16. May 2008 by Ria.

Now I read that Cary Grant was considered for the role of Tony Wendice, yes he would have been a good choice too, but I’ve got to hand it to Ray Milland, he was brilliant. He was great at carrying off that aristocratic/stuck-up image, but I had a hard time seeing him as a retired tennis player. After all, they do have to work hard for their money, and because of that, tennis players seem to be more down to earth as apposed to Tony Wendice, who acts like he has a stick up his butt for most of the movie.

But I’ve got to hand it to the guy, he’s a sly fox like no other, but don’t underestimate Margot (Grace Kelly) either. Now I know in the beginning she comes across as a snobby priss, but she knows how to take care of business when her life is on the line. I’ll tell you another thing, what really impressed me was Margot’s dress in the first scene, ladies you got to see it, first of all its a firery red with lace sleeves that come down off the shoulders, and…………….Oh, I’m sorry guys, I know you don’t want me rantin’ and ravin’ over some dress, so let me get back into my review.

Anyway, Tony is all pissed off (even though he hides it well) ’cause his wife is messing around with crime writer Mark Halliday (Robert Cummings), and he’s afraid that his cash cow might go sailing away with the guy. Tony plots her murder, but he needs to find the right guy to pull if off, and what do you know, he runs into Swan (Anthony Dawson). Well, Tony has been scoping him out for at least a year, diggin’ up dirt on him for blackmailing purposes.

This Swan guy has a lengthy petty crime dossier, let’s see here, staying at various apartments, and splittin’ when the rent was due. Oh, I don’t want to forget about the numerous girlfriends that he conned out of tons of money, which I don’t understand. C’mon, Swan looks like crap, how is he able to get so many women? Anyway, Tony has it all planned, and has covered his tracks pretty well.

So the night of the murder Swan uses a key that Tony hid under the stairs, snuck in, waited for Margot to answer the phone, AND ITS ON NOW! Swan tries to strangle her with a stocking, but Margot gets a good lick in, and stabs Swan into oblivion with a pair of scissors. Uh oh, a murder plot gone awry, “Tony, you better come up with something quick!”

We really don’t have anything to worry about ’cause it seems that he has plan A and B. First, Tony tells his wife not to call the police, AND SHE LISTENS TO HIM! Now if I was Margot, I would have gotten suspicious immediately after he said that, calling the cops or the ambulance is always the first thing anyone should do in a situation like this. Anyway, Tony is so smooth, he quickly puts plan B into play, and by messing with evidence is able to implicate Margot, and BAM! she goes to jail, and winds up on Death Row.

Let this be a lesson to all adulterers out there, if there is a robbery, or murder anywhere near the person that you’re messin’ around with, the cops will come looking for you first, so don’t take the chance. Now Tony is now patting himself on the back now the he’s pretty much a bachelor again, but then he starts goofing up by spending some serious cash, the money that Swan was supposed to get after he murdered Margot.

The police start snooping around again, now Tony is in trouble. Not because of the money, but an exchange of keys. Okay listen up, ’cause I’m only gonna say this once, Tony stole Margot’s key from her purse, and hid it under the carpet on the stairs in the hallway, so that Swan could get into the apartment, but he was supposed to put the key back.

Well, he did put it back, after he unlocked the door, and not after the Margot’s murder. So when Tony came home (he used his own key) and found Swan dead, he searched for the key on his body, and found one, but it wasn’t Margot’s key, it was the key to Swan’s girlfriend’s apartment. So Tony takes that key, and put it back in Margot’s handbag, while Margot’s key is still hiding under the carpet in the stairwell.

The inspector eyebrows are raised when he tried to use the key in Margot’s handbag to sneak into their apartment to look at Tony’s financial records. But the key didn’t work, so Mr. Inspector does the old bait and switch of trenchcoats with key-in-pocket to find out if Tony really planned Margot’s murder. Tony walks right into the trap, as he goes to the stairs to retrieve the key when he uses the Inspector’s key to get into his own apartment, and can’t.

If you’re confused right now, sorry, I don’t know what to tell you, just see the damn movie! I did have a hard time believing that Margot was in prison for any length of time (she was released in the end). Why did she have makeup on? Why wasn’t her hair a mess? Why didn’t she have a couple of black eyes, as a result of getting the crap beat out of her by jail birds?

Now click on the link below to watch the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jb1F6pnXlPY

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26. April 2008 by Ria.

In my eyes, this isn’t Hitchcock’s best, even though some may disagree, but who cares what they think? This is supposed to be a thriller, but what’s so thrilling about it? Two complete strangers meet on a train. Guy (Farley Granger), a nice looking, famous tennis star. First of all, why is he a tennis star? Why can’t he be someone more exciting like a novelist, a rock star, or a nightwatchman at a garbage dump?

So Guy is sitting there, minding his own business, when rich mama’s boy Bruno (Robert Walker) shows up and starts asking intrusive questions. Guy is having martial problems at the moment, so Bruno exploits this, and offers a solution. He will kill Guy’s wife, so that he can run off with the Senator’s daughter, and in return, Guy will kill Bruno’s dad.

Bruno thinks this is a great setup because the two of them hardly know each other, so no one would get suspicious, and they can plan their alibi, so they’d be in the clear. Guy, like any normal human being just laughed it off, until his wife ends up dead, thanks to Bruno. Now before you start to feel sorry for the wife, don’t. She’s looks like a dumpy retard, and she’s a player. Yes, play as much as you want, but not when you’re married! Not only that, but she’s pregnant, with another guy’s baby! Actually, this is as thrilling as the movie gets.

Her murder wasn’t even all that exciting either, no gunshot to the head, no stabbing, and no caving her skull in (which she would have deserved). In fact, you really don’t get to witness the killing, all you see is Bruno doing something to her in the dark (probably a strangling), and that’s it. Wait, there is something I don’t get. This chick was ugly as hell, and you mean to tell me she had all these guys, AND a gorgeous husband on top of that?

Bruno is kind of screwed up, but doesn’t come close to being a Norman Bates. I just see him as being a nosy, extremely eccentric, nothing-better-to-do-but-cause-trouble dude. Yes, Bruno is kind of a schizoid, but he’s no one to be afraid of. If he would have came up in my face, I would have slapped his ass to the ground, and kept on walking.

Towards the end of the movie, we actually get rewarded by having a chance to watch a few tennis matches. Huh? Who in the hell would be interested in watching two people hit a ball back and forth in a movie that’s supposed to keep you on the edge of your seat? Now the movie had a happy ending, Bruno dies, and Guy is off the hook as a suspect in his wife’s murder. In fact, he never entertained the idea of killing Bruno’s dad, but maybe the movie would have been better if he did.

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12. March 2008 by Ria.

Alfred Hitchcock is the man! The movie starts off in Arizona with Marion (Janet Leigh), and Sam (John Gavin) making out on the bed in a hotel room. Sam is as broke as a piece of glass, so a hot fling is all he’s good for at the moment. A couple of hours later, Marion goes to work (I’m assuming in a real estate office), and a rich guy comes in, flashes $40,000 in her face for his daughter’s new home, and lets her know “There is more where that came from.” Marion just smiles and nods, fakes a headache in order to go home early, and runs off with the money.

You know, I really like this lady, I should look her number up in the Arizona phone book, and ask if we can be friends. Think about it, she has two options at this point. Marion could go out with Rich Guy for months, tolerate his bad jokes, crappy personality and lousy lovemaking techniques, just to get her hands on his cash, credit cards, and checkbook. Why deal with that when you can just cut to the chase and run off with the 40 thou that is dumped right in front of you?

Marion drives to California, pulls to the side of the road to catch some zzzz’s when Mr. Police Officer shows up. He asks her some questions, all the while she has the words GUILTY AS SIN plastered all over her face. The cop is suspicious, follows her into town and watch as she trades her car in for one with California plates. Okay, now she’s driving again, thinking of all the dumb stuff that might be said about her on Monday when everyone finds out she’s missing along with the 40 thou. It starts raining, she pulls off the main road into the Bates Motel. She meets Nice-looking Norman who is also very polite and cordial.

He even offers to fix her something to eat since driving to a diner with be a major pain about now. So Norman goes up to the house, and all of us, including Marion hear this argument between Norman, and his mom who doesn’t want strange women hanging around. Oh well, whatever. Norman is back with dinner. Okay, what do we have here, it…….looks…….like…….a couple pieces of bread……… and some peanut butter? Norman, YOU AND YOUR MOM HAVE LOUSY HOSPITALITY SKILLS! An attractive woman stops by your motel, hungry as I don’t know what, and the best you can offer her is a kiddie sandwich?.

What you need to do is tell mom to get lost, get in that kitchen, and broil a couple of Rib Eyes with a baked potato on the side! Better yet, call the nearest Chinese Food Restaurant, and have them bring over some Egg Foo Young, and Shrimp with Lobster Sauce right away! If Marion doesn’t eat it, call me up, and I’ll be on the next flight out there! Oh wait, if I do that, I might not make it back home, so forget it.

So now Marion’s eating, while Norman talks about dumb stuff, then she’s off to bed-alone thank you! Norm sneaks a peek at her through a small hole in the wall, goes up to his house, and now we have the famous shower scene. To sum it up, Marion takes a shower, mom comes in with knife, slashes her along with scary movie playing, leaves, and Marion dies. I wonder how they got her to lie still like that without blinking? Norm comes rushing in, shocked to see what has happened, and spends a least twenty minutes of my precious viewing time disposing of Marion’s body, and cleaning up the scene of the crime. While this was going on, I was able to wash some dishes, and make a quick phone call.

Several days later, Marion’s sister Lila (Vera Miles), shows up in California at Sam’s place at work asking questions when a detective (Martin Balsam) also walks in demanding answers. Now see, I like Lila. She’s tough, strong willed, and determined, in contrast to the nosy, and irritating detective who gets paid to be that way. Let me give you an example. Next scene, Nosy Detective
finds his way to the Bates Motel, runs into Norm, and starts asking him uncomfortable, and intrusive questions while trying to find out about Marion. Then he sneaks into the Bates house without so much as an invitation. Detective, I don’t like you very much. That’s why Norm’s mom did a number on your face and you fell down the stairs, Mr. A-R-B-O-G-A-S-T, or whatever your name is.

Meanwhile, Lila and Sam get worried, Sam takes a trip out to the motel looking for the now dead detective, Sam comes back and goes to the sheriff’s house with Lila, but don’t find out anything. The next day, Sam and Lila plot to go out to the Bates Hotel, check in as man and wife, and search the place. Then Sam gets the hero bug, and decides to confront Norm about Marion and the 40 thou. Sam, you really got off easy in this movie. Be glad that you only suffered a blow to the back of your head, because Norm could have easily pulled out a Beretta 80, and blew your head off for getting on his nerves.

The conclusion? Lila sneaks into the house looking for the Mom,finds a corpse, in runs Norm dressed in his mom’s outfit, ready to kill Lila who is then saved by Sam. So we find out that Norm killed his mom (and other women along the way) sometime back and took over her personality and voice while trying to keep his own. Hey Norm, I have one question for you, how are you able to sound just like an 80 year old woman? Did you take Ventriloquist or voice-over classes or something? Can you teach me how to do that too?

Click link for excellent clips from movie!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtHjhQ2UucE 

Psycho (Collector’s Edition)

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