Psycho

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Credited with inventing the genre of the modern horror film, PSYCHO has had its share of sequels and imitators, none of which diminishes the achievement of this shocking and complex horror thriller. Alfred Hitchcock's choreography of elements in PSYCHO is considered so perfect it inspired a shot-by-shot remake by Gus Van Zant in 1998. However, Hitchcock's black-and-white original, featuring Anthony Perkins's haunting characterization of lonely motel keeper Norman Bates, has never been equaled. Bates presides over an out-of-the-way motel under the domineering specter of his mother. The young, well-intentioned Bates is introduced to the audience when Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), a blonde on the run with stolen money, checks in for the night. But Momma doesn't like loose women, so the stage is set for this classic tale of horror--and one of the most famous scenes in film history. PSYCHO was initially received by audiences with shock and amazement--and it still terrifies today. Though it is now considered prototypical Hitchcock, its setting, pace, and emphasis on terror were major departures for the director at the time, coming after the more classically grand NORTH BY NORTHWEST.

DVD FEATURES:

• Region 1
  2-Disc Digipak
  Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85
  
• Audio:
  Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono - English, French
  Subtitles - English (SDH), French, Spanish - Optional
  
• Disc 1:
  
• Additional Release Material:
  Audio Commentary - Stephen Rebello - Author of Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho
  Bonus Footage - Newsreel Footage
  Featurette - 1. The Shower Scene
  2. The Psycho Archives
  Trialer - 1. Theatrical Trailer
  2. Re-release Trailers
  
• Text/Photo Galleries:
  Behind the Scenes Photographs
  Lobby Cards
  Posters and Psycho Ads
  Production Photographs
  Production Notes
  The Shower Scene: Storyboards by Saul Bass
  Disc 2: Bonus Disc
  Featurette- In The Master's Shadow: Hitchcock Legacy
  Interview - Hitchcock/Truffaut Interview Excerpts
  Making of PSYCHO
  Alfred Hitchcock Presents "Lamb to the Slaughter"
  

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Director:

   

  Alfred Hitchcock

• Star:

   

  Sam Flint, John Gavin, Janet Leigh, Helen Wallace, Vera Miles, John McIntire, Simon Oakland, Lurene Tuttle, Virginia Gregg, Anthony Perkins, Martin Balsam, Frank Albertson, John Anderson, George Eldredge, Mort Mills, Vaughn Taylor

• Producer:

   

  Alfred Hitchcock

• Screenwriter:

   

  Joseph Stefano

• Composer:

   

  Bernard Herrmann

• Special Effects:

   

  Clarence Champagne

• Costume Designer:

   

  Helen Colvig

• Director of Photography:

   

  John L. Russell

• Production Designer:

   

  Joseph Hurley, Robert Clatworthy

• Story:

   

  Robert Bloch

• Cameo:

   

  Alfred Hitchcock

• Editor:

   

  George Tomasini

REVIEWS:

• "The most brilliant bait-and-switch proposition in motion picture history..." — Premiere
• 5 stars out of 5 -- "It's such an essential film -- remaining fresh, shocking, perversely funny and tragic..." — Empire
• "[N]early 50 years after its release in 1960, the 45-second shower scene in PSYCHO is still terrifying and paralyzing." — Los Angeles Times
• "Hitchcock's only out-and-out horror flick -- and possibly the most important ever made." — Total Film

REVIEWS: