Product Research: Psycho - Alfred Hitchcock (1960)

I chose to do product research on 'Psycho' as it is a classic film and very well known by different variety of people.

As soon as the trailer starts the audience can hear the famous soundtrack of the film which implies its a very 'sit on the edge of your seat' film. The first few shots are very fast and close ups of different parts of the body, including the hand scraping down the wall which implies a scream for help, the close up of the foot being still implies a murder and a man pulling down a shower curtain with a knife in his hand implies danger. The man holding the knifes face is blacked out to create a more mysterious and creepy atmosphere.
The shot of the house showing the front door and a lot of overgrowth of plants, looks very run down and old to suggest to the audience the oddness of this place and how its atmosphere is not what we expect. When the women says to the owner of the motel 'Do you have any vacancies?' he replies with 'We have 12 vacancies' which implies to the audience that its an empty place which not very many people go to.







The shot of the house through the car window with the rain trickling down the front window implies the creepiness of the house and what takes place inside it. We then see a shot of the house at night which creates a spine-chilling and eerie atmosphere, with the added effect of the trees on the right hand side adding to the darkness. The lights aren't on in the upper section of the house to show that there is something maybe hidden and secretive up there.

In this shot we can see the protagonist in the shower. She is in a position in which she is seen as vulnerable and alone. She has no idea whats going to happen next and as you can see there is a dark shadow lingering behind the shower curtain. This is technique is used to build up tension and curiosity for the audience.




Overall I really like this opening as it wasn't to obvious what was going to happen throughout the film, and makes you want to carry on watching it. I also liked Psycho as it is a film that builds up tension all throughout and has a really unexpected ending. Hitchcock did a pretty good job.