How is
cinematography used to create atmosphere in the shower scene of Psycho?
In the short clip of psycho there is a women who is seen to
be sitting doing something which she becomes frustrated with and then in turn
decides to stop what she is doing and rips up he paper she was writing on and
disposes of it. She then decides to take a shower and little does she know
there is an intruder in her house who then confronts her and kills her. Once
she has been killed the perpetrator doesn’t stay around and instead leaves the
scene.
There are a variety of editing techniques used in this short
clip and they range quite widely. At the start of the scene the camera movement
is relatively slow and this is due to there being no action occurring in the
scene but as the women moves into the bathroom and gets into the shower the
camera cuts and camera movement become quicker and this suggests to the viewer
that something is going to happen as these quick camera cuts start to build up
tension. Throughout the scene it is all straight cuts from one shot to another
but there is one exception in this statement and that is when there is an
editing technique which is used from the plug hole to the women's eye. The
technique which is used to move between these two shots is the dissolve; this
is an appropriate editing technique as the blood from the women's stab wounds
is flowing down the plug hole meaning that her life is fading away hence why
the dissolve is an appropriate edit to use.
The setting of the killing is quite unusual for the viewer
and the reason for this is due to the fact that it takes place in a bathroom
and the reason why this is slightly unusual for the viewer is because a
bathroom is seen as quite a safe place and not somewhere where a killing is
likely to take place like it does in this short clip.
Shot 1
This is shot of the killer is a close up of the subject
helping to try and catch as much detail of the killer as possible. However the
killers’ identity is concealed by the fact that the water from the shower is
masking the killers face. The backlighting also doesn’t help to show the killer
either as it causes a shadow to be cast over the perpetrators face. The clothes
that killer is wearing and the hairstyle that they have suggests that the
killer is in fact a women due to the long hair and top they are wearing. Using
the golden mean in the shows the important points on this shot are firstly the
knife being held by the killer and also the water from the shower as this is
concealing the killers’ true identity as mentioned before. The knife is being
held towards the victim and in a fashion that would be seen if it were to be
used to attack someone. This helps to create tension for the viewer as this is
just before the woman gets stabbed multiple times.
Shot 2
This shot is a close up but the victim of the attack is in
the corner of the shot and instead the main focus is on the figure which can be
seen slightly through the shower curtain. The fact that the shower curtain has
a pattern to it which distorts anything behind it creates tension makes the
viewer question who's behind the curtain. The killer behind the curtain has
more attention drawn to them as the shot progresses and the reason for this is
because the cameras main focus at the start of the shot is the women but as the
killer behind the curtain comes into view the camera tracks the unknown figure
as they move close and closer which helps to draw attention to them and also
create even more tension as the viewer begins to wonder who the person behind
the curtain is and also what's going to happen when the victim of the attack
finds out or whether in fact the killer is just going to startle the victim and
an attack is about to occur. The lighting used in the shot is directed onto the
shower curtain and this helps to increase the tension and mystery to who's
behind the shower curtain which engages and the viewer even more. The golden
mean is used well in this shot and the reason for that is due to the fact that
the victim of the attack and both the killer behind the shower curtain both
fall on the golden mean and this helps to draw more attention to both of them
as they are the two subjects which should stand out in the shot.
Shot 3
This shot of the knife is a close up of the knife which
helps to highlight that it is a weapon which also appears to be aimed at the
women in the shower. Having a close up of the knife suggests the viewer that
the women in shower is about to be attacked and stabbed by the woman what this
does for the audience is creates tension and the reason for this is because
after seeing the close up they are thinking of what's going to happen next and
whether the woman is going to be attacked and if she is going to be killed or
just injured. This therefore leaves the viewer on a momentary cliff hanger
which again creates tension. Before the shot of the knife becomes a still the
camera starts at a zoomed out position and then zooms in on the knife further
to emphasise to the viewer that the subject who crept up upon the woman in the
shower is in fact wielding a knife. Whilst the knife is shown in a close up
shot there is diegetic sound coming from the actor and that is in the form of
screaming due to her seeing the knife that the killer is holding, this
screaming could be seen to cause a scream for the viewer as it is sudden and is
a loud scream which could cause the viewer to jump and feel slightly scared
giving them a sense of how the victim of the attack is feeling. The lighting
which is used is seen to be direct lighting onto the knife and this helps to
make the knife stand out even more which creates tension for the viewer. In the
corner of the shot a woman's hair and also clothes which look like they should
be worn by a women can be seen and this therefore subconsciously makes the
viewer think as to who the killer could be. This is however somewhat of a
diversion later on in the fil helping to keep the viewer engaged to try and
find out work out who the killer is before the film ends and the truth is
revealed.
Shot 4
This shot is a high angle shot showing the killer stabbing
the women in the shower. The overhead shot helps to show that the women being
stabbed is weak and the reason for this is because it shows the whole of the
women's body and perceiving her to look hurt and weak as possible this could
make the viewer feel heartfelt and somewhat sorry for the victim. The high
angle shot also helps to show the power that killer has as it looks to be that
she is the one in control in this shot and she is stabbing the women in the
shoulder mean whilst standing in a strong stance and not looking like she is
being overrun by the victim. In the shot there is diegetic sound from the women
who is heard to be crying out in distress due to the pain of being stabbed and
this is reinforced by showing that she is being stabbed, this again makes the
viewer feel somewhat sorry for the victim being stabbed as they can hear them
crying out as well as seeing them in pain from the attack. The lighting in the
shot is mostly directly on the victim of the attack and this highlights them as
being the most important person in the shot the lighting is placed in the right
place to help to shadow the killers face helping to add mystery to who the
killer is as you can’t see their face, this again further leads the audience to
try and work out who the killer is and the fact they are dressed and has the
hair of a women misleads the audience in who they think the killer to be. The
shot is set in the bathroom and shows all the bath and the water which is
falling onto the victim. Showing the water falling on the victim and the shower
curtain being in the shot emphasises the fact that this attack was not known by
the victim as these were the two elements which meant that she didn’t know that
the attacker was coming. When the attack is going on the cry from the victim is
accompanied by non-diegetic sound which is stereotypical music to this type of
thriller as it is high pitched violins playing very fast paced music which
helps to create tension which can be felt by the viewer.
How the scene uses conventions of the thriller genre
The first way in which this scene in psycho uses conventions
of the thriller genre is because it creates suspense and tension throughout in
a number a ways for example when there is a tracking shot showing a figure
appear behind the shower curtain getting closer and close to the unsuspecting
victim suspense is created and the person behind the curtain cannot be seen and
they are for some reason moving closer towards the shower which makes the
audience wonder why they are doing this and in turn causing them to feel
suspense as to what's going to happen.
Violence is a key part to thrillers and this scene
encapsulates violence well and this is due to the fact that this scene contains
the woman being killed within it. This is therefore an extreme form of violence
helping to enforce the fact that another convention of the thriller genre is
used in this scene. The fact that a weapon e.g. the knife is used makes the
violence even more substantial.
When the action of the killer stabbing the victim is taking
place there are quick cuts which adds tension to the scene and show and too add
to this there is also music which is there to create tension and this is high
pitched and quick music which fits in with the cuts to make the action and cuts
stand out even more.
Shadows are also a key part of the thriller genre and this
is used to great effect and this is to mask the killers’ identity and the way
that this is done is by casting a shadow over the killers face and never
revealing any of their true identity.
Finally the sound of someone suffering is used widely in the
thriller genre and this is also used in this scene of Psycho helping to show
that the scene uses conventions of the thriller genre. The way in which this is
used is when the victim to the attack is getting stabbed and this helps to
create more of a real effect to the attack on the victim in the shower and also
shows their distress to the audience.
