Hitchcock and the Cinematic Nightmare

After viewing the ultra-tired trailers of “Last House on the Left” and “The Haunting In Connecticut,” I simply have to yawn. Ok, yeah, maybe these movies—which I have yet to see—are frightening and up to their necks with special effects, blood, and guts. But for me, great suspense, thrills and horror start with one word: Hitchcock.

Alfred Hitchcock is truly the Master of Suspense. Because he believed to really scare people, you have to understand their twisted psychology. What he knew—which has become completely lost on contemporary thrillers and horrors—is that the impending terror is always more frightful than what is shown. We are most terrified when we’re not sure what is happening. Yes, hacking up bodies and blood splattering can cause us to shiver, squeal or turn away. But what’s most horrifying are all those moments leading up to it and what we don’t see—that seems to stay in our minds longer, crawling into our imaginations and forcing us to wonder about the gruesome possibilities.

I recently purchased the Collector’s Edition of “Psycho.” This movie is so brilliantly crafted. Hitchcock revolutionized the cinematic experience with this one. Maybe it’s that key moment—that epic Shower Scene—that changed the course of movies. Finally we were confronted with not only unreliable protagonists (played with depth by Janet Leigh), but protagonists that may not even make it until the end of the movie! We found ourselves anxiety-stricken by the likes of Norman Bates—oh Norman Bates—one of the great movie villains of all time. Anthony Perkins was so utterly creepy as Bates—talk about Oedipal complex.



“Psycho” was so groundbreaking because it wasn’t just a chiller. It was an engrossing and often shocking character study. Like many of Hithcock’s films—there is tremendous interest in human psychology. Hitchcock plays on our terrifying delusions, our paranoia, our distrust of others, and of course, our---sometimes---murderous instincts.

My Favorite Hitchock Films: Psycho, The Birds (pictured below), Rear Window, Vertigo, North By North West, Strangers On A Train




“Give them pleasure - the same pleasure they have when they wake up from a nightmare.” – Alfred Hitchcock