Psycho Trailer Analysis

Psycho is a thriller directed by the master of the genre Alfred Hitchcock. Released in 1960, it stars Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh and Vera Miles. and tells the story of a woman seeking refuge in a motel after stealing $40,000. However everything in the motel isn't as it seems.
Its rating on the IMDB website is 8.7/10.

I have analysed the trailer of this film, and a poster analysis will follow.

The trailer opens to shots of the film's cult scene: a woman being murdered in her shower. There are close up shots of her hand sliding down the wall and gripping the side of the shower. There is also a close up shot of her leg, showing she is lying in the shower, dead. A low angle shot is then taken of the shower curtain being ripped down. A shot of a man in the dark thrusting a knife towards the camera follows.

This scene only lasts just over 3 seconds. The edits are therefore very fast and practically subliminal, meaning we barely realise they're there. The cult theme tune, played on string instruments, is heard during this short scene.

This scene alone establishes the setting and mood expected during the entire film: scary, mysterious, tense.

As an anecdote, the woman playing the victim, Janet Leigh, didn't originally know she was going to be attacked. This information was kept from her during filming to try and get a natural look of shock, fear and surprise. However, this scene was reshot and edited over 70 times, so it is certain that for the scene we all know, she definatly knew what was coming.

A wide variety of shots and angles are used during the trailer. An establishing shot is used after the cult shower scene to establish the location of the film: a shady motel.

Medium shots are also used to show characters in their settings. In this example, we can see two men standing outside the office. The clothing of the man on the right can give an idea about the time in which the film is set.

The motel is often filmed from a low angle to show its scary, intriguing side. Furthermore,  the receptionist of the motel, played by Anthony Perkins, is also filmed from a low angle, to reflect his power over the other characters.

Many different locations and characters are put into this short trailer, showing that the transitions are fast. Also, the fade to black transition is used a lot, as it works well with black and white images. Halfway through the trailer, Alfred Hitchcock's name is shown above the word "presents". This is added in to show that Alfred Hitchcock, a very famous name, directed the film. This will therefore attract the target audience of his fans.

The name of the film, Psycho, is only revealed at the end. It isn't shown at the beginning otherwise the viewer may think "I know the name of the film now, I don't need to watch the rest of the trailer" It is put at then end to keep the viewer's attention and ensure that the whole trailer is watched and enjoyed.

The mise en scene is used to show the setting of the film: a spooky motel. The cars, clothes and furniture seen in the trailer reflect the time during which the film is set. Also, the trailer hasn't been remastered, so it contains the original black and white images of the film.

The trailer opens with the cult Psycho theme during the cult shower scene. An eerie string music then takes over and is then taken over by a much more fast paced, low tune. This is used to increase the tension and keep the viewer's attention.
Other sounds used in the trailer include dialogues between characters to help understand the narrative and setting of the film, and sounds of rain and storm are used appropriately to increase the verisimilitude.

This trailer aims to target fans of Alfred Hitchcock by putting his name in the trailer. The target audience is also thriller fans, as the images and sounds of the trailer qualify it as a thriller.