Psycho has all the conventions of a typical thriller. The mise-en-scene does most to portray this. It is set in unfamiliar surroundings for the victim, this being a hotel room in Psycho, and the victim is a helpless woman, however the killer seems to be female, breaking away from the typical stereotype of a male killer.
Initially the lighting in the hotel room is bleak. This leaves the audience with a sense of mystery as to the surroundings. The victim is underdressed, making her vulnerable too. As she enters the bathroom the lighting becomes much more vivid, however the shots become closer. Beforehand in the main room there were mid shots, showing background and surrounding, however now they are becoming close ups and extreme close-ups. This gives a good view of emotion on the faces of both the killer and victim so it allows the audience to connect with it. Also the lack of background leaves the audience wondering what’s there, keeping to the typicality’s of a thriller.
The speed of the editing increses too as the scene goes on. Each shot rarely last longer than a few seconds apart from the occasional pan shot. This builds tension, as it doesn’t give the audience time to react to the previous shot before they are rapidly switched to another one. Again though, all of these shots are close-ups, or extreme close ups. This could also leave the audience with a little bit of claustrophobia as they are confined to a small space throughout the scene.
All the sound up to a few seconds before the actual murder is diegetic sound. There is the sound of the water and the movement the victim makes and that is almost it. However a few seconds before the murder takes place non-diegetic sounds are introduced. The instruments add tension, making the audience more aware, and keep on the edge of their seat. When the murder is taking place the stabbing of the victim is also a non-diegetic sound. It’s not too realistic however it is better than no sound at all and allows the audience to be more aware of what is taking place.
The mise-en-scene is vital in this scene. As I mentioned the surroundings are not the normal to the victim, making her vulnerable, also the fact she is not wearing anything contributes to this sense of vulnerability. The most obviously important prop in the scene is the knife. In almost every shot involving the knife, using the rule of thirds, it is the most important object in the shot. This leaves the audience with a sense of what the victim went through. When in this vulnerable situation faced with a knife would not be the most pleasant thing, and I think the editing and the mise-en-scene work together fantastically to portray this in a realistic sense to the viewer. Also the weather shown half way through the actual murder scene reflects how the victim will be feeling.
This frame is taken from about halfway through the shower scene. It is an odd two shot, but a two shot never the less, consisting of the victim (right), and the murdered (background left). In part of this sequence there is a pan shot making the murderer the main focus of the shot before they reveal themselves. The use of the blurry shower curtain adds to the tension. The viewer is aware that someone has entered the room however the identity is not revealed at all, and this is common throughout the scene. The audiences also feels this sense of vulnerability and as the two shot is a close up of the victim in the foreground, are allowed to connect with the victim emotionally. The golden mean it draws attention to the face of both the killer and the victim.
This frame is as the killer pulls the shower curtain back and reveals herself to the victim. This is a close up however the shot is mainly used to show the knife. The running water conceals the face of the attacker and using the golden mean the knife is the focal point in the shot. This shot is important as you hear the initial screams from the victim and this, mixed with the introduction of the knife will leave the audience connecting with the victim and experiencing the same fear and panic that the victim is going through.
This shot is used to make the audience feel inferior and helpless. It is a high angled shot looking down at the victim receiving a blow. It is one of the few shots where you see the killer and the victim together, however the identities of both are concealed. You do get a hint towards the gender of the killer however, and, as mentioned earlier, this is not typical of the thriller genre.
