It was a weekday afternoon during the summer of 1984. My Mother was heading to the store and was leaving me home to fend for myself for a short time. I sat in front of the television flipping channels and came across a black and white movie that I hadn't seen before. On the screen, Janet Leigh (who I knew as Jamie Lee Curtis's mother) was buying a car while looking over her shoulder at a policeman parked across the street. My curiosity was grabbed immediately and I put the remote control down. My mother walked through the living room on her way out the door, took one look at the television and said "David, this is PSYCHO. Please don't watch this alone." I looked at her like she was nuts. It was the middle of the day and the sun was shining. How scary could it be? An hour later, my mother returned from Kroger's (remember Krogers?) and I was just reaching the point in the story where Vera Miles entered the Bates Home and took that infamous trip down to the basement. Nothing affected me this much since 1979 when I watched the network premiere of John Carpenter's HALLOWEEN and slept with a lamp on for two weeks. PSYCHO is the movie that I believe officially made me a Movie Fanatic. Here was this movie made 10 years before my birth that still had an impact on a new viewer 24 years later! I immediately rented PSYCHO II and although not coming close to the original, it still worked some magic and shimmer into the continuing tale of Norman Bates. PSYCHO III was a letdown and the prequel PSYCHO IV: THE BEGINNING brought a permanent end to the franchise. I have seen PSYCHO several times, including the shot by shot remake from 1998 that did nothing but piss people off (I'm one of the few that enjoy it for simply being made at all). But I hadn't sat down to watch the original PSYCHO since cleansing myself of the remake by watching the Hitchcock masterpiece immediately afterwards. So, last week I turned the final page in a book called ALFRED HITCHCOCK AND THE MAKING OF PSYCHO by Stephen Rebello. It's a fascinating account of how Hitchcock made the film and the effect it had on directors, audiences and the genre itself for years to come. Over the weekend, I sat down and rewatched PSYCHO. From the first strains of that brilliant "all-strings" score by Bernard Herrmann, I was immediately transported back to being a teenager and watching it for the first time. It is incredible how it still holds up, even after numerous viewings. The dread I still feel when Marion Crane turns on the shower, when Arbogast begins climbing those stairs, and when Lila Crane enters the fruit cellar gently calling "Mrs. Bates.....". But what I really noticed this time were the performances. It's a shame that the shock of the film in 1960 took away from the appreciation of some of the portrayals. Janet Leigh absolutely deserved her Best Supporting Actress nomination. Most of her work is done without dialogue and she is spellbinding. Her "reaction" work during that Parlor Scene with Norman is masterful. Janet Leigh is the only Acting nomination the film received at that year's Academy Awards. How Anthony Perkins was ignored is beyond me. What a performance. Again, the silent moments as he is cleaning up "Mother's" dirty work. The way he compulsively eats the candy corn while Arbogast is questioning him. His final look at the camera before the skull makes an appearance (look fast!!!). Perkins makes you care about Norman and even as the movie ends one can't help feel a little sympathy towards this abused Mama's Boy. One also can't forget the wonderful work from Martin Balsam, Vera Miles, and John Gavin also. PSYCHO is an example of how they truly DON'T make 'em like they used to. If you have never seen it, do yourself a favor. Just don't watch it alone......
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