Psycho Analysis

Psycho (1960) Analysis – Cinematography and Mise-En-Scene 

Psycho is a American psychological horror thriller made by Alfred Hitchcock. In the first scene we are given, Norman walks into the parlor with Marion. We are given a low angle mid-shot looking up to Norman, this suggest that Norman is a powerful/dominant character. This shot is given in low key lighting and we can see Norman is covered in darkness, this implies that Norman is may have a hidden secret and shows that this character is very mysterious. In the background of Norman we can see that there is a stuffed bird of prey with its wings out looking like its about to attack. Maybe Hitchcock wanted to do this to give the effect that Norman is a hunter searching for something to hunt. Also, all of the birds Norman has are dead, so this means that he is always surrounded by death. 

In the next shot we see Norman sit down and straight away we see a shadow which covers half of his face. Hitchcock wanted us to know from the start that Norman has two halves to him, like a good half and a bad half. Also it foreshadows the fact that we learn Norman has schizophrenia, a split personality. We are given diegetic non-diegetic music which gives us a tense feeling throughout the scene, it also tells the audience that this film is going to be creepy/scary.  

In the scene we begin to notice that in each shot Norman is in, he is accompanied by a stuffed bird, this means that he has a clear link to birds. We also know that these birds by Norman are birds of prey which are at rest, this creates a relationship between them as we know Norman is at rest for now and is 'Passive'. In the shot of Norman and Marion we can see that there is a big distance between them both, this gives the conversation a calm atmosphere and so we know Marion is safe, she is also eating which further reinforces this statement. 

Later on, we can see that the birds near Marion are birds of prey which implies that Marion is Normans prey. The shot of Norman also becomes more of a  lower angle shot as the scene progressive, this means that Norman is becoming more powerful as the scene progresses. When Marion insults his mother, Norman leans forward closing the gap between them both, this makes Marion feel trapped in the situation. The shots also change from a close-up to an extreme close-up, this makes the audience feel anxious as he looks a bit mad. We also get more shots of the bids that are attacking which means that Norman has chosen his next victim. 

As Norman begins to get more angry through the scene the music becomes more sinister and threatening towards the audience, this shows that Norman may be a threat in the future. We also see the fright on Marion's face which makes the audience feel unsettled and worried about her safety. Norman leans back after the rant giving the audience relieve. 

Marion later stands up after the conversation giving a low angle shot towards her and a high angle shot towards Norman, this shows that Marion is now under control and the shot of Norman makes him look pathetic.