A Book A Week

Can you believe that it is already October?! This month marks the beginning of my favorite time of the year. The weather is cooler (I live in Texas, so anything less than 100 degrees is amazing), all of our food and drinks have pumpkin in it, and we are able to enjoy a little bit of down time before the hectic holiday season. With this new season, publishers and movie studios tend to trade their summer beach reads and big budget blockbusters for more prestigious fare. And of course, this month is capped off by one of my favorite holidays . . . Halloween! In honor of this holiday A Book A Week will feature weekly Friday Flicks that are adaptations of horror novels. Each week will feature a different film from a different decade. We will begin in the 60's and work our way up to the present day. Pour yourself a pumpkin spice latte, grab a blanket, and cozy up on your couch as we celebrate all things Horror!

There is perhaps no other horror movie as iconic as Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. The 1960 film is noted as being one of the famed director's crowning achievements, but the it's origin was anything but easy. Based upon the novel of the same name by Robert Bloch, Psycho was deemed too grotesque by Hitchcock's studio, Paramount, and they refused to fund its filming. Disappointed by his previous directorial effort and determined to revitalize his career, Hitchcock took a major salary cut and personally funded the production of the film. These budget cuts forced Hitchcock to shoot the movie in black and white and created a tight production schedule. While controversial for its "graphic" content, this film was a runaway commercial success. Even though critics were initially mixed in their reaction, Psycho's commercial appeal and audience appreciation has turned it into a beloved classic.

The story begins when Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) steals a large sum of money from a client at the real estate office that she works at. Instead of taking the cash to deposit in the bank, she keeps it with her so that she can elope with her boyfriend Sam. She decides to run away with the money. As she leaves town, chance encounters with her boss and a state trooper add to her guilt and paranoia. This along with an unrelenting storm and a wrong turn leads her to the Bate's Motel.

The dilapidated establishment is run by Norman Bates, a soft-spoken man who invites Marion to a light dinner in his office. Surrounded by disconcerting stuffed animals, Norman tells her about is hobby of taxidermy and about his mentally ill mother who he cares for. Marion takes in this unusual character as she silently grapples with her crime. Overcome by guilt, she resolves to return the money when she leaves in the morning. But, as anyone who has watched the movie knows, that is not meant to be. As she takes a shower in her room, the silhouette of a woman can be seen behind the curtains. What ensues is one of the greatest scenes in cinematic history.

 Beyond the famed shower scene, Psycho is a brilliant film that will keep you invested and shocked until the very end. Even if you have seen the movie before, the twist ending will leave you uncomfortable and disturbed. Anthony Perkins as Norman Bates quietly unnerves with his subtle politeness and lanky stature. With composer Bernard Herrmann's haunting score as the soundtrack to this drama, Hitchcock masterfully leads his audience through a sinister tale of murder and conspiracy. While much of the content is tame compared to the gore in modern horror films, Psycho stands as the foundation of the slasher genre and as a prime example of a perfect horror adaptation.