Janet Leigh’s brutal death just 20 minutes into Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960) is one of the most iconic moments in movie history — but her time in the shower, as in the rest of film, was shorter than initially believed.
While Leigh later told The New York Times that her brief performance, which earned her a Golden Globe and Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress, cost her a lifetime fear of showers, she wasn’t actually in the shower for most of the stabbing.
In fact, her appearance in the scene was almost entirely limited to camera angles above the neck,...
While Leigh later told The New York Times that her brief performance, which earned her a Golden Globe and Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress, cost her a lifetime fear of showers, she wasn’t actually in the shower for most of the stabbing.
In fact, her appearance in the scene was almost entirely limited to camera angles above the neck,...
- 10/13/2017
- by Mike Miller
- PEOPLE.com
What's the greatest Alfred Hitchcock film? Every film fan will have a different answer, with "The 39 Steps," "Rebecca," "Spellbound," "Notorious," "Rear Window," "Vertigo" and "North By Northwest" all making compelling cases for being the very best. But few of his films had such an impact on cinema as "Psycho," the 1960s thriller that saw him go into darker, more shocking territory than ever before, with some of the most famous sequences in the history of the medium.
Following secretary Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) as she embezzles money from an employer and hides out at a deserted motel owned by the mysterious Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), a man with serious mother issues, only to stunningly and unforgettably kill off its lead halfway through the film, the picture turned out to be the biggest hit of Hitchcock's career, and was arguably his last truly great movie. It was released fifty-two years ago tomorrow,...
Following secretary Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) as she embezzles money from an employer and hides out at a deserted motel owned by the mysterious Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), a man with serious mother issues, only to stunningly and unforgettably kill off its lead halfway through the film, the picture turned out to be the biggest hit of Hitchcock's career, and was arguably his last truly great movie. It was released fifty-two years ago tomorrow,...
- 6/15/2012
- by Oliver Lyttelton
- The Playlist
Peter Bradshaw peeks at the strange legacy of Hitchcock's famous film
Fifty years ago, all America was convulsed by a low-budget, violent movie in black and white, featuring a motel bathroom with shockingly visible flushing lavatory and a grisly murder scene of unparalleled ingenuity and cinematic flair: Psycho. Nowadays, such a film would be expected to come from a young hotshot, but this was directed by the 61-year-old Alfred Hitchcock, a figure known for elegance and high production values and as the star of a popular TV show, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, but also as someone beginning a gentle career decline. Instead, Psycho sensationally jolted Hitchcock's reputation up to a higher level, and as the owner of a profit-percentage in the film, he became staggeringly wealthy as few studio directors could ever dream of being.
The career of fellow Englishman Michael Powell had been destroyed by his own transgressive chiller, Peeping Tom,...
Fifty years ago, all America was convulsed by a low-budget, violent movie in black and white, featuring a motel bathroom with shockingly visible flushing lavatory and a grisly murder scene of unparalleled ingenuity and cinematic flair: Psycho. Nowadays, such a film would be expected to come from a young hotshot, but this was directed by the 61-year-old Alfred Hitchcock, a figure known for elegance and high production values and as the star of a popular TV show, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, but also as someone beginning a gentle career decline. Instead, Psycho sensationally jolted Hitchcock's reputation up to a higher level, and as the owner of a profit-percentage in the film, he became staggeringly wealthy as few studio directors could ever dream of being.
The career of fellow Englishman Michael Powell had been destroyed by his own transgressive chiller, Peeping Tom,...
- 4/2/2010
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
It is one of the most notorious scenes ever filmed – yet Hitchcock and Janet Leigh didn't tell the truth about it. Will Hodgkinson on a real-life story of body doubles and murder
In the run-up to the release of Psycho in 1960, Alfred Hitchcock did everything he could to build up the suspense. "No one will be admitted to the theatre after the start of each performance," declared the poster, bearing a sulky-looking Hitchcock wagging a finger. The director bought up all copies of the original novel, which he had optioned for a paltry $9,000, so that hardly anyone would know how the story ended. He also filmed on a closed set and forced cast and crew to sign an agreement promising not to mention the ending to anyone. There were no advance screenings.
When the reviews for Psycho, which is rereleased this week, rolled in, they focused on one shocking moment: the shower sequence,...
In the run-up to the release of Psycho in 1960, Alfred Hitchcock did everything he could to build up the suspense. "No one will be admitted to the theatre after the start of each performance," declared the poster, bearing a sulky-looking Hitchcock wagging a finger. The director bought up all copies of the original novel, which he had optioned for a paltry $9,000, so that hardly anyone would know how the story ended. He also filmed on a closed set and forced cast and crew to sign an agreement promising not to mention the ending to anyone. There were no advance screenings.
When the reviews for Psycho, which is rereleased this week, rolled in, they focused on one shocking moment: the shower sequence,...
- 3/29/2010
- by Will Hodgkinson
- The Guardian - Film News
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