Thoughts on the therapist scene in Psycho
I just watched the movie for the first time in years on Sunday night (saw it on the big screen in El Segundo, CA - great crowd). I was as spellbound as the first time I watched it and marveled at how taut and well composed the film is. I do, however, have one reservation: the therapist's long speech at the end.
(spoiler alert - if you haven't seen Psycho for some reason, don't read on. Can't think many redditors here haven't though!).
In the jailhouse, the therapist explains the psychological state of Norman Bates, his motivations and how it explained the crimes he committed. It is a long scene, and he's pretty much the only one speaking.
The speech reminded me of the ending of an episode of Scooby-Doo where Fred and the gang neatly summarize the bad guy's plot and how he managed to fool everyone. Why did Hitchcock put this in here when everything else in the film is so restrained?
Part of the attraction of the film is how Crane and Bates don't express how they feel or what they want, we see them propelled forward by action unsure of their exact motivation. It's this tension that animates the film. And then this scene is the opposite, all exposition, removing the mystery of Norman Bates.
I wonder if there could have been a different ending, where the motivations and psychology of Bates are more opaque, largely unrevealed. Where the audience wonders more about his relationship with his mother instead of having it explained so neatly to them.
As it stands, this ending is unsavory, removing the mystery of the film to a neat and tidy psychological explanation.
Curious what others think about this.
