Psycho (1960) 2nd Shot Analysis

This shot is from the iconic shower scene which is what makes us believe the sense of the mother being alive. The reason for us believing this is as we do not once see the face and have to guess and assume through the clothing, which we see a dress and a wig. We don’t see the face yet we’re presented with point of view shots from Marion looking at the killer, yet the back-lighting in the scene makes the killer shown as a silhouette.

Being shown Marion’s view puts us in her position which is unsettling. The phallic weapon being a knife, used by Norman is not seen entering Marion because of the Hays code but back then it was disturbing to watch due to the blood through body horror.

Hitchcock as an auteur shows how Hitchcock was a master of montage and specifically in this film. Making this scene powerful even without having the knife enter Marion this still scares the audience due to the fast pace and amount of shots used, keeping the audience on edge. This scene is also a strong example of collision cutting as we watch Marion happily shower quietly, which is quite relaxing and from this music picks up dramatically and the shots become shorter and much quicker, presented in many different angles to back up the horrifying and eerie music, maximising the shock.

Being shown Marion’s point of view puts the audience in her position, which is unsettling as we feel like the victim and how we’re being attacked, almost as this character is based on the context of Ed Gein is scares the audience more, playing around the nightmare of yourself being killed brutally and this scene shows that through the point of view shot. Norman is using the knife, which is a phallic weapon connoting his normal Norman side to this schizophrenia, how Norman lusted for Marion and the mother is taking that away from him through phallic means. The knife isn’t seen entering Marion because of the Hays Code, but back then it was disturbing to watch due to the context and the blood used through the body horror concept.

The overall threat and pace of the scene is presented through the short takes edited together in a fast montage, and the short takes of the knife present the sadistic theme.