'Discuss how the narrative in Psycho and other films contributes to their overall success.'

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‘Discuss how the narrative in Psycho and other films contributes to their overall success.’

Psycho is the creation of The Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock and is one of the most celebrated films ever made. What contributes to the overall success of the film is the unusual narrative equilibrium.

Marion is having an affair with Sam and they met at a hotel every lunch break when he is in town. Sam is divorced and heavily in debt. So they cannot afford to get married. Marion goes back to work as a secretary where her boss asks her to bank $40,000 in cash. But she runs away with it instead. As she drives out of Phoenix to meet Sam she is stopped by a patrolman and has to exchange her car to avoid detection. She later stops at a motel run by Norman Bates who unknown to Marion is schizophrenic. Marion is brutally murdered in her shower. Norman finding her body, puts it into the car along with the money which he then pushes into the swamp nearby. The rest of the film is about Marion’s sister, Lila and Sam her lover, frantically searching for Marion and the money.

    Todorov’s theory is included in this film, he believes that a film should have events that disturb the narrative. There are a lot of disruptions; one of which is Marion stealing the $40,000. This movie is similar to Secret Window; Todorovs theory is put into practice in this film, the disruptions start off minor then they become more major as you get further into the film. This can be confusing for the audience. The tension in psycho builds and expands, this is called Narrative Trajectory.

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   Barthes believes there are 5 different codes that make a narrative. The action code, the disruptions through out the film. E.g. when the main character is murdered. The code of enigma when the audience asks questions about the film, who murdered Marion? Why did Norman kill his mother? Why did he dress in his mothers clothes? All these questions are then answered later on in the film this is called closure. This also takes place in other films like Secret Window Why is he going back to the motel? The semic code is not used in films that ...

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