However, it is obvious that the black and white realization has predetermined the general atmosphere of the movie. The critics are apt to think that such choice aims to diminish the effect upon the audience from the famous shower scene (MacGuffin, 2004).
The making of psycho 1998 movie#
By the time the original movie was produced, Hitchcock had made several movies in color, so the choice of black and white in his Psycho was intentional. The effect is achieved by the choice of the palette by Van Sant. The key point is not only in the mere fact that Hitchcocks movie is black and white and the Gus Van Sants movie is shot in color. The first important difference is color, of course. These nuances may appear too small and unimportant, but the very presence of them makes the perception of these movies different. Though this arguments may seem reasonable, there are certain differences between the two movies. There are such critics who argued that the only reason of the remake producing was money, pointing out the fact that it would be interesting for the audience to see the new interpretation of the famous masterpiece, and the name of Hitchcock would be able to assure the box office revenue in itself.Īs Leitch argues “most remakes can largely be assumed to have been made in order to emulate the commercial success of the previous version, this particular reason for making them seems as formulaic and unimaginative as the Hollywood studios themselves” (Leitch, 1990, p.12) On the contrary, Gus Van Sant showed it in color with all the details. The famous scene in the shower is not so bloody in the original. For instance in Hitchcocks Psycho, which is black and white, the violence is also present, but not in the contemporary scope. There are those, who consider that the only difference between the original and the remake lies only in the addition of some rather brutal scenes (Santas, 2014). Many observers criticize the Gus Van Sants Psycho. The mother exists only in the mind of this mentally abnormal soppy boy. She does not want his son to keep a company with women.But there is a slight hitch. It is his mother who is the main culprit of this crime. However, the main reason for this murder is not the money. The young man, who works in this hotel, kills her and drowns in the nearest backwater with her car. A young girl, which is not satisfied with her romantic relationship with a married man, steals a huge amount of money and leaves the city. The plot of the film has made a revolution in its time. Hitchcock demonstrates it by interchanging the viewers focus of attention form one character to the other. This film is a typical example that teaches how it is possible to manipulate with the consciousness. He wanted to see the reaction of the audience to the murder of the lead character in the middle of the film (Sterrit, 1993). Hitchcock in a certain manner has made an experiment in this movie. It is a peace of workmanship, beyond all question. There is a sophisticated sense of the grim humor in Psycho, which becomes noticeable after several viewings. In comparison with them Psycho was deliberately inexpensive, and it differed in a great manner from the further films, which would try to copy it. Though the Hollywood movies were famous with the stories about the crimes, the intrigues and the adventures, in general they were characterized with the high cost of the production, with the picturesque settings and the famous artists. Probably no one movie had such a sufficient impact on the notion of the horror movie as Hitchcocks Psycho. In such a way Gus Van Sant holds himself as the enthusiast of the movie legacy. Moreover, he asserted that all the remakes were gone into production when the originals had been sunk into oblivion. He bemoans that the contemporary youth neglect the art, considering the black and white Hitchcock s films to be the relics of the past (Feature Commentary and the Making of Psycho, 1998). Associating with the press concerning his Psycho, Gus Van Sant proposed to view his film as the renewal of the classic for the new generation, which had grown up in the era of the color picture.