FILM STILL: Alfred Hitchcock's PSYCHO

Cindy Sherman, one of the most respected photographers, uses ambiguous and eclectic photographs to develop a distinct signature style. “Through a number of different series of works, Sherman has raised challenging and important questions about the role and representation of women in society, the media and the nature of the creation of art (1). ”
In her Untitled Film Stills, Sherman captures herself in the roles of B-movie actresses, by dressing up in wigs, hats, dresses, clothes unlike her own, and playing the roles of characters. “There are also very few clues as to Sherman's personality in the photographs - each one is so unique and ambiguous that the viewer is left with more confusion than clarity over Sherman's true nature (1).” According to Judith Wilson, “what we construct on the surface of each picture is an interior, a mixture of emotions. Each setting pose and facial expression seems literally express an almost immeasurable interior which is at once mysteriously deep, and totally impenetrable: a feminine identity.”

For this self-portrait, based on that of Cindy Sherman’s techniques, I chose one of my favorite movies to construct the film stills. The movie is Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. I have always liked Psycho because, although I am a first class wuss when it comes to horror movies, to me this horror movie is more of a joke. Although it may have defied various norms during the time period, I find it to be more humorous than terrifying. I also enjoy movies with hidden clues and motifs. Throughout this movie there is a mirror motif, a color motif, clues within camera angles, and many transformations that occur. Also, I am a sucker for twists at the end of a movie, and although this one was fairly obvious there are elements of surprise that I did not otherwise expect. My favorite, and one of the most recognized horror scenes, is the shower scene. The five still that I have constructed represent the sequence of events in this scene.

In the film, Marion Crane, the female lead, is somewhat different than the expected norm of the female roles during this time period. Although she shows weakness in her love for her boyfriend and allows herself to be placed in vulnerable positions in her work, financial situation, and while in the hotel, she defies the typical behavior of a woman by stealing from her employer and eloping by herself. Throughout the movie, Marion transforms from an innocent female (signified by her white bra), to a more femme fatal and dangerous woman (signified by her black bra). Marion finds herself in a predicament when she gets trapped in a storm, while driving to meet her boyfriend, and is forced to stop at the Bates motel until the storm settles. Norman Bates, who is dominated by his overbearing, overprotective “mother”, placed her in room one where he is able view Marion, and “ideal” woman for him, through a peephole. This lead to the scene that I depict in my film still, the infamous shower scene, where Marion is violently murdered.

According to Andrew’s Macro Study:

“The spectator is then allowed the privileged position of observing Marion showering, accentuating the theme of voyeurism endemic in the film. Artful use of close-ups heightens suspense and audience complicity as Marion metaphorically cleanses away her sins. Through the shower curtain we then see a shadowy figure approaching. We cannot make out the features of this figure, a technique used by Hitchcock to create suspense, although it seems as if it is female. At this point the curtain is pulled back to the accompaniment of screeching violins and we see the figure in darkness raising a knife to the air. What follows is a series of shots depicting Marion being repeatedly stabbed by "mother", the sudden dramatic change in pace effectively communicating the frenzy of the attack. Shots are almost subliminal as Hitchcock moves away from the continuity technique to associative montage; a series of images are shown in such a way that we infer something that has not been shown.”

This excerpt allowed me realize something I have never realized before and it also brings me to the main point of my argument. "Why is it that in so many films (especially horror films) women are objectified and then brutally killed? What does that say for our society? What does it say in light of the fact that so many women are murdered, kidnapped, raped, and so on in real life?" ( Personal Communication, Perez Miles, 2006)

This film, especially this scene, exposes voyeuristic behavior, exploitation, objectification, and the victimization of women. Women in film, especially horror, are most commonly the objects of male desire. Women are usually placed in vulnerable situations while they are about to be victimized. Here Marion is in the shower with no form of protection as well as no clothing. Vulnerability of a physically attractive female seems to be a attractive viewing characteristic to the male audience.

The shower scene can also be read as Marion's rape by a potent phallic symbol. Psycho reinforces the prevalent ideology of the time period because Marion is a sexually active woman outside of marriage and so has transgressed the moral codes of the family. Marion is killed before she achieves the respectability she craves, a symbolic act of punishment for her sexual transgressions. Is this fair? Most Hitchcock’s films seek to destroy and preserve femininity. Women are objects of male gaze and the recipients of most of the punishments. Hitchcock is obsessed with exploring the psyches of tormented and victimized and brutalized women. Can this correlate with our societies acceptance and/or actions?

According to “When Women Look,” Rhona Berenstein adds an important feature to the conceptualization of spectatorship. She points out that horror films have traditionally been a place not only where women are terrified, but where they "flaunt their femininity" by screaming, fainting, and otherwise performing stereotypically exaggerated gender roles. Also, Gayln Studlar had done studies on the masochistic pleasures of horror cinema and has showed how the “strictly masculine, sadistic, and "assaultive" gaze has been overemphasized, while the feminine, masochistic, and "reactive" gaze has been ignored.” Identification with the terrified, suffering woman is simply unthinkable, too painful, and masochistic. Thus, to thrill to the mutilation of the screaming and terrified Marion Crane in the shower sequence of Psycho could only be a form of false-and anti-feminist-consciousness. This, however, does not stop all viewers from enjoying such scenes and can relate to the indirect acceptance of such actions that do occur. Societies acceptance of movies such as these are indirectly accepting violence acts in our culture. Although these exaggerated gender roles are meant to be entertainment, they are setting and example and sending out ideas that the objectification, exploitation, and victimization of women is customary. This in result may help explain or lead to the murders, rapes, and kidnappings that occur in real life.

According to Linda Williams, “For the woman viewer, however, this "taking it in the eye" pleasures her less, initially, than it does the man. Because women-for all sorts of social, physiological, and psychosexual reasons-already perceive themselves as more vulnerable to penetration, as corresponding more to the assaulted, wide-eyed, opened-up female victim all too readily penetrated by knife or penis, our response is more likely to close down, at least initially, to such images.”

I have come to gain new understanding of the implications of what I thought of as one of my favorite movies. I allowed me to realize deeper meanings and made me think: Are movies, initially meant for entertainment, inevitably hurting our society?

LINK TO REAL SHOWER SCENE : http://youtube.com/watch?v=8Dh2vAEdtNc

1. Cindy Sherman’s Official Homepage. Biography.
http://www.cindysherman.com/biography.shtml

2. Andrews, Rebecca. AS Film Studies. Macro Study: Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960)
http://www.geocities.com/shakenotstirred2003/psychomacro.txt

3. Williams, Linda. When Women Look: A Sequel (2001).
http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/01/15/horror_women.html