Horror Conventions In Psycho

Perhaps no other film changed so drastically Hollywood's perception of the horror film as did PSYCHO. More surprising is the fact that this still unnerving horror classic was directed by Alfred Hitchcock, a filmmaker who never relied upon shock values until this film. Here Hitchcock indulged in nudity, bloodbaths, necrophilia, transvestism, schizophrenia, and a host of other taboos and got away with it, simply because he was Hitchcock.

The role of the female throughout the horror genre has generally reflected the roles of women in society within the social context of the movie. In the early days of movie, women were no more than the weak and defenceless victim. They are ‘the object of the creature’s desire’ , a beautiful yet two-dimensional character who is there for no other reason than to become the victim. As feminism and the role of women in society has developed, so too has the role of the female in the horror genre. This is recognisable in both Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960) and John Carpenter’s Halloween (1978).

The shower scene is carefully crafted sequence of 78 pieces of film. It exhibits various camera movements and transitions within a matter of seconds. This technique was totally unheard of in that era. Psycho thereby ushered in a new era of cinematic horror. And cinema has not been the same ever since.

The most prominent motifs in psycho are birds, eyes and mirrors. Hitchcock uses birds to support the theme of duality in the film. In one critical scene where Norman offered Marion dinner in his parlor, the setting creates awkward strangeness that emits from the stuffed birds that can be seen in the room. The only source of light in the room was a lamp positioned near Marion, and is the only key light in the scene. This, however produces a soft and bright image for Marion, but since Norman is placed a little further from the light, shadows of himself and some other objects near him could be seen on the wall behind him. Since Norman is placed in the darker side of the room, it indicates that he has a dark side to the shy one that is being introduced in the scene. This is later confirmed in the same scene when Marion suggested to Norman to put his mother in an institution. He got mad, showing his darker side,

Alfred Hitchcock was known as a true filmmaker who produced and created successful horror films. Producing five decades of filmmaking, Hitchcock became a horror guru. From the shocking, blood-curdling film Psycho to his greatest black and white horror prequel Bates Motel, Hitchcock was able to pave the way for other horror filmmakers. As a little girl growing up, I watch every horror film I could think of. When you’re that fragile young age you never know what, how and when your mind will be shaped at any moment. Just like Hitchcock, I was immersed with many things different. Horror Movies helped by at the same time hurt me. Although I was not allowed to watch most of the

The Horror Genre?s contemporaries today include Eli Roth, John Carpenter, George Romero and Clive Barker to name a few but the most notable above them all, with more contributions out of any other director was Wes Craven. With a plethora of films he has created, Craven is most known for 3 in particular for helping redefine the horror genre, in particular, ?The Last House on the Left,? ?Red Eye,? and the ?Scream? franchise. All three films which have had the most successful outcomes out of any other film series including television spinoff series, sequels, remakes, and much more which helped shape and push the genre further. However, one individual that preceded Wes Craven was the ?Master of Suspense? Alfred Hitchcock and would be arguably one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. Not sequestered into just one genre, it is of no surprise that Wes Craven claims Hitchcock is one of his largest influences. Alfred Hitchcock directed masterpieces such as ?Psycho,? ?The Birds,? ?North by Northwest? and ?Marnie,? all of which have been huge influences on the Horror genre and Craven. These particular films by these two great directors will be analyzed and compared to show the influence that Alfred Hitchcock had on a recent contemporary like Wes Craven and also how it shocked, frightened and developed a genre that

The lighting of the scene says a lot about the character of Marion and Norman. Light itself is associated with goodness and innocence, the opposite of darkness and evil. While Marion’s face is lit fully during the scene, Norman’s face is never in full light, portraying his inner evil and his interior struggle between his two warring sides. It’s also important to note the lighting devices in the mise-en-scene. The shots with Marion contain a lamp, whereas Norman’s shots contain unlit candles.

With the use of lighting being a greatly influential factor in the “horror” genre, we can see how light has the ability to change the atmosphere within a scene, with the most common method for achieving this being through chiaroscuro lighting, chiaroscuro lighting depicts contrasts between the light and shadow producing an eerie effect, presenting fear and isolation through the lighting, putting an idea in the mind of the audiences of a coherence to a typical “horror” film with a more modern twist. Hitchcock’s use of lighting, sound and editing styles all allow the audience to believe in this false sense of the film to be categorized as a “horror” as a result of this, leaving them unopened to the idea of a deeper genre within

In Psycho, the director uses a lot of different tools to create a certain mood throughout the film. He uses lighting and camera angles to portray an eerie and creepy tone. By dimming the light in certain scenes, the audience feels much more on edge due to the limited things they can see on screen. In the shower scene, the lighting is used perfectly as we see Norman’s shadow through the shower curtain. This shadow not only helps the audience see Mrs. Bates’ hair but also helps foreshadow the scene that’s about to take place. I like how Hitchcock leaves out the gory images in the shower scene because it lets the audience use their imagination. This, in return, creates an even more disgusting image in our head which is what I think Hitchcock was

Horror is part of our lives and can be hidden in the simplest ways. Alfred Hitchcock showed us in his film, Psycho (1960), how even the most innocent of people can withhold their own horror. Stephen King has become our Norman Bates. Looking so simple and quiet on the inside but watching the world with a twisted point of view truly shows how much horror can lurk around the shadows of our lives. From the abandonment of his father, to the inspirational love of his mother, and struggle with drug addiction, Stephen King puts a bit of his own horror into everything he writes.

As Stephen Price stated, “digital imaging technologies are rapidly transforming nearly all phases of contemporary film production. Film-makers today storyboard, shoot and edit their films in conjunction with the computer manipulation of images” (Price, 1996, pg.27). Since digital imaging technologies have changed the very nature of film production, it is important to understand and examine the wider effects these new modes of filmmaking have on spectators. With this in mind, the following essay argues that the realist aesthetics adopted by the verité horror subgenre not only work to entice fear among audiences by presenting the events occurring on screen as real, but in doing so, also reveal anxieties about the truthfulness of the image that have been heightened by the ubiquitous incorporation of digital imaging technology in contemporary film production. This will be demonstrated first by providing a brief history about the verité horror subgenre. Once this is completed, this essay will examine how the realist aesthetics adopted by the genre’s most notorious and commercially successful films, The Blair Witch Project (Myrick, 1999) and Paranormal Activity (Peli, 2007), reflect postmodern anxieties about the truthfulness of visual representations in film.

Horror is tricky thing, there are so many subgenres and it can come in many different forms. There are slashers, thrillers, psychological horror, gore and many more. Most people can watch one genre and not watch another. For example I can watch horror films where the bad guy is an actual person but paranormal horror is too much for me. There are aslo many different mediums that can person can express horror through. Most if these were introduced after Carroll and Guat’s time and I think their respective theories fit better for each Medium. Carroll’s fits better for films and video games but Gaut’s fits better for horror theme attractions.

In the movie Psycho, Alfred Hitchcock’s techniques created a dynamic film with his use of sound, editing style, and camera movement. This generated an illusion, mimicking humans normal outlook of their surroundings, which resulted in engaging the viewer from the beginning to the end of the movie. Hitchcock’s distinctive techniques were demonstrated in this short gripping clip from the movie.

From the beginning of cinema to the present day, Hollywood has had a morbid fascination with the dark, shadowy side of society. This is reflected in many films of the past, inherently most evident in the German expressionistic films of the 1920’s and 30’s. In a sense, society’s fascination with the macabre stems from their fears and anxieties. Thus, allowing filmmakers and storytellers to toy with their fears and horrify them like a terrible nightmare that comes to life. Most people in today’s society have a fear of the unknown, this can stem from natural factors like growing old and dying to such terrifying abnormal factors that may be real or not. The boogeyman is one figure that haunts our children’s minds and nightmares, this mythical

The gothic or more commonly known “horror” genre has been around since the late 1700s. It is a piece of fantasy that is defined by elements of fear, horror, death and gloom. It can also include romantic themes such as nature, individuality, and high emotion. I want to explore the conventions of this genre and the effect it has on the audience, how people’s fears have changed and how the way they have been presented on the screen has changed over time. Film and cinematography has a very significant effect on viewers because of its social and emotional implications and its influence on the way we see reality. The three time periods I chose to research were the 1930s, the 1970s and present day. The 30s is often referred to as the golden age of