Happy Halloween!

Horror films? Check

Popcorn? Check

Copious amounts of alcohol? Check

Hello Sidney

Halloween Countdown: #1 Scream

For the last time, I'll say SPOILER ALERT!

Well, here we are - Numero Uno! Yes, my ultimate favourite horror film is Scream (1996). I really don't even know where to begin with this film, I just love everything about it; the story, the script, the characters, the soundtrack, the satire and pop culture references, all of it! I popped my horror cherry with Scream, so it's like a first love and nothing can replace it. To this day, I can pretty much recite the entire script, that's how much I immersed myself in it. Just like with The Shining, I was bursting to tell all my friends how cool Scream was and how they just had to see it. My gushing paid of with one friend, I showed it to him and it kick-started his interest in horror films. Of course once I'd found someone my age to talk about it with (I was 14 so, once again, bypassed the rating) I couldn't stop. We obsessed about it for weeks and weeks and there's no way that kind of impact can ever be forgotten.

Scream has been cited as the modern day slasher flick that gave a much needed shot in the arm into the horror genre as a whole. It's spawned sequels (Four up to now, a fifth and sixth one in the pipeline) but none of them can top this; although Scream 2 was actually a good film. But, like I say, you can beat the first and I think it's safe to say that no horror film in general can knock it from my No.1 spot.

The plot is, again, not too taxing, but there is a bit of back-story that is established throughout the film. The gist of the story is: Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) is stalked by masked killer (Ghostface) around the anniversary of her mother's death, a year ago. I'd just like to mention how cool the Ghostface mask is, in fact I'm the proud owner of one myself. There were so many crappy replicas out though, so I made sure that I got one that's as close to the real thing as possible. It's served me well over many Halloweens! Anyway, I digress...

The opening scene of the film is just fantastic as it doesn't take long for the action to kick off. What starts out as a presumed wrong number, ends up as a matter of life and death. Ghostface's initial tactic of working through phone calls, as opposed to just turning up and stabbing his victim, is interesting. Ghostface's phone calls to Casey Becker (Drew Barrymore) start out in a flirtatious vein, with Casey entering into a conversation about her favourite scary movie. As an aside, this is the first instance of pop culture being referenced (Halloween being her favourite scary movie) and also an in-joke about Nightmare On Elm Street being the only scary film while the rest of the franchise "sucked". I love this line because director Wes Craven only directed the first NOES, none of the others; so we've got a Craven film being talked about within another Craven film. This isn't the only time Nightmare... is alluded to either. When Billy visits Sidney  and crawls through her bedroom window, the scene is almost replicating Glen climbing through Nancy's window. Also, the high school in Scream has a janitor called Fred (also played by Wes Craven) who's outfit includes a stripey jumper and trilby hat! It's little references like this that makes Scream so enjoyable to watch.

The opening also takes a Psycho-esq direction as it kills off a character that we assume is going to be there until the end. Drew Barrymore was a big name for the film, so for her to die in the opening of the film is a real shocker. It's a captivating opening though as Casey is drawn into a lethal Q&A game with Ghostface as he throws horror movie trivia questions at her. It's not just her life at stake either; boyfriend Steve is outside, tied to a chair and becomes victim number one very quickly. Casey meets her demise not long after, although her attempt to escape is so frustrating to watch! She almost manages to get away, but falls into the clichéd trap of stopping when she should be running! The fact that we're hit with a gruesome couple of murders right at the start of the film is the perfect incentive to carry on watching. 

We're then introduced to Sidney, her boyfriend Billy (Skeet Ulrich) and friends Randy (Jamie Kennedy), Tatum (Rose McGowan) and hey boyfriend Stu (Matthew Lillard). Randy immediately became my favourite character and he still is; I'm still sad that he never made it any further than Scream 2. The scene of the friends sitting at the fountain is a really nice introduction to them all and I think the dynamic of the group worked well - it's too bad that two of them were psycho killers. The other main characters include Tatum's brother, police officer Dewey (David Arquette) and news reporter Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox). We learn that Gale and Sidney have issues due to Gale's reporting of Sidney's mother's murder. Gale believes the man convicted of it, Cotton Weary, is actually innocent whereas Sidney is convinced he's not. However, once the new spate of killing begins, Sidney shows signs of doubt. 

Sidney's first encounter with Ghostface is a great scene with another nod to horror film clichés. See this exchange:

Voice: What's you favourite scary movie?

Sidney: Oh come on, you know I don't watch that shit

Voice: Why not? Too scared?

Sidney: No, no. It's just, what's the point? They're all the same. Some stupid killer stalking some big breasted girl who can't act who's always running up the stairs when she should be going out the front door. It's insulting

A direct hit at horror film logic! How often do we roll our eyes and shout instructions at the screen when a potential victim is flapping about and pretty much giving the killer the green light to bump them off? We're always left aghast at the stupidity of horror film victims. The same issue was touched upon during Casey's scene at start of the film; Ghostface taunts Casey by ringing the doorbell which prompts her to call out "Who's there?". Ghostface then gives her another gem of horror film advice:

 "You should never say 'Who's there". Don't you watch scary movies? It's a death wish. You might as well come out here to investigate a strange noise or something"

This is the great thing about Scream; it pokes fun at the clichés of the horror movie world but it also incorporates them into itself. Sidney mocks the running upstairs action, but does that exact thing when Ghostface attacks her. Brilliant touch.

The party scene at Stu's house is yet another lesson in horror. Randy is the teacher as he outline the "certain rules that one must abide by in order to survive a horror movie"

1. No sex

2. No drink/drugs

3. Never say "I'll be right back"

This scene is terrific as these rules are blatantly broken (Stu's deliberate utterrance of Rule 3 is hilarious) but some of the people who break them do survive. Sidney loses her virginity to Billy (with Randy previously emphasising that only virgins can outsmart the killer) yet survives. Randy has been knocking back the beers at Stu's party, but survives. Gale utters the immortal line "I'll be right back" and survives. Randy sort of establishes himself as a horror film Yoda in the franchise; always on hand in some way to dispense words of wisdom about the pattern of horror films. I love his role so much. 

What Randy was spot on about, however, was Billy: "He's got killer printed all over his forehead". He was right. Billy is ultimately revealed to be the killer, but he has an accomplice in Stu. This is another reason why Scream works so well. Having a second killer was a genuine surprise and a nice twist. My gut reaction was that the killer was Billy, solely because he's got a bit of a creepy vibe about him. In the later half of the film, Billy and Stu stage Billy getting attacked by Ghostface, and it's assumed he's dead. At that point, I thought "Oh damn! I was wrong", but when Billy had miraculously survived the attack I was just plain thrown. The idea of a second killer didn't even cross my mind so it was a huge OMG moment when Stu revealed himself to be Billy's partner in crime. I find the partnership of Billy and Stu strangely comical. Billy actually has a motive for killing Sidney, whereas Stu puts his involvement down to "peer pressure". The two guys have different approaches to the killings and it shows when they try to put their final plan into action. Because of their erratic behaviour, they lose control of the situation and end up dead; as an aside, I love Stu's death scene!

So the plot is great, the characters are great, the dialogue is brilliant. The other thing to praise is the soundtrack. The soundtrack is actually on my iPod and I get such a strong feeling of nostalgia when I hear it. The only gripe about the soundtrack CD is that it never included the very last song on the end credits, which is my favourite. Fortunately though, I eventually managed to track it down somewhere else so I suppose it's a bit of a none issue. My other personal favourites include 'Youth Of America' (Birdbrain), 'Drop Dead Gorgeous' (Republica) and 'Whisper To A Scream' (Soho). I also really love the instrumental of 'Trouble In Woodsboro/Sidney's Lament', courtesy of composer Marco Beltrami. The latter part of the track is very haunting, although, for me, there's a bit of a funny story attached to it. When my brother worked at a cinema back in '96, he was left to lock up after everyone got up and left during the end credits. While he made his way towards the exit, the lights went out and all that was playing was the eerie second half of the track. He said he was left to walk the corridor that leads out of the cinema, on his own, in total darkness with this music playing. Needless to say, he got down that corridor and out of the door as fact as possible! It always makes me laugh when I think about that. 

 Favourite track right here ^ 

Really, I just can't say enough good things about Scream. It's very tongue-in-cheek, but still manages to pull of a solid story with enough scares in there to keep the drama flowing. It's not the scariest horror film ever, or the goriest either. Scream is a fun, witty, clever film that's still thoroughly entertaining no matter how many times you watch it. 10/10!!

Favourite lines:

"Movies don't create psychos, movies make psychos more creative" - Billy Loomis

" No, please don't kill me Mr Ghostface. I wanna be in the sequel" - Tatum Riley

"What's Leatherface doin' here?" - Randy Meeks

 "Kenny, I know that you're about 50 pounds overweight. But when I say 'hurry', please interpret that as 'Move your fat, tub of lard ass NOW!" - Gale Weathers

"There's a formula to it. A very simple formula: EVERYBODY'S A SUSPECT" - Randy Meeks

"What did Mom tell you? When I wear this badge you treat me like a man of the law!" - Dewey Riley

"Fairness would be to rip your insides out. Hang you from a tree so we can expose you for the heartless, desensitised little shits that you are" Principal Himbry

"I don't really believe in motives, Sid. I mean, did Norman Bates have a motive? Did they ever really decide why Hannibal Lecter liked to eat people? Don't think so. See it's a lot scarier when there's no motive, Sid " - Billy Loomis

"Did you really call the police? (Sidney confirms she did) My mom and dad are gonna be so mad at me!" - Stu Macher

"Guess I remembered the safety that time, you bastard" - Gale Weathers  

I LOVE SCREAM!

Pennywise Unmasked?

"I’m  curious to know how/when it will all end and if there’s ever going to be an explanation for any of it. Then again, I suppose if he disappears without a trace with zero explanation then it’ll keep that air of mystery. Either way, I’m going to keep track of this one for as long as possible!"

That's what I wrote in my 'Clowning Around' blog post about the freaky Northampton Clown. Well folks, looks like the fun may be over now. The mystery seems to be a mystery no more. According to the UK's national press, the clown is actually a 22 year old university student film-maker who was just having a bit of fun (LINK HERE) What an anti-climax, huh? This supposed revelation prompted me to look over my initial thoughts about the entire charade and I have to laugh at how wrong I was, particularly with this (from 'Is It A Bird? Is It A Plane?'):

"This latest development in this insane story has now pretty much convinced me that the whole thing is a publicity stunt/promotion for something"

Yeah, I was way off. There's been a mixed reaction to the cover being blown, however. Some people are glad that this stunt is finally over, branding it a ridiculous waste of time. Others are very annoyed that the media has ruined a very intriguing and fun story. As for my feelings? Deflated probably sums it up. When the story first broke, it was bizarre but intriguing and I did say that I was going to keep an eye on it. I did, but it seemed that the more popular the clown got, the more the 'freaky' vibe faded. It was emphasised, by the clown himself, that he wasn't out to deliberately scare anyone but come on! Like it wasn't freaky as hell seeing Pennywise's twin randomly standing in the street for no reason. The fright factor was weirdly part of the charm, but he seemed to turn into a publicity clown (eg. making appearances on request as opposed to randomly popping up) and lost his way; Plus, I never heard anything more about 'Boris' the clown catcher. For that reason, I'm kind of glad that it's (possibly) ended because the novelty was already wearing thin; I say 'possibly' because the named student is actually denying that he is the clown, he's just protecting the identity of the real clown. Personally, I think he's been rumbled and is trying to save face/attempt to keep it all going. Maybe he had something planned for Halloween and now it's all in tatters because of the exposure. Then again, what do I know? I thought that it was promotion for a TV show or something!

The last message from the clown is "Don't believe everything you read in the papers", obviously trying to convince the public that this reported identity is bogus. Whether it is or it isn't remains to be seen, but if it is? Well, it was fun while it lasted.

Best Of The Rest

WARNING: SOME SPOILERS

Before I finish my Halloween Countdown, I just want to give a brief name-check to some of the films that didn't make the final list. I did say in my Carrie post that I was going to give honourable mentions so, in no particular order, here they are:

Halloween 

It's actually a shame that I couldn't push myself to do a top ten, because Halloween (1978) is so worthy of praise. One of the first in a long line on slasher flicks, Halloween is just a perfect scary movie for, well...Halloween!  I usually watch it every year and it's still as creepy as ever. Complete with butcher knife and white mask, Michael Myers is one of the most infamous movie killers in the horror genre. He personifies the idea of the "Boogeyman" and the notion that true evil can't be destroyed; hence him always surviving whatever is thrown at him. His apparent immortality is frightening enough, but what's even more scary is that fact that in Halloween, there appears to be no motive to his killings. As slasher flicks go, Halloween is simple. There's no complex plot, not even much blood/gore, just a creepy tale of how an escaped homicidal maniac has returned to his hometown in order to kill again. It's a terrific film that's really joint #5 with Carrie

 

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Now this was one of the only scary films that actually gave me nightmares and I still feel a bit uneasy watching it, even now. This film is just generally unsettling; mostly due to the atmosphere and location, but also because of the unhinged, murderous family the main group fall victim to. 'Leatherface' (Gunnar Hansen) is another well known horror antagonist and it's not hard to see why he'd deemed so terrifying (human flesh mask and chainsaw anyone?!) but the character that majorly freaks me out is the hitchiker - the guy is just too convincing at being a total weirdo! Of course the main scares come through Leatherface as he picks off the group one by one until only Sally (Marilyn Burns) is left. As far as blood/gore goes, this film isn't a bloodbath but it's gruesome enough to make an impact - hanging a girl on a meathook is a fine example. Shudder...

A Nightmare On Elm Street

Another horror classic with an infamous antagonist, Nightmare On Elm Street just can't be left out. Freddy Kruger is certainly a horror movie villain to remember and the story of his killings taking place in people's dreams is a great twist. The plot is, again, fairly simple: Main character Nancy trying to figure out how to put a stop to Freddy Kruger. But, like in Halloween, Freddy doesn't stay beaten for long and it's another case of the antagonist living on through numerous sequels. However 9 times out of 10 in these cases, I always stick by the belief that the original film = best; this is no exception. This film did freak me out when I first saw it, not majorly, but enough - Tina's death scene (below) has always stayed with me. It does come across as a bit corny now, but it's still a great film that gave us a horror icon. It's also fun to see Johnny Depp make his film debut! 

Braindead

A strong stomach is definitely in order for this one! Forget scares, this zombie horror flick is purely for amusement. It's so ridiculously over the top that all you can really do is laugh. Braindead is one of Peter Jackson's early films - and sometimes you wonder how he ever ended up in charge of 'The Lord Of The Rings'!! It's basically and out and out gorefest and it's just dripping with blood, guts and zombies! It's cheesy, it's fun and it's crazy as hell. If you're looking for something that you just switch your brain off for, then this is perfect. I'll re-iterate though, it's certainly NOT for the squeamish. Oh, and there's a chance that it could put you off custard for life.

Redrum

Halloween Countdown: #2 The Shining

This is another classic film from the horror genre, again with a signature iconic scene. The Shining (1980) was another one of my first tastes of horror films, and immediately became a firm favourite. It was the first horror film that I actually sat and watched through alone; usually (since I never took heed of ratings) my brother always watched whatever film I wanted see first, to take note of any 'inappropriate' scenes or dialogue so he could skip them/tell me to look away. For some unknown reason, he never got around to checking over The Shining and I got fed up of waiting. He freaked out when I told him that I'd watched it without him, but I was too busy gushing about how awesome it was to all and sundry. To this day, my feelings about it haven't changed one bit.

It's the second film adaptation of a Stephen King novel that I've written about; the first being Carrie. It's common knowledge that King intensely dislikes director Stanley Kubrick's portrayal of his story. He believes that Kubrick altered it too much and made his characters basic and rather one-dimensional. Now I can't comment on this as I've yet to read the book, so I can't compare/contrast. That being said, looking at The Shining strictly film-wise, it is a brilliant watch. It's an extremely atmospheric film, intensified by the music and the camera work, which creates a fitting air of claustrophobia.Just like The Omen, the opening title to the film sets the tone. The camera sweeping over miles of vast scenery coupled with the ghostly whinings in the music make for a very eerie introduction.

The plot revolves around Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) and his descent into madness whilst acting as winter caretaker for the Overlook Hotel. Along with his wife Wendy (Shelley Duvall) and son Danny, Jack is responsible for maintenance of the hotel. The Overlook is in a remote location and gets heavily snowed in during the winter which is why it closes for the season. During Jack's interview for the post of caretaker, the first heavy piece of foreshadowing is laid: A former winter caretaker had a mental breakdown due to 'cabin fever', killed his family and then himself. Despite his cheery assurance that nothing like that will happen with him, it does end up going in that direction for Jack. He comes across as slightly unhinged pretty much from the word go, so this little bit of Overlook history is a very big hint that even first time viewers can't ignore. 

The other focus of the film is on Danny and the strange gift he possesses; dubbed "shining" by Overlook hotel chef, Dick Hallorann (Scatman Crothers). This gift includes telepathic ability, plus visions of past/future events. This "shining" often presents itself through Danny in the form of 'Tony', Danny's presumed imaginary friend. Tony has already shown Danny sinister visions of the hotel - a lift pouring with blood and two twin girls - and is reluctant for the Torrance's to go there. Although Tony is acknowledged by the adults around Danny, it is only Hallorann who knows the truth about what Tony represents. There is an open conversation between Danny and Hallorann about "shining". Hallorann himself possesses it, as did his grandmother. I love his explanation of Danny's visions:

"When something happens, it can leave a trace of itself behind. Say, like, if someone burns toast. Well, maybe things that happen leave other kinds of traces behind; not things that anyone can notice, but things that people who shine can see. Just like they can see things that haven't happened yet? Well, sometimes they can see things that happened a long time ago"

The toast analogy is perfect. The entire conversation puts this supernatural ability in layman's terms so that everybody can understand how it works. That being said, there are a number of WTH? moments throughout this film that I still don't fully understand - perhaps I should turn to the book for an explanation! Nevertheless, any confusion just adds to the general bizarre feeling of the film. 

It doesn't take long for Jack's 'crazy' to start showing. Hoping to use his time in the hotel to get back into writing, he spends the majority of his time alone while Wendy and Danny enjoy exploring the hotel and its grounds. His relationship with Wendy gets increasingly strained and the scene below is very telling:

I feel so sorry for Wendy here. It's like I've just watched someone kick a puppy! But the thing to note in this scene is the typewriter. Jack had pulled the paper from the typewriter and ripped it up when ranting at Wendy. When Wendy leaves, Jack continues typing on new paper, but how did it get there? The Overlook is feeding Jack paper as well as feeding his madness. It's a very subtle detail that can be easily overlooked (pun not intended!) but gives the indication that the whole place has a bad vibe to it. This is reiterated by Danny's experiences in the hotel and another memorable scene when he encounters the twin girls from his vision in one of the hallways. 

Murdered twins aside, the location and camera work for this scene is superb. The long shot of Danny trundling off-screen on his tricycle, then the jump to following him along the corridors and the corner-turn into the girls is an effective sequence. I particularly like the crashing gong sound as Danny is faced with the girls. The narrow hallways also give a 'no escape' feeling that's really unsettling. What's even more unnerving is the fact that, later on, Jack recites the girls' mantra of "Forever and ever and ever" when talking to Danny. Again, this is a very heavy hint that the hotel has some sort of control over Jack and things are going to go very wrong the longer they stay there. As Jack's mental state is deteriorates rapidly (he even dreams that he kills Wendy and Danny) Danny encounters another ghoul in mysterious room 237. Hallorann had earnestly warned Danny away from 237, but Danny is lured into entering during another creepy scene. Again, the camera angles add to building the tension as a ball is rolled towards Danny as he is playing with his toys. When Danny looks to see where it's come from, he's met with an empty hallway and the door to 237 open. The next time we see Danny, he's walking towards Jack and Wendy, as if in a daze, with his shirt torn and bruises on his neck. Wendy instinctively blames Jack which leads to a key scene that ramps up the supernatural element of the film.

Jack, displaying yet more signs of insanity, ends up sitting at the empty bar. He begins to ramble to himself ("I'd give my God damn soul for just a glass of beer") but then he looks right at the camera and begins talking to someone called Lloyd. The camera changes shot and we see a bartender standing in front a fully stocked bar who responds to Jack and they have a conversation in which there's a strong sense of familiarity. However, Lloyd and the drinks disappear when Wendy tracks Jack down and hysterically cries to him about a "crazy woman in one of the rooms" who Danny named as his attacker. Jack goes to investigate, leading to a simply bizarre scene where Jack encounters a naked young woman in the bath, makes out with her then runs away in horror as she transforms into a decaying old woman. This scene really is a WTH? moment for me and I do get royally freaked out by it every time I watch it. Jack returns to the Torrance's room, but denies seeing anybody in the room, much to Wendy's confusion. Jack puts Danny's injuries down as self-inflicted, but Wendy's convinced that something's really not right with Danny and suggests they leave the hotel to find him help. The prospect of leaving sends Jack into another unhinged rage and he storms out of the room and back to the bar. The hotel obviously has a strong hold on Jack if he's not willing to leave even when his son's health isn't good. When he reaches the bar this time around, the room is full of people attending some sort of party. A waiter (Phillip Stone) accidentally runs into Jack and spills drinks all over him, then ushers him into the bathroom to clean him up. This is another key scene which is full of intrigue. 

The waiter's name is Delbert Grady - Grady being the name of the caretaker who'd gone mad and murdered his family. Jack immediately picks up on this and begins to subtly quiz him on his history, with Grady being vague and evasive. Jack finally confront him with his knowledge, but Grady continues to deny all knowledge of what Jack is saying. Grady then twists the conversation in a strange and sinister way.

"You are the caretaker. You've always been the caretaker. I should know, sir. I've always been here"  ties into to something that Jack had said to Wendy earlier in the film about having an extreme feeling of deja-vu in the hotel. That, the familiarity between Jack and Lloyd and the final shot in the film which shows a picture of Jack at the Overlook's July 4th Ball just presents far more questions than answers. Again, this is where the book probably explains more, but the film really messes with my head at this point and I resign myself to never getting a full explanation. It boils down to Grady, being aware of Jack's link with the hotel and his family's desire to leave it. He subtly urges Jack to "correct" the situation with Wendy and Danny (ie. kill them) as he did with his own wife and daughters. This is where the foreshadowing from the beginning of the film transforms into reality. I'd also like to mention just how damn creepy Phillip Stone is in this scene. He's got an eerily calm, soft voice but has this intimidating (threatening even) air about him. Very spooky.

Next is my favourite scene in the film. Wendy, realising that Jack is unstable, arms herself with a baseball bat and begins to search for him. She comes across his typewriter and finds that all he's typed during their entire time at the hotel is:

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy

While going through his pages, Jack appears behind her and there is a showdown that is full of heightened emotion on both sides. Jack has fully lost his marbles now and Wendy is petrified. The fact that this scene is slow-moving is what makes it effective. Jack doesn't rush at Wendy, he just keeps walking towards her, fixing her with a stare that's just full of menace. The tension is continually built up throughout this scene and I can really feel the fear emanating from Wendy. Jack Nicholson just seems to have a natural knack of portraying crazy (a little too!) well and this scene is a perfect example. There's such a mish-mash of behaviour from Jack in this scene and it demonstrates his total loss of sanity very well. 

Of course, the iconic moment that epitomises Jack's madness is this one:

 

Dubbed one of the scariest moments in film, 'Here's Johnny' is just like the shower scene in Psycho - even if you haven't seen the film, you're fully aware of the scene. It's just that infamous. This is part of the pay-off to what the entire film has been building up to: Jack's transformation into a complete madman and the intended deaths of his family. The last portion of the film is pure cat-and mouse as Jack chases Danny through the hotel and ends up stalking him in the Overlook's hedge maze in the snow. The hedge maze chase is another high-adrenaline scene that really cranks up the tension. Due to the snow, Danny isn't hard to follow as Jack simply follows his footprints. The twist comes when Danny manages to fall off Jack's radar by backtracking, then covering his prints with snow. Jack ends up going his own route and gets lost in the maze, freezing to death while Wendy and Danny escape the hotel. The film ends as a giant question mark as it zooms in on the picture of the July 4th Ball. Jack is featured there, smiling away with other guests, but the picture is dated 1921. Ultimately, the film has messed with the viewer's head as much as it has the characters'. 

This is partly the reason I love it so much. As a film on its own, there's so many unanswered questions, but it doesn't stop you from getting sucked into the story. As I said at the beginning, it's all about the atmosphere and the slow build up of dread. The 'action' is all towards the end of the film, but in order to fully appreciate that action you need to watch how it gets to that point. The dialogue is important too, even if some of it is very vague and only gives hints about something rather than explain it. 

Again, if you're not a fan of buckets of blood and gore then The Shining is a good film to go with. The beauty of it comes through the setting, the camera angles, the chilling music and sounds...Jack Nicholson no doubt steals the show and I just can't imagine anybody else in the role. The Shining is a great film to screw with your mind and although there's only one death (poor old Hallorann) it's still a freaky, unnerving film that doesn't lose its impact.

We All Go A Little Mad Sometimes

Halloween Countdown: #3 Psycho

One word: Classic. This film really does have everything; intriguing story, wonderful score and one of the most iconic scenes in movie history. Psycho (1960) is simply a fantastic film that seems to get better with every watch.

So why have I ranked it at No.3 rather than No.1? Argh, that's tricky to answer. Psycho, along with my numbers 1&2, was part of my introduction to scary movies. I have a fondness for it that I don't have with a lot of the other films. It does really tick a lot of boxes for me, but the other two films in my countdown are just that little bit closer to my heart than this. This isn't to say that Psycho isn't a brilliant film, because it is; it's probably my favourite Hitchcock film, next to The Birds. 

Once again, it's my duty to say:  

 Ok, let's move on!

The plot of Psycho is very intriguing as it changes direction mid-film. We're led to believe that Marion (Janet Leigh) is going to be the main character who's story (stealing $40 000 from her boss in order to pursue a life with boyfriend Sam) we're going to follow, but she's not. Marion is killed off pretty early on in that infamous shower scene and the story takes a whole different path; one that's not fully explained until the very end of the film. This occurence is calld a MacGuffin. Wiki explains: Usually the MacGuffin is the central focus of the film in the first act and then declines in importance as the struggles and motivations of characters play out. This defines Marion's role perfectly. The film isn't about her, she's just the catalyst that sets everything into motion.  

Psycho's main character is actually Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), the mild mannered motel owner. I think Anthony Perkins really steals the show in this film due to Norman being so multifaceted (literally!). Perkins really does seem to capture every aspect of him and he makes such an intriguing watch. Initially, Norman appears to be exceptionally well mannered and very hospitable. When Marion arrives at his motel on a very rainy night, Norman seems to be falling over himself to accommodate her. He's extremely friendly and wastes no time in settling her into her motel room; even inviting her up to his house for something to eat after she decides against driving back out in the pouring rain to the nearest diner. It's clear that Norman has taken a shine to Marion already and is relishing the opportunity to spend time alone with her (there are no other guests at the motel). At this point, Norman comes across as a generally nice guy; which makes the snippet we hear of the life he's (presumably) living, quite tragic.

The conversation between Marion and Norman, in his parlour, is quite pivotal in the grand scheme of things. It is here that we get an insight into Norman's background and character. It turns out that his life revolves around his sick, housebound mother, with a small portion devoted to running the motel. At the most, Norman has a taxidermy hobby, although he admits that it's more of a time filler than a time killer. Marion probes him, curious to know whether there's anything beyond his mother and the motel, but there isn't. This exchange sums it up:

Marion: Do you go out with friends?

Norman: Well, a boy's best friend is his mother 

Norman's relationship with his mother is then explored in a little more detail. We'd already overheard an argument between the two while Norman had gone to prepare the upper. His mother voiced a strong objection to him bringing Marion up to the house and ridiculed him for an ulterior motive. Marion comments about the vicious way Norman's mother had spoken to him and the conversation turns to their life together. Norman explains that his mother was left to raise Norman by herself after his father had died, inferring that it was a struggle. He then goes on to say that his mother eventually met a new man who "talked her into building this motel", however he died too and it was too much for his mother to cope with. This threw Norman into the role of permanent carer and he admits how sometimes he wishes he could leave his mother and remove himself from the suffocating relationship. Marion then clumsily suggests putting the mother "someplace", but Norman knows exactly what she's saying and the first flash of the 'Psycho' within is evident. Norman's entire demeanor changes in an instant and he becomes angry, defensive and slightly crazed. He berates Marion for the suggestion of putting his mother into "a madhouse"

Norman: Have you ever seen the inside of one of those places? The laughing and the tears! And the cruel eyes studying you. My mother there?

Marion is suitably unnerved by Norman's sudden rage and tries her best to defuse the conversation by stating that she "meant well". Norman gives a bitter retort, but eventually calms down and admits that he's had similar thoughts. He still excuses his mother's behaviour though with one of the film's well known lines:

Norman: It's not as if she's a maniac, a raving thing. She just goes a little mad sometimes. We all go a little mad sometimes 

This line finally shakes Marion out of her own (temporary) insanity of stealing her boss's money and she makes a decision to go back home to try and pull herself out of her own "private trap"  while she still can. Unfortunately for her, she never gets the opportunity to do this as she is murdered shortly after this conversation with Norman.

As Marion bids Norman goodnight, we get to see yet another side to his character: Norman the Pervert. It was clear as soon as he met her, that Norman was attracted to Marion. He was desperate to please her and stressed his desire to be on first name term with her. However, after their supper conversation, Norman's interest in her is taken into sinister territory as he reveals a spyhole in the wall (hidden by a picture) that gives him a direct look into Marion's motel room. He watches her intently as she walks around the room in her underwear. The expression on Norman's face suggests he knows what he's doing is wrong, but his continual isolation from the outside world is driving this behaviour. However, being a peeping Tom is the least of Norman's problems after the shower scene.

You don't have to have seen the film in order to be familiar with the shower scene. It's held up as one of the most iconic scenes in film history. Just like Jaws stopped people going into the water, Psycho created a fear in people over getting in the shower! The scene itself, although short, is very well done. The trick here is that the camera never actually shows anything explicit; the murder is shown in short, sharp shots and is over before you know and the assumed killer is only seen in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot. The terror is generated by 1) The unpredictability of the murder and 2) The music accompanying it. Kudos to composer Bernard Herrmann as he definitely made Psycho's score memorable. As soon as the shower curtain is yanked back, the piercing sound of the violins kick in and the adrenaline starts rushing. 

In the aftermath of the murder, all signs point to Norman's mother being responsible. Norman is visibly shaken when confronted with the murder scene, but his subsequent actions once again show another layer to him. He  tries his best to cover up the murder in order to protect his mother, or rather that's what we're led to believe when watching Norman being a "dutiful son". So he dumps Marion and everything connected with her into the nearby swamp, never to be seen again. Of course, Marion's disappearance doesn't go away and soon Norman's drawn back into the situation when Private Investigator Arbogast manages to trace Marion's movements to the motel. 

The conversation between Norman and Arbogast seals both their fates, albeit in different ways. Arbogast gets more than he bargained for when he pushes too far in his investigation and his demise at the hands of Norman's mother just makes Marion's loved ones (sister Lila and boyfriend Sam) all the more determined to discover what Norman is hiding. Norman had fobbed Arbogast off with a half truths about Marion turning up at the motel and then leaving the next morning, however Arbogast can see there's more to Norman's story and continues to probe him for information he's reluctant to give. Arbogast's interrogation of Norman, although gentle, is enough to unnerve Norman and he becomes anxious, stuttering a lot and generally coming across as very unconvincing in his story. However, once Arbogast touches on the subject of his mother, Norman becomes defensive again and  firmly denies Arbogast access to question her. Arbogast realises that he's "got all there is to get" but his dsire to join the dots leads him to secretly returning to the Bates' house in ordere to swerve Norman and find out key information from his mother. Unfortunately, he becomes another victim as he's caught by surprise when Mrs Bates emerges from her room brandishing a knife. Once again, it's back to the swamp for Norman to dump body No.2.

Arbogast's sudden disappearance, along with Marion's, just spurs Lila and Sam on. They visit Sheriff Chambers to see if he can help them track down Arbogast. They mention Norman and Marion's disappearance, so the Sheriff calls Norman. Norman spins the same yarnn to the Sheriff about Marion turning up and leaving, also claiming that Arbogast turned up, did his questioning and left too. Sam and Lila know there's something not right with Norman's claims so they question the Sheriff about Norman's ill mother who Arbogast had previously referred to. And so comes a key bit of information: Norman's mother has been dead for 10 years. She apparently murdered her new partner and then killed herself, leaving Norman to discover them dead together. Lila and Sam are left in disbelief as they stress that Arbogast had seen the shadow of an old women in the Bates' window, with even Norman himself continually referring to his mother. The Sheriff is obviously puzzled, so decides to visit Norman himself the following day (off-screen). In the meantime, Norman senses the net may be closing in and decides to confine his mother within the fruit cellar in order to keep her hidden from anybody else.

By this point, it's safe to assume what the reality of the situation between Norman and his mother is; Mrs Bates is never properly seen, only heard and Norman is determined to keep her shielded from the outside world. Something clearly isn't right and this is finally fully exposed during the climax of the film. Sam and Lila, still unsatisfied with the response from Norman, decide to visit the motel themselves to personally investigate. Norman's attitude when he meets them is a far cry from the super nice 'n' friendly persona that Marion saw. Norman is very casual and laid back, with a small degree of cockiness. He blatantly doesn't believe Sam and Lila are husband and wife en route to a business trip, but goes with anyway. The scene between the three seems to have an unintentional comical air to it as Sam's attempt to be covert is frankly laughable. He is way too intense and his suspicion of Norman is evident. This carries on when he later distracts Norman with a talk while Lila makes her way to the house to confront Mrs Bates. Sam is just terrible at playing it cool and he gets Norman's back up rather fast.  As Norman becomes increasingly nervous, Sam ditches the act and confronts Norman with his suspicions, stating that him and Lila are going to get the full story from his mother. Norman flies into a panic and, after knocking Sam out, tears back to the house in order to stop Lila finding his mother.

Lila manages to see Norman frantically returning and hides herself under the stairs. As Norman races up them, Lila notices the door to the cellar and decides to go through it. As Lila makes her way through the cellar, she eventually fins Mrs Bates; and in another classic Psycho moment, Mrs Bates is reveled to be a skeleton and the mobile Mrs Bates we've seen is actually Norman, dressed up as her. As Lila gives a piercing scream and the shower scene music reprises, Norman arrives in the cellar with a cry of "I'm Norman Bates" in his mother's voice. As he advances on Lila, Sam appears in the nick of time and manages to overpower him. 

Norman's story is then fully explained by the psychiatrist who's assessed him after Norman's secret life has now been brought to the attention of the police. The psychiatrist explains, for the benefit of the audience, exactly what's has happened to Norman. He confirms that Norman was responsible for the murders of Marion and Arbogast (and two other missing girls), but stresses that although Norman was physically responsible, mentally it was his mother carrying out the killings. Norman was actually responsible for his mother's death as he killed her (and her lover) in a fit of jealousy. Unable to cope with the guilt, Norman had stolen his mother's corpse and began to live half his life as her: thinking and speaking for her - his mind contained two different personalities that he had to constantly switch between in order to "keep up the illusion of his mother being alive". His dressing up happened whenever "reality got too close" and the illusion was on the brink of being shattered. This is why Arbogast was killed, but Marion was killed due to Norman's belief that because he killed his mother's lover due to jealousy, his mother would react the same way. 

As the psychiatrist puts it: 

"And because he was so pathologically jealous of her, he assumed she was as jealous of him. Therefore, if he felt a strong attraction to any other woman, the mother side of him would go wild. When he met (Marion), he was touched by her, aroused by her, he wanted her. That set off the jealous mother and mother killed the girl"

The psychiatrist closes by stating that the overbearing mother half of Norman's mind has fully taken over now. He also assures everyone that Marion wasn't killed for the $40 000 she had as "These were crimes of passion, not profit". I have to say that this scene with the shrink is my personal favourite scene. There's a direct, matter-of-factness about him that is really quite amusing. He gets so passionate in his explanation, he's compelling to listen to. 

The closing scene to Psycho is very chilling as we hear "Mother's" thoughts about how everything has turned out. She shifts responsibility onto Norman, saying that she can do nothing except "sit and stare, like one of his stuffed birds" so could not possible be capable of murder. She intends to prove how harmless is to the authorities by not showing any signs of anger or aggression at all; refusing to even swat a fly because "They'll see and they'll know and they'll say - why she wouldn't even harm a fly". This scene is particularly effective as the camera is focused on Perkins and his facial expressions say it all. The closing line about the fly wouldn't be half as effective if it wasn't coupled with Norman's fantastic, sinister look right to the camera. Perkins really seems to have captured pure madness in the last shot. Add to this, a brief glimpse of the skull of his mother that faintly merges with Norman's face and he ending couldn't be more fitting.

One reason I love Psycho so much is because of the dialogue. I think all the characters bounce off each other in a really believable way, even the minor ones. I particularly like the scenes with Marion, after she's stolen the money and is on her way to find Sam. She has several thoughts about the reactions of the people she's stolen from and who she's encountered since the theft.  In her head, she plays imaginary conversations between these people. I love Janet Leigh's facial expressions and how they change depending on who she imagines talking; eg Her face is full of apprehension when she thinks what the police officer and the used car guy may be saying about her, but her face twist into a small smirk when she thinks about how Mr Cassidy (the man who's $40 000 she took) might be reacting.

  

As well as the 'iconic' stuff, I'm a huge fan of the little things in this film. Minor characters like 'California Charlie' the used car salesman and the psychiatrist are hugely entertaining in their own right. I feel they're the light relief amid all the drama (whether that's intended is another issue). I also just want to reiterate how much I love Anthony Perkins' portrayal of Norman because, despite several re-watches, I can't help but feel extremely sorry for him. The vulnerability that seems to ooze from him kind of tugs at the heart-strings a little bit. I know he's mentally unstable and the psycho of the film, but I can't stop thinking "Awww! He's so nice" when we're first introduced to him. This is just one of many reasons why I believe Gus Van Sant's 1998 remake was a terrible mistake. Vince Vaughn was never going to touch Anthony Perkins' Norman, it was depressing to watch. When people take characters and make them their own, any other imitators are going to fall flat on their faces. My philosophy when it comes down to remaking films like Psycho is simple: Leave the classics alone.

 

Zuckerberg Zombies

I hate Facebook, I really do. Anybody who knows me is fully aware of my utter contempt for it. In fact, social networking in general has never properly enticed me. I'm not a social person at the best of times, so when a sudden surge of sites pop up to say 'Hey! Here's a new way to connect with even more people', I tend to give them a swerve. I'm not really a people person, so if I end up in a intense, suffocating social environment, I've usually been forced into it.

My first taste of social networking came through MySpace (yeah remember that?) and that was only because I told a friend in an IT lesson at school that I'd never heard of it. His jaw literally  dropped and he said "You're not on MySpace? That's it, you're getting an account NOW!". The rest of the lesson consisted of him setting up the account, profile page and sending friend requests out to various acquaintances from school. I was totally overwhelmed by it, but reluctantly persevered and I did actually develop a fondness for it. As that was happening, Facebook had emerged and fast became the new flavour of the month. I had a look-see at my friends' Facebook accounts and took an instant dislike to the thing. It looked so intrusive as it religiously reported back on which friend wrote what on whoever's wall. The constant news feed on people's every movement seemed way too OTT but everyone had seemingly jumped ship to it, shrugging their shoulders at how invasive it was. I, however, was determined to stick with MySpace and so began a battle of wills between me and the Facebook brigade. Once again, I was bombarded with cries of "Everyone's on it! No-one uses MySpace anymore" but I refused to give in. It took a while for people to finally accept that I wasn't going to join up, but they eventually did and it became one of my 'things'. Boy, did I relish not giving in. Hearing stuff like "I poked X but they never poked me back and I want to know why" or huffy reactions of  "X put a photo up but didn't tag me in it" just reinforced my belief that Facebook (or 'The Evil Book Of Faces' as I dubbed it) was a hotbed for inane drama and self-indulgent twaddle. This is still my belief to this day, which makes what I'm about to say hypocritical to the max: I ended up creating a Facebook account.

Now, before I'm strung up and force-fed humble pie, let me give my defence. One of the (few) pros of Facebook is the ability it provides for people to stay in touch. I know thing like e-mail exist, but Facebook pretty much turned into an all-in-one messaging service. Relatives on the other side of the world from each other could get up to date info regularly. I'm not going to deny that it hasn't provided a stable way for people to keep in touch. This is partly the reason I finally stopped fighting the good fight. Silly me was trying to keep in contact via text messages, but I soon learnt that everyone communicated solely on Facebook. So there was the dilemma: stick to the principles and let my social circle fizzle out, or become a hypocrite and bow to peer pressure? Sadly, I was pushed into the latter after an over-zealous friend tweaked her old account to make it into one for me - complete with name change and picture. In the end, I couldn't put up with the badgering anymore so signed up to 1) Clarify that her old account wasn't me and 2) Finally claw my way back into regular contact with people.  Even under my alias (I always use one on any site I join up to) people found out it was me and they were flabbergasted that after so many years, I'd finally caved.

So here's me, finally part of the Facebook world. How have I found it? Well, my Facebook experience overall has consisted of confusion, apprehension, amusement, annoyance, frustration, boredom and it's culminated in fiery hatred. I always kick myself for going against my gut instinct and this is no exception. As I've stated earlier, I believed Facebook was a hotbed for inane drama and self-indulgent twaddle and I've been proven absolutely right. Facebook is a site for a keeping-up-with-the-Jonses type lifestyle competition under the guise of bringing people together and strengthening their connections with each other. Facebook pretty much give you the ability to live with your "friends" 24/7. You get to know things like what they had for lunch or where they went shopping in the afternoon and even what time they go to bed. But hey, this stuff is interesting, right? How could you live without knowing whether Bob's found his other sock, or what about the fact that Tim can't decide whether to have a biscuit or cake for a snack?  This is crucial stuff that the world needs to know - only it isn't. It's banal, excruciatingly boring stuff that no-one gives a flying one about. These yawn-worthy everyday occurrences in life aren't anything special so why people feel the compulsion to broadcast them to cyberspace is beyond me. 

One of the worst Facebook behavioural patterns, for me, is updating when out in the real world. There's one particular friend of a "friend"  on my account that seems to fall over themselves to let Facebook know where they are, what they're doing and who they're with in real time.

Example:

Out with X tonight, on our way to *insert place name here*

10 minutes later...

Finally arrived at *place* with X! Gonna have a good night

8 minutes later...

Me and X just sat down to this (insert picture of food)! - at *place*

20 minutes later

Just finished meal. Was gorgeous! Now going to have some drinks - with X

1 hour later...

On our way home from *place* now.  Had such a great time - with X at *place*

Now why, in the name of all that's holy, would anybody constantly interrupt a night out with real people in order to inform the Facebook world of the great time they're supposedly having? If you're enjoying it that much then why the hell are you even logged in? There's nothing more irritating (and I'd even go so far as to say downright rude) than being out with somebody who can't seem to put their phone down for two minutes. Try having a conversation with somebody who's constantly checking their phone, it's pretty much impossible and you wonder why on earth they've bothered coming out if they're only going to pay 10% attention to you. It reminds me of when I went to music gigs and spent the majority of my time trying to film decent parts of the gig. When it was over, I realised that I'd hadn't relished the experience because I was too busy looking at it through a camera. However, in this age of smart phones and the likes, the ability to function normally in real life social situations seems to be waning. There's no social awareness or etiquette anymore because people seem to have an attack of the hives if they have to look away from a screen for more than two minutes, lest they miss an important update about whether or not someone's decided to dye their hair.

Admittedly, in my Facebook virgin days, I posted a few ambiguous, self-pitying statuses in the past, but that was because I was lured in by everyone else's behaviour on it and figured that's what Facebook was primarily geared for. I was attempting to go with the flow, but I realised that I'm really not that kind of person. I don't want to plaster the ups and downs of my life all over Facebook, I've found Twitter to be far more enjoyable social network (although that comes with a whole host of problems of it's own!). When it comes down to it, nobody really gives a stuff about your life because they're too busy with theirs. Nobody gives a damn about what you put up there unless it concerns them; and no amount of faux-interested comments or 'likes' is going to change that. I stopped putting statuses up on Facebook ages ago and now I just use it for games and to talk to one or two people. If I do decide to have a rare look through my news feed, I still see absolutely nothing of interest. The fact that so many people feel compelled to post every single detail of their lives, however inappropriate, seriously scares me. You're in labour? Quick, post frequent updates about how it's all going! If you're lucky, you might even be able to manage an upload of the baby crowning! Got major beef with someone? Forget about dealing with it in private, have a blazing row and air all that dirty laundry all over you pages so everyone can have a look! I mean, really, is nothing scared anymore? Is privacy an obsolete concept? Facebook seems to have a created a breed of people who are so needy and desperate for approval, praise and basic recognition...it's actually rather a depressing scenario that just seems to be getting worse.

There's a thread running on a forum I go on, titled: Worst Facebook Updates ever. Here are just a few of my personal favourites...

19.07: Making homemade chicken korma.
19.28: Just made homemade chicken korma.
20.03: Enjoyed my homemade chicken korma

 Can't wait until my new shorts get delivered, I need cheering up

 Weighed myself on my friends scales and i may of lost half a pound :-D

 Just found out I can fit 27 maltesers in my mouth!

 Ran out of red bull wanted mum to get me sum more n she gave me a fiver and told me to get it myself! FML!!!