Alfred Hitchcock, one of the great horror film directors of our time, is referred to by his audiences as the "Master of Suspense." Hitchcock not only mastered horror films but also tamed his own imagination into making great horror films. Some of Hitchcock's most notable films were Vertigo, Psycho, The Birds and Rear Window. His films included clever plots incorporated with sharp dialogue and mystery and murder to inspire a new generation of filmmakers and make him a legend in the film industry. (Lopez-Guzman) .
One such Hitchcock film that included plenty of murder and mystery is his suspense thriller Psycho. Psycho is a film that is very unpredictable. Hitchcock keeps the audience on its toes throughout the movie. He does a great job of misleading the audience and using certain decoys to stray the viewer's thoughts. At no point in the film did I think it would end the way it did. Hitchcock's brilliance once again keeps viewer's eyes glued throughout the film.
Psycho begins with bird's eye view of Phoenix along with the time 2:43 PM. The camera, apparently at random, shows many buildings and many windows before choosing one building and one window and before the audience is introduced to Marion and Sam. Marion and Sam had just finished enjoying Marion's lunch break in a cheap hotel. Marion has very few clothes on considering this is a film released in 1960. The scene suggests that Sam and Marion are having an affair.
When Marion returns to work, Hitchcock introduces some character flaws. The secretary Marion works with takes tranquilizers, Marion herself takes long lunch breaks and shows up late on Mondays, and the man buying the house for his daughter (Cassidy) is flirting with Marion. During this time in the office, Hitchcock seems as if he is provoking the audience to feel sympathy toward Marion by Cassidy's arrogant actions toward Marion. It seems as if Cassidy, by saying that he can buy happiness, is somewhat provoking Marion to steal the $40,000 that he will be giving the real estate agency for the house.
