Millions of people around the world attend the movie theatre and among those millions of people they all share the same thing; the love for movies. There are movies of all genres that appeal to each person in this world, and yet many people find themselves sharing the same love for classic original movies; such movies in particular may include: Carrie, Godzilla, Footloose, and Psycho. Once someone has seen a movie and is en-captured by what the film means, how it was able to tug at their heart strings, the way a horror film was able to give them the chills, and the connection they made to the main character; people do not want anything about the film to change. For many remaking a classic film takes away the quality from the original film …show more content…
and people do not want to see another actor/actress portray their favourite character. But on the other hand remaking a film can change someone's perspective by retelling a familiar story with another director's point of view in place. The following essay will demonstrate how Gus Van Sant's remake of the original Psycho directed by none other than Alfred Hitchcock showcases significant differences; though many people believe the remake is just a “shot-by-shot” film retelling the same story. The differences that will be acknowledged include Van Sant's use of pastel colours/character outfits, the overuse of sexual content, and the characterization differences between Vince Vaughn's portrayals of Norman Bates compared to Anthony Perkins and Anne Heche's portrayal of Marion Crane compared to Janet Leigh. There is no doubt Hitchcock's Psycho is a work of art and is irreplaceable. The original is set in 1960 and Hitchcock believed keeping the film black and white was the best choice because it gives the film its gothic subject matter with the aura of gloom. Having the film in black and white allows the audience to connect with the sinister plot of the film. The colour contributes to how someone will perceive the movie; having it filmed in black and white is what makes Hitchcock's Psycho chilling. The classic shower scene in Psycho '60 made a large impact on people because the blood swirling down the drain was dark. The fact Hitchcock did not have to use the colour red to portray the death of Marion played by Janet Leigh, made the scene all the more grotesque. Apart from not using colour to portray blood, the original Psycho gives each scene a more serious turn apart from Van Sant's take on the remake. When Marion Crane (Leigh) takes the money she flees home and immediately changes from a white bra to a black one. This simple change in colour demonstrates how Marion understands she is committing a felony; the viewers can feel the guilt based on her outfit change. In the 1998 remake Van Sant did what most directors would have done in that time period and he changed the film from black and white to colour. Taking such a turn apart from the original is not what set back Van Sant's version of Psycho; it was his choice of colours. Though colours can make certain moments more thrilling; the '98 film used pastel colours including pink, orange, and green. There is a 38 year difference between the two Psycho's which means what was once considered a grim horror movie in the 60's will not be the same in the late 90's. The famous shower scene in the remake takes away from the viewer’s imagination, and the blood is not a deep red it has more of a coral tint to it. Van Sant could have built up the shower scene to be more intense, and with the advance in technology he could have made the scene a bit more gruesome than what was done in the original. When Marion played by Anne Heche is first spotted in her apartment after stealing the $400,000 she is seen wearing a green slip and as she departs for Phoenix she is wearing a vibrant pink dress. Heche's portrayal of Marion does not characterize the same guilt that Leigh's Marion illustrated. Such colours changed the entire mood from the original 60's film. What was once considered a serious thriller then became a light hearted remake. In Horror movies or any movie in general women are usually portrayed as sex symbols for the male audience to gaze at. There has been criticism in the past about Hitchcock’s portrayal of women in his films, but in Psycho Marion (Leigh) is not seen as a sexual symbol. In the 60's it was not often for women to be seen fully nude as it is in today's films. Hitchcock was able to make Marion a sexual character without using sex. After Marion and Norman leave Norman’s office, Norman can be seen removing a picture frame from the wall in his office and beyond the picture frame there is a peep hole in the wall leading to cabin number one; the cabin in which Marion is staying. This scene shows Norman looking through the peep hole where he can see Marion undressing, but he calmly places the picture frame on the wall moments after. In the shower scene Marion is nude yet the audience does not see her body. Even after Ms. Bates (Norman) stabs Marion as she is showering the audience is not drawn to see her corpse body; instead the camera shows the curtain being pulled and pans to the blood swirling down the drain to focus everyone's attention on the irony of what just happened. The shower scene almost represents Marion washing away her past where she will now have a fresh start after just committing a crime, but is later found dead in the end. Van Sant took a different approach in his remake when it came to the use of sexuality. Norman (Vaughn) and Marion (Heche) had just finished talking and eating when Marion says she is going to head to bed. Van Sant stuck to the original scene showing Norman take down the picture frame and peeping through the hole in the wall where he can see Marion undressing. Only in the remake instead of having Norman hang the frame back on the wall Van Sant made Norman's character get himself off while staring at Marion; until he was finished would he then put the frame back up. This scene particularly drew the line between both films because Vince Vaughn's re-enactment of Norman was no longer the same innocent Norman that was played by Anthony Perkins. Though Marion is still not seen fully nude in the shower scene once Ms. Bates is through with violently stabbing her, Marion pulls down the shower curtain as her body falls to her knees and drops forward over the tub. As her body falls over the camera does a bird view angle and the audience can see Marion's naked body. This takes away from the scene even though it is only for a few seconds we can see her naked because the audience is no longer drawn to how Marion was just brutally murdered they are drawn to her vulnerability of no longer being able to fight back. Alfred Hitchcock chose the best actor and actress to depict who Norman Bates and Marion Crane really are. Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh certainly brought life to the main characters of Psycho giving each character a hard lead to beat. Marion played by Leigh demonstrates how through her bad decisions she still has a conscience and feels guilt with her actions. In the opening scene Marion and her lover Sam, played by John Gavin, are in a hotel room after they had just slept together; in mind Sam is technically still a married man even if he is in the progress of getting a divorce. Marion no longer wants to be his dirty secret and explains to him they have to stop until he is officially through with his wife. In the 60's adultery and divorce was not a common factor among marriages as it can be seen in today's society. Sam respectively understands Marion's feelings since she has never been married. This scene shows the two characters in a real love affair and the passion they have between each other is prominent. Also, when Marion is seen fleeing after she has stolen the money she shows signs of nervousness if she were to be caught. In Van Sant's remake the opening scene shows Marion played by Anne Heche and Sam played by Viggo Mortensen laying on a bed in the hotel room minutes after they had just slept together and in the background another pair of lovers can be heard having sex in the room beside theirs. The difference between Hitchcock's film and Van Sant's film is that Marion (Heche) no longer demonstrates the same guilt as Leigh because adultery and divorce are not as serious of topics in the late 90's. Heche's characterization of Marion is not up to par with Leigh's portrayal because she does not give the audience anything to connect with, though Marion is in some way a guilty woman she at least shows signs of guilt in the original film. In the '98 film Marion comes off as heartless and is fine with stealing the money; basically is happy with her decision. Anthony Perkins brought Norman Bates to life not only through his characterization but through his physical appearance.
Norman Bates is supposed to give the audience the feeling he is an awkward harmless young man with a boyish charm who does not want to bring any trouble to other people. Not only did Perkins do exactly that through Norman's character, he looked the part of Norman Bates with his thin/lanky frame and he comes off as a gentle man. An example of such delicacy is when Norman is confronted by detective Milton Arbogast played by Martin Balsam. Norman gets caught backtracking in his original story to Arbogast about how he never saw Marion come to the Bates Motel, but once Arbogast goes through the check in book and proves she was there Norman changes his story. The audience knows Mrs. Bates murdered Marion but they do not know yet that Norman is Mrs. Bates. In this scene the viewers feel bad for Norman and can connect with him because they believe he is being a loyal son covering up for his “ill mother”. Another important scene characterizing Norman is when Marion's sister Lila played by Vera Miles, searches through Norman's room and finds a doll. This shows how Norman never fully matured over the years because he has lived his life under his mother's wing. Vince Vaughn in the Psycho remake is also a tall young man, but he does not have the same lanky/boyish charm as Perkins had in the original. Being that the remake is almost a shot-by-shot of the original, Vaughn's Norman not only had not looked the part, but he also was unable to sell the audience on his character. Psycho '98 Norman was distant and tried too hard with his fake laughing which in the end made his character creepy. Lila played by Julianne Moore finds herself searching through Norman's room only instead of finding a doll as shown in the original film she finds a playboy magazine. Norman in the '98 Psycho is driven by his sexual desires and it no longer becomes about his relationship with
his mother. In conclusion, though the Gus Van Sant 1998 Psycho stuck to nearly the same script as Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 Psycho the movies are not the same due to the use of colours in the remake which took away from the gloomy black and white original. Sexuality was demonstrated more abruptly through Marion and Sam's affair, and Norman's sexual desires. Vince Vaughn and Anne Heche presented Norman and Marion in a more twisted way. Marion was no longer a guilty woman people could almost feel sorry for after she was murdered since Heche's Marion did not show any guilt for her crime or affair. Furthermore, Norman does not have the same affect on the audience that allows them to connect with him because Vaughn does not play the same harmless and charming Norman as presented by Perkins.
Modern day directors use a variety of methods to hold ones interest. Ethan Hawke and Kenneth Branagh’s created versions of Hamlet that shared some similarities, but ultimately had many differences in respects to an audience’s appeal. An appealing movie is one that has an alluring ambiance and an intellectual stimulus. With these two movie versions, a setting and a mood forced an audience to acquire specific emotions, but Ethan Hawke’s version generated emotions more strongly and effectively. Also, these movies had extremely different uses of music and visuals, but both movie versions incorporated them well for the ambiance it tried to obtain. Finally, both movie versions drew characters to captivate the audience; however in Ethan Hawke’s version, the characters were used so effectively that it was easy to feel involved with them. While both these versions of Hamlet had a captivating ambiance, Ethan Hawke’s version was more appealing due to the intellectual incentive that it offered.
Have you ever watched a movie and been dissatisfied, because it was not similar to its book? There are multiple movies that seem as if they are their own story, for they don't resemble their book at all. For example, “The Pit and the Pendulum.” by Edgar Allen Poe. He, himself would not approve of the film that follows his story. For one thing, the storyline was no where near to being like his book. Another reasoning is that he wrote based of one man not multiple people. And finally, he wouldn’t of approved of the art on the walls in the room with the pit and pendulum. These are the reasonings of why Poe would not appreciate the film.
Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho"-the movie the world recognised-was first premiered in the home town of New York on the 16th June 1960.The film follows the life and strife of a young beautiful woman Marion Crane, played by the Janet Leigh, who is on the run from the police after stealing $40.000, she manages to find refuge at the Bates motel where she makes her worst mistake possible. During and after the film production of "Psycho" Alfred Hitchcock had his aids buy as many copies as possible of the novel "Psycho"-written by Robert Bloch. Why? To conceal the ending form the public's eye so when the film was shown in cinemas the audience would'nt know the ending. When people found out the title of the movie Hitchcock said it was based on a greek love story "Psyche".
These have been adapted from the early twentieth century, and have developed a whole series of genre conventions into a familiar variety of scary settings, iconography, and stereotyped characterisation. Audiences have a clear understanding of this, and they use it to their advantage. They can keep putting the audience through the jolts that horror conventions continue to give. An effective way of keeping the horror fresh would be to break the cycle, by breaking certain conventions. The isolated setting in the two films is a key device used to establish a threatening atmosphere.
Hollywood has played a big part is our lives. Growing up we’ve seen numerous movies, some that scared us others that touch us, and those images stayed with us forever. So what happens when Hollywood takes a classic piece of literature such as Frankenstein and turns into a monster movie. It transforms the story so much that now some 50 years later, people think of Frankenstein as the monster instead of the monster’s creator. It became a classic monster movie and all the high values of the original were forever lost.
Some would say watching horror movies and being scared out of your wits is a fun way to spend their hard earned money. They go see these movies on average once a week, each time choosing a newer version of a trilogy like “Chucky” or “The evil Dead”. Film making has come a long way over the last few decades, the graphic...
To begin with, some people would say they enjoy a horror movie that gets them scared out of their wits. They go see these movies once a month on average, for fun, each time choosing a newer sequel like “Final Destination” or “The evil Dead”. King says “When we pay our four or five bucks and seat ourselves at tenth-row center in a theater showing a horror movie we are daring the nightmare” (405). As a writer of best-sel...
Psycho is an American horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1960 based on a 1959 novel with the same name. Alfred Hitchcock typically uses certain elements in almost all of his films. In Psycho the following elements appear; blonde woman, conversation that is not important to the story, alcohol, Hitchcock appearance, Mcguffin, pursuit, the camera looks around, a P.O.V., creating suspense by letting the audience in on a secret, mother figure, birds, stairs, and a narrow escape.
The patient Norman Bates, eighteen year old male, shows signs of 300.15-Dissociative DO, Dissociative identity disorder (DID). He exhibits two know separate personalities, Normal Bates his normal functions as a teenager and he portrays the personality of his beloved deceased mother, Norma Bates. When transferring to his alternate personality of Norma Bates, Norman will suffer memory loss of any actions performed while in this state.
“He [Norman] only half-existed,” the psychiatrist stated after taking a look at Norman himself (Psycho). Norman Bates is a character in the movie Psycho, whose mental illness caused him to turn murderous. Psycho is not the only film that uses a mental illness to produce a villain. The Joker from the Batman series is diagnosed by the viewers to be psychopathic, and he is known to be a mass murderer. From the 1960 film to modern movies, many producers create their villains with mental disabilities. Because the mentally ill are portrayed as villains, this causes the viewers to classify them as capable of turning monstrous and harming those around them. This stereotype leads to the vilification of all those with a mental illness. Producers create
In Hollywood today, most films can be categorized according to the genre system. There are action films, horror flicks, Westerns, comedies and the likes. On a broader scope, films are often separated into two categories: Hollywood films, and independent or foreign ‘art house’ films. Yet, this outlook, albeit superficial, was how many viewed films. Celebrity-packed blockbusters filled with action and drama, with the use of seamless top-of-the-line digital editing and special effects were considered ‘Hollywood films’. Films where unconventional themes like existentialism or paranoia, often with excessive violence or sex or a combination of both, with obvious attempts to displace its audiences from the film were often attributed with the generic label of ‘foreign’ or ‘art house’ cinema.
Anthony ‘Tony’ Perkins was well known for his roles in romantic comediess. The attractive, shy, well-intentioned young man not only captured the hearts of many teenage girls, but the eye of Alfred Hitchcock when looking for the perfect Norman Bates. Hitchcock’s clever choice of actor immediately threw off the audience and made them ask what is Anthony Perkins doing in a horror film? Perkins' shy personality and slightly awkward movements did him well in his usual genre but did him even better when playing a homicidal schizophrenic. In fact, Perkins' portrayal of Bates made people second guess themselves as to who murdered Marion and Arbogast. This makes the movie significantly more thrilling.
People are addicted to the synthetic feeling of being terrified. Modern day horror films are very different from the first horror films which date back to the late nineteenth century, but the goal of shocking the audience is still the same. Over the course of its existence, the horror industry has had to innovate new ways to keep its viewers on the edge of their seats. Horror films are frightening films created solely to ignite anxiety and panic within the viewers. Dread and alarm summon deep fears by captivating the audience with a shocking, terrifying, and unpredictable finale that leaves the viewer stunned.
Growing up movies like Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and Corpse Bride might as well have been cult classics. We watched them like they were going out of style. I always noticed something similar about the movies, and as it turns out, there is a pattern the films seem to follow. The works of the famous director, Tim Burton, follows a pattern of cinematic techniques such as shot reverse shot, lighting usage, and flashback that all string throughout his films.
Norman Bates was an American serial killer and keeper of The Bates Motel in California. Bates suffered from Dissociative Identity Disorder and psychotic behavior, believing himself to be controlled by his mother. At the same time, he suffered from visual and auditory hallucinations, in which his mother apparently talked him into committing acts of violence to satisfy her. When his mother’s personality took over, Norman would fly into murderous rages targeting women who aroused him. He is known to have eventually killed his mother and kept her mummified corpse in the basement of his house for many years. He is the primary antagonist of the 1960 film, Psycho and appears as the anti-hero/protagonist villain. Lastly, Norman 's incestuous relationship