Understanding Psycho: The Uncanny

[@orangebandmedia]

I've watched Psycho numerous times including in film school and have never noticed how Marion's grin and stare in the car was a perfect mirror. Great work and breakdown!

[@i_am_nishu]

Orange Band Have You Watched Bates Motel(a prequel show to this Movie Psycho) ???

[@madamebkrt]

It's shit. Stop spamming this comment to everyone.

[@alg11297]

Too bad she wasn't smiling.

[@Gremlins1957]

I did. In fact when I first saw Psycho I was eight years old. And it scared the daylights out of me. It stills scares me today. But the comment about Marion and Norman mirror image is so right on. When I watch this film when Janet Leigh is driving and that smile comes across her face, it creeps the heck out of me. Then she meets Norman at his family Motel and they have this conversation in the Parlor I am creeped out again. In my mind when the lady attacks her in the shower I imagine that it is somebody who looks like her. When Norman yells mother what have you done I forever in the movie picture Norman's mother looking like Marion. I always have. So it fits the smile Marion had in the car and Norman's smile at the end just before he morphed into the face of his Mummied Mommy. Yeah it all fits.

[@swf4841]

I always noticed her smile but never associated it with mirroring. I was often confused by it if anything.

[@jamesr1703]

I read Marion's smirk in the car as her coming to terms with her deed and her satisfaction with it. Just as Norman in the end comes to terms with his deed and his satisfaction with it.

[@boborrahood]

James R I saw Norman's final smile as his mother's own satisfaction about "why she wouldn't even harm a fly..." , as the psychiatrist had just said how "the mother half of Norman's mind had taken over....probably for all time."

[@grosbeak6130]

That's a superficial two-dimensional reading, of which if you listened to the video that you just watched here there is a deeper connection.

[@johnmuller4014]

One other thing: Tony Perkins was a much better actor than he was given credit for.

[@sudicalwig]

Yeah, great in psycho, and psycho 2. When given proper directions. The third one he directed himself and that was flat.. He was also a great singer. =)

[@i_am_nishu]

Have You Watched Bates Motel(a prequel show to this Movie Psycho) ???

[@bushin28]

Doesn't really make sense, it's based during the modern age isn't it

[@tyleryoung3964]

Nìshú निशु it's a different prequel kind of prequel

[@Tgogators]

He was a brilliant actor! he danced and sang for stage and screen. He was typecast as Norman undeniably but he had so many great performances.

[@franklippert4278]

It's kinda ironic, that we see constantly authoritative, overbearing or somewhat sleazy and menacing men throughout the movie. The real menace though is the one caring, understanding and cute (if slightly awkward) young man we meet in the middle.

[@lunaliagingerbread8291]

Frank Lippert yes.

[@BenjaminGessel]

Yes, but it's also important to separate reality from movies... Hitchcock though, yes, he knew we wouldn't suspect the motel owner of anything darker, initially at least...

[@2degucitas]

Everyday male menace vs. unexpected weak male menace.

[@ShootMeMovieReviews]

I'm not sure who you have in mind other than the client at the beginning. Sam's not overbearing, sleazy or menacing. Neither is her boss. The cop is maybe authoritative but he seems like he's just concerned for her at least at first. California Charlie is less overbearing than she is (she high-pressures him). Where are all these horrible men?

[@SaikoKujo]

Norman isn't a psychopath. His wide range of emotions and ability to express them are the first clues. BPD? (borderline personality not bi-polar)

[@tjr930]

"Girl works for you for 10 years, you trust her!" "Wouldn't hurt a fly."

[@tristanlaferriere5194]

It had also been 10 years since Norman killed his mother and her lover. Just noticed that for the first time. It's like Marion and Norman have been "working" for the same period of time.

[@TheMattJames]

I don’t get it

[@seanmacdonald5613]

@@TheMattJames Marion had been working for her boss for 10 years, the same amount of time since he killed his mother.

[@shanefolan9175]

@@seanmacdonald5613 Yea basically they are both under the ''authority'' they resent and want to rebel against. It can come back to the private ''traps'' Norman talks of.

[@excellentviolet590]

You gotta love how Janet Lee ends up being mother to Jamie Lee Curtis another horror film queen👸🏼

[@SjofnBM1989]

Scream Queen.

[@julietfischer5056]

I'm sure Jamie Lee didn't intend to be known for that, but it happened. She's an underrated actress.

[@pjangels609]

@ja maguire BLACK CHRISTMAS 1974 is better than Halloween and set the precedent for the slasher films of the 80s, not Halloween. I also enjoyed Marnie, Frenzy and Family Plot (Hitch's last film) was better than expected. Do you like DePalma??

[@king_tutt7063]

I loved her in scream queens, but I already knew her from freaky Friday. Thats it though...but I'm only 17 and I saw freaky Friday on Disney Channel sooo its definitely because I'm too young to know her from anything but those two

[@C0nc3ntrayt3]

@@king_tutt7063 Jamie Lee Curtis stars in the Halloween franchise (micheal meyers). I think that's her most famous work.

[@DorianYarg]

And I'd also say that hotels themeselves (inclinding motels of course) can be considered "uncanny double": they look like home, but there are many details like too starched sheets, aseptic smell, which may make you feel unease. It is no coincidence that Norman is a motel keeper.

[@MattBellzminion]

But before she arrives at the motel, Marion hurriedly trades in her car at a used-car dealership -- getting hosed, of course, but that doesn't matter so much since she's spending stolen, and thus funny/phony, money.

[@emagneticfield]

Tony Perkins, with his great voice, gestures and sense of timing was perfect for that role. I couldn't imagine any other actor at that time who would have brought the character of Norman Bates to life as well as he did.

[@anchitaroy9126]

Absolutely true!

[@danielwagman9794]

Michael Landon*...? Think about it! How about Woodie Allen, ha ha! ...a/k/a "Little Joe" Cartwright!

[@anubusx]

His best film. And the first film to show a flushing toilet.

[@orangewarm1]

its difficult to say: North By Northwest; Rear Window; and Vertigo are just as good.

[@mja91352]

His best film is "Vertigo"

[@ToriHiragana]

Vertigo or Rear Window for me

[@MichaelTurner856]

Wow that's some interesting trivia

[@seanmacdonald5613]

I’ve seen on websites that Notorious is his best film but I haven’t seen it yet.

[@aishwaryakhot9353]

i was 13 when i watched this movie for the first time, and i would not keep my eyes shut while taking a shower or look in the window, i always imagined someone in the grandma clothes gonna murder me and that person is not gonna be a ghost but a real human. this is how effective that movie was.

[@jerrygil1965]

I might feel that way one day too

[@fredtheilig2710]

When Norman's face fades to Marion's car at the very end I never noticed the third, skeletal image during the transformation. It's quite creepy.

[@speeta]

It's subtle, but I ALWAYS noticed the superimposed image of mother's mummy in that last cross-fade.

[@nancylee8061]

@@speeta It was Norman's mother's skeletal grin.

[@triviahaos]

I JUST NOTICED THAT OH MY GOD

[@NovemberReigne]

That gave me chills to watch

[@BuddSidewinder]

I’ve seen this movie many times but in my most recent watch, I caught it. Very creepy!

[@woolsoul219]

Great work. Nice to see someone interpret the film in a new light. So much has been said about it, it's nice to hear something new and insightful for a change!

[@i_am_nishu]

Jack Son Have You Watched Bates Motel(a prequel show to this Movie Psycho) ???

[@ImYourHuckleberry_29]

@@i_am_nishu yo y u asking the same shit on and on again?

[@i_am_nishu]

ArseneWenger I am asking to different people !!!

[@ImYourHuckleberry_29]

@@i_am_nishu ask a new Q

[@RickGraham]

7:19 is summed up in the line: "we all go a little mad sometimes"

[@burhlgorvras711]

omg rick haha! your guitar playing is insane :)

[@michaelherscheid9709]

You are a movie nerd? One more reason to like you

[@magnusm4]

We let loose and set free to live in a world of rules turning into behavioral prisons. Mad is when you snap at the world for your own.

[@shanefolan]

yes, Marion's moment of being mad was stealing the cash.

[@orangewarm1]

possibly

[@davidcawrowl3865]

Great analysis of this classic movie. I might add that at the very end where we see the Anthony Perkin's stare, the stare itself registers as a highly delusional, almost catatonic stare which is seen, albeit rarely, in patients who have suffered a psychotic break. To have captured that was pure genius. For the movie goer leaving the theater, it will be forever tucked away in their own unconscious.

[@darganx]

He was going to shoot the picture in colour but the studio (Universal?) thought all that red blood would be a step too far! Actually I prefer it in B+W, gives it a darker quality..

[@julietfischer5056]

What blood, aside from what swirls down the drain?

[@codysmith3853]

@@julietfischer5056 well back then all that blood would've been shocking for the time, today we've become desensitised but that wasn't the case back then

[@orangewarm1]

it was done in colour, shot for shot with Vince Vaughn playing Norman and Anne Heche playing Marion. it wasn't good.

[@hebneh]

Black & white was used because Hitchcock had a fairly low budget. He also used the crew from his TV series to save money. One good thing was that they were able to utilize Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup in its new plastic squeeze bottle for the blood in the shower - yes, really. This was the first mainstream American movie to depict blood so graphically and it was shocking in 1960.

[@adrianothegoat]

Juliet Fischer rememer when Arbrograst was killed ?

[@periphetes]

If you look at the windshield wipers in the rain that is foreshadowing Bates' knife stabbing Marion with the shower water coming down.

[@lunaliagingerbread8291]

Jay Williams it was? amazing...

[@bobtaylor170]

Jay Williams, oh, not really.

[@edannegrin1345]

overanalyzing haha

[@hotdog5178]

I saw this idea in another video analyzing Psycho

[@DalV]

Jay Williams you’re looking too deeply at the film. I guess the rain is like the water coming out of the shower head?

[@athenastewart9167]

I think it is worth mentioning the mirror of sexual authority in the film. Marion, a working woman, has to contend with the sexual innuendoes of her male boss, even her lover. Norman is under the sexual domination of his mother, a switch of gender roles. You mention Norman's incestual lust for his mother, but I think it is the opposite-- his mother's sexual lust for him. After all, she would be the adult of the relationship, therefore hold the authority over Norman. (Norman= NORmal MAN, which he definitely isn't!) Norman's desire for Marion is dealt with by Mother, not Norman. I think if they dug in that pond a little deeper, they could solve many an unsolved murder.

[@DanielGarrett0123]

Marion has to deal with the sexual innuendos of her lover? Really?!

[@crystalmary914]

Yes!!

[@DanielGarrett0123]

@@crystalmary914 which innuendoes might these be?

[@Sarah-r5l9g]

Love this great additional point made

[@mrteaparty6090]

What were Marion greatest strengths and weaknesses? How did Marion overcome sexual identity challenges in a largely male world to become the story leading lady?

[@joegallicchio26]

Probably the best analyses of Psycho I've ever seen. Incredibly smart.

[@WalterLiddy]

I don't read the mirror images/shadows as an indication of Marion/Norman being alike, but rather as symbols of each character's inner division into halves. Marion's guilt/innocence are clearly indicated not only by having her 'halved' by reflections and shadows, but also by her white/black clothing and even her darkly colored car, traded for a light one in an effort to adopt an innocent appearance, but which looks dark again under the shadow and overcast skies at the motel. Her efforts to shed her guilt through these changes of clothing/car are furthered in her attempts to wash away the guilt. Norman's internal division is more subtle because more fundamental. He's often cast half in shadow, as opposed to outwardly projecting a shadow second-self. Still, this does not preclude a reading of the two as alike. In asking who the titular psycho is, I think it's interesting to note that when Sam and Lila are waiting to hear from Arbogast, they are in a room framed with windows in such a way that they are divided into multiple reflection images, and Sam is seen 'divided' as well when he contemplates using force to get past Norman's evasions. It seems like the role of 'psycho' shifts throughout, and ultimately imo may even be an accusation directed at the audience.

[@isthisjustfantasy7583]

That's an incredible analysis! I never noticed the change of light clothes/car to dark. Your last sentence in particular I think beautifully captures the whole spirit of this film. I definitely think you could write an entire essay on the title of Psycho alone. Thank you for your comment!

[@WalterLiddy]

Gee thanks. Quite a compliment considering how excellent your video essay is.

[@MoniWaldorf]

That's what i thought too. The movie somehow shows the inner dirty nature of everyone involved and in the end it kind of leads you questioning if the psycho is you

[@tomnorton4277]

The second to last scene even shows Norman looking straight at the audience and giving us a knowing smirk as if he's saying something like "I know your darkest secrets".

[@blackswan4486]

@@tomnorton4277 or mother is saying it...

[@JackOwnedYou]

Was doing my English dissertation and was looking for a fresh interpretation of The Uncanny. This is an absolutely fantastic video! Really hope you keep these up as they're in an educational field of their own.

[@isthisjustfantasy7583]

Thank you so much! I hope my video was useful for your dissertation.

[@lunaliagingerbread8291]

irBONES yes!

[@williamstovall6064]

Hitchcock kept throwing you off if you came to close in guessing the plot, there were lot of signs that Norman was off, but people didn't have a clue, it truly is his master piece.

[@vaskoyorgov968]

As someone just beginning to scratch the surface in terms of studying film, this was a really insightful video! Thanks very much!

[@johnmuller4014]

Very thorough, except for one thing: Mother's mummy face is superimposed on Norman's for a brief second -- you have to forward and reverse to really see it. It's like the red explosion of the gun in "Spellbound."

[@MoniWaldorf]

yes i saw that too! its just in one frame its ridiculous you can see it in 11:55.

[@craigstokes864]

I've always noticed that. It's a half second that creeps you out as the hair stands up on your arm at the end of the film.

[@madamebkrt]

Yeah, I saw that the first time I watched it. Very creepy.

[@blepthebleep469]

11:51

[@2degucitas]

It can be seen at 11:50. Slow down to .25 or .50.

[@Gremlins1957]

I'll just say this and I am done. This is one scary film. Hitchcock's best.

[@tonym994]

a total freak show ahead of it's time .shown every mother's day at the Brattle in Harvard.Sq.there's a great book about it ...

[@XXthekingofyouXX]

One of the greatest ever. But you should also check out Hitchcock's movie "Vertigo". Truly a work of art.

[@tio760]

Rear window my favorite Hitchcock film masterpiece

[@RemoGutierrez1]

Hear hear The reveal ending is harrowing too

[@nancylee8061]

@@tio760 So man masterpieces! I also loved Dial M for Murder.

[@kitwhitfield7169]

This is fascinating, and very convincing! Another reason it works, I’d suggest, is that it’s a story where it almost feels like there’s a hidden central antagonist: Fate. Marion wants to escape a life controlled by Fate - she can’t marry her boyfriend because of circumstances outside her control (his marriage, divorce and debts all precede her). In an attempt to gain control, she steals the money, but Fate chases her down the highway, both with terrified premonitions (all the inner voices are saying some version of ‘You won’t get away with this’) and with human portents (the shade -wearing cop who perceives her fear and witnesses her attempt to avoid him by changing cars, both eyeless and all-seeing like some Greek myth). Eventually she runs into an inescapable trap - and now Fate starts chasing Norman. He kills Arbogast at about the same point in his story that Marion changed cars in hers, like Marion trying to evade a perceptive pursuer, and as with Marion, it doesn’t work. Norman can’t escape Fate either, and like Marion, the more he fights it, the more he gets entangled in the ‘private trap’. Fate eventually runs down everyone who fights it. It’s full of inevitabilities created by Marion’s initial rebellion against Fate, and only ends when that rebellion is fully expiated. In a way, it’s a weird grandparent of the Final Destination type of horror movie: it’s held together by a malevolent invisible hand.

[@blackswan4486]

I read somewhere that the cop is the only character whose eyes we don't see because he's the only one we shouldn't identify with. Being Fate, and Fate being the real villain, I'm not surprised why. Then again, I can think of another character whose eyes we can't see as well...

[@auroramacula]

@@blackswan4486 By this other character whom you cannot see the eye, you meant Mrs. Bates?

[@doormaster8259]

This is without a doubt in my mind the best film ever made ...

[@klubstompers]

I agree it is just as good today at age 42, as it was when i first saw it at age 5.

[@paulchristian7693]

I am in my 70’s and still afraid of staying in motels and taking a shower. Alfred Hitchcock was a genus!

[@JS-pn4tj]

*best horror film

[@orangewarm1]

Hitchcock should have his own Oscar ceremony. about 10 of his films are perfect.

[@mja91352]

You've never seen "Vertigo"

[@dEBishopOfAaron]

7:05 - My jaw dropped leading on to the exclamation of "whaaaaaat the actual fuuuck." I've seen this film dozens of times yet I never thought to look at the mise en scene as in depth as this due to the time it was made. Great analysis!

[@PlatoCave]

That omenious Saul Bass credits design. That bone chilling Bernard Hermann score. That crisp and razor sharp dialogue. That impeccable editing. That master work by all principals involved. Am I missing something here? And oh yeah! That Hitchcock's unforgettable masterpiece direction. A truly masterful film indeed. This is certainly a template for thrillers in many decades to come. The haunting atmosphere remains almost persistent without a blink of an eye pause. And that alone is a feat in filmmaking.

[@ginaloverofangels]

Very interesting break down of this movie. I've seen it at least 25 times, but never thought of it this way. I've always just sat back and enjoyed it. Alfred Hitchcock was a head of his time.

[@poetcomic1]

Lots of FRESH thoughts on Psycho - congratulations! Marion and Norman's two grins, side by side are sensational!

[@markkickmark]

All of Hitch's films were way more complicated and intricate than most realized.

[@joestrike8537]

He never got the credit he deserved until after his death; now there dozens of books about him and his art, and dozens of videos on YT like this one. I think Hitch himself to a degree might have been responsible for this: perhaps critics didn't take him seriously because he presented himself as a macabre dark-humored character, particularly in his appearances on his anthology TV series, and never tried to sell himself as a serious "auteur" (which he truthfully was!). A personal example. In my very first day as an NYU film student, I told the school's director how much I enjoyed Hitch's films; his response: "well, his films are entertaining enough, but they don't address the deeper issues of life." What a clueless a**hole!

[@ykavi5637]

movies like this always impress me more over the little details

[@rucianapollard7098]

Me too!!

[@monsterjazzlicks]

I noticed Marion's grin whilst driving and it always sent a chill down me (except the very first time I watched the film). But I never drew the connection.

[@jenniferschillig3768]

DAMN, that's good! Since you mentioned Cassidy as "father" and "authority"...I've become rather fascinated with the implications of his dialogue in his scene with Marion. For one thing, his attitude towards his daughter is more than a little creepy...all that talk of her "marrying away from me"...jeez, it seems that Mrs. Bates isn't the only possessive-to-the-point-of-emotional-incest parent in THIS movie. (And his making sure his daughter's never been unhappy isn't much better than Mrs. Bates' emotional manipulation...what's going to happen when this pampered young woman has to face any REAL problems without her father's help?) Secondly, I believe all his bragging about his wealth and how he "buys off unhappiness" for his daughter and how she's "never had an unhappy day" thanks to it was a major factor in Marion's deciding to steal the money. It's no coincidence that a wedding's the reason for the money coming into her hands...marriage is exactly what's on Marion's mind. I can almost hear her thinking, "Why should this spoiled eighteen-year-old get an easy start in life? Why should SHE get to marry the man she loves, all thanks to Daddy who's made everything easy for her, when I can't marry Sam? What's SHE done to earn it?"

[@isthisjustfantasy7583]

I'm 100% with you on this one, Jennifer. Cassidy is a fascinating creep. In fact, I go more into his character in my original paper (link in the video description). Thanks for commenting :)

[@haintedhouse3052]

"and even flirting with me!". I love the car scene when Marion imagines Cassidy thinking she was flirting with him when in reality it was him being the obnoxious perv. The smirk on her face says it all. Great cinema.

[@blackswan4486]

@@haintedhouse3052 this smirk comes when the guilt is reversed from the (perceived) guilty party to the innocent (Cassidy accuses Marion of flirting with him). Just as- cue Norman's smirk- Mother accuses Norman of the murders when, really, in his mind, she did them.

[@srj34]

I think that every generation feels threatened by the approach and eventual takeover by succeeding generations, and the actions of Cassidy and Mother are extreme manifestations of this. Both Cassidy and Mother are motivated to exercise control and influence over the young within their spheres.

[@julietfischer5056]

Sam Loomis was paying off debt. She wanted to help him do that. Then this guy comes in talking about his wealth and (in the book at least) being on the sleazy side towards her. Her boss gives her the money to deposit, and on an impulse she keeps on going. Give the money to Sam and they can have a nice new start. You can see the glaring holes in her non-plan and eventually she does.

[@yusefendure]

This is by far the best analysis of Psycho. You did an outstanding job. Thank you.

[@cheetahgoldenfire]

Well, done! Great psychological synopsis of what the movie script and characters symbolize and represent. I watched it recently, and I remembered noticing more than I had before when I watched it 25 years ago.

[@RemyMyer]

These observations are amazingly spot-on! Amazingly. I will never see Psycho the same way again. Never thought I would ever say that.

[@marilyndeservedbetter]

Tony Perkins was the definition of ICONIC in psycho

[@linasayshush]

One thing: in the very end, Norman isn't imagining Mother talking about him, she *is* talking about him. Norman is gone, there's only Mother now.

[@amjoshuaf]

“Mother” is still Norman, dum dum.

[@edgregory1]

It's all Nor-mother. They are one in the same. That's his psychosis.

[@jeeemmm]

@@amjoshuaf but mother is his alter ego tho.

[@amjoshuaf]

@@jeeemmm Yeah, that's what I'm saying. He's not really his mother. It's still him pretending to be his mother but the role-play has swallowed him up completely.

[@san8188]

There is NO mother talking to him ever. He is mad and imagines stuff

[@chrisprose]

That's a fantastic look at my favorite film that I have seen so many times and yet never once equated Marion's smile with Norman's. You now have my mind churning with that great explanation of the uncanny. Well done!

[@jearmin]

Your interpretation of norman and Marion being dopplegangers blew my mind away. I had never noticed or read about such a thing but it fits perfectly. Thanks for sharing these perceptions and congratulations on your video. The sound wasn´t any trouble at all to me.

[@al4381]

I had never seen the movie, and I was intending to watch the analysis since I am usually not bothered by spoilers, but this one time I followed your advice, stopped the video, watched the movie, and came back, and I am not disappointed. The movie is so typically Hitchcockian in its suspense. He shows that there is someone very dangerous in this area, with the son willing to go the full lenght, and then makes the audience suffer as new people come and await their murder. I had to pause the movie and take a break at the last scene. Absolutely a work of genius.

[@nohaylamujer]

This is wonderful analysis, and I for one am glad that psychoanalytic theory is still deemed relevant to understand a film. I think one point that could be added is that the superego is the imperative of jouissance: "Enjoy to death!". In following the commands of their superegos to the letter, both characters encounter a form of death at the end: physical, in the case of Marion, and the death of the subject of desire in the case of Norman. Norman, Norma (Mother's name), the Norm: different names for the voices of the superego.

[@froboy2120]

omgg this is literally my fav analysis on this that ive seen

[@EyesMalloy]

This is a brilliant psychoanalysis of a film I’ve always loved. While I may have been aware of some of these things on a subconscious level, your making them available to my conscious mind was fascinating. Even after seeing Psycho about a dozen times, I was ignorant to many of Hitchcock’s techniques and inferences. The next time I watch it will be a new experience. In fact, I plan to look more closely at every film now whether I’ve already seen it or not. Thank you for all of the work you put into this video!

[@allthingsstrangeunusual3816]

I had a time expressing my thoughts andI want to say thank you for putting it into these words. 😁🙏

[@eglin32]

This comments section and the theories and themes within continues the Hitchcock ride nicely. Thank goodness for Alfred he added so much to our understanding of ourselves and the strange things we can do and be.

[@martinenyx-filmstuff305]

Wow. I’ve read and heard many analyses of Psycho, but this has to be one of the best. Great job! 👏👏👏👏👏

[@giapelle4589]

As someone who was well versed in both philosophical and psychological film analysis while an undergrad.....I have to say, I had never noticed many of the things you've so brilliantly laid bare. A truly amazing and concise analysis of this film---one that changes how I now view the film---and others by Hitchcock. Bravo!

[@Kelaiah01]

One thing this video made me notice: three times, there's a shot of Marion and Norman facing each other, with one of them being reflected in a mirror. The first two times, Marion is the one being reflected by a mirror, but the third time, its Norman being reflected, only its by the glass in a window. Its also worth noting that the first two times, Marion is on the left side of the screen, while Norman is on the right. The third time, they have switched places. Could that be seen as foreshadowing that Marion and Norman were about to switch roles as the "main" character of the story? Its also worth noting that we don't get the shot of Norman being reflected in the glass until after we overhear his argument with "Mother." Perhaps Marion and Norman being reflected could also symbolize that they're both trying to hide something, that there are "two sides" to each of them?

[@blackswan4486]

Yes, I think it is. Also, as we learned in film class, the camera angles during the parlour scene slowly switch to those that show Norman as the main character, with a transition where it's slightly to the side of him or something, then stays from his point of view

[@adrianothegoat]

Kelaiah01 this deserves more likes

[@Kelaiah01]

@@adrianothegoat Why thank you! I think so too. ;)

[@kimlarso]

They’re “two sides of the same coin!”

[@pamelahays-lx1to]

The Co-worker of Marion's is actually, Pat Hitchcock, who was Alfred's daughter, who appeared in several of his films ( movie & TV). Psycho was his biggest hit and saved by the skilled editing of his Wife (Alma). He was definitely a "Master of Suspense" and he cast Actors with great discernment & skill. Thanks for uploading this!

[@UltimateKyuubiFox]

This. Was. Brilliant. I’ve never seen so impressed by a film analysis before. This felt so clear that, while unnoticeable upon a first viewing, I feel like I should’ve noticed all along.

[@paulchristian7693]

The old movies are interesting and should be studies in a historical and psychological profile. 🕵🏼‍♂️

[@summerarrasmith]

Wow I love this. Never thought after 20 years of watching this beloved franchise (Bates Motel included) could anyone offer any more depth to the story and its characters. Now I wonder, what else have I missed?

[@AmerIndianWarrior]

Psycho is a psychological suspense masterpiece by Sir Alfred Hitchcock! That 1998 remake garbage by Gus Van Sant cannot hold candles to the original!

[@rachelgarber1423]

I rarely if ever, go to see remakes. Most of the time the director's "spin" just sucks

[@angelabluebird609]

Yeah, no need to even try-it has been D O N E !

[@orangewarm1]

it was shot for shot though

[@Wigfield84]

Worst remake i've ever seen. Not only shot by shot, so basically just ripping off the previous film completely, but then having worse acting (some by actors I normally like), worse costumes (seriously, the scene where they all meet at Sam's hardware store is comical. Everyone looks like they were dressed for a different movie. It's more dated than the film from 1960), worse atmosphere, worse everything. It's hideous.

[@pegclairezach]

This is truly an amazing and thoughtful dissection of this timeless movie. Whoever put this together is simply amazing and I feel grateful for being able to watch this. While I may not agree with everything, it definitely takes the movie and its premises to the edge of what is knowable. The ideas presented here, may not have been in the front of Hitchcock's mind, but I'd say that they were in bits and pieces floating around in his subconscious. In many ways were are seeing in this dissertation how Hitchcock's mind was working during the filming of this amazing movie.

[@Galantski]

Great points. Before seeing your essay, I recently had noticed the parallel smirks of Marion and Norman, but you's fleshed out the thought. As for other film details, I don't Norman would have put Marion's body in the trunk of her car and sunk it. Rather, the thoughts of what he might do with it -- taxidermy, necrophilia, skin suits, etc. -- were too far out, to creepily disturbing even for Hitch to bring to the screen. Also, ever think about which of Norman's remarks was the most insane? Was it "We all go a little mad sometimes"? Or perhaps, "Why, I wouldn't even hurt a fly"? For my money, it's another line from the parlor scene with Marion: _"If you love someone, you don't do that to them, even if you hate them."_ That's like a total self-contradictory disconnect from reality all wrapped up neatly in one sentence. At that point Marion should have grabbed her luggage, jumped in her car, and floored the gas. Liked and subscribed.

[@blackswan4486]

I agree. I remember watching this film in film class and saying to myself, "What a nutbag, contradicting himself like that," then remembering a guy I used to like who used to talk like that, who turned out to be a narcissist and messed with me, and thinking how I wish I had noticed that about Norman before, that maybe I would have dropped that guy sooner.

[@ShootMeMovieReviews]

Re: the disposal of Marion's body, I think if it were aiming for realism I'd agree with you. After all, Norman is famously modeled after Ed Gein who did experiment in those ways. For purposes of the movie, though, I think it does make sense that Norman, upon discovering what Mother has done, might panic and be rid of the corpse as a measure to protect her. Of course it also preserves the surprise ending. In another version Norman might well have hidden Marion in the cellar and gone to work once satisfied nobody was coming for her.

[@priyadarshh]

Brilliant analysis! Especially the bit about the 3 levels of the Bates house. ☺️

[@johnkeenan1829]

I've watched this movie at least fifteen or twenty times over the years since I first saw it on tv as a teenager, it's one of my favorites. I just finished watching it again this afternoon with a good friend of mine who'd never seen it before. His idea of horror runs along the Universal Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman variety. He told me after it was done that this is the greatest film he's ever seen. I felt a little pride in that (then I told him all about Ed Gein).

[@peterm3964]

Monochrome ( black and white ) is a truly beautiful artistic choice . Psycho illustrates this very well .

[@mumble.jumbles]

It's interesting to consider this and it does seem the two stories were meant to parallel and mirror each other. It's just Norman's was so impactful with suspense, shock and relative gore, it's easy to overlook the subtlety of Marion's vignette which is more similar tonally to an episode of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents". Maybe this was to give the 1960 viewer a false sense of comfort and familiarity with their usual Sunday show's controlled morality before being plunged into Norman's terrifying, unrelenting darkness. Maid Marion seems to be just beginning her descent into psychosis and psychopathy while Norman is fully fledged.

[@janets9179]

I think this movie was designed to trick, confound, and shock the viewer and to defy viewer expectations. But like everything, you can always go deeper with your analysis. I love to be surprised.

[@kifacorea]

Excellent analysis. Been seeing this film for decades. But you made me see new things.

[@Tgogators]

A big part of this was Hitch's philosophy on life that many people are just maliciously sinister. They do something very bad, good chance they will do it again, and the more they do the more of a guise they create around it or denial, etc (referenced in Norman and Marion's parlor conversation). This concept got lost with Psycho II, III, and 4 but it matches nearly everything Marion and Norman do to the tee.

[@adrianothegoat]

Tyler L Hitchcock did psycho the best

[@kashesan]

OMG-this is a great analysis. I never thought of the Marion story mirroring Normans. Thank you!

[@tma-1704]

Does anyone really believe that directors really plan all this psychological stuff in their movies? I'm curious to know what they think of these type analyses (sp?). I think Stephen King once said in an interview when asked about such an analysis and he replied with a grin, "It's just a good horror story".

[@Wawagirl17]

I think Hitchock did. He was a genius. As far as other horror directors, possibly not. :P

[@thedapperphil3742]

In the book version of IT, there's a part where the writer character is remembering college. I don't remember the way it played out exactly, but the point is, his professor is asking the class to explain the deep, metaphorical, socio-psychological whatevers represented in the book they're reading. The writer character ( who you'd assume is most representative of King himself) responds with pretty much what you said. something like "who said there's anything deep about it at all? i don't believe there is any deep socio-metaphorical, psycho- bullshit in it. How do you know the author wasn't just writing a damn story?". Funny thing about that is at a later point in that character's life, he does end up writing a few horror stories, that, to him seem like just that, plain horror stories, however, it appears he subconsciously put deep aspects of his childhood that he had previously blocked out into his stories.

[@wigoow1206]

Yes, they plan all of this. Just look up, how the shower scene was made. Every cut is a different, highly expansive and complex scene.

[@MoniWaldorf]

Hahah since when is Stephen King a movie director? Maybe I'm missing something. To answer your question, yes, I think most good movie directors do make it intentionally and even if it's not intentional it is subliminally put there with the same idea, which in some cases is even better. Sometimes we have to look for clues to just find subliminal messages to understand our mind better. Analysis like this one help me understand why a movie has such a great impact on me. I always knew the uncanny was what frightened me in this movie but having this throughout analysis say it made me really understand it better. I saw those scenes and my subconscious mind dissected what was eery about them but my consciousness never did. For example, i knew the shower scene and the smiles had a pattern but I could not tell what it was.

[@MoniWaldorf]

Stephen wasn't really an analytical kind of guy, whatever he thought you could read in the book. The director's job is much more subliminal and actually depends on these unseen themes and messages, to portray a bigger effect.

[@kieranshorten5135]

Just wanted to thank you so so much for this Video, I’m writing an essay on psycho for university and this video really helped me understand a lot of how the smaller details in the film contributed to its reputation as possibly the most well known psychological horror film. So again many thanks!

[@lyonellaverde3135]

Brilliant analysis of the film. It goes into enough detail without getting arcane, pedantic and inaccessible.

[@melodyfleck9368]

Marvelous insight into the house basement representing Freudian Id. Had to re-watch that scene. Now I'm puzzling over the meaning of the sister going into the id basement and the Sam saving her there.

[@madelynwilliams3127]

Say what you want, but nobody can recreate Norman Bates creepy stare at the end

[@mandyy327]

Siim!!

[@JH-td4mn]

Apart from real psychopaths. Seen it but thankfully lived to tell the tale.

[@SweetJeopardy]

I don't know why I'm just discovering this now, and I've never watched anything else from this channel...but this just BLEW MY MIND into subbing immediately! I think this prolly is the best analysis I've come in contact with for probably one of the most overanalyzed films ever. Hitchcock was an effing genius!

[@mattbellgottaring2it961]

Psycho is a timeless classic

[@sabrina2749]

This is definitely one of the most interesting analyses of Psycho I've ever come across, and also very clear to non-English speakers too :)) Keep up the good work!

[@21minute]

This analysis video is so well made. It makes me want to watch the film again.

[@thomaslombardo3401]

I was 10 years old when I first saw this film in the movies with family members. I am still fascinated with this film and never tire of watching it. Critics are still divided but it is still my favorite Hitchcock film. Fascinating and multi layered, the film’s cinematography is absolutely brilliant .The film takes place in Phoenix Arizona. Very symbolic as in phoenix rising from the ashes. Other observances: The cop glaring at her behind dark glasses. The stuffed birds looking down on them as Marion nibbleson her food, Marion wearing black bra and slip before setting out on her trip (she wore white in the hotel room with her lover). And on and on. There has never been another film like Psycho and we have Hitchcock to thank for that.

[@lunaliagingerbread8291]

* Thank you👏 for delving into such an iconic movie Psycho. It was probably in the last 20 years, every so often I would sit back and enjoy this movie, and everytime I viewed it I was all the more intrigued. In 2018, It would be far more meaningful if movies nowadays had the quality and effort that was put into this movie. As I was saying, I had to watch Psycho many different times over the years as I was intrigued, and figuring out the hidden psychological meanings Like, why was there the uncanny element?, and why is the viewer left not knowing what was that all about?...what did I just watch?...& feeling like someday I've got to watch it again to figure it out for myself. You ought to have added the scare element, the shock, the fear many felt, as they will forever feel apprehensive about ever taking a shower!! How bout back when the movie first came out in the theatre? Most viewers screamed out loud, as there wasn't another macabre movie out like it, was there? Alfred Hitchcock was a movie genius, as many have said. ominous but beautiful music, and the plot, or pond/swamp out back thickens.... *

[@udaykumar-v5j2i]

I've seen the movie and later seen more videos on analysis of psycho but the explanation you did and the analysis you did was so excellent, keep it up.

[@jonathanshank3169]

i wish you gave commentary of every film that i love.

[@hammyhorrorhead]

I have seen this film many times and only recently realized mothers dead dried face and rictus grin superimposed on Normans face for a split second when he smiles at the end. I love Art that does that .

[@eilidhhuggan2701]

Beautiful and insightfully written.

[@nicolasbecerra6601]

Great video! I just saw Psycho for the first time this week and just knew there was more to Marion's story that what the film intitially lets on. You explained it all in a very simple to grasp way. Nice Job!

[@paperchain1239]

Whole film is creepy, especially the cop's sunglasses

[@mutinyonthekitkat]

I've always thought the cop's face is interestingly similar to the skeletal face at the end. I wonder if this was deliberate:?

[@hebneh]

It’s intentionally unsettling because we, and Marion, need to be startled and unnerved when we first see it. Marion wrongly assumes she’s been caught already by the police.

@@hebneh I always thought the cop was as creepy as Norman!

[@Wigfield84]

Hitchcock actually had a fear of cops, so he loved using the police officer as a menacing driving force for Marion. He drives her right into the parlor of an innocent looking madman. Alfred's father once had him arrested as a child and thrown in jail overnight, I can't remember what he did...stolen something possibly?

[@PCIZ503]

I saw the video on Spirited Away and was amazed that you only took a few minutes to give me a whole new way of thinking about a film I've seen a dozen times. Then you did it again here. Well, that's a sub in the bag.

[@xyg2788]

This movie is filled with hidden symbolism and psychological perspective. It's really interesting and I would like to know more

[@shanefolan9175]

Every film, book, tv show, song and book is if you analyse it enough. It's art remember-open for interpretation.

[@Xesxs]

Write your own commentary to go with it, what you get out of it. Also many books on subject well before KZbin. I recommended reading.

[@Pelagion98]

Every time I see any essay video mention Slavoj Zizek, I roll my eyes.

[@Lue_Jonin]

If any of you haven't seen "Hitchcock" staring Anthony Hopkins as Alfred Hitchcock and the making of "Psycho" .. I highly recommend it.... Just as a masterpiece of cinema as the film itself. ... Hopkins is outstanding in every role he portrays. ❤ 🎥

[@blameitoncapitalism]

Best video I've even seen on the subject of this movie and trust me I've seen A LOT. thank you for that!

[@neilsjmcmahon]

Zizek did the three level analysis quite well - uncanny is untagging & subtle

[@mickyfinn4466]

Very good. This gave me a new perspective from which to view this great movie. Psycho must be one of the most analysed films ever made, and I find it astonishing that new interpretations keep....surfacing.

[@louisdavies8050]

I always took the use of mirrors to show the disconnect between physical self and what is inside the mind. Like when you see them talking but there is duplicate of Marion in the mirror, the film is speaking on people's duplicity. Have you ever looked in a mirror and caught yourself off guard? Do we all have different sides of ourselves? I like the angle about the uncanny though, everything in the film feels foreboading but not in a heavy way...its more eerie.

[@j4mm3d]

My favourite film analysis. I've watched this many times over the years. Wishing you was still producing content, but love this one, and Showgirls, Vulcans, and The Age of Innocence as enlightening and have recommend to many. Hope you well and happy in your new life.

[@mimoooo]

This analysis is so good and deep that the only thing i've got left to wonder is... Did Hitchcock had all this in mind while making the film? If he did (which is pretty likely), then there's no doubt on why is he so praised.

[@joestrike8537]

Totally! (See above for my comment about the shower head briefly shown in Marion's apartment)

[@andygaines9686]

Ever since I read about the smile and look on Marian's face and Norman's face at the end I cannot unsee it. I can't believe , though, that I watched this film a number of times before and never noticed it!

[@PaulKyriazi]

Outstanding new information and I've read and seen everything on this movie, so it's great to get some new insight from this video.

[@youbute4877]

Great video! Thank you for showing me another perspective, love such detailed movie overview's, which present you the things that you haven't noticed, connected.

[@abdulwasayfarooqui3932]

Anthony perkins acting made this movie more memorable.

[@EvelynThayer]

the shower scene really sends the chills down my spine as well as the investagator on the stairway. This movie is very suspenseful and a great choice for beginners in old movies

[@pcwillis]

Fascinating stuff! I studied this movie in college and know it inside out, but you've shed new light on it for me. Thank you!

[@stevensonrf]

This is, without a doubt, one of the most excellent reflective videos on this movie I’ve ever seen.

[@philipgior3312]

That's the mother's skeletal face superimposed upon Norman's' face near the end of the film, not Marion's. That's the way I always saw it anyway.

[@theproplady]

Very interesting take on the material. I like Rob Ager's interpretation as well where he mentions the notion of Marion being a doppelganger (however, he sees her as a reflection of her sister, and Norman and Sam being reflections of each other as well.) I suppose you could interpret things any number of ways, but yours is definitely a new and thoughtful perspective!

[@isthisjustfantasy7583]

Thank you! I love all of Rob Ager's analyses, especially his in-depth look at The Shining.

[@blackswan4486]

Rob ager is just the best!

[@Thrna_1]

Watched this when I was 11 and while I always knew Norman was the killer, I would have had no idea that his mother would turn out to have been dead the whole time.

[@mackb909]

A brilliant video essay. I’d add one more observation: the actors playing Norman and Sam , Anthony Perkins and John Gavin respectively, bore a strong physical resemblance to one another: both are tall, dark-haired, brown-eyed, and handsome. Given what we know about Hitchcock, this casting hardly seems a coincidence. In the scene near the end when Sam wrestles the knife out of granny-dress-clad Norman’s hand, they almost resemble two twins struggling in physical combat. Sam Loomis is a debt-ridden hardware store proprietor who, in spite of his almost stereotypically mid-20th-century American manliness and virility, is impotent when it comes to providing the stability and respectability Marion craves- and this ultimately drives her to her impulsive crime. Norman on the other hand, whose social awkwardness and neuroticism are all too readily apparent on the surface (in contrast to Sam’s surface suavity), is, if nothing else, financially secure, if trapped in his psychotic mind’s prison of punishing and vengeful motherhood. But is Sam, in the end, unable to save Marion from her ghastly fate, really the stronger “man”? Among all the uncanny doubling in the film, the contrasting yet oddly complementary characters of Norman and Sam stands as Hitchcock’s commentary on clichéd American notions of manhood in that era.