Psycho

This weekend we finally figured out how to hook up my laptop to our TV. Hundreds of movies are available online with our Netflix subscription, but we've never really taken advantage this feature because who wants to watch a movie on a laptop? Well no more.

Thus we embarked on an old-school horror spree with three classic films: The Fly (1958), House on Haunted Hill (1959) and Psycho (1960). The first two films (both starring Vincent Price) were entertaining in a classic B movie sort of a way, but neither of them could hold a candle to Psycho. Perhaps that is why Psycho is the only one of the three that appears on The List.

One of Alfred Hitchcock's most famous movies, Psycho stands the test of time as one of the best movies ever made. One of the film's highlights is Anthony Perkins' brilliant performance as the seemingly innocent yet disturbed Norman Bates. I find the very last image of the film, of Norman's creepy smile into the directly into the camera, to be particularly memorable and unsettling.

And of course there is the cinematography. So much as already been written on this subject that I will not dwell on it here. Suffice it to say that from the infamous shower scene to the creepy shots of the old Bates house on the hill, Psycho masterfully keeps the viewer in suspense to the very end of the movie.