Analysis of Psycho- Representation of Victim/Villain
As soon as the credits start there is a sudden impact of loud and fast music. This is setting the whole mood for the rest of the film that it’s dark and gives an uneasy feeling throughout the whole film. The only type of editing we see are a lot of bars coming across the screen at different angles, this represents bars, and it’s as if it’s trapping the person in the film because the bars are going over the names of crew and director and when the bars disappear they quickly returned to give off the effect that no matter how hard you try they will always come back and get you. Another effect of the bars is that it’s trapping the viewer and making them watch this film even if they don’t want to they are being forced to. When the names of the crew and directors appear, they start of being misplaced and jagged with a thick line through them, this represents a knife cutting a person open which gives the audience a quick hint to what their going to expect from the film.
Opening Scene/ Introduction to Possible Victim
After the credits, the music calms down when the whole city is shown via establishing shot that pans, this is to represent the calm equilibrium of life and how everything is fine. As the city is shown credits appear saying ‘Phoenix Arizona’ this is setting the scene for our film which gives the viewer background information towards the film, Another credit that appears is’ Friday the eleventh’, this is confusing for the viewer because normally a terrible Friday is Friday the 13th however its not so it gives the effect that its going to be a safe day, another effect is when the viewer thinks of a weekend they think a happy stress free couple of days however this is quickly taken away later on in the film. As the camera pans across the city and establishes the shot, The mise-en-scene gives the effect of a hunter/predator looking for his next kill and this mirrors to later on in the film of Norman and him watching Marion, Then the camera zooms in on an open window, the window closes in at a canted angle, this is disorientating for the viewer because it isn’t considered normal so you know something’s wrong. The camera then goes in through the small gap in the window and it mirrors a predator creeping up on its prey getting ready to attack.
The first shot we see of our characters is a girl lying on a bed half naked with a man standing over her, at first sight it’s as if this man has murdered this girl and it quickly makes the viewer uneasy cause they believe something has already happened, however we then see them both move so the audience’s tension are put at rest. This scene is introducing the possible victim in the story. Then begins the dialogue between the two characters, throughout the whole dialogue the characters are constantly moving around the room and bed, however the camera always keeps them both in a 2 person mid shot, the camera is in a two person mid shot throughout the whole scene, this shows the relationship between both characters and how they are very close, however this changes nearer the end of the scene when they start to disagree with one another because the camera then turns to singular mid shots, this represents how their relationship is slowly parting. Also the two characters are softly touching each other’s bodies and being delicate to one another, this shows the contrast between the killer and the man, the man is being soft and looking after her body where as the killer will damage and be rough with her.
First Appearance of Norman
As Marion is approaching the motel, there is a point of view shot from Marion’s perspective at the ‘Bates Motel’ sign, this shows the sign to be very off centred which is disorientating for the viewer because it’s making them search for the sign instead of it being thrown in their face. Also because the sign is off centred this could link to Norman, how he isn’t a normal person even though he appears normal, another thing that links to Norman is how the sign is blurred by rain, this could represent Norman appearing to be nice at the start however there is something about him as if he is hiding something about himself.
As Marion arrives at the motel, you get the first appearance of Norman from a long shot , at first he seems very excited about having a new person to come to his motel, however there is a slight sense of hesitance to him about approaching her which hints to the viewer that something is not right about him. As he approaches her he starts of friendly and offers to take in her things etc then they both head into their office, throughout the dialogue there is a lot of cross cutting between both characters and from this you can see Norman is considerably bigger than Marion which shows his dominance over her. As Norman goes to select the keys, Marion turns her head to look at the magazine hanging out of her bag containing the money, the words we see are ‘okay’, this is ironic to the situation to she’s in because it may seem okay but it’s really not. The camera then cuts back to Norman selecting the keys and whilst doing this, he hand hovers of number 3 of the keys then goes down to 2 and 1, this could represent the countdown of Marion being in Normans possession and that she can no longer escape, essentially being the countdown of her life ending. Also throughout the conversation, everything that they hold hints to sharp objects, for example the pen she is using is very sharp, and the way the keys are placed are also very sharp so it links to the knife being used in the murder later on.
Norman then invites Marion to have dinner with him, this is showing that he appears as a nice guy and just being kind to her, so he then takes her into a separate room behind the office, this could represent Marion falling deeper and deeper into Norman’s trap. Whilst eating dinner with Norman in a two person mid shot, From the Mise-en-scene you can see there is a difference in lighting and objects surrounding each character, for example when the camera is on Marion it’s quite bright and there are everyday household objects, but when the camera goes on Norman its very dark and there are Birds of prey surrounding him, this could represents both their personalities and how Norma is the predator stalking and hunting Marion the prey. Also there is a open book behind Norman, this represents him from Marion’s perspective, because she can see him as a nice man at the moment (one page) but there is so much more to him that she doesn’t know (rest of the book). Also their costumes contrast with one another because Marion has her clothes buttoned up which represents her class and formal way of life, but then there is Norman’s top is unbuttoned which isn’t normal back then so it represents his insecurity and shows to the viewer that there is something not right about him.
Norman then proceeds to show Marion to her room, as they enter the room there are more birds of prey paintings surrounding her which gives the effect that the danger is closing in on her and always following her. Norman shows her each part of the room calmly and clearly, but then he shows her the shower, but he does not turn on the light and he is hesitant about it, this shows that this dark room is very dangerous and Norman knows it is because he has possibly murdered someone in there before.
As Marion arrives at the motel, you get the first appearance of Norman from a long shot , at first he seems very excited about having a new person to come to his motel, however there is a slight sense of hesitance to him about approaching her which hints to the viewer that something is not right about him. As he approaches her he starts of friendly and offers to take in her things etc then they both head into their office, throughout the dialogue there is a lot of cross cutting between both characters and from this you can see Norman is considerably bigger than Marion which shows his dominance over her. As Norman goes to select the keys, Marion turns her head to look at the magazine hanging out of her bag containing the money, the words we see are ‘okay’, this is ironic to the situation to she’s in because it may seem okay but it’s really not. The camera then cuts back to Norman selecting the keys and whilst doing this, he hand hovers of number 3 of the keys then goes down to 2 and 1, this could represent the countdown of Marion being in Normans possession and that she can no longer escape, essentially being the countdown of her life ending. Also throughout the conversation, everything that they hold hints to sharp objects, for example the pen she is using is very sharp, and the way the keys are placed are also very sharp so it links to the knife being used in the murder later on.
Norman then invites Marion to have dinner with him, this is showing that he appears as a nice guy and just being kind to her, so he then takes her into a separate room behind the office, this could represent Marion falling deeper and deeper into Norman’s trap. Whilst eating dinner with Norman in a two person mid shot, From the Mise-en-scene you can see there is a difference in lighting and objects surrounding each character, for example when the camera is on Marion it’s quite bright and there are everyday household objects, but when the camera goes on Norman its very dark and there are Birds of prey surrounding him, this could represents both their personalities and how Norma is the predator stalking and hunting Marion the prey. Also there is a open book behind Norman, this represents him from Marion’s perspective, because she can see him as a nice man at the moment (one page) but there is so much more to him that she doesn’t know (rest of the book). Also their costumes contrast with one another because Marion has her clothes buttoned up which represents her class and formal way of life, but then there is Norman’s top is unbuttoned which isn’t normal back then so it represents his insecurity and shows to the viewer that there is something not right about him.
Norman then proceeds to show Marion to her room, as they enter the room there are more birds of prey paintings surrounding her which gives the effect that the danger is closing in on her and always following her. Norman shows her each part of the room calmly and clearly, but then he shows her the shower, but he does not turn on the light and he is hesitant about it, this shows that this dark room is very dangerous and Norman knows it is because he has possibly murdered someone in there before.
As Norman leaves, he then goes back to his office where he removes a painting off a wall which then reveals a hole looking into Marion’s room, he then begins to watch her get undressed, but the camera quickly puts us in Normans point of view which disturbs the audience because its put them in a sense of voyeurism invading her privacy.
Murder Scene
Then begins the build up to the murder scene, it starts off with Norman going into his house, he starts to go upstairs but then changes his mind to stay downstairs, this could represent his mood and intentions, by him going upstairs he would of left her alone and gone to bed but as he decides to stay down stairs, he keeps his bad intentions in his head and starts to plan out what he is going to do to her.
The camera then cuts back to Marion getting ready to go in the shower, as she is getting ready we see a medium shot of her and we see a mirror behind her, in the mirror, from the Mise-En-Scene there appears to be outline of a shadow that looks like a bird of prey behind her, this represents that danger is closing in on her and is constantly stalking her. She then flushes some paper down the toilet, this represents her life being washed away and that everything she has worked for to get the money is being taken away. As she enters the shower, she pulls the curtain closed very harshly and aggressively, the digetic sound it creates is very irritating and harsh for the viewer which could link to the murderer being aggressive towards her. The innocence then develops even more, because at the start we thought she was vulnerable just in her normal life but it’s now grown even more because she is naked in the shower with water coming down on her which takes her attention away from the danger that is approaching because it’s an equilibrium of life and feels normal. From the lighting and facial expressions we can she is very happy and feels safe in the shower because she now feels clean and fresh however this quickly changes.
The close up from inside the shower shows the curtain behind her, we then see a faint movement of the door opening and a mysterious figure standing in the doorway, Marion cannot see this but we can so it makes us feel powerless to help her. The figure then starts to come closer to Marion which builds the tension dramatically with the music building, Then the figure quickly pulls the curtain open then begins the quick cuts of shots between the knife and Marion which is very irritating because of the harsh music that is going with it which makes the audience feel uneasy about what they are seeing, Marion then falls down to the floor and we see an extreme close up of her eye, we see a tear coming out which contrasts from only five minutes ago where she was happy, also we see a shot of the blood flowing down the drain, this links back to the paper in the toilet but instead of the paper its her blood going down and her life being drained from her.
After the scene, Norman then proceeds to tidy up the room then begins to get rid of the evidence as if nothing happened to act as if no one was there the motel is still waiting on his next victim. He then picks up the newspaper containing the money and throws the newspaper in the newspaper in the boot of the car with Marion’s body, this represents the story of her and how she lived and worked hard for the money thinking it would make her happy but then ended up having a role which lead up to her death.
Then begins the build up to the murder scene, it starts off with Norman going into his house, he starts to go upstairs but then changes his mind to stay downstairs, this could represent his mood and intentions, by him going upstairs he would of left her alone and gone to bed but as he decides to stay down stairs, he keeps his bad intentions in his head and starts to plan out what he is going to do to her.
The camera then cuts back to Marion getting ready to go in the shower, as she is getting ready we see a medium shot of her and we see a mirror behind her, in the mirror, from the Mise-En-Scene there appears to be outline of a shadow that looks like a bird of prey behind her, this represents that danger is closing in on her and is constantly stalking her. She then flushes some paper down the toilet, this represents her life being washed away and that everything she has worked for to get the money is being taken away. As she enters the shower, she pulls the curtain closed very harshly and aggressively, the digetic sound it creates is very irritating and harsh for the viewer which could link to the murderer being aggressive towards her. The innocence then develops even more, because at the start we thought she was vulnerable just in her normal life but it’s now grown even more because she is naked in the shower with water coming down on her which takes her attention away from the danger that is approaching because it’s an equilibrium of life and feels normal. From the lighting and facial expressions we can she is very happy and feels safe in the shower because she now feels clean and fresh however this quickly changes.
The close up from inside the shower shows the curtain behind her, we then see a faint movement of the door opening and a mysterious figure standing in the doorway, Marion cannot see this but we can so it makes us feel powerless to help her. The figure then starts to come closer to Marion which builds the tension dramatically with the music building, Then the figure quickly pulls the curtain open then begins the quick cuts of shots between the knife and Marion which is very irritating because of the harsh music that is going with it which makes the audience feel uneasy about what they are seeing, Marion then falls down to the floor and we see an extreme close up of her eye, we see a tear coming out which contrasts from only five minutes ago where she was happy, also we see a shot of the blood flowing down the drain, this links back to the paper in the toilet but instead of the paper its her blood going down and her life being drained from her.
After the scene, Norman then proceeds to tidy up the room then begins to get rid of the evidence as if nothing happened to act as if no one was there the motel is still waiting on his next victim. He then picks up the newspaper containing the money and throws the newspaper in the newspaper in the boot of the car with Marion’s body, this represents the story of her and how she lived and worked hard for the money thinking it would make her happy but then ended up having a role which lead up to her death.
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