psycho prose writeup (analysis)

Narrative & Hitchcock's Psycho

 

The non-diegetic music at the beginning of the film is an action code. This is because from the music played, we can gather a feel for the genre of the film. This allows the audience to be signified to identify with the film before it properly starts. When suspenseful or ‘spooky’ moments are occurring or about to occur, sound FX and menacing music is played to build suspense and tension in the audience. This is iconic and conventional of a thriller genre film it creates a feeling in the audience according to the genre aimed toward. The audience are actively told through the change in sound what nature of events are about or are occurring. This connotes danger and could act as an enigma code. This is because we know that something is about to happen as we feel it through the sound; however we don’t yet know what it is.

A mixture of close-up and extreme close-up shots are recurrently shown of what happens to the money at each stage in the run-away of Marian. This is an action code that moves the narrative forward because for the first half of the film, it is all about the money and what happens to it. Each time we see the money, it signifies that the next stage of the narrative is coming up or has passed. It persuades the audience to believe that the plot is about a young, in debt woman who is running away because she needs the money to live with her partner, Samuel. We as an audience are lead to closely watch her every move with the money to keep track of where the story is going.

The question “what are you running away from?” is a striking interrogative (piece of dialogue) asked by the police man. This action code moves the story on why Marian is running away, as it suggests to the audience that people are clocking on to the fact that she is running from something mysteriously, and builds tension as we feel sorry and scared for the protagonist. This is conventional of a crime thriller as she has committed a crime and people, such as the police, are starting grow increasingly suspicious.

As Norman Bates slowly approaches the showering Marian, we see a growing dark figure behind the shower curtain. This acts as an enigma code as at the time, we don’t know who the murderer is who is approaching. It creates a deep, heart racing tension between the audience as the main protagonist is unaware of what is about to occur. This acts as an omniscient narrative moment because the main character doesn’t know what is about the happen, therefore we are forced to know more than the protagonist. This builds suspense as we are aware of the possibilities of what could happen and makes us question the potential life of the character.

A large amount of shots are medium-shots from an onlookers point of view. This means that we get to view the events from the position of someone else, and only see what they see. This suggests that the narrative is generally restricted as the camera only shows us things that the characters see/ are experiencing. We are forced to identify with the characters because we see what they encounter at the same time as they do. This creates elements of realism in the narrative. The medium shots are used so that we only see enough of the characters and setting that we need to make the shots more realistic and in relation to the context. The audience can see what the average onlooker can see.

Close-ups are commonly used in the text to demonstrate the emotions felt by the protagonists. This way, the audience are enabled to connect with the characters emotionally in order to personally identify with them to get a better image on how the characters feel toward the events in the film. This way, when something bad happens, we can feel closer and more intact with the characters and can therefor develop a stronger reaction when something negative or shocking occurs. It causes the audience to become more involved with the narrative.

We see shot/ reversed shot when we see Marian and her boyfriend, Samuel, talking at the beginning of the text. This connotes the relationship that the pair share together. It implies that the two obtain a personal level connection of which the audience can easily identify with. This suggests that it is a significant motif in the narrative as to why Marian has/ will commit such a crime as to steal $40,000. It shows the power of her love for Samuel.

Two shots are commonly shown to show the relationship between the characters. Another example of why two shots are used in the narrative is to show the characters interacting and gathering the ability to understand what is going on and what part each person has in the narrative. An example of this is when Marian walks into the Bates hotel. We see her approaching Norman and asking for a room. The two shot displays the situation of which the two are currently in and the relationship of which they share.

We get a view in the rear-view mirror that Marian is being followed. This creates suspense through the camera use because a POV shot is being used so that we see the action through the eyes of Marian. This allows the audience to personally identify with her because we are placed in per position rather than acting as an onlooker, making us feel anxious and worried for why the police are following her. Some shots are taken so that we don’t only see the character, but we see exactly what they are looking at. This is known as a POV shot and allows us to feel how the characters feel, building tension in the case of the crime thriller genre.

We see a lot of close-ups of Marian, staring into her dough like eyes. This restricts the rest of the narrative because we are less likely to see things that the main protagonist doesn’t see as the camera is commonly, in the first half, fixated on Marian and the actions that she portrays. We are lost in her enormous eyes, restricting the narrative to Marian.

The restriction of the narrative is an enigma code because we follow the characters moves meaning that we are far from ‘all knowing’. This leaves us wondering as to what will follow because we are not told; we are left hanging to find out when the characters find out.

It could be argued that the narrative is also omniscient because we are aware that Marian is dead, however none of the other characters are. This means that we know more than the characters do, other than Norman. There is an argument for each type of narrative, however it is mainly restrictive.

There are many themes expressed in the film. Love and hate are expressed strongly. An example of this is that we see love expressed through the characters Samuel and Marian, when we see them on the bed together in the opening of the film.  The couple aren’t properly dressed, connoting that they could have been previously sharing an intimate period. This is iconic to that of love because sex is known as an act of love. Hate is expressed through Norman bates (mother) and his murderous, vicious ways. It shows deep enough hatred to persuade him to kill.

A cops and robbers theme/ binary opposites are indicated through Marian robbing her boss and the cops coming after her as well as an inspector. This theme continues through the film as the plot is not actually about Marian and her love life, it is about retrieving the stolen money.

Life and death are themes expressed in the film. This is because Marian and the inspector are both killed during the film, as is Marian’s sister nearly killed. This shows that death is a running theme in the film. This makes for a more chilling audience experience because the mysterious occurrences end in death.

The theme of honesty is expressed through the binary oppositions of truth and lies. This is because Norman bates lies about having seen Marian and Marian lies about stealing anything (i.e. the money). Truth and honesty is expressed when Samuel admits to have not seeing her recently and not knowing of the current behaviour of Marian. The theme of honesty is a key theme that runs through the film because Marian commits a dishonest act by stealing money that was meant for the bank. Her boss places his trust in her arms and she betrays him suggesting that she isn’t an honest woman.

This further represents the binary opposites of good and evil, or better described as innocence and deviance. Marian has innocent, large eyes that cause the audience to melt into and feel sorry for her. However, she has committed a large crime that is unforgivable. She appears to be sweet and innocent through her job, how she speaks and how she looks, however she isn’t because she has the will to steal a vast amount of money and attempt to run away with it.

In the beginning of the film, we are lead to believe that Marian is a princess type of character, according to prop’s character functions. She appears to play the ‘sweet and innocent’ character as she appears poor and helpless. However, when she runs away with her bosses money, we are then surprised at her actions because we do not expect this from a princess. This then downgrades her to a villain character as the princess character has been challenged.

Samuel takes the role of the hero as he wants to take care of Marian. However, this is challenged because he doesn’t save her and we find out that he lives elsewhere. This means that he is never there for her. His ‘macho’ appearance doesn’t mean anything once she is dead because he wasn’t there to help her, meaning that he wasn’t the hero that we were expecting him to be.

Norman, the Motel manager, was meant to be the donor. This is because he attempts to offer her food and gives her a room to stay in for the night before the long journey the next morning. We see that he tries to offer his company too her, too, reinforcing the good of which donors portray. However, this is heavily challenged when we find out that he is the secret killer under the disguise of ‘Mother’. No one expected that the innocent, ‘hard done too’, Motel manager would be a schizophrenic killer in the disguise of his mother who he murdered. He doesn’t strike the audience as a villain; however the audience shockingly find out that he is meaning that the expectations of the character are turning around.

We believe that Norman’s mother is a villain character, as Norman makes out that she is a horrible, mentally ill person. However, this character is challenged because she doesn’t exist. This shocks the audience as it is against the expectations. It isn’t obvious to the audience that Norman plays two people, meaning that the fact that ‘mother’ doesn’t exist throws the audience off-guard.

Referring back to the close-up shots, extreme close-ups are commonly used to clearly display an object/ item of importance. This signifies that it is significant to the narrative, meaning that a story is able to be built around it. It emphasises the importance by zooming in, and forces the audience to take full view on the prop in question.

During the murder scene of Marian, we see a montage. This montage includes a variety of different shots ranging from extreme close-up to high angle shots to display the occurrences from every angle. Montages are ‘snappy’ and fast. This relates to the death of Marian because she is murdered quickly and suddenly. The montage connects with the event and allows the audience to see clips of the brutal murder so that they can see it from different angles, boosting the dramatic tension whilst watching it. Also the POV shot from Marians view places the audience in her position, creating fear in the audience.

Low lighting is often used to put emphasis on the spotlighting used. The spotlighting is to highlight what is being focused on. This can create tension because we don’t see the full picture, we only see where the light it shining, leaving the rest to be a mystery as anything can happen in the dark. One of life’s biggest fears is what could be creeping in the dark, because there is no way of knowing what’s surrounding or going to happen.

The loud sound FX such as the slamming of the boot door can be sudden and catches the audience off-guard. This covertly persuades the audience to be shocked and/ or frightened because it is not expected or conventional of the quite atmosphere that the scene undertakes. As it is not expected, it reinforces the audience to jump and become connected with the thrilling side of the film.

Tension between characters is heavily portrayed in this text. This is because of the close-ups on their facial expressions. As we move toward the end of the film, we see the expressions growing stern and negative. The characters become tired and irritated by the mysterious on goings, which furthermore causes tension between the characters. The audience are forced to connect with the emotions of the characters, thereby are being dragged into the tension and become increasingly involved with it. The audience can sense the sour and angry emotions felt by the characters after being sent on a ‘goose chase’ for answers.

Footsteps that can be heard and not seen build mass amounts of suspense and tension up in the audience. This is because we don’t know who or what is coming, or because we don’t know whats going to happen next or where the character is travelling too. This is iconic to a thriller genre because the footsteps can be seen as mysterious or spooky; perhaps even a signifier of danger or a near-future experience.

The text follows Todrovs narrative functions. The equilibrium starts off as the couple being happy together and talking about their future plans. They are both in debt and have full time jobs of which are basic. The disruption is when Marian runs away with the money and lands herself in the Bates Motel. The recognition is when the inspectors go looking for her, even though she is dead. The attempt to repair is when her husband and sister go in looking for her after the inspector mysteriously disappears and the new equilibrium is when they find out that Norman killed the pair of them and that he has a split personality disorder. The money is never found, and the original equilibrium can never be restored because the money is gone along with the inspector and Marian. However, I don’t believe that equilibrium has been created. I believe that it is disequilibrium because it is a negative outcome because death, theft and mental illness have been prior themes.