Hitchcock Shower Scene Analysis

In the scene when the killer enters the showers while Marion is taking a bath, the shower curtains acted as a screen to the audience’s sight and later in the film, the shower curtain was used to wrap up the Marion’s body. Another example would be the parlor scene where Marion was sited on a comfortable coach while Norman sat on an upright and formal wooden chair. The usage of furniture suggested character’s attributes, as Marion has a rather relax and open-minded personality while Norman being a tense and uptight

Marion is commonly shot from eye level in soft lighting, therefore allowing the audience to gain a sense of comfort whilst viewing her in a natural position, essentially constructing a sense of normality. The audience is made to see and respond to Marion as an equal, and despite her previous actions of embezzlement, she becomes a relatable character. This however is greatly juxtaposed when we compare it to the constant use of low angled, shadowy shots of Norman Bates. The shifts to Norman’s angle are suggestive that his worlds is off balanced and skewed. Shots of Bates only show one side of his face, another emphasis regarding the foreshadow of his dual personality which is later uncovered within the film. The audience is made to feel unfamiliar with the shots used to depict Bates, this only adding to the unease surrounding his character, as well as the tense, uncomfortable mood to which Hitchcock has worked to mould throughout the film.

Major Actors: James Stewart (L.B. Jefferies), Grace Kelly (Lisa Fremont), Wendell Corey (Thomas Doyle), Thelma Ritter (Stella), Raymond Burr (Lars Thorwald), Judith Evelyn (Miss Lonelyhearts), Ross Bagdasarian (Songwriter), Georgine Darcy (Miss Torso), Sara Berner (Woman on Fire Escape), Frank Cady (Man on Fire Escape), Jesslyn Fax (Miss Hearing Aid), Rand Harper (Newlywed), Irene Winston (Mrs. Emma Thorwald), Havis Davenport (Newlywed)

In this essay I will be doing a close analysis on the famous shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, 1960. I will be looking at the mise-en-scène, performance, cinematography, editing, and the manipulation of sound. I will also be looking at themes that are explored in the film and what messages they convey to the audience. I will be using some theories to help analyze this particular sequence.

Hitchcock seats the Charlies across from one another and the action plays out in accordance with the classic 180-degree rule for conversation. The 180-degree rule is the most basic way to film two people having a conversation while sitting opposite from one another. This series of shots usually consists of: establishing shots, two shots, close-ups of each actor, insert shots, and then possibly a re-establishing shot. Hitchcock manages to bring a lot of tension out of this fairly conventional set-up by the way he constructs his scene. The two characters sit down across from one another and are positioned on the far edges of the frame, which emphasizes the emotional and psychological distance between the two. In the same shot Hitchcock sets up for the “shot, reverse shot” conversation, by having Uncle Charlie lean in towards his niece. His leaning serves as a lead in to the conversation about to take place. It is important to note that during this same shot, Uncle Charlie lays out a napkin on the table and smoothes it with his hand. The napkin exists to provide a parallel to the way the scene will play out. The hands of Uncle Charlie can be seen as those of the director, and the napkin as the fabric of the scene. The napkin is laid before us smooth as the scene begins, and becomes increasingly tight and twisted by the hands of Hitchcock as he slowly tightens his hold on the audience. It also has the importance of revealing something about Uncle Charlie’s character. It

Censorship was very strict at this time. Film standards agencies censored films showing sex before marriage, nakedness, violence and gore. Fortunately, Hitchcock overcame these restrictions in many ways. He used a series of shots to film the shower scene instead of continuous shot. He used chocolate sauce for blood and he had a knife stabbing a melon to imitate the sound of the butcher knife

In both Alfred Hitchcock’s films, Dial M for Murder and Psycho, Margo, (Grace Kelly) and Marion, (Janet Leigh) are both blondes. Hitchcock uses a cameo of himself in both movies. In Dial M for Murder, Hitchcock is in the picture Tony, (Ray Milland) shows Swan, (Anthony Dawson) as he is beginning to blackmail him into murdering his wife, Margo. In Psycho, Hitchcock is standing outside of Marion’s office wearing a hat. Voyeurism is also consistent in these films. When viewers see Dial M for Murder, it is as if they are using voyeurism. Viewers know Tony is plotting to have Margo murdered. However, Margo is clueless about Tony’s plans to have her killed. In Psycho, Norman Bates, (Anthony

Hitchcock also builds suspense in this film with the shots he uses. In the beginning when they are taking Thornhill to the big house Hitchcock uses a wide shot to show where he is going leading to more suspense. Hitchcock also uses some close ups to characters faces to show

The techniques the Lee and Hitchcock uses are different in ways of which, Lee uses the camera at different angles, depths, and zooms to add subtle messages into his films. In the film “Do Things The Right Way,” shows a more understable scene where buggin out approaches and confronts a man for stepping on his shoes. After a brief altercation between the two. The white man vacates the scene to go back into his home. While the most recent shot was the black male outside of the white man 's residents. The angles flip to show the viewer the black man was there for nothing but trouble. With these camera angles you can notice the shots and angles of the ongoing situation without sound or presence of the actual scene. Although a different type of camerawork is used in the film “Rear Window.” Rear Window is a movie that provides tons of voyeurism. Voyeurism is the practice of obtaining sexual gratification by looking at sexual objects or acts, especially secretively. In this movie voyeurism isn’t actually sexual, so make sure you point that out. Its seen as entertainment pleasure, not sexual pleasure. It 's a movie about cinema itself. Hitchcock, tries to take the viewers into a place of their own responses. Although there is sound, including diegetic and nondiegetic sound. Hitchcock tries to make the viewer feel and understand what 's going on throughout the movie. The opening scene jumps right into the characters and an opening wide view shot of the

Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane (1941) is considered one of the greatest films of all time. Through his unconventional use of film composition and mise-en-scene, Welles’ clever manipulation of the camera and the scene before it effectively captured audiences in a manner that was unprecedented in American cinema storytelling. A significant filmic element of the assigned sequence of Citizen Kane would be its consistent use of deep focus. Shallow focus is used to emphasize one part of an image over another, and Citizen Kane fails to do so the entire time.

For example, in the scene where Marion and Norman are talking over sandwiches in his parlor, Hitchcock framed them separately. In Norman’s shot he is lit slightly dark with shadows and is surrounded by scary stuffed birds behind him on the wall. In the top left hand corner above Norman’s head there is an owl with its wings stretched open as if it were after prey. There is also a shadow of a crow at the bottom of the frame. Both of these birds are considered sinister and foreshadow the fact that Norman is a sinister guy himself. On the wall behind Norman, there are two paintings of women being attacked, foreshadowing the impending attack on Marion. There is a shadow that divides Norman’s face and reveals that he has two personalities. Marion’s shot is a contrast to Norman’s, she is lit brighter than he is which gives her a look of innocence. She is surrounded by small stuffed birds that look harmless and less frightening then the birds behind Norman. These two opposing shots help define the characters, Norman being surrounded by sinister birds indicates that he is a murderer. Marion being lit brighter and framed with small, stuffed birds is obviously going to become Norman’s

In the novel, the shower scene is told from both Mary’s and Norman’s perspective. We see through Norman’s eyes that he is peeping through a peephole to spy on Mary while she is undressing. Norman is conflicted because he’s aroused and outraged because of the desire he feels for Mary. He angrily calls Mary names, and even goes as far as blaming her for being too proactive and perverted. Norman blames Mary for his stealthy behavior and exclaims that she smiling, fluffing up her hair for him. He then descends into a trance like state and begins losing conscious awareness of himself. The sexual arousal triggers a negative response and Norman subconsciously transforms into his mother. Switching to Mary’s perspective, we see through her eyes that

“Singin’ in the Rain” was a film released in 1952, and is a combination of a musical and a romantic comedy. The film takes on a portrayal of 1920’s Hollywood culture that is very easygoing and cheerful. And as is the situation with most films that are regarded as classics, it originally received very lukewarm reactions upon its initial release, but as time went on people began to notice and appreciate its candor. Nowadays it’s regarded as the greatest musical film ever made, and one of the best films ever made period. In this critique I’m going to give my thoughts on the several different aspects and themes of “Singin’ in the Rain,” to understand why it is as highly touted as it is.

With regards to the mise-en-scene, the intent of Hitchcock having the murderer blurred behind the shower curtain creates a sense of suspense as we, the audience, are confused as why is someone entering the bathroom, and what is their intent. As the camera begins to zoom in on the murderer the audience anticipates a stabbing will take place as the slow pace walking is suggestive of someone creeping up on the victim. As the shower curtain is pulled, we immediately hear loud, non-diegetic, high pitch screeching music, which is a scare to the audience, further enhancing the 'shock factor'. The series of quick cuts also exacerbates the scene which intensifies the extent of the

Alfred Hitchcock’s thriller ‘Rear Window’ (Hitchcock, 1954) begins with the immediate use of mise-en-scène in order to establish a sense of atmosphere, equilibrium and the mundane, soon to be disrupted as the events of the film unfold and are observed through the eyes of the voyeuristic protagonist, Jeff. Setting, cinematography and various other expressive mise-en-scène techniques work together to influence the overall appearance of the film. Though, by taking a closer look, these techniques reveal the significance of the narrative and characters. In the opening sequence, Hitchcock’s original visual style provides signposts for the audience to recognize what will be significant in the future: instead of establishing what is only happening in the moment in time; mise-en-scène is used to suggest what is to come. This arrangement of the “Classical Hollywood” narrative - starting with the setting and characters in a state equilibrium - acts as a seemingly all-purpose, archetypal opening by establishing location and introducing character. Simultaneously we can see that this sequence is vastly different from the rest of the film: it is leading the viewer into a false sense of security – the calm before the storm – as Jeff soon happens to piece together information leading to the possibility that one of his neighbors murdered their wife. This sequence is one of the only moments in the film we see things the protagonist does not, thus this carefully constructed opening is preparing