film review: hitchcock

The name Alfred Hitchcock and his movie Psycho are legendary in the history of Hollywood. For movie buffs and casual cinema-goers alike, a film about the man himself and his personal struggles while trying to fund and make Psycho is an interesting prospect.

Based on a book about the making of the classic horror movie, Hitchcock follows Psycho from its inception, from the great filmmaker’s frustration with the lack of an original story for him to tell, to the reception he hoped the film would ultimately receive.

Anthony Hopkins plays Hitchcock, and portrays his struggles with the Hollywood crowd, the studio and himself. Helen Mirren stars as his devoted wife Alma, whose creative input and romantic support are tested by Hitchcock’s obsessions with the film and its leading ladies. The cast includes some other familiar names like Toni Collette and Jessica Biel, and the “Hitchcock Blonde” of Psycho, Janet Leigh, is played by a dazzling Scarlett Johansson.

Hollywood bigwigs and snobby film types doubt Hitchcock’s sanity in pursuing such a film, and this leads him to question himself on more than one occasion. Although Alma is momentarily flattered by attention from writer Whitfield Cook (Danny Huston), her faith in her husband ultimately helps to ensure that the movie will be completed in his original vision.

The Hollywood glamour of this story is appealing, but underneath this lies a more personal story of Hitchcock’s self-doubt and considered artistry, as well as his complicated relationship with his wife. While Hopkins as Hitchcock is intriguing and funny, the stand out performance is surely Mirren, who was nominated for a Golden Globe for her efforts. Her ability to make a scene in which her character is simply choosing a new pair of bathers and going for a swim into one of the most interesting parts of the movie, is not be to sniffed at.

Hitchcock is a fun movie to watch, with its darker aspects not lingering too long to make it into something morose. It is ultimately a pleasant and interesting way to pass an afternoon, but it seems to lack a certain zing that would have made it more memorable.

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