My Review of Psycho (1998)

Written by Joseph Stefano

Directed by Gus Van Sant

Norman (to Marion): "A boy's best friend is his mother."

I was always going to have to circle back to this one. Earlier in the year, I sat through the Anthony Perkins starring sequels and even ventured into a TV movie that felt somewhat disconnected. Then there was this remake and um, yeah. I know why I held off with this one.

Usually remakes try to spice it up a bit and be somewhat different to the original in order to justify their existence. This one on the other decided to be as close to the original as it could be that I really do question it's existence.

Anyways, you've got your false protagonist with Marion Crane (Anne Heche). Again, she decided to steal $400,000 from her boss to help her separated lover, Sam Loomis (Viggo Mortensen), even to the point of making a stop at a certain motel. You know the one I'm talking about.

The motel being the Bates Motel where proprietor Norman (Vince Vaughn) made an unsettling impression on Marion before his other self took over and killed her. Yeah, that scene played out as it did in the original and nowhere near as effectively. It's staged very badly if I'm being honest.

Then there was the other characters at play. You had Marion's sister, Lila (Julianne Moore) and private detective Arbogast (William H. Macy) all working together to find Marion. This of course led to them circling in on Norman.

Everything after that just felt like a race to the conclusion. Arbogast died in a very cartoonish way, Norman dressed like his mother whom he poisoned over a decade ago and Lila and Sam barely survived him. At least Mrs Bates (Rose Marie) wouldn't hurt a fly though.

- Some differences would be the fact there was more blood and Norman clearly masturbating before killing Marion.

- Nicole Kidman was originally considered for Marion but turned down due to scheduling conflicts. 

- Standout music: Rob Zombie's Living Dead Girl.

- Chronology: It came out in 1998 and we go from a Phoenix motel to California for the main events.

I think this version of Psycho did prove that you can't do a shot for shot remake and expect the same results. It's an inferior product in every way possible and despite everyone trying their best (I've somewhat softened a bit to Vince Vaughn in this), it ultimately feels like a waste of time all round.

Rating: 5 out of 10 

My Review of Bates Motel (1987)

 

Written And Directed by Richard Rothstein

Alex (to the audience): "If you ever need a room, come on by. I can't say for sure what you'll find, but that is what makes the world go around".

First of all, not to be confused with the fantastic prequel series we'd get in the 2010s and secondly, this was more of a spin-off and the first time this world got sent to TV. I have to admit, I didn't know this even existed until a week ago.

If you're expecting Anthony Perkins to emerge at any point in this television movie, you're in for a world of disappointment. This movie not only doesn't feature Perkins but for the limited screen time that Norman Bates did have, the character was played by Kurt Paul.

I also say limited because for once Norman isn't the main focus. In fact he's quickly killed off in this movie and the emphasis instead fell on to a fellow inmate named Alex West (Bud Cort) whom Norman had befriended and guided in the asylum prior to his death.

Anyways, Alex got released from the asylum and inherited the Bates Motel and needless to say, that came with plenty of complications in itself. Notably the fact that teenage runaway Willie (Lori Petty) was squatting in the abandoned motel and wasn't keen on the idea of potentially having to move elsewhere.

Saying that, there's a delightful friendship between Alex and Willie that anchored a lot of the movie and along with retiring handyman Henry Watson (Moses Gunn), the trio managed to get the Bates Motel up and running. Surely, that's where the horror was going to happen, right?

Actually things went a bit more Scooby Doo than Psycho to be fair. When the film didn't have bank manager Tom Fuller (Gregg Henry) playing ghost to scare Alex out of business, there were actual ghosts of teenagers and a woman who came to ending it all before changing her mind. Not the sort of thing you'd expect in the particular franchise.

- Anthony Perkins didn't boycott the movie but he did say it was terrible at a convention.

- This TV movie was actually a pilot for a TV series that didn't happen due to low ratings.

- Kurt Paul who played Norman Bates actually was Anthony Perkins stunt double for both Psycho II and Psycho II.

- Chronology: Over twenty years since the events of Psycho.

Bates Motel wasn't that bad to watch but it definitely felt like something that would've worked better as it's own thing than being attached to this franchise. Saying that, it's weirdly watchable.

Rating: 6 out of 10 

My Review of Psycho IV: The Beginning (1990)

 

Written by Joseph Stefano

Directed by Mick Garris

Norman (to Fran): "Oh, I've killed before and now, I'm gonna have to do it again."

Into the fourth movie of this series and we got something that not only served as a prequel but also a sequel that only went and ignored the previous two sequels. Don't you just love it when a horror franchise does that?

Ignoring the crazy aunt that pretended to be his mother, we have a Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) who was released from the asylum he had spent a long time in calling a late night radio show, hosted by Fran Ambrose (CCH Pounder). This would be the main plot of this movie.

The radio show in question was about men who killed their mothers, a topic that Norman was well versed in and one where he was better to articulate than the experts Fran had on her show. Fran got so enamoured with Norman, the experts themselves were almost quickly written out of the movie to accommodate Norman himself.

Getting to the prequel aspect of the film we had a lot of flashbacks with a young Norman (Henry Thomas) and the toxic, co-dependent relationship with his mother Norma (Olivia Hussey). Throughout the flashbacks we had Norma emasculate her son incessantly, only for Norman to eventually snap and kill both Norma and her lover, Chet Rudolph (Thomas Schuster). To be fair, Norma had it coming.

Of course Mommy Dearest and her feckless boyfriend weren't the only victims of Norman's in flashbacks. Norman's dalliances with two different women, spurred his "mother" persona into murder. Then there was also the fact that Fran realised Norman was on the verge of killing again.

The would be victim being Norman's own wife, Connie (Donna Mitchell). Norman was tempted to murder his wife because she fell pregnant against his wishes and a reunion between the couple in the Bates family home really could've the same way as the sequels did. Norman came close to succumbing to his mother yet again before choosing a different path.

- The writer for this movie was the same as the original movie. However this aired on Showtime instead of being a theatrical release.

- Janet Leigh (Marion Crane from the first movie) did an introduction for the movie's broadcast.

- Anthony Perkins has a different pitch that was more akin to a black comedy that the studio rejected in favour of what we ended up.

- Chronology: 1940, 1949, 1951 and 1990. Norman's birthday factored into the movie, set during one night.

Psycho IV: The Beginning does feel like a marked improvement on the previous movie and managed to pull off the prequel with a sequel idea rather well. Anthony Perkins gave a strong final performance as his most infamous character with Henry Thomas, Olivia Hussey and CCH Pounder all providing fantastic support. It's a bit underrated this one.

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of Psycho III (1986)

 

Written by Charles Edward Pogue

Directed by Anthony Perkins 

Sheriff Hunt: "Why, Norman, why? Good God son. You'll never get out again. We're gonna have you locked up forever."

Norman: "But I'll be free. I'll finally be free."

Following the events of the previous movie, any hope for Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) to be rehabilitated had gone out the window. He had relapsed and murdered Emma Spool (Claudia Bryar) and was keeping her body like he had done with his mother beforehand.

On top of that, he had more threats coming out of the woodwork. Emma's disappearance had been noted and none more than by journalist Tracy Venable (Roberta Maxwell), who seemed determined to prove that Norman was bad again. Unfortunately for Norman, she wasn't the only problem he had to face in this movie.

Norman also had to deal with the slippery wannabe musician Duane Duke (Jeff Fahey) who charmed himself into Norman's good graces by getting a job at the motel but then also teamed up with Tracy to stab him in the back. Duane however overplayed his hand when he realised that Norman didn't respond well to blackmail.

With two foils for Norman, there was also the fallen nun Maureen Coyle (Diana Scarwid). Yes, she looked too much like Marion Crane and there was certainly a point to that too. It also didn't take too long for Norman to fall in love with her, sleep with her as well as save her from a suicide attempt.

Norman's love story with Maureen certainly presented a new element to the character but his issues towards women and sex were further compounded by his mother's influence on him. Needless to say, it didn't end well for Maureen and it nearly didn't end well for Tracy either, until Norman broke his mother's hold on him.

The last scene where he was arrested by Sheriff Hunt (Hugh Gillin) seemed more like a victory for Norman where he admitted to finally being free. Also the movie's decision to reverse the Emma Spool revelation from the last one was a wise decision.

- Anthony Perkins made his director debut with this movie. He'd only direct one more prior to his death. He wanted it in black and white but Universal said no.

- Was it me or did the opening scene feel like a homage to The Exorcist? I thought I was watching the wrong movie at first.

- The last movie for Virginia Gregg who played Norma Bates in the first three movies.

- Chronology: A month has passed since the events of the second movie.

Psycho III certainly did it's best to keep up the momentum from the last one and I did appreciate the continuity from it. It's not quite as strong but in spite of his technical inexperience, I think Anthony Perkins did a decent job pulling double duty here.

Rating: 6 out of 10 

My Review of Psycho II (1983)

 

Written by Tom Holland 

Directed by Richard Franklin

Norman: "I don't kill people anymore."

I've been meaning to rewatch this series and review the sequels for a while. Advance warning: I actually dig sequels to a movie that didn't need them in the first place. It's largely down to Anthony Perkins of course. 

Over twenty years after the events of the first movie, a seemingly rehabilitated Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) has been released from the asylum and needless to say, he's got quite the battle ahead of him. It's a battle from different sides.

For Norman, there's an effort on his part to atone for his actions by working in a diner and it's there where Norman struck up an unlikely friendship with young waitress Mary Samuels (Meg Tilly). Perhaps he saw Mary as a means of amending what he did to Marion all those years ago.

However in spite of his best intentions to get on with his life, others weren't so keen on letting him be. Former motel manager Warren Toomey (Dennis Franz) went out of way to antagonise Norman and later ended up dead as a result and worse than that, Norman was both seeing and getting phone calls from his "mother", which did a number on his sanity.

Of course the main reveals from this sequel came in pairs. First of all, it was disgruntled Lila Loomis (Vera Miles) who was behind Norman's distress for most of this movie along with the reveal of Mary being her daughter. Mary felt bad about her part in Norman's downward spiral but it came at a massive to both of them.

As for the real big twist. No, it wasn't Norman eventually snapping and reverting back to his dependency on his mother. Instead it was the reveal of Emma Spool (Claudia Bryar) being supposedly Norman's real mother and the actual killer in this movie. I'm not sure I liked that reveal in itself but the aftermath of it certainly ended the movie on a macabre note that worked for me.

- The book Psycho II came out a year before this movie was released with an entirely different plot and outcome for Norman.

- Anthony Perkins son, Oz played a younger version of Norman during the movie as well.

-  This sequel would've been a TV movie had they not gotten Anthony Perkins to play Norman Bates again.

- Chronology: 22 years since the events of the first Psycho movie. Sam Loomis died between movies.

Psycho II easily could've been a disastrous sequel but it more than acquitted itself. Both Anthony Perkins and Meg Tilly (who apparently didn't get along) are excellent and play off each other so well. There's a tragedy in Norman trying his hardest to be good, nearly succeeding and slipping back to his old ways. 

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of Psycho (1960)

Written by Joseph Stefano
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

Norman (to Marion): "We all go a little mad sometimes."

Indeed, sometimes we do have a tendency to do that, Norman. This movie is certainly one that everyone knows and very few have seen. I remember seeing bits of it as a child and then seeing it in full during a college course about eleven years ago. A lot of what happens in this movie even with a slightly jaded cinema look still holds up pretty well.

I think the reason why this movie works so well is due to it's simplicity in nature to the characters and the unexpected twists it then takes. Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) steals money from her place of work and leaves town, hoping to eventually catch up with her lover Sam Loomis (John Gavin) but first decides to stop by a nice motel barely visible on the road.

The motel's owner is the odd but seemingly harmless Norman Bates, played by Anthony Perkins who first comes across as a bit of a lonely man before Marion probes him a bit too much about his relationship with his mother and the darker side then emerges. The shocker isn't so much that Marion is later stabbed to death in the shower and disposed of in the swamp but more everything that follows on the death.

The team up of Sam and Marion's sister, Lila (Vera Miles) with private detective Arbogast (Martin Balsam) as they try to discover what happened to Marion but end up learning a lot more about Norman Bates and his mother instead.

The twist of Norma killing his mother and her lover and assuming the mother's personalities to deal with arousal and desire holds up pretty well and Anthony Perkins certainly flits between charm, innocence and menace in such an effortless manner. It's no wonder that over fifty years later that his portrayal of Bates continues to hold up so well and has gone on to inspire so many other fictional killers in television and the movies.

The cinematography in the movie is absolutely gorgeous with some beautifully shot moments that add to the overall tension and macabre manner of the movie. The end scene with Norman sitting in his cell, fully taken over by his mother is the most effecting moment of the entire thing and certainly a powerful way of ending the movie. While there are great performances from Janet Leigh, Vera Miles and John Gavin, this is ultimately Anthony Perkins movie though.

- The novel for this movie is actually a lot more violent with Bates depicted as having an overt interest in porn and occultism. Marion was called Mary in the book and had a minor role.
- Anthony Perkins would reprise the role for three sequels that came out in 1983, 1986 and 1990 respectively - the last one being two years prior to Perkins death.
- Remake wise, we got one of this movie in 1998. One word: avoid.
- Apparently this was the first movie in which people got to see a toilet being flushed.

There's a reason why even fifty plus years on that Psycho is a classic piece of American cinema. Now whether or not it's Hitchcock's best movie, I don't know but it's definitely a movie that has stood the test the time and influenced a lot of modern horror nowadays. Oh and if you want to see a further worthwhile connection to it, check out Bates Motel.

Rating: 9 out of 10