Psycho is a 1998 American mysteryhorrorthriller film produced and directed by Gus Van Sant for Universal Pictures, a remake of the 1960 film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Both films are adapted from Robert Bloch's 1959novel of the same name, which was in turn inspired by the crimes of Wisconsinserial killerEd Gein.
Although this version is in color, features a different cast, and has been set in a contemporary timeframe, it is closer to a shot-for-shot remake than most remakes, often copying Hitchcock's camera movements and editing, and Joseph Stefano's script is mostly carried over. Bernard Herrmann's musical score is reused as well, though with a new arrangement by Danny Elfman and recorded in stereo. Some changes are introduced to account for advances in technology since the original film and to make the content more explicit. Murder sequences are also intercut with surreal dream images. The film was both a commercial and critical failure in comparison to its 1960 counterpart, which was successful in both fields.
Plot
Marion Crane steals $400,000 from her employer to get her boyfriend, Sam Loomis, out of debt, and flees Phoenix, Arizona by car. While en route to Sam's California home, she parks along the road to sleep. A highway patrol officer awakens her and, suspicious of her agitated state, begins to follow her. When she trades her car for another one at a dealership, he notes the new vehicle's details. Marion returns to the road but, rather than drive in a heavy storm, decides to spend the night at the Bates Motel.
Owner Norman Bates tells Marion he rarely has customers because of a new interstate nearby and mentions he lives with his mother Norma in the house overlooking the motel. He invites Marion to have supper with him. She overhears Norman arguing with his mother about letting Marion in the house, and during the meal, she angers him by suggesting he institutionalize his mother. He admits he would like to do so, but does not want to abandon her. Later that night, while Marion is changing, Norman secretly watches her from a peephole in his office and masturbates before heading back to the house.
Marion resolves to return to Phoenix to return the money. After calculating how she can repay the money she has spent, Marion dumps her notes down the toilet and begins to shower. An unidentified female figure presumed to be Norman's mother enters the bathroom and stabs Marion to death. Later, finding the corpse, Norman is horrified. He cleans the bathroom and places Marion's body, wrapped in the shower curtain, and all her possessions — including the money — in the trunk of her car and sinks it in a nearby swamp.
Sam is contacted by both Marion's sister, Lila, and private detective Milton Arbogast, who has been hired by Marion's employer to find her and recover the money. Arbogast traces Marion to the motel and questions Norman, who unconvincingly lies that Marion stayed for one night and left the following morning. He refuses to let Arbogast talk to his mother, claiming she is ill. Arbogast calls Lila to update her and tells her he will contact her again in an hour after he questions Norman's mother.
Arbogast enters Norman's house and at the top of the stairs is attacked and murdered by the Mother figure. When Arbogast does not call Lila, she and Sam contact the local police. Deputy Sheriff Al Chambers is perplexed to hear that Arbogast saw a woman in a window, as Norman's mother died ten years ago. Norman confronts his mother and urges her to hide in the cellar. She rejects the idea and orders him out of her room, but against her will Norman carries her to the cellar.
Posing as a married couple, Sam and Lila check into the motel and search Marion's room, where they find a scrap of paper in the toilet with "$400,000" written on it. While Sam distracts Norman, Lila sneaks into the house to search for his mother. Sam suggests to Norman that he killed Marion for the money so he could buy a new motel. Realizing Lila is not around, Norman knocks Sam unconscious with a golf club and rushes to the house. Lila sees him and hides in the cellar where she discovers the mummified body of Norman's mother. Wearing his mother's clothes and a wig and carrying a knife, Norman enters and tries to attack Lila, but she is rescued by Sam.
After Norman's arrest, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Fred Richmond tells Sam and Lila that Norman's dead mother is living in Norman's psyche as an alternate personality. After the death of Norman's father, his mother found a lover. Norman went over the edge with jealousy and murdered both of them. He stole her corpse and preserved the body. When he is Mother, he acts, talks, and dresses as she would. Norman imagined his mother would be as jealous of a woman to whom he might be attracted just as he was of his mother's lover, and so Mother kills any woman for whom Norman has feelings; when Norman regains consciousness, he believes that his mother has committed the crime, and covers up for her. Richmond concludes that the Mother personality has now taken complete control of Norman's mind, erasing his existence.
In the final scene, Norman sits in a cell, thinking in Mother's voice. In a voice-over, Mother explains that she plans to prove to the authorities she is incapable of violence by refusing to swat a fly that has landed on her hand. Marion's car is shown being recovered from the swamp, and is followed by the ending credits.
Mike "Flea" Balzary as Bob Summerfield, Sam's assistant at the hardware store.
Vaughn and Moore starred together in the 1997 film The Lost World: Jurassic Park.
Director Gus Van Sant, emulating Hitchcock's practice of making cameo appearances in his films, appears as "Man talking to man in cowboy hat" at the same point in his film when Hitchcock made his appearance in the original. According to the DVD commentary track that featured Van Sant, Vaughn, and Heche, Van Sant's character is being scolded by Hitchcock in the scene. The voice of Norma Bates was provided by Rose Marie, who is uncredited.[3]
Production
The audio commentary track that accompanies the DVD release of the film, and the making-of documentary (Psycho Path) that the DVD includes, provide numerous details about where the film strived to remain faithful to the original, and where it diverged. Some changes are pervasive: as the film opens, it is made clear that it is set in the late 1990s, so minor changes are made throughout the dialogue to reflect the new timeframe. For example, all the references to money are updated (how much Marion Crane steals, how much a car costs, how much a hotel room costs), as are references to terms from the original script (e.g., "aspic") that would seem anachronistic in the new setting. According to Van Sant, in the original the only fully fleshed out character was Norman Bates; the other major characters were more iconic, purposely written and portrayed to advance the plot; Van Sant relied upon his main cast more to flesh out and make consistent their character's motivations and worked with them to determine to what degree their characters were similar to the originals.
According to the commentary by Van Sant, Vaughn, and Heche, some actors, such as Macy, chose to stay true to the original, while others, such as Vaughn and Moore, interpreted the dialogue and scenes from the original film differently; Moore's version of Lila Crane, for example, was much more aggressive than the one portrayed by Vera Miles, and there are differences in Marion Crane's evolving attitudes about the money she stole. The cinematography and the cinematic techniques were consistent between the two films in many of the film's most memorable scenes, including the shower scene, scenes of the mother, scenes of the swamp, and the scene of Arbogast on the staircase, but other scenes changed significantly, particularly the climax, and the Dr. Simon monologue at the end, which was much shorter. Van Sant's comments from the commentary track attributes many of the updates to the need to make the film more accessible to a new audience.
Release
Reception
This version of Psycho received generally negative reviews; it was awarded two Golden Raspberry Awards, for Worst Remake or Sequel and Worst Director for Gus Van Sant, while Anne Heche was nominated for Worst Actress. Camille Paglia commented that the only reason to watch it was "to see Anne Heche being assassinated", but that "it should have been a much more important work and event than it was."[5]
A number of critics and writers viewed Van Sant's version more as an actual experiment in shot-for-shot remakes. Many people refer to this film as a duplicate of the 1960 film rather than a remake. Film critic Roger Ebert, who gave the film one-and-a-half stars, wrote that the film "demonstrates that a shot-by-shot remake is pointless; genius apparently resides between or beneath the shots, or in chemistry that cannot be timed or counted."[6] Screenwriter Joseph Stefano, who wrote the original script, thought that although she spoke the same lines, Anne Heche portrays Marion Crane as an entirely different character.[7] Even Van Sant admitted that it was an experiment that proved that no one can really copy a film exactly the same way as the original.[8] Janet Maslin gave the film a positive review, calling it an "artful, good-looking remake (a modest term, but it beats plagiarism) that shrewdly revitalizes the aspects of the real Psycho (1960) that it follows most faithfully but seldom diverges seriously or successfully from one of the cinema's most brilliant blueprints"; she noted that the "absence of anything like Anthony Perkins's sensational performance with that vitally birdlike presence and sneaky way with a double-entendre ("A boy's best friend is his mother") is the new film's greatest weakness."[9] Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide classified the film as a "BOMB", compared to the four-out-of-four stars he gave the original. He describes it as a "Slow, stilted, completely pointless scene-for-scene remake of the Hitchcock classic (with a few awkward new touches to taint its claim as an exact replica.)" He ultimately calls it "an insult, rather than a tribute, to a landmark film."[10]
The film's soundtrack, Psycho: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture, included Danny Elfman's re-recordings of some of Bernard Herrmann's score for the original film, along with a collection of songs in genres from country to drum and bass, connected mainly by titles containing "psycho" or other death or insanity-related words. Many of the songs were recorded specifically for the soundtrack, and included a sampling of Bernard Herrmann's score composed by Danny Elfman. The soundtrack also includes the track "Living Dead Girl" by Rob Zombie, which can be heard during the film when Marion trades in her old car for a new one.
Marion Crane and her boyfriend meet for a secret romantic rendezvous during lunch hour at a hotel in Phoenix, Arizona. They then talk about how they can barely afford to get married. Upon Marion's return to work at a realtor's office, a client comes in with $40,000 in cash to purchase a house for his daughter. The money is entrusted to Marion, who decides to steal it and skip town.
On the road, she pulls over to sleep and is awaken by a policeman who can tell something is wrong. The policeman lets her go, but upon arriving in another town, Marion pulls into a used car dealership and hastily exchanges her car for another one. Driving during a rainy night, Marion pulls up to the Bates Motel, a remote lodging that has recently lost business due to a diversion of the main highway. The proprietor, youthful but nervous Norman Bates, invites her to a light dinner in the parlor. Norman discloses that his mother is mentally ill, but he becomes irate and bristles when Marion suggests that she should be institutionalized. The conversation induces Marion to decide to return to Phoenix and return the stolen money. Marion later takes a shower in her room, during which a shadowy figure comes and stabs her to death. Norman bursts into the bathroom and discovers Marion's dead body. He wraps the body in the shower curtain and cleans up the bathroom. He puts Marion's body in the trunk of her car and sinks it in a nearby swamp.
In Phoenix, Marion's sister Lila and boyfriend Sam Loomis are concerned about her disappearance. A detective named Arbogast confirms Marion is suspected of having stolen $40,000 from her employer. Arbogast eventually finds the Bates Motel, where Norman's evasiveness and stammering arouse his suspicions. Arbogast later enters the Bates' residence, looking for Norman's mother. A figure emerges from her room and murders Arbogast.
Fearing something has happened to Arbogast, Sam and Lila go to the town of Fairvale and talk with the local sheriff. He is puzzled by the detective's claim that he was planning to talk to Norman's mother, stating that Mrs. Bates died years ago, along with her lover, in a murder-suicide. Norman, seen from above, carries his mother down to the cellar of their house as she verbally protests the arrangement.
Sam and Lila rent a room at the Bates Motel and search the cabin that Marion stayed in. Lila finds a scrap of paper with "$40,000" written on it while Sam notes that the bathtub has no shower curtain. Sam distracts Norman while Lila sneaks into the house, looking for Mrs. Bates. Norman subdues Sam and chases Lila. Seeing Norman approaching, Lila hides in the cellar and discovers Mrs. Bates sitting in a rocking chair. The chair rotates to reveal a desiccated corpse, the preserved body of Mrs. Bates. A figure enters the basement, wearing a dress and wig while wielding a large knife, revealing Norman to be the murderer all along. Sam enters and saves Lila.
After Norman's arrest, a psychiatrist who interviewed Norman reveals that Norman had murdered his mother and her lover years ago, and later developed a split personality to erase the crime from his memory. At times, he is able to function as Norman, but other times the mother personality completely dominates him. Norman is now locked into his mother's identity permanently. Mrs. Bates, in a voice-over, talks about how harmless she is, and how it was really Norman, not her, who committed the murders. The final scene shows Marion's car being recovered from the swamp.
Ted Knight (uncredited) as a policeman guarding Norman Bates
The success of Psycho jump-started Perkins' career, but he soon began to suffer from typecasting.[5] However, when Perkins was asked whether he would have still taken the role knowing that he would be typecast afterwards, he replied with a definite "yes".[6]
Until her death, Leigh continued to receive strange and sometimes threatening calls, letters, and even tapes detailing what they would like to do to Marion Crane. One letter was so "grotesque" that she passed it along to the FBI, two of whose agents visited Leigh and told her the culprits had been located and that she should notify the FBI if she received any more letters of that type.[7]
Norman's mother was voiced by Virginia Gregg, Paul Jasmin, and Jeanette Nolan, who also provided some screams for Lila's discovery of the mother's corpse. The three voices were thoroughly mixed, except for the last speech, which is all Gregg's.[8]
Anne Dore was chosen by Hitchcock to double for Perkins in the shower sequence in Psycho, since he did not want any of Perkins's physicality to betray his identity at that point in the film. Dore wore the mother's costume and did all the stabbing actions.
Production
The shower scene
The shadowy mother figure from the famous shower scene.
The murder of Janet Leigh's character in the shower is the film's pivotal scene and one of the best-known in all of cinema. As such, it spawned numerous myths and legends. It was shot from December 17 to December 23, 1959, and features 77 different camera angles.[58] The scene "runs 3 minutes and includes 50 cuts."[59] Most of the shots are extreme close-ups, except for medium shots in the shower directly before and directly after the murder. The combination of the close shots with their short duration makes the sequence feel more subjective than it would have been if the images were presented alone or in a wider angle, an example of the technique Hitchcock described as "transferring the menace from the screen into the mind of the audience".[60]
In order to capture the straight-on shot of the shower head, the camera had to be equipped with a long lens. The inner holes on the shower head were blocked and the camera placed a sufficient distance away so that the water, while appearing to be aimed directly at the lens, actually went around and past it.[61]
The soundtrack of screeching violins, violas and cellos was an original all-strings piece by composer Bernard Herrmann titled "The Murder". Hitchcock originally intended to have no music for the sequence (and all motel scenes),[62] but Herrmann insisted he try his composition. Afterward, Hitchcock agreed it vastly intensified the scene, and nearly doubled Herrmann's salary.[63][64][65] The blood in the scene is reputed to have been Boscochocolate syrup,[66] which shows up better on black-and-white film, and has more realistic density than stage blood.[1] The sound of the knife entering flesh was created by plunging a knife into a casaba melon.[67][68]
There are varying accounts whether Leigh was in the shower the entire time or a body double was used for some parts of the murder sequence and its aftermath. In an interview with Roger Ebert and in the book Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, Leigh stated she was in the scene the entire time and Hitchcock only used a stand-in for the sequence in which Norman wraps Marion's body in a shower curtain and places it in the trunk of her car.[69] The 2010 book The Girl in Alfred Hitchcock's Shower by Robert Graysmith contradicts this, identifying Marli Renfro as Leigh's body double for some of the shower scene's shots.[70]
A popular myth emerged that in order for Leigh's scream in the shower to sound realistic ice-cold water was used. Leigh denied this on numerous occasions, saying the crew was very accommodating supplying hot water throughout the week-long shoot.[71] All of the screams are Leigh's.[8]
Another concerns Saul Bass, the graphic designer who created many of the title sequences of Hitchcock's films and storyboarded some of Psycho's scenes, claiming he had directed the shower scene. This was refuted by several figures associated with the film, including Leigh, who stated: "absolutely not! I have emphatically said this in any interview I've ever given. I've said it to his face in front of other people... I was in that shower for seven days, and, believe me, Alfred Hitchcock was right next to his camera for every one of those seventy-odd shots."[72] Hilton Green, the assistant director, also refutes Bass' claim: "There is not a shot in that movie that I didn't roll the camera for. And I can tell you I never rolled the camera for Mr. Bass."[72]Roger Ebert, a longtime admirer of Hitchcock's work, summarily dismissed the rumor, stating, "It seems unlikely that a perfectionist with an ego like Hitchcock's would let someone else direct such a scene."[73]
However, commentators such as Stephen Rebello and Bill Krohn have argued in favor of Bass' contribution to the scene in his capacity as visual consultant and storyboard artist.[74] Along with designing the opening credits, Bass is termed "Pictorial Consultant" in the credits. When interviewing Hitchcock in 1967, François Truffaut asked about the extent of Bass' contribution, to which Hitchcock replied that in addition to the titles, Bass had provided storyboards for the Arbogast murder (which he claimed to have rejected), but made no mention of Bass providing storyboards for the shower scene.[75] According to Bill Krohn's Hitchcock At Work, Bass' first claim to have directed the scene was in 1970, when he provided a magazine with 48 drawings used as storyboards as proof of his contribution.[76]
Krohn's analysis of the production of Psycho in his book Hitchcock at Work, while refuting Bass' claims for directing the scene, notes that these storyboards did introduce key aspects of the final scene—most notably, the fact that the killer appears as a silhouette, and details such as the close-ups of the slashing knife, Leigh's desperate outstretched arm, the shower curtain being torn down, and the transition from the hole of the drainage pipe to Marion Crane's dead eyes. Krohn notes that this final transition is highly reminiscent of the iris titles that Bass created for Vertigo.[76]
Krohn's research also notes that Hitchcock shot the scene with two cameras: one a BNC Mitchell, the other a handheld camera called an Éclair which Orson Welles had used in Touch of Evil (1958). In order to create an ideal montage for the greatest emotional impact on the audience, Hitchcock shot a lot of footage of this scene which he trimmed down in the editing room. He even brought a Moviola on the set to gauge the footage required. The final sequence, which his editor George Tomasini worked on with Hitchcock's advice, however did not go far beyond the basic structural elements set up by Bass' storyboards.[76]
According to Donald Spoto in The Dark Side of Genius, Hitchcock's wife, Alma Reville, spotted a blooper in one of the last screenings of Psycho before its official release: after Marion was supposedly dead, one could see her blink. According to Patricia Hitchcock, talking in Laurent Bouzereau's "making of" documentary, Alma spotted that Leigh's character appeared to take a breath. In either case, the postmortem activity was edited out and was never seen by audiences.[16] Although Marion's eyes should be dilated after her death, the contact lenses necessary for this effect would have required six weeks of acclimatization to wear them, so Hitchcock decided to forgo them.[77]
It is often claimed that, despite its graphic nature, the "shower scene" never once shows a knife puncturing flesh.[78][79][80] However, a frame by frame analysis of the sequence shows one shot in which the knife appears to penetrate Leigh's abdomen, but the effect may have been created by lighting and reverse motion.[81] Leigh herself was so affected by this scene when she saw it, that she no longer took showers unless she absolutely had to; she would lock all the doors and windows and would leave the bathroom and shower door open.[82] She never realized until she first watched the film "how vulnerable and defenseless one is".[16]
Leigh and Hitchcock fully discussed what the scene meant:
Marion had decided to go back to Phoenix, come clean, and take the consequence, so when she stepped into the bathtub it was as if she were stepping into the baptismal waters. The spray beating down on her was purifying the corruption from her mind, purging the evil from her soul. She was like a virgin again, tranquil, at peace.[72]
Film theoristRobin Wood also discusses how the shower washes "away her guilt". He comments upon the "alienation effect" of killing off the "apparent center of the film" with which spectators had identified.[83]
In April 2013, the scene was voted the best bathroom scene of any film in history, with scenes from Trainspotting and There's Something About Mary coming second and third.[84]
Soundtrack
Score
Hitchcock insisted that Bernard Herrmann write the score for Psycho despite the composer's refusal to accept a reduced fee for the film's lower budget.[85] The resulting score, according to Christopher Palmer in The Composer in Hollywood (1990) is "perhaps Herrmann's most spectacular Hitchcock achievement."[86] Hitchcock was pleased with the tension and drama the score added to the film,[87] later remarking "33% of the effect of Psycho was due to the music."[88] The singular contribution of Herrmann's score may be inferred from the film's credit roll, where the composer's name precedes only the director's own, a distinction unprecedented in the annals of commercial cinematic music.
Herrmann used the lowered music budget to his advantage by writing for a string orchestra rather than a full symphonic ensemble,[85] contrary to Hitchcock's request for a jazz score.[89] He thought of the single tone color of the all-string soundtrack as a way of reflecting the black-and-white cinematography of the film.[90] Hollywood composer Fred Steiner, in an analysis of the score to Psycho, points out that string instruments gave Herrmann access to a wider range in tone, dynamics, and instrumental special effects than any other single instrumental group would have.[91]
The main title music, a tense, hurtling piece, sets the tone of impending violence, and returns three times on the soundtrack.[92][93] Though nothing shocking occurs during the first 15–20 minutes of the film, the title music remains in the audience's mind, lending tension to these early scenes.[92] Herrmann also maintains tension through the slower moments in the film through the use of ostinato.[88]
There were rumors that Herrmann had used electronic means, including amplified bird screeches to achieve the shocking effect of the music in the shower scene. The effect was achieved, however, only with violins in a "screeching, stabbing sound-motion of extraordinary viciousness."[94] The only electronic amplification employed was in the placing of the microphones close to the instruments, to get a harsher sound.[94] Besides the emotional impact, the shower scene cue ties the soundtrack to birds.[94] The association of the shower scene music with birds also telegraphs to the audience that it is Norman, the stuffed-bird collector, who is the murderer rather than his mother.[94]
Herrmann biographer Steven C. Smith writes that the music for the shower scene is "probably the most famous (and most imitated) cue in film music,"[90] but Hitchcock was originally opposed to having music in this scene.[94] When Herrmann played the shower scene cue for Hitchcock, the director approved its use in the film. Herrmann reminded Hitchcock of his instructions not to score this scene, to which Hitchcock replied, "Improper suggestion, my boy, improper suggestion."[95] This was one of two important disagreements Hitchcock had with Herrmann, in which Herrmann ignored Hitchcock's instructions. The second one, over the score for Torn Curtain (1966), resulted in the end of their professional collaboration.[96] A survey conducted by PRS for Music, in 2009, showed that the British public consider the score from 'the shower scene' to be the scariest theme from any film.[97]
To honor the 50th anniversary of Psycho, in July 2010, the San Francisco Symphony[98] obtained a print of the film with the soundtrack removed, and projected it on a large screen in Davies Symphony Hall while the orchestra performed the score live. This was previously mounted by the Seattle Symphony in October 2009 as well, performing at the Benaroya Hall for two consecutive evenings. These performances are part of John Goberman's offering of films with great music performed by live orchestras: A Symphonic Night at the Movies, These special events range from "Alexander Nevsky" to "Singin in the Rain" to "Hitchcock!".
Controversy
Psycho is a prime example of the type of film that appeared in the United States during the 1960s after the erosion of the Production Code. It was unprecedented in its depiction of sexuality and violence, right from the opening scene in which Sam and Marion are shown as lovers sharing the same bed, with Marion in a bra.[101] In the Production Code standards of that time, unmarried couples shown in the same bed would be taboo.[102]
According to the book Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, the censors in charge of enforcing the Production Code wrangled with Hitchcock because some of them insisted they could see one of Leigh's breasts. Hitchcock held onto the print for several days, left it untouched, and resubmitted it for approval. Each of the censors reversed their positions: those who had previously seen the breast now did not, and those who had not, now did. They passed the film after the director removed one shot that showed the buttocks of Leigh's stand-in.[103] The board was also upset by the racy opening, so Hitchcock said that if they let him keep the shower scene he would re-shoot the opening with them on the set. Since they did not show up for the re-shoot, the opening stayed.[103]
Another cause of concern for the censors was that Marion was shown flushing a toilet, with its contents (torn-up note paper) fully visible. No flushing toilet had appeared in mainstream film and television in the U.S. at that time.[104][105][106]
Internationally, Hitchcock was forced to make minor changes to the film, mostly to the shower scene. In Britain and New Zealand the shot of Norman washing blood from his hands was objected to and in Singapore, though the shower scene was left untouched, the murder of Arbogast and a shot of Mother's corpse were removed.[107]
The most controversial move was Hitchcock's "no late admission" policy for the film, which was unusual for the time. It was not entirely original as Clouzot had done the same in France for Les Diaboliques.[108] Hitchcock thought that if people entered the theater late and never saw the star actress Janet Leigh, they would feel cheated.[30] At first theater owners opposed the idea, claiming that they would lose business. However, after the first day, the owners enjoyed long lines of people waiting to see the film.[30]
Promotion
Hitchcock did most of the promotion on his own, forbidding Leigh and Perkins to make the usual television, radio, and print interviews for fear of their revealing the plot.[109] Even critics were not given private screenings but rather had to see the film with the general public, which, despite possibly affecting their reviews,[107] certainly preserved the secret.
The film's original trailer features a jovial Hitchcock taking the viewer on a tour of the set, and almost giving away plot details before stopping himself. It is "tracked" with Bernard Herrmann's Psycho theme, but also jovial music from Hitchcock's comedy The Trouble with Harry; most of Hitchcock's dialogue is post-synchronized. The trailer was made after completion of the film, and since Janet Leigh was no longer available for filming, Hitchcock had Vera Miles don a blonde wig and scream loudly as he pulled the shower curtain back in the bathroom sequence of the preview. Since the title, "Psycho," instantly covers most of the screen, the switch went unnoticed by audiences for years. However, a freeze-frame analysis clearly reveals that it is Vera Miles and not Janet Leigh in the shower during the trailer.[30]
The film was so successful that it was reissued to theaters in 1965. A year later, CBS purchased the television rights for $450,000. CBS planned to televise the film on September 23, 1966, but three days earlier, Valerie Percy, daughter of Illinois senate candidate Charles H. Percy, was murdered. As her parents slept mere feet away, she was stabbed a dozen times with a double-edged knife. In light of the murder, CBS agreed to postpone the screening, but as a result of the Apollo pad fire of January 27, 1967, the network washed its hands of Psycho,[110] and shortly afterward Paramount included the film in its first syndicated package of post-1950 movies, "Portfolio I". WABC-TV in New York City was the first station in the country to air Psycho (with some scenes significantly edited), on its late-night movie series, The Best of Broadway, on June 24, 1967.[111] Following another successful theatrical reissue in 1969, the film finally made its way to general television airing in one of Universal's syndicated programming packages for local stations in 1970. Psycho was aired for twenty years in this format, then leased to cable for two years before returning to syndication as part of the "List of a Lifetime" package.[110]
Reception
Initial reviews of the film were thoroughly mixed.[124]Bosley Crowther of The New York Times wrote, "There is not an abundance of subtlety or the lately familiar Hitchcock bent toward significant and colorful scenery in this obviously low-budget job." Crowther called the "slow buildups to sudden shocks" reliably melodramatic but contested Hitchcock's psychological points, reminiscent of Krafft-Ebing's studies, as less effective. While the film did not conclude satisfactorily for the critic, he commended the cast's performances as "fair".[125] British critic C. A. Lejeune was so offended that she not only walked out before the end but permanently resigned her post as film critic for The Observer.[126] Other negative reviews stated, "a blot on an honorable career", "plainly a gimmick movie", and "merely one of those television shows padded out to two hours."[124][127] Positive reviews stated, "Anthony Perkins' performance is the best of his career... Janet Leigh has never been better", "played out beautifully", and "first American movie since Touch of Evil to stand in the same creative rank as the great European films."[124][128] A good example of the mix is the New York Herald Tribune's review, which stated, "...rather difficult to be amused at the forms insanity may take... keeps your attention like a snake-charmer."[124]
The public loved the film, with lines stretching outside of theatres as people had to wait for the next showing. It broke box-office records in Japan and the rest of Asia, France, Britain, South America, the United States and Canada, and was a moderate success in Australia for a brief period.[124] It was the most profitable black-and-white sound film ever made, and Hitchcock personally realized well in excess of $15 million. He then swapped his rights to Psycho and his TV anthology for 150,000 shares of MCA, making him the third largest shareholder in MCA Inc. and his own boss at Universal, in theory. But that didn't stop them from interfering with him badly.[129][130]Psycho was, by a large margin, the most profitable film of Hitchcock's career, earning over $12 million for the studio on release, and $15 million by the end of the year. Hitchcock's second most profitable was Family Plot ($7,541,000), and third place was a tie between Torn Curtain (1966) and Frenzy (1972), each earning $6,500,000.
In the United Kingdom, the film shattered attendance records at the London Plaza Cinema, but nearly all British critics panned it, questioning Hitchcock's taste and judgment. Reasons cited for this were the critics' late screenings, forcing them to rush their reviews, their dislike of the gimmicky promotion, and Hitchcock's expatriate status.[131] Perhaps thanks to the public's response and Hitchcock's efforts at promoting it, the critics did a re-review, and the film was praised. TIME switched its opinion from "Hitchcock bears down too heavily in this one" to "superlative" and "masterly", and Bosley Crowther put it on his Top Ten list of 1960.[131] Psycho was initially criticized for making other filmmakers more willing to show gore; three years later, Blood Feast, considered to be the first "splatter film", was released.[132]Psycho's success financially and critically had others trying to ride its coattails. Inspired by Psycho, Hammer Film Productions launched a series of mystery thrillers including The Nanny[133] (1965) starring Bette Davis and William Castle's Homicidal (1961) was followed by a slew of more than 13 other splatter films.[132]
Scarface is a 1983 American crime film directed by Brian De Palma, written by Oliver Stone, produced by Martin Bregman, and starring Al Pacino as Tony Montana. A remake of the 1932 film of the same name, the film tells the story of a Cubanrefugee who comes to Miami in 1980 with the Mariel Boatlift, and becomes a drug cartel kingpin during the cocaine boom of the 1980s. The film is dedicated to Howard Hawks and Ben Hecht, the director and principal screenwriter, respectively, of the original film.
The initial critical response to Scarface was mixed, with criticism over excessive violence and graphic language. Some Cuban expatriates in Miami objected to the film's portrayal of Cubans as criminals and drug traffickers. Later reviews were more positive. It is now considered a classic within the mob film genre.
Plot
In 1980, Cuban refugee Tony Montana (Al Pacino) arrives in Miami during the Mariel boatlift. He, along with his best friend Manny Ribera (Steven Bauer), and their friends and associates Angel (Pepe Serna) and Chi-Chi (Ángel Salazar), are sent to "Freedom Town," a refugee camp. In exchange for hitting a former Cuban government official at the request of cocaine trafficking tycoon Frank Lopez (Robert Loggia) in revenge for torturing his brother to death, the group is released from Freedom Town and given green cards. On the outside, they are offered a deal by Frank's henchman Omar Suarez (F. Murray Abraham) to buy cocaine from Colombian dealers. The deal falls through and Angel is dismembered with a chainsaw by the Colombians, in front of a horrified Tony. Manny and Chi-Chi storm the apartment before the same fate befalls Tony, and the Colombians are killed. Suspecting that Omar betrayed them, Tony and Manny insist on personally giving Frank the money and drugs retrieved from the deal. Impressed, Frank hires Tony and Manny. During their meeting, Tony meets, and is instantly attracted to, Elvira Hancock (Michelle Pfeiffer), Frank's trophy wife.
Months later, Tony visits his mother Georgina (Míriam Colón), and younger sister, Gina (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), of whom he is fiercely protective. His mother is appalled at his dishonest means of affording his gaudy lifestyle, scolding him that she didn't raise him to be that and asserting that Gina is not to be corrupted like him, and disowns him. As Tony gets in his waiting car, Manny comments on Gina's beauty before being severely warned by Tony that she's off limits.
Frank sends Tony and Omar to Bolivia to meet with cocaine production overlord Alejandro Sosa (Paul Shenar). Tony agrees to a deal with Sosa without Frank's approval, and Omar leaves to contact Frank. Sosa discloses that Omar is a police informant and then has Tony witness as a beaten Omar is pushed to his hanging death from a helicopter by "The Skull" (Geno Silva), Sosa's assassin. Tony vouches for the rest of his organization and Frank, and Sosa agrees to the deal, parting with a warning that Tony should never betray him. In Miami, Frank is infuriated by Omar's demise and the unauthorized deal struck by Tony. The relationship between Tony and Frank dissolves, and Tony establishes his own organization and informs Elvira of his intentions toward her.
At the nightclub, Tony is blackmailed by corrupt detective Mel Bernstein (Harris Yulin), who lays out the cost of Tony continuing his business operation in return for police immunity. Tony angers Frank further by openly pursuing Elvira in the club. Tony sees Gina dancing with a drug dealer. He throws the dealer out, and following a heated exchange he slaps Gina before Manny takes her home. Hitmen attempt to assassinate Tony, but he escapes. Suspecting that his former boss sent the hitmen, Tony, Manny and Chi-Chi go to Frank's office, where they find him with Bernstein. When a planned phone call by one of Tony's henchmen confirms Frank's involvement, Manny kills Frank and Tony kills Bernstein. Tony takes Elvira and seizes Frank's empire.
With Sosa's supplies, Tony builds a multi-million-dollar empire, and he later marries Elvira. However, the operation struggles as Tony and Elvira excessively use cocaine, Tony's money launderer demands more pay, and Manny grows resentful as Tony takes all credit for their success. Eventually, Tony is charged with money laundering and tax evasion after a police sting operation. Sosa offers to use his government connections to keep Tony out of jail if Tony assassinates a Bolivian journalist who intends to expose Sosa during a speech to the United Nations. Later, Tony further pushes Manny and Elvira away by blaming his friend for his arrest and accusing his wife of being infertile because of her drug use. After a fight, Elvira leaves Tony.
In New York City, Tony, Chi-Chi and Sosa's henchman Alberto (Mark Margolis) prepare for the assassination. Alberto plants a bomb on the journalist's car, but when the journalist is unexpectedly accompanied by his family, Tony calls off the mission. Alberto insists on continuing, forcing Tony to kill him. Later, Tony learns that Manny and Gina have been missing for several days. Returning home, Tony is contacted by a furious Sosa over the mission's failure. Sosa ends their business relationship and reminds Tony that he should not have betrayed him.
In search of Gina, Tony goes to his mother's house. She gives him an address in Coconut Grove. At the address, Manny opens the door wearing a bathrobe. When Tony also sees Gina in a robe, he goes into a rage and kills Manny. Gina furiously tells Tony that she and Manny had just gotten married the day before and were planning to surprise him.
Tony and his men take Gina to Tony's mansion. Tony declares war on Sosa before burying his face in a large mound of cocaine. Meanwhile, Sosa's men begin assaulting the mansion and killing Tony's men. A drugged Gina accuses Tony of wanting her himself, before shooting him in the leg. One of Sosa's men shoots and kills Gina. Tony kills the man and becomes enraged at the sight of Gina's corpse. Chi-Chi is also killed by Sosa's assassins. In a cocaine-fueled fury, Tony uses a grenade-launcher-equipped rifle to kill several of Sosa's men. Tony is repeatedly shot, but continues to fight until he is shot in the back by The Skull, who crept up behind him. Tony's corpse falls into a fountain below, in front of a statue reading, "The World is Yours."
Scarface premiered on December 1, 1983 in New York City, where it was initially greeted with mixed to positive reaction. The film's two stars, Al Pacino and Steven Bauer, were joined in attendance by Burt and Diane Lane, Melanie Griffith, Raquel Welch, Joan Collins, her then-boyfriend Peter Holm and Eddie Murphy among others.[3] According to AMC's "DVD TV: Much More Movie" airing, Cher loved it, Lucille Ball, who came with her family, hated it because of the graphic violence and language, and Dustin Hoffman was said to have fallen asleep. Writers Kurt Vonnegut and John Irving were among those who allegedly walked out in disgust after the notorious chainsaw scene. At the middle of the film, Martin Scorsese turned to Steven Bauer and told him, "You guys are great – but be prepared, because they're going to hate it in Hollywood... because it's about them."[4] Scarface, upon its first release, drew controversy regarding the violence and graphic language in the film, and received many negative reviews from movie critics. Despite this, the film grossed $65 million worldwide, and has since gathered a large following. On the two-disc Special Edition, the film's producer, Martin Bregman, said that the film was well received by only one notable critic, Vincent Canby of The New York Times. However, Roger Ebert rated it four stars out of four in his 1983 review and he later added it to his "Great Movies" list.[5] Over the years, reviews for the film have changed from negative to positive. Some stated that editing was a problem in the movie. In one case, where Omar Suarez is hanging from the helicopter, his shoe falls off randomly and it seems as if he is dancing while hanging from the helicopter. Rotten Tomatoes holds an average of 89% with a consensus of " Director Brian De Palma and star Al Pacino take it to the limit in this stylized, ultra-violent and eminently quotable gangster epic that walks a thin white line between moral drama and celebratory excess."[6]
Rating
Scarface was given an X rating three times (original, second, and third cuts) for extreme violence, frequent strong language and hard drug usage. Director Brian De Palma pulled in a panel of experts, including real narcotics officers, who stated that the film was an accurate portrayal of the real-life drug underworld and should be widely seen. This convinced the 20 members of the ratings board to give the third cut an "R" rating by a vote of 18 to 2. De Palma later asked the studio if he could release the original director's cut, but was told that he could not. However, since the studio executives did not know the differences among the three submitted cuts, De Palma released the director's cut to theaters anyway with an unapproved "R."[7]
Box office
Scarface was released on December 9, 1983, in 997 theaters, grossing USD $4.6 million in its opening weekend. The film went on to make $45.4 million in North America and $20.5 million internationally for a worldwide total of $65.9 million (over $135 million, when adjusted for inflation, as of 2010).
Critical reception
Roger Ebert wrote "DePalma and his writer, Oliver Stone, have created a gallery of specific individuals, and one of the fascinations of the movie is that we aren't watching crime-movie clichés, we're watching people who are criminals."[8] He later added it to his "Great Movies" list.[9]Vincent Canby also praised the film in the New York Times: "[T]he dominant mood of the film is... bleak and futile: what goes up must always come down. When it comes down in Scarface, the crash is as terrifying as it is vivid and arresting."[10] Leonard Maltin was among those critics who held a negative opinion of Scarface. He gave the film 1½ stars out of four, stating that "...[Scarface] wallows in excess and unpleasantness for nearly three hours, and offers no new insights except that crime doesn't pay. At least the 1932 movie moved." In later editions of his annual movie guide, Maltin included an addendum to his review stating his surprise with the film's newfound popularity as a cult-classic.[11]
In his review for Newsweek, David Ansen wrote, "If Scarface makes you shudder, it's from what you think you see and from the accumulated tension of this feral landscape. It's a grand, shallow, decadent entertainment, which like all good Hollywood gangster movies delivers the punch and counterpunch of glamour and disgust".[12]Jay Scott, in his review for the Globe and Mail, writes, "For a while, Al Pacino is hypnotic as Montana. But the effort expended on the flawless Cuban accent and the attempts to flesh out a character cut from inch-thick cardboard are hopeless."[13] In his review for the Washington Post, Gary Arnold wrote, "A movie that appeared intent on revealing an alarmingly contemporary criminal subculture gradually reverts to underworld cliche, covering its derivative tracks with outrageous decor and an apocalyptic, production number finale, ingeniously choreographed to leave the antihero floating face down in a literal bloodbath."[14]
It currently holds a "Fresh" rating of 89% from Rotten Tomatoes, and an average score of 65/100 from Metacritic.
Pacino earned a nomination for Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama and Steven Bauer was nominated for Best Supporting Actor as well. DePalma was nominated for, but did not win, a Razzie Award for Worst Director.
Legacy
In June 2008, the American Film Institute revealed its "Ten Top Ten"—the best ten films in ten "classic" American film genres—after polling over 1,500 people from the creative community. Scarface was acknowledged as the tenth best in the gangster film genre.[15] The line "Say hello to my little friend!" (spoken by Montana of his M16A1's M203 grenade launcher) took 61st place on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes list. Entertainment Weekly ranked the film #8 on their list of "The Top 50 Cult Films,"[16] and Empire Magazine placed it among the top 500 films of all time, at #284.[17] In 2010, VH1 rated the movie at number 5 in its list of 100 greatest movies of all time. Scarface was the first film in which the expletive "fuck" is used over 200 times.
Releases
VHS
Scarface was initially released by MCA Home Video on VHS, CED Videodisc, Laserdisc, and Beta in the summer of 1984 – a two-tape set in 1.33:1 pan and scan ratio – and quickly became a bestseller, preluding its cult status.[18] A 2.35:1 Widescreen VHS would follow years later in 1998 to coincide with the special edition DVD release. The last VHS release was in 2003 to counterpart the 20th anniversary edition DVD.
TV version
The TV version of Scarface premiered on ABC on January 7, 1989.[19] 32 minutes were edited out, and much of the dialog, including the constant use of the word "fuck", which was muted after the beginning of "f-" or replaced with less offensive alternatives. In addition, aside from being heavily cut for content and time, the following scenes were added in order to make up for anything that was cut:
An extra Freedom Town scene, in which Tony is in a phone booth trying to call a young girl (presumably Gina), and then watches television with Manny and Chi Chi.
At the Babylon Club, before Frank points to Tony El Gordo, he points to him Luis and Miguel Echevierra.
While visiting his mother's house, Tony presents her with a gift. He then says, "So here we are, the Three Musketeers", as he opens the champagne bottle, and makes a toast to America.
A scene that shows Sosa talking to his fiancee, Gabriella Martini, on a white horse.
A scene where Tony meets his lawyer for the first time.
A scene in New York City, where Tony is approached by police while planting a car bomb, and pretends to be looking for his lost dog.
Some of these scenes appear as extras on DVD, but in a rough-cut fashion, as opposed to the versions that were seen on television.
DVD
Scarface has been released on DVD several times in the United States.
The first release was by Universal Studios Home Entertainment on the film's 15th anniversary in 1998 under the studio's "Collector's Edition" line. The DVD featured a non-anamorphic widescreen transfer, Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround, a "Making of" documentary, outtakes, production notes and cast and crew biographies. This release was not successful, and many fans and reviewers complained about its unwatchable video transfer and muddled sound, describing it as "one of the worst big studio releases out there".[20]
This DVD quickly went out of print, subsequently fetching outrageous prices on secondhand sites such as eBay.[citation needed] In 2003, Universal released a remastered two disc "Anniversary Edition" to coincide with the film's 20th anniversary re-release, featuring two documentaries — one re-edited from the last release to include new interviews with Steven Bauer (Manny Ray) and another produced by Def Jam Recordings featuring interviews with various rappers on the film's cult status in the hip hop world and other extras ported over from the previous DVD. New to this edition was a 2.35:1 Anamorphic widescreen transfer and 5.1 surround sound in both Dolby Digital and DTS. An alternate, 1.33:1 pan and scan version of the DVD was also made available.
The limited, 20th anniversary theatrical re-release in 2003 also boasted a remastered soundtrack with enhanced sound effects and music but the DVD's 5.1 tracks were mixed from the film's original four-track stereo audio, resulting in noticeably limited frequency and surround effects. A limited edition box set was also released featuring a gold money clip embossed with the "Tony Montana" monogram, production stills, lobby cards, and a DVD of the original Scarface. In 2005, Universal released a single disc 'movie only' version of the Anniversary Edition with the deleted scenes as the sole bonus feature.
In the fall of 2006, Universal released the movie in a two-disc "Platinum Edition" featuring the remastered audio from the theatrical re-release in Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 surround. Most of the extras (with the exception of the Def Jam documentary, production notes, and cast and crew biographies) from the Anniversary Edition were also included. New features to this edition were two featurettes relating to the new video game and the criminal and cultural world of Miami in the 1980s, and a "Scarface Scorecard", which kept track of the number of bullets fired and "F-bombs" throughout the film.
Blu-ray
Universal Studios released Scarface on Blu-ray on September 6, 2011 in a two-disc, limited edition, steelbox package.[21] The set contains a remastered, 1080p widescreen transfer of the film in 7.1DTS-HD Master Audio surround sound, as well as a digital copy. Disc two is a DVD of the 1932 Scarface, featuring a TMC-produced introduction by Robert Osborne and an alternate ending. Bonus features for the 1983 Scarface are ported over from prior editions, including the deleted scenes, The Making of Scarface documentary, the Scarface: The Video Game featurette, and a new retrospective documentary: The Scarface Phenomenon. The Blu-ray also features BD-Live, Pocket-Blu app access, and "U-control"; featuring the "Scarface Scoreboard" from the 2006 Platinum Edition DVD, and picture-in-picture cast and crew interviews along with celebrity fan retrospectives, outtakes, and scene comparisons between the 1932 and 1983 versions, and the 1989 television edit.[22]
A special gift set, limited to 1,000 copies, features the Blu-ray set housed in a cigar humidor, designed by world-renowned humidor craftsman Daniel Marshall. The humidor box set retails for an MSRP of $999.99.[23]
Universal also launched a "National Fan Art Contest" via Facebook. The top 25 submissions selected by Universal were entered in a poll where fans voted on their 10 favorite works to be featured as art cards in the Blu-ray set. The Grand-Prize winner had their artwork featured on a billboard in a major US city in order to promote the release. To celebrate the release of Scarface on Blu-ray, Universal Studios and Fathom Events teamed up to make a Scarface Special Event. The event included Scarface coming back to select theatres nationwide for one night only on Wednesday, August 31, 2011. A twenty-minute documentary on how the film impacted the world today also featured.
A single-disc version, featuring only the first disc of the film and special features in standard Blu-ray packaging was released on October 11 of the same year.
Spanish-language version
When released in Spain, the film was titled El Precio del Poder (The Price of Power).[24][25] The US and Latin American editions of the DVD feature a Spanish language track, but give the title as Caracortada (Spanish for "Cutface"; a literal translation of "Scarface" into Spanish is "Cara cicatrizada"). Hector `The Toad` calls Tony Montana 'Cara de cicatriz' while he is being chained in the shower after Angel has been killed.
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