Hitchcock - Historical and Institutional Influences (II)

     1. Hitchcock was renowned for his amazing visual talents as well as his daring efforts to create films that focused more on perceptual images than what can be heard. Hitchcock was a pioneer when it came to mastering the techniques of the silent era which depended on the use of shadows and lighting to create a more emotional impact with the shots. Hitchcock was known for dealing with motifs of auspiciousness, guilt, and fear. With the introduction to color and sound in cinema many film institutions (Warner brothers, MGM, Universal Studios and etc) focused more on these productions and thus leaving the art of cinematography to suffer. Hitchcock despised the idea and “did not like how sound "talking" would take the place of using imagery to reveal things. It was not mere nostalgia that kept Hitchcock making films as he had in the silent era” (462) This quote is exemplified in his film Psycho (1960) because color has already been established but Hitchcock felt it more reasonable to stick to the silent era-themed “black and white” film. His motive for doing so is highly affected by the censorship laws put in place against films. Which falls into place of the political backgrounds of the US. 

      As any film connosiour would referece, American censorship in 1960 was what brought many films to their quick demise. Many screenplays and films first had to be approved by the Hayes Office and their ridiculously restrictive conditions when it came to film : no excessively long kissing, no nudities, don’t say a swear word and absolutely no gruesomeness. With this in mind Hitchcock was forced to tread lightly on thin ice during the release of Psycho. Not wanted to be banned from screening Hitchcock cleverly created scenes :

1) that although were meant to be sexual or subjective were visualized in a sense to make the idea subtle or barely noticeable.

2) which were gory and gruesome but used clever editing and black and white-colors to demonstrate an all together very gruesome scene. Censorship in itself played a large role in most of the films in production, it was thanks to the ingenious mind of Hitchcock he was able to allow audience to screen such a thrilling and rebellious film for its time. As well as pay tribute to German expressionism in which he held A fascination with heightened emotional states, the imaginative coordination of set design and camerawork, and an almost musical rhythm to the sequence of shots mark. Hitchcock as the last of the great German

Expressionists.” (461)

 2. When Psycho first came out Hitchcock came up with this grand advertising method that would allow for audiences to enjoy his film fully. The director went as far as to telling audiences who had watched the film not to spoil the film for anyone else and to keep the twist private to themselves. Also whenever selected movie theatres saw indecencies within his film Hitchcock would personally edit them to guarantee that they met the requirements. In many ways he controlled every part of the film even up to the screening. It also was shown to be one of the first slasher films of its time with the shower stabbing scene which made the film, despite its narrative structure, an amazing film nonetheless.

      Also Hitchcock’s methods when it came to production had later been appreciated in the 70’s by directors who had studied what had made this man’s films so appealing. They concluded that “he offered a highly formal model for visual storytelling in which every scene was thoroughly composed in advance by means of storyboard. They honed their craft by close study of his work, consulting the Truffaut interviews as a kind of bible of filmmaking.” (464) In other words, Hitcock had mentally visioned each scene, in each sequence, and illustrated his ideas on a full drawn storyboard. This impacted film because many directors felt that being able to see film instead of just describing it would add to the final ending result. Many famous directors such as Spielburg and many animators incorporate this idea today.

        Hitchock also gave contributions to the film world through his revealing use of blocking and space in film. Hitcock concluded that audiences become incredibly aware of the surroundings when they are in peril or have anxiety, and he exploited this with his clever blocking diagrams in film. Examples being the talents being enclosed into one particular room making it seem that protagonists are “bounded in a nutshell”. (470)

                       Psycho was funded and produced by Hitchock’s personal production team providing some sort of outlet from the overused talkies that most industries were producing. Hitchcock wanted to focus on the importance of using visual scenes to narrate the story and not being utterlessly reliant on audio. He stuck to the parameters of film censorship, but went far in proving how a gory psychotic thriller would captivate an American audience (much to the dismay of the individuals who did not like his film.) Psycho not only proves to be the first in bringing in ideas of slashes and anti large film industries, but as well as preserving the emotional intensity and impact of visuals in comparison to sound.