Hitchcock: The Murderous Gaze

This book has possibly the best analysis of Hitchcock's "Psycho" available. This is a microscopic frame by frame examination of 5 or so of the master's films. All (with the exception of "Psycho") were made early in Hitch's career ("The Lodger" is a silent film) and are British films (ie made in England vice America). I won't really comment on the analysis of the early works (as I have not seen those films), but the analysis of Psycho deserves mention. This analysis is absolutely devastating. I do not mean this in a negative way, I mean to say that when you read it, you will see Hitchcock films as you once did. According to Rothman, Psycho is not only a film about the personal problems people have (it's not just a shower scene), it is a film concerned with: a)Hitchcock's opinion of his art, what he has done and will do, b)an examination of life and art, c)the role of active participation an audience undertakes in watching a film, and d)that Norman Bates is a helluva lot crazier than we would ever have believed possible, and far more than I have space to write. Rothman makes some outrageous claims, but damn, does he support them well! He convinced me. The book is filled with frame by frame pictures to accompany the analysis. Highly recommended for students of film and Hitchcock fans.