The Role Of Suspense In Hitchcock's Psycho

Through is use of violence, suspense and surprises, the thriller has long been one of the most popular genres in film. Since the father of the thriller, Alfred Hitchcock, released Psycho, thrillers have captivated audiences with the combination of suspense and anxiety. Austrian-born director Michael Haneke, takes the central ideas of thrillers and places his own twists and style in his film to create his own unique brand of thriller. This is very evident in this 2002 movie, Caché. Despite Psycho and Caché both being classified as thrillers, Hitchcock and Haneke have different fundamental approaches to how they create suspense and tell a story. Haneke use of long takes, long shots, dull mise-en-scene and an ambiguous, and voyeurism creates …show more content…
In both Caché and Psycho, the director's force the audience to become part of the movie and witness images that would otherwise be taboo. In Psycho, the audience is given a first person perspective of Norman Bates as he spies on Marion. Hitchcock does this to blur the lines between audience member and character in the film and makes the audience feel guilty and has them question their place in the narrative. Are they taking part in the taboo act or just an outside observer. This same idea is used by Haneke as an audience spy on Georges life before he receives the tapes of the same perspectives the audience saw moments before. This is evident in the first scene of the film which seemed meaningless until the viewers discovered Georges was watching the tape of the audience spying on him. Again, the use of voyeurism makes the audience question their place in the film. Are they the ones tormenting Georges or just innocent bystanders. Both directors used this tactic to both immerse the audience and think about their place in