Psycho
When larcenous real estate clerk Marion Crane goes on the lam with a wad of cash and hopes of starting a new life, she ends up at the notorious Bates Motel, where manager Norman Bates cares for his housebound mother.
Critics Sentiment
Marion Crane stabbed to death in the motel shower
Psychiatrist explains Norman's split personality disorder to authorities
The film reaches its absolute peak with the iconic shower murder scene before gradually declining through the investigative aftermath to its most criticized psychiatric exposition ending.
Psycho builds steadily from Marion's theft through her fateful encounter with Norman Bates, culminating in the legendary shower scene that reviewers universally praise as a masterpiece of cinema. The film maintains high tension through subsequent murders and revelations, though critics note the final psychiatric explanation feels somewhat heavy-handed compared to Hitchcock's earlier masterful subtlety. Despite minor criticisms of predictability and dated elements, reviewers consistently celebrate it as a groundbreaking horror classic anchored by Perkins' extraordinary performance.
Full cast
Showing 20 of 34
Anthony Perkins
Norman Bates
Janet Leigh
Marion Crane
Vera Miles
Lila Crane
John Gavin
Sam Loomis
Martin Balsam
Milton Arbogast
John McIntire
Al Chambers
Simon Oakland
Fred Richman
Frank Albertson
Tom Cassidy
Patricia Hitchcock
Caroline
Vaughn Taylor
George Lowery
Lurene Tuttle
Mrs. Chambers
John Anderson
California Charlie
Mort Mills
Highway Patrol Officer
Fletcher Allen
Policeman on Steps (uncredited)
Walter Bacon
Church Member (uncredited)
Kit Carson
(uncredited)
Francis De Sales
Alan Deats (uncredited)
George Dockstader
(uncredited)
George Eldredge
James Mitchell (uncredited)
Harper Flaherty
(uncredited)
Crew
Write a Review
Rate each story beat:
