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translator_monkey 's review for:
Psycho
by Robert Bloch
An entertaining read. These days, everyone of a certain age has either seen the movie 'Psycho' or certainly knows the 'surprise ending'. So the main benefit (for me) in reading this was to spot the many differences between the book and the movie, and try to understand Hitchcock's decision process in cutting some elements out and manufacturing new ones (very few of the latter, as it turns out).
One thing I really appreciated about the book is having a lot more backstory going in - not only for Norman and his family, but also Mary (Marion), Lila, and Sam. Motivating forces are revealed across the gamut, and it will make for - perhaps - yet another viewing of the film with more ammunition.
There's still the pesky ending in which Norman's psychiatrist explains Norman's past and his proclivity for women's clothing, attributing it to transvestitism (itself a bit disturbing, because the film suggests a link between transvestites and psychopathic murderers); I'm just curious as to how and why doctor-patient confidentiality could be so easily waived in order to unnecessarily explain events to Sam (and eventually Lila). Perhaps 1959's code of ethics ran contrary to how we operate today, but I think it was simply too convenient a tool for Bloch to pass up.
Four stars; a good read.
One thing I really appreciated about the book is having a lot more backstory going in - not only for Norman and his family, but also Mary (Marion), Lila, and Sam. Motivating forces are revealed across the gamut, and it will make for - perhaps - yet another viewing of the film with more ammunition.
There's still the pesky ending in which Norman's psychiatrist explains Norman's past and his proclivity for women's clothing, attributing it to transvestitism (itself a bit disturbing, because the film suggests a link between transvestites and psychopathic murderers); I'm just curious as to how and why doctor-patient confidentiality could be so easily waived in order to unnecessarily explain events to Sam (and eventually Lila). Perhaps 1959's code of ethics ran contrary to how we operate today, but I think it was simply too convenient a tool for Bloch to pass up.
Four stars; a good read.