s eyes out so we cannot tell what he is looking at. This suggests that his eyes are emotionless. As the officer questions Marion, she portrays herself as being nervous by giving short, breathless answers. She acts suspicious when saying ‘why do you want my licence’. The camera then films a privilege shot, so we can see everything that the officer cannot, Marion hiding the stolen money. Again, the camera moves into a subjective shot, when we can see the view from her point as Marion watches the officer look at her licence, to feel her fright and distress. This scene took seven days to film and only lasts forty-five seconds. It opens with Marion taking off her robe for a shower. She is located in a white tile bathroom, which is brightly lit. All the natural sounds are emphasised; toilet being flushed, soap packet being open, movement of shower and shower curtain. This makes the audience watch attentively and be very observant. The first shot is a long shot. Marion having a shower, suggests that she is washing away all her wrong doings to make herself feel unburdened and that she is deciding to put things right. She portrays herself to the audience as being deeply relaxed as she is smiling. A subjective shot of the shower is shown to make us the audience feel as if we are being showered. Hitchcock gives tranquillity and calmness in the audience as he makes us enjoy her shower. As she is showering, she is located in the bottom right corner of the frame, to prepare us for the attack, so we can see what she cannot. The camera films Marion in a close up from the wall side, she was in the centre, however, cuts to another shot which is a privilege, close up to leave the left side of the frame empty with the shower curtain behind. The curtain is translucent, this gives a dramatic effect and lets the audience see the figure approaching. Suddenly, in the left hand corner of the frame, a large, silhouette figure appears to make the audience feel uneasy and tense. It gives us a feeling of wanting to warn Marion of what is behind her. The powerful noise of the shower prevents Marion hearing the figure approaching. The shot remains constant, and then slowly zooms into the mysterious, menacing figure. Marion disappears out of the frame making the audience focus and concentrate on the dark, disturbing figure. Hitchcock makes us believe that the figure is the mother of Norman Bates because the shape of the hair is shown in silhouette. This shot is designed in such a way that the camera shows the figure in shadow because the audience should not be able to see the figure’s face. When the shower curtain is thrown aside, we still see the figure in shadow. A montage of shots is used when we see Marion being attacked. Horror fills the audience as screeching, violent sounds of the violins are introduced. We hear Marion’s terrifying, fearful screams, the sound of Marion being stabbed, the knife against the skin and bone to let the audience know what it feels like. A subjective shot of the knife is shown to produce the feeling that the figure is almost stabbing at us. Rapid shots are shown of the killing, twenty-eight shots in twenty seconds. Several shots are used of Marion moving from side to side and struggling to defend herself to show that she cannot stop the killer. The camera swoops in with a high angled shot of Marion’s blood draining away in the bath. A big close up of Marion’s hand is shown as she slides down the wall. As this is taking place, the deep, heavy sounds of the cello is heard. We see Marion turn around and slide down further, as she does this she reaches out her hand. This suggests she is maybe reaching out to us or to the shower curtain. In the final shot, we see the camera panning to show the blood of Marion draining down the plughole to suggest that her life is draining away. The camera zooms into the plughole where an extreme close up of it is shown and is mixed with Marion’s eye. The eye then becomes a staring, lifeless, emotionless eye. This suggests that we see, hear and think no more from her eye. For its time ‘Psycho’ was one of the most frightening, psychological thrillers ever made and even by today’s standards still has the power to terrify.