Alfred Hitchcock Suspense Analysis

How did alfred hitchcock create suspense in his film psycho?

Alfred Hitchcock is known as the master of suspense; and for good reason. He is a innovator of the film industry and his 1960 film ‘Psycho’ revolutinised the film industry

choice of using black and white photography film music he used throughout use of camera to lead the narration lack of dialogue in many scenes use of his plot - $40,000 theft is only a small part of the film but begins the story

Normam bates character (duality) hints early on of his two indenittites - you never see them together except when he carries her down to the cellar and that is a bird’s eye shot the conversation revealing Norman’s mother’s death 10 years ago the fact that Norman appears to get away with

A distinct variation between long, drawn out camera shots and short, snappy shots that create suspense by keeping the viewer agitated. An example of this technique clearly building and releasing suspense can be observed in the notorious shower scene - where lengthy, slow shots of Marion undressing and entering the shower accompanied by suspenseful music are then followed by sharp, jarring and disorientating cuts of Marion’s murder. Hitchcock also uses the camera to lead the narration, which is extremely effective. To elaborate, the camera in Psycho takes on human qualities, following the persona, which makes the viewer feel as though they are uncovering the mystery story in the film; thus creating suspense. This is exhibited in the scene where Marion is unpacking her bags and attempting to hide the money she has stolen. The camera follows Marion’s movements around the room, and then zooms in when she is inserting the money into the newspaper. This creates suspense by engaging the audience to the story. A similar technique displayed is subjective shots, in which the camera films from the perspective of the character; creating a connection with the character and the characters suspense. Furthermore, Hitchcock choose to controversially shoot his film in black and white. Not only did this help him maintain his low budget, but also contributes to the dark mood of the film whilst creating disturbing contrasts that add to the suspense. Alfred Hitchcock uses the camera extremely creatively and effectively in Psycho to create