Tag Archives: Alfred Hitchcock

Scenes I Love: Marion Meets The Patrolman in Psycho

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

116 years ago, an actor named Mort Mills was born.

Mort Mills may have never been a household name but he will be forever remembered for playing the suspicious highway patrolman in 1960’s Psycho.  Anyone was have ever had to deal with a grim-faced, flat-voiced highway patrolman will automatically be able to relate to Janet Leigh’s fear in today’s scene that I love.  I’ve watched this film numerous times and I still don’t know if the patrolman was just doing his job or if he really was suspicious of Marion.  Mort Mills, with those dark glasses and flat affect, keeps you guessing.  In this brief role, Mills makes an impression that will never be forgotten.

4 Shots From 4 Alfred Hitchcock Films

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking.

Today, we honor the master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock.  Not all of his film were horror films, of course.  In fact, the majority were not.  But his influence on the genre cannot be overstated.  Just try to keep track of how many horror films owe a debt to Psycho or The Birds.

It’s time for….

4 Shots From 4 Alfred Hitchcock Films

Rebecca (1940, dir by Alfred Hitchcock, DP: George Barnes)

Shadow of a Doubt (1943, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, DP: Joseph A. Valentine)

Psycho (1960, dir by Alfred Hitchcock, DP: John L. Russell)

The Birds (1963, dir by Alfred Hitchcock, DP: Robert Burks)

Horror on the Lens: The Lodger (dir by Alfred Hitchcock)

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

A serial killer known as “The Avenger” is murdering blonde women in London (which, once again, proves that its better to be a redhead).  And while nobody knows the identity of the Avenger, they do know that the enigmatic stranger  (Ivor Novello), who has just recently rented a room at boarding house, happens to fit his description.  They also know that the lodger’s landlord’s daughter happens to be a blonde…

Released in 1927, the silent The Lodger was Alfred Hitchcock’s third film but, according to the director, this was the first true “Hitchcock film.”  Certainly it shows that even at the start of his career, Hitchcock’s famous obsessions were already present — the stranger accused of a crime, the blonde victims, and the link between sex and violence.

Also of note, the credited assistant director — Alma Reville — would become Alma Hitchcock shortly before The Lodger was released.

Horror Song of the Day: Main Theme From Psycho by Bernard Herrmann

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Today’s horror song of the day really needs no introduction.

From 1960, here is the main theme from Alfred Hitchcok’s Psycho, composed by Bernard Herrmann.

Scenes That I Love: Anthony Perkins in Psycho

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

You have to feel a bit bad for Anthony Perkins, who was an Oscar-nominated star of film and Broadway and something of a teen idol before he was cast as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 masterpiece, Psycho.  Perkins was so convincing in the role that he pretty much spent the majority of his career either playing variations of the character or appearing in small roles where his macabre screen image would not be too much of a problem.  Perkins gave one of the best film performances of all time and his career never really recovered from it.

Unfortunately, there’s a tendency to overlook just how good Anthony Perkins was in this first Psycho.  People look at his later, less-compelling performances and they make the mistake of thinking those performance were the best that Perkins was capable of giving.  Perkins was a fine actor and never better than when he played Norman.  The scene below highlight how Perkins managed to make Norman Bates both poignant and creepy at the same time.

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special James Stewart Edition

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!

Today, we celebrate the birthday of one of the greatest American actors of all time, the wonderful James Stewart!  It’s time for….

4 Shots From 4 James Stewart Films

Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939, dir by Frank Capra, DP: Joseph Walker)

It’s A Wonderful Life (1946, dir by Frank Capra, DP: Joseph Walker and Joseph Biroc)

Rear Window (1954, dir by Alfred Hitchcock, DP: Robert Burks)

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962, dir by John Ford. DP: William H. Clothier)

Scenes That I Love: Joseph Cotten and Teresa Wright in Shadow of a Doubt

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

On this date in 1905, the great actor Joseph Cotten was born in Petersburg, Virginia.  A longtime friend and collaborator of Orson Welles, Cotten was one of the most dependable leading men of the 40s and 50s, an actor with the charisma of star and the talent of an artist.

Today’s scene that I love comes from Alfred Hitchcock’s 1943 masterpiece, Shadow of a Doubt, and it features Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotten.  Wright plays Charlie.  Cotten plays her beloved uncle, who is also named Charlie and who might very well be a serial killer.  In this scene, Uncle Charlie drags his niece to a seedy bar, where he confesses that, as she earlier deduced, he is a suspect in a murder investigation.  With a mixture of charm and intimidating, Charlie tries to convince his niece to keep his secret to herself.

4 Shots From 4 Best Picture Winners: The 1940s

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!

Today, I’m using this feature to take a look at the history of the Academy Award for Best Picture.  Decade by decade, I’m going to highlight my picks for best of the winning films.  To start with, here are 4 shots from 4 Films that won Best Picture during the 1940s!  Here are….

4 Shots From 4 Best Picture Winners: The 1940s

Rebecca (1940, dir by Alfred Hitchcock, DP: George Barnes)

Casablanca (1942, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Arthur Edeson)

The Best Years Of Our Lives (1946, dir by William Wyler, DP: Gregg Toland)

Hamlet (1948, dir by Laurence Olivier, DP: Desmond Dickinson)

Scene that I Love: Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman in Notorious

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The great Cary Grant was born 120 years ago today.

In honor of Cary Grant’s legendary career and screen charm, today’s scene that I love comes from one of my favorite Cary Grant movies.  This is also one of my favorite Ingrid Bergman films and one of my favorite Alfred Hitchock films and even one of my favorite Claude Rains films.  1946’s Notorious is a favorite all-around!

Horror Scenes I Love: Anthony Perkins In Psycho

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Poor Anthony Perkins!

Anthony Perkins did not start his career as a horror icon.  A talented young actor, Perkins started his career on Broadway and eventually, he started to appear in films.  From the start, he was usually cast as nervous young men, the type who awkwardly smiled and struggled to talk to people.  Perkins was promoted as a romantic lead, with the Studios and his agents making sure that Perkins was regularly photographed dating Hollywood starlets like Natalie Wood.  As witty off-screen as he was nervous on-screen, Perkins was a popular figure in Hollywood.  He received his only Oscar nomination for his performance as a young Quaker in 1956’s Friendly Persuasion.

Perkins’s entire career changed when Alfred Hitchcock cast him as the seemingly timid motel owner in 1960’s Psycho.  Perkins was reportedly Hitchcock’s first choice for the role, with Hitchcock saying that he felt only Perkins or Dean Stockwell was capable of bringing Norman to life.  Perkins was not nominated for Best Actor but the role pretty much defined him in the eyes of many.  Perkins spent the rest of his career trying to first escape the shadow of Psycho and then eventually embracing his status as an icon of horror.

Perkins’s performance has been imitated so many times that there’s a tendency to forget just how good he is in the role.  In this episode, Perkins-as-Norman discusses his mother with Janet Leigh.