I’ve seen over 3000 Horror/Thrillers and putting aside personal opinion, the Top 10 are hard to argue. They’re the titles you know must be conquered at some point if you’re even curious about the genre. I decided to acknowledge the Hall of Fame rather than lose all credibility up front by attempting to argue against them or push in a personal favorite. All of these films I like. Four of them would be in my personal Top 10.
I’ve spent years logging and tracking Horror/Thrillers and for me 1960 and Psycho is where the Genre grows up. There’s also Eyes Without a Face, Peeping Tom, Village of the Damned and a dozen others, but the films that came before this are old fashioned by comparison, and the learning curve post-1960 happens fast.
Almost everyone goes in knowing about the shower scene and the pacing is a little slow in places, but the film is as effective now as it was 60+ years ago because Hitchcock is at his peak, with classic imagery that alternates between creepy tableaus and audacious camerawork. Anthony Perkins’ portrayal of Norman Bates goes right next to Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter, and for all you might have heard of or remember, there’s still a lot of mystery waiting for you. Hitchcock said he liked to play his audience like a piano and Psycho is his magnum opus. Cinema would never be the same.
FYI, I’ve worked on the Universal Studios lot and had the opportunity to go inside the Psycho house. It’s nothing like you would want it to be, a clutter of wood beams holding up the facade. Not even a staircase.
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