Psycho

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Psycho

38% Liked It
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Psycho

Anne Haney, Anne Heche, Chad Everett, Flea, James LeGros

Marion Crane is a Phoenix, Arizona working girl fed up with having to sneak away during lunch breaks to meet her lover, Sam Loomis, who cannot get married because most of his money goes towards alimon...( read more  read more... )y. One Friday, Marion's employer asks her to take $400,000 in cash to a local bank for deposit. Desperate to make a change in her life, she impulsively leaves town with the money, determined to start a new life with Sam in California. As night falls and a torrential rain obscures the road ahead of her, Marion turns off the main highway. Exhausted from the long drive and the stress of her criminal act, she decides to spend the night at the desolate Bates Motel. The motel is run by Norman Bates, a peculiar young man dominated by his invalid mother. After Norman fixes her a light dinner, Marion goes back to her room for a shower....

Id: 11009654

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Psycho Recent Reviews
  • SilentScreamer
    November 15, 2009
    SilentScreamer
    review to come.
  • PvtCaboose91
    August 20, 2009
    PvtCaboose91
    "A boy's best friend is his mother."


    This reviewer's thoughts on Gus Van Sant's remake of Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (as well as the sentiments of virtually every critic and movie-goer in the world) can be summarised using one word and a bit of punctuation:

    ...( read more)Why?!


    This "why" can be addressed in a financial sense, but in terms of artistry the concept of remaking perfection remains baffling. Director Van Sant has proved that a bunch of Hollywood heavyweights can indeed use $25 million and colour photography to mimic a classic, but he failed to prove his ability to capture the terrifying essence of said classic. It appears there are only two audiences for this Psycho remake: those familiar with Hitchcock's film who are morbidly curious, and newcomers to the story willing to give this edition a chance because it's in colour and stars a more modern cast.


    Since Joseph Stefano's original script was used here (only slightly altered), we all know the story: Marion Crane (Heche) is entrusted by her employer to deposit $400,000 in the bank (for those keeping track, it was only $40,000 in the original). However Marion perceives this phenomenal sum of money as a way to start off fresh, and decides to embezzle it. En route to visit her boyfriend Sam Loomis (Heche), she pulls into the Bates Motel where she meets proprietor Norman Bates (Vaughn). Events of this evening eventually turn violent, with the jealous rage of Norman's twisted mother putting an end to Marion's plans. Once Marion's disappearance becomes worrisome to those closest to her, an investigation commences.


    Remakes come in all shapes, sizes and colours. Successful remakes employ older material and do something new, interesting, and/or intelligent with it (like The Magnificent Seven; a Western appropriation of Akira Kurosawa's The Seven Samurai). 1998's Psycho does nothing of the sort. Director Van Sant obviously knew he couldn't improve upon Hitchcock's masterpiece, so he decided to just copy it instead (virtually shot-for-shot and line-for-line). A few alterations were made to the original script (mostly to the detriment of the film - the most egregious addition is Norman visibly masturbating while peeping on Marion through a hole in the wall), but for the most part it's the same. Interestingly, this film is set in the year 1998, but the fashion and set decoration would make one think it's 1968!


    When Hitchcock himself remade his own films (as he did with The Man Who Knew Too Much), he had the good sense not to replicate the earlier version. He instead took the good ideas and ran with them. Gus Van Sant may have alienated Hitchcock purists if any major alterations to the story were made for this Psycho remake, but he would have made a far more compelling film at least. Here's the major problem with Van Sant's film: even if you wanted to praise something about it - the cinematography, the pacing, the music, the storyline, the dialogue, or even Saul Bass' design for the opening credits - you'd be better off praising the original. The sense of déjà vu while viewing this carbon copy is powerful, as is the sense that something isn't quite right.


    As "accurate" as this Psycho is, it's not particularly terrifying or thrilling. It's a lifeless, slapdash project with all tension leeched away. It's also in colour. Hitchcock opted for black and white photography all those decades ago because the starkness of monochrome enhanced the movie's shock value. Colour, on the other hand, makes Psycho seem ordinary. In addition, Van Sant does a woeful job of refilming the infamous shower scene. He copies a lot of the camera angles and much of the editing from the original sequence, but speeds up the film and (in MTV fashion) inserts a few pointless flashes of a stormy sky as well as an extreme close-up of Heche's iris opening. The shrieking violins of Bernard Herrmann's score are inexplicably altered too. In addition, more blood flows from visible stab wounds, but it doesn't make the sequence any scarier or more shocking - if anything, it shows how masterful Hitchcock was for being able to do more with less. Disappointingly and astonishingly, the blood here looks faker than the chocolate syrup used in Hitchcock's original.


    The performances are another issue. Only Julianne Moore and William H. Macy (as characters once portrayed by Vera Miles and Martin Balsam) hold their own and bring at least a slight degree of intensity to their roles. Anne Heche as Marion Crane pales in comparison to Janet Leigh - she's very contrived. Viggo Mortensen is a weak Sam Loomis, and frequently sounds as if he's just reciting lines from nearby cue cards. Most lamentably, Vince Vaughn is unable to present a truly compelling interpretation of Norman Bates (despite his attempts to imitate a number of Anthony Perkins' mannerisms). The main problem with the cast is that they're just playing surface impersonations of their characters instead of embodying them.


    Ironically, Van Sant stated in a Newsweek article that he hates remake. In fact (irony of all ironies), he calls his Psycho an "anti-remake film". "Why do people take films that are really well done and change the dialogue and change the shots and call it the same movie?" he asked. In theory, he's correct, but it's doubtful that the answer is to mimic a "really well done" film and call it an "anti-remake film".


    It's possible to argue that since this remake is more or less the same film as Hitchcock's original, there isn't anything truly wrong with it. But this argument is utter nonsense because there's plenty wrong with it - Van Sant's direction is lifeless, the performances are tragically unremarkable, and as a standalone feature it's poorly made and lacks tension. Nothing flows naturally; it all feels very awkward, with lines and actions included perfunctorily rather than organically. 1998's Psycho does, however, effectively prove that it wasn't the technical aspects of Hitchcock's masterpieces that made them so great - Hitchcock relied on originality, plot and unexpected twists. Van Sant's remake is humdrum because it has none of these.


    The makers of this film obviously wanted to pay tribute to Hitchcock's work, but the film is more of a self-indulgent exercise (it was undoubtedly more stimulating for Van Sant and crew to make the film than it is for an audience to watch it). Psycho simply gives a new generation of movie-goers (who are already ignorant of classic movies) another reason not to see Hitchcock's original. As far as the future is concerned, this Psycho will become little more than a footnote in cinematic history.


    The end credits are tagged with the words "In Memory of Alfred Hitchcock" which is an official insult.
  • flixsterman
    May 16, 2009
    flixsterman
    This is no homage to Hitchcock, this is theatrical blasphemy.
  • ThePublicEnemy
    August 29, 2008
    ThePublicEnemy
    A Terrible remake. It makes Alfred Hitchocks old version look bad.
  • sononothing
    July 17, 2008
    sononothing
    I have to be honest, I couldn't sit through more than five minutes of this horrible piece of garbage. What kind of sick bastard would want to remake Psycho of all things? Hey, look it's got the same producer as The Cat in the Hat! That explains it all.
    If anyone has seen the ori...( read more)ginal film (which is a masterpiece) seeing actors replay the same script, yet put more emphasis on other words than their predecessors did in their lines makes ones bowels turn to water after five minutes of watching this grandiose drivel. I keep asking myself "Why?" and can't answer it. Imagine the Mona Lisa and having a five year old trace it out with Crayolas. That's what this film is.

    Fan films are remade shot for shot. Not Hollywood films. This film was a complete waste of time to make and is a complete waste of time to watch.
  • hamm1365
    January 4, 2010
    hamm1365
    Just the same movie but with different actors.
  • doctordoom
    December 23, 2009
    doctordoom
    So this is a updated remake on a classic Hitchcock movie. The original is in black and white. So of course this time the movie is in full colour. I don't think this remake was needed but it was a solid attempt to capture the spirit of the original. Vince Vaughn stars as Norman Ba...( read more)tes. And Anne Heche as Marion. This film is suppose to match the original. But when in colour and a updated period of time still didn't compare to the original. I would suggest watching the original Hitchcock Psycho and then watch this update to compare. You may enjoy both or hate either one. I still prefer the original but found this to be a solid remake on a classic thriller.
  • devilsdisciple
    November 8, 2009
    devilsdisciple
    a movie so bad that u will love it
  • lovablemisanthrope
    October 31, 2009
    lovablemisanthrope
    Stick with the original, trust me.
  • ringoestrella258
    October 28, 2009
    ringoestrella258
    A pointless remake of a classic movie. Check out Hitchcock´s version instead.
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