Psycho (1960)

Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. Even the name screams one of the most iconic films in cinema, but is it really as good as people say it is? In my opinion, not as such. While being a well paced movie that delivers some interesting looks at characterisation, the overall tone of the film does leave a lot to the imagination. The film opens with Marion Crane being on the run after stealing some money, leading to her stay in the fateful Bates Motel. Hitchcock then introduces what I think is the best written character in the film, Norman Bates. The actor portraying the character masterfully weaves in an air of suspicion to the mannerisms of Norman, creating a lingering sense of dread leading up to one of the most undoubtedly iconic scenes of cinema of all time. The good things about this film for me, however, mostly end there. The mystery the supporting characters have to solve while having the potential to be a gripping case but due to the sub-par writing for these characters it comes across as dull and quite boring at times. They just don't have the charisma or presence to carry a scene by themselves, and end up becoming pretty forgettable by the end of the film, with many serving no purpose by the film's conclusion. In terms of locations and lighting, the film delivers partly, with memorable locations that have the potential to be vivid and exciting being unfortunately shrouded in gloomy darkness obscuring a lot of what could be capitalised on by Hitchcock. Pacing wise, it also varies drastically throughout the film, with the moments in the motel being fast paced and gripping but the time spent outside in the city with the supporting characters coming across as bland and lumbering. I will however say that the plot twist at the end was very well written and lent itself to quite a compelling ending that left me feeling partially satisfied with how the mystery was solved. Overall, as good as some parts of the film were, I don't think that is one of Hitchcock's greatest films, and certainly falls into the trend of being very overrated by society.