Alfred Hitchcock 's 1960 film Psycho saw audiences introduced to a shy, isolated, but derrannged character - Norman Bates. The uncomfortable combination of both sympathy and disgust is slowly revealed through Bates ' history and the events that change him during the movie. Using sound, camera angles, and reorganisation of the generic conventions of horror films, Hitchcock constructed Bates ' character in a way that kept the audience in suspense as to whether he was truly a monster or just a young man suffering mental-instability.
Norman Bates was originally written as a middle-aged, overweight, disconsolate man; a character screen audiences would recognise, but not embrace. Hitchcock "permenantly altered the face of the horror-film monster" (Freeland 2000, 161) not only by casting a skinny, fresh-faced Anthony Perkins whom audiences already knew as a young romantic lead, but by inviting audiences to …show more content…
The sound techniques used throughout the film contribute to the construction of Norman as an evil person. When Norman is sitting in the parlour with Marion there is no music playing for most of their conversation, that is until Marion brings up the idea of sending Norman 's 'mother ' to an institution. Norman 's reaction to this is not pleasant and he begins to speak of how awful asylums are and how he would never consider doing something like that to someone he loves. The non-diegetic music then begins and intensifies as Norman 's tone and demeanour becomes threatening. This builds tension in the scene, and both Marion and the audience become increasingly uncomfortable and scared by Norman 's change of mood. This also foreshadows the intensity associated with the non-diegetic music used in the famous shower scene which is a thrilling turning point in the regular
Norman Bates was originally written as a middle-aged, overweight, disconsolate man; a character screen audiences would recognise, but not embrace. Hitchcock "permenantly altered the face of the horror-film monster" (Freeland 2000, 161) not only by casting a skinny, fresh-faced Anthony Perkins whom audiences already knew as a young romantic lead, but by inviting audiences to …show more content…
The sound techniques used throughout the film contribute to the construction of Norman as an evil person. When Norman is sitting in the parlour with Marion there is no music playing for most of their conversation, that is until Marion brings up the idea of sending Norman 's 'mother ' to an institution. Norman 's reaction to this is not pleasant and he begins to speak of how awful asylums are and how he would never consider doing something like that to someone he loves. The non-diegetic music then begins and intensifies as Norman 's tone and demeanour becomes threatening. This builds tension in the scene, and both Marion and the audience become increasingly uncomfortable and scared by Norman 's change of mood. This also foreshadows the intensity associated with the non-diegetic music used in the famous shower scene which is a thrilling turning point in the regular