Psycho (1960) - #14

This begins my review of the top 100 movies.  I intend to watch them beginning at 100, and working backwards, however, I may skip movies that I am familiar with, the first such example being #99 Toy Story.

I saw Psycho at the Admiral Theater, on Friday, as part of their classic film series.  It was a fantastic atmosphere for catching the film, and while it didn’t use the original reel (opting for a DVD projection), sitting in the balcony with fresh popped popcorn and an adult beverage certainly added to the experience.  It was the first time I’d seen this film, and I went into it with no spoiler information.

Psycho is the 1960 Alfred Hitchcock thriller, which centers around Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), a young woman who embezzles from her employer and while on the run stays at a quiet off highway motel and interacts with its lonely owner Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins).  It’s famous for the very abrupt Shower Scene, when the movie quickly turns from a story about a girl on the run to a story about a maniac serial killer.

I enjoyed the film and found it quite deserving of its place in the top 100.  Expecting to see a horror film, I was quite pleased that Psycho is much more intelligent and suspenseful then just the slasher films it may have inadvertently spawned.  I’d give it a 4 out of 5.

October 21, 2007 | Filed Under AFI Top 100

 

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