Hitchcock's Psycho (codes of a thriller)

Hitchcock's Psycho (codes of a thriller)

Psycho is a 1960 American thriller made by Alfred Hitchcock. In its time it was classed as one of the most iconic stories, with it still to this day being a classic in cinema. It is said to be one of Hitchcock's best work as well as the greatest film of all time.

With it being the most iconic thriller of all time it uses many traditional conventions found in a thriller film, one of these being sound.

Sound is an important factor in films as it creates a basic scene and can create a certain mood that the director wants to create. Depending on its pitch and pace, any mood can be created. In Psycho the main piece of sound is the high pitched repetitive shrieking, used whenever a bad situation or event occurs. Even when we can't see an actual bad thing happening, when the music plays we are led to believe that something might happen or simply what the character is thinking is troublesome.

Another convention used is low key lighting. Though hard to see due to Psycho being black and white, in incriminating scenes light is minimal. The scenes are dark, both in actual and metaphorical scenes; what has just occurred is evil and dark, which fits in well with the concept of minimal lighting.

Yet another convention used in Psycho is fast paced editing, especially used in the shower scene. The use of fast paced editing and shots, creates a panicked almost desperate atmosphere, which is complementary to the drama of the murder of the shower . This is quite a dramatic scene using quick short shots to create the right mood. If this code had not been used, the effect would be completely different and no longer effective.