The+Hitchcock+Style

=Style =

Alfred Hitchcock’s style was also one of a kind. From the way he dressed like “he just came out of a funeral” (Harris) to the way he dressed his actors and actresses, Hitchcock was a man full of his own ideas. For many, they just concluded that he was “a monster” himself.

The “classic” Hitchcock film would include a crime, place, and weapon. Three things he had to include to make his film “dramatic, moving, and human to be worthwhile” (Hitchcock). His films would also include a memorable “bad guy”, a blonde girl, and melodramatic stares and gasps. (Dufreigne)

A great example of these aspects would be seen in the film, //Psycho//. Made in 1960 and one of “his most famous films,” (Eng) we see Janet Leigh, played by Marion Crane, as a young, blonde woman who is a thief and guest at the Bates Motel, which was ran by Norman Bates, played by Anthony Perkins. A little less than half way through the film, we see Janet Leigh being stabbed to death in her shower in the most memorable stabbing scenes of film by the assumed suspect- Mrs. Bates, Norman’s mother. We hear the dramatic scream of terror and need for help, see the fright in her eyes as she stares into the camera, and see an ominous figure that lurks in the shadows of the curtain. Leigh’s sister calls a detective to search for her, but he too is murdered by Mrs. Bates. Later a sheriff is hired by her sister to investigate, and what do we find? A corpse of no other than Mrs. Bates herself in the motel’s basement that has been rotting for eight years. Plot twist! How can this be? Hitchcock’s notorious villain, no other than the schizophrenic man of the hour, Norman Bates, was dressing up as his mother as he killed his victims.



media type="custom" key="24489508" A clip from //Psycho.//





Marion Crane's scream of terror as she is about to be stabbed in the shower by the assumed Mrs. Bates.

And there we have it, the Hitchcock full style within his most famous film. Genius. The mind of a madman. The mind of the Master of Suspense. As we see in our horror/suspense films today such as Friday the Thirteenth, Nightmare on Elm Street, or Texas Chainsaw Massacre, we still see directors using a scared girl with a memorable villain that stands out to give us a sense of satisfaction. Without the scared girl or villain, what use would the movie be categorized under horror or suspense? ===

Sources:=== Kelly Riggs Mystery elusive author. “Alfred Hitchcock: Cinematic Innovations.” //Kelly Riggs Mysteries//. 20 April 2012. Web. 25 September 2013. Dufreigne, Jean-Pierre. //Hitchcock Style.// New York. Assouline Publishing, 2004. Print.