Psycho
National 5
Example Essay – Parlour Scene
Choose a scene or sequence from a film which is important to either
the development of plot or character.
Show how the director has made the scene significant and explain
why you think it is so important to the development of plot or
character.
Alfred Hitchcock’s seminal horror ‘Psycho’ is a masterclass in creating
suspense. The film follows Marion Crane, on the run after stealing
$40,000 from her employer, who, after several days of driving across
America, takes shelter at the Bates’ Motel. It is there she meets Norman
Bates, a seemingly innocent, shy and socially-awkward young man who
is harassed by his invalid mother. However, there is a far darker side to
Bates’ character that Hitchcock creatively develops in the deeply
unsettling parlour scene, where Marion and Norman discuss their own
“private traps” and what Norman should do about his mother. This
scene is vital within the film, effectively using key techniques such as
lighting, mise-en-scène and dialogue to convey that Norman is a far
more dangerous character than we first suspect, and foreshadow the
dark and disturbing events still to come, where Norman is unveiled to
be a dangerous schizophrenic who inhabits dual roles as Norman and
his ‘Mother’.
Reference to
film as a whole
Title,
Director
Brief summary of
the film and
characters
Reference to
question
Summarising
what the essay
will explore
Topic sentence –
Even at the beginning of the parlour scene we are immediately given an
technique and
indication that that there is more to Norman’s character than meets the
reference to the
eye, through Hitchcock’s clever use of mise-en-scène. Before he and
question
Marion enter the parlour they stand in front of a window, where
Norman’s reflection can be seen behind him, but positioned in the
centre of the screen. This key positioning draws our eye to the
Description of
reflection, which effectively signifies the duality within his character,
technique
and represents the darker side to his nature that is so shockingly
unveiled at the climax of the film. This refection, symbolic of his split
How effectively the
personality, begins to convey to the audience that Norman is not the
technique develops
simple, awkward young man we initially see, an unsettling idea that is
Norman’s character
continued throughout the scene.
As we enter the parlour, the lighting is dim and low-key, creating both
an unsettling atmosphere and giving us a further indication of Norman’s
troubled state of mind. Only one lamp lights the parlour, the warm glow
of which is focused only on Marion. In contrast, Norman is surrounded
by low-key lighting, with a shadow obscuring half of his face. Once again,
Topic sentence –
technique and
reference to the
question
Description of
technique
Psycho
National 5
this is a clear indication to the dual personality Norman inhabits, and as
the conversation between he Marion becomes more tense, this dark
shadow becomes increasingly pronounced – effectively conveying the
darker side to Norman that up until now has been hidden behind his
awkward and earnest mannerisms.
How effectively the
technique develops
Norman’s character
Topic sentence –
technique and
reference to the
question
The conversation that Marion and Norman engage in is also incredibly
effective in developing his character. As they both discuss their own
“personal traps” it becomes clear that Norman has a difficult
relationship with his ‘Mother’. However, when Marion suggests putting
her ”someplace” – a clear reference to a care home or asylum – Norman
reacts with a chilling rage. His dialogue becomes short and sharp, using
sibilance to convey his sudden anger. At this moment, the affable young
man we first meet disappears and is replaced by a far darker and more
dangerous figure, once again foreshadowing the terrible unveiling of his
deadly nature at the end of the film.
Description of
technique
How effectively the
technique develops
Norman’s character
As well as this darker turn in dialogue, the setting of the parlour begins
to take a far more sinister appearance, emphasising this deadlier side of
Norman as well as his feelings of confinement and repression. The miseen-scène within the scene, particularly the use of stuffed birds, creates a
both odd and ominous setting for Marion and Norman, with the birds –
all birds of prey – looming menacingly above Norman, as if poised to
attack Marion. These birds become symbolic of Norman’s darker side,
but as well as that, represent his self-imposed confinement. The birds,
usually such symbols of freedom, are instead here trapped within their
own bodies. Norman with his hobby of taxidermy has unconsciously
surrounded himself with objects that signify his own lack of freedom
and the suppression that his ‘Mother’ imposes on him.
Often overshadowed by the more famous shower scene, the parlour
sequence is probably the most fascinating within ‘Psycho’. In this scene,
subtlety is key, and Hitchcock uses lighting, mise-en-scène and dialogue
effectively to hint at and develop the darker side of Norman’s character
that is so vital to the film as a whole. This unsettling scene acts as a
gateway for the rest of the film, and it is only looking back that we see
how much is foreshadowed here, from Norman’s dual personality in the
reflection and use of low-key lighting, to his clear suppression
embodied in his beloved stuffed birds, frozen in flight yet still so
symbolic of the danger that they – and he - represent.
Topic sentence –
technique and
reference to the
question
Description of
technique
How effectively the
technique develops
Norman’s character
Title,
Director
Summarising
what the essay
has explored
Reference to
question
How effectively the
technique develops
Norman’s character