Psycho

“Behind every Psycho’s success is a woman.” True enough!

“Hitchcock” is a biographical drama film based on a book Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho by Stephen Rebello. The film’s directed by Sacha Gervasi and centers
on the relationship between director Alfred Hitchcock and his wife Alma Reville during the making of Psycho, a controversial horror film that proved to be the director’s finest work and is now one of the most iconic films. It stars Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Scarlett Johansson, Jessica Biel.

The film started with the premiere of Hitchcock’s (Hopkins) latest film which went successfully but was troubled by a reporter’s proposition for him to retire already. Proving that he still got the spirit from his youth, he ventured to adapt a horror novel, Psycho – a book by Robert Bloch based on the serial killer, Ed Gein (an American killer and body parts snatcher). The brewing new film was frowned upon by studio executives and his colleagues alike and no one wanted to produce the horror film. But the director would’nt take ‘no’ for an answer and with the help of his wife and creative collaborator, Alma Reville (Mirren) they did everything & more to make the production possible. And indeed, all their efforts paid off as the horror pioneer still proves to be the top choice of critics as one of the best horror films of all time.

This film was a rare take on the life of the famous director – although he’s really known to belittle actors, hate them even but this film will tell you exactly why he’s been that way, he wanted the best so he expects only the best and anything less will be unacceptable. The director was played by Anthony Hopkins (The Silence of the Lambs, The Rite) who not only looked the part but also embodied the part by effectively portraying the complexities of the director and how it’s liked to be “of-a-certain-age” in an industry where everyone and everything just comes and goes. I’d also like to commend the film’s story-telling treatment, which was notably similar with “My Week with Marilyn” – a kind of story-telling which really takes the audiences in on the dimensions of the production process and makes everyone seemed like a part of the actual practice of filmmaking. The last real strong point of the film was its portrayal of the wife, Alma Reville whom history has been constantly ignoring in favor of “Hitch” and Alma was of course portrayed by the brilliant Helen Mirren (The Queen, The Last Station) who gave a fantastic performance as a loyal but feisty wife who proved that truly, “every man” or in this case “every psycho” needs a woman.

Hitchcock was witty, warm and entertaining. Plus, the fashion doesn’t hurt either! Catch it when you still can!

-F

all photos are from Google