"How does Alfred Hitchcock manipulate the audience to make the viewing of Psycho a frightening or worrying experience?"

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Psycho Coursework Essay         Charlotte Read

“How does Alfred Hitchcock manipulate the audience to make the viewing of Psycho a frightening or worrying experience?”

Introduction:

For this essay I am going to describe, in detail, what Alfred Hitchcock did to make Psycho an innovative film, a new one that hadn’t been around before. It is famous because at the time it had a huge effect on the audience, we’re analysing how and why it did.

In the 1950’s America had a totally different disposition. There were certain boundaries for films in the past. There was never any flesh shown that was too provocative, kissing wasn’t included in films. For example at the end of a big love scene between two people there was no big kiss, people would kiss on the cheek.

When films were being played in multiplexes, anyone could walk in at anytime as films were on a loop, with cartoons and the news interspersed into it. Hitchcock wanted to change the course of cinematic history, so he changed the whole process of presenting, producing, making and promoting a film. This was so he could get to the fan base he wanted, so he could create a mass emotion and following.

He wouldn’t let anything else be shown in the cinema and everyone queuing outside would have to keep quiet about what they were to see. No one could suddenly walk in halfway through; you either saw it or you didn’t. The film had many theatrical trailers to make you feel interested in seeing the movie. A lot of work went into producing a film that was exciting and new, whilst trying to get around the censors.

The audience had certain expectations. In the trailer Hitchcock manipulated these expectation s to create a sense of an “enigma”, to entice the people to see the film and unfold the mystery. In one full length trailer he walked around the house, leaving clues and trying to tell you what happened. He went in important places in Norman’s house and made it crystal clear that something odd was going to happen. He then went into the bathroom and pulled back the shower curtain to show Marion screaming, which set people a-back. He made them see little tiny snippets of the house to make them more and more intrigued. He used his monotone voice and guide like way and this set people up for a large climax.

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Posters were used to create an effect that people thought certain things weren’t what they seemed. Marion looked like she could be the main character for the whole film, which towards the middle and end, isn’t true. The posters used bright colour, and showed Marion in her bra and slip, which was again another daring flight.  It was enticing and risqué and had never been done before.

The audience expected a normal story. A beginning, middle and an end, which meant that a normal classic narrative would have to be used;

The film would start with equilibrium. A ...

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