| Psycho III | |
|---|---|
 original movie poster for Psycho III |
|
| Directed by | Anthony Perkins |
| Produced by | Hilton A. Green |
| Written by | Charles Edward Pogue |
| Starring | Diana Scarwid Jeff Fahey Roberta Maxwell and Anthony Perkins as Norman Bates |
| Music by | Carter Burwell |
| Cinematography | Bruce Surtees |
| Editing by | David E. Blewitt |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | July 2, 1986 |
| Running time | 94 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Gross revenue | $14,482,000 (USA) |
| Preceded by | Psycho II |
| Followed by | Psycho IV: The Beginning |
Psycho III is a 1986 sequel to Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. The film stars Anthony Perkins (who also directed the film), Diana Scarwid, Jeff Fahey and Roberta Maxwell. The screenplay is written by Charles Edward Pogue. The original electronic music score is composed and performed by Carter Burwell in one of his earliest projects.
Contents |
Plot summary
Maureen Coyle, a mentally unstable young nun, is on top of a bell tower and is about to commit suicide. Another nun tries to get her to come down, but Maureen accidentally pushes her over the railing to her death. Maureen is forced to leave the convent after this ordeal. Meanwhile, Norman Bates is still manning the desk at the Bates Motel and living with the preserved corpse of his "true" mother, Emma Spool. Local law enforcement and Norman's ex-boss, Ralph Statler, are concerned since Mrs. Spool has been missing for over a month. Duane Duke, a sleazy musician in his 20's desperate for money, is offered the job of assistant manager at the Bates Motel. Maureen, now the new long-term tenant, has some issues to resolve in her life. She gave up her vows as a nun only days before, and she isn't sure just how she feels about either spiritual or earthly matters.
Sheriff John Hunt and Ralph have a conversation at the diner, when Tracy Venable, a pushy journalist from Los Angeles, interrupts them. She is working on an article about serial killers being put back on the streets. Tracy is trying to back up her theory that Norman is back to his old ways again. Norman appears and Tracy jumps at the chance to talk with him. Unaware of her ulterior motives, Norman opens up to her but is distracted when an exhausted Maureen enters and sits at the lunch counter. He is startled by Maureen's presence, because he feels she strongly resembles Marion Crane. Seeing the initials "M.C." on her suitcase, Norman freaks out and leaves the diner. After the conversation with "Mother", Norman spies on Maureen as she undresses and heads into the bathroom to take a shower. Keeping "her" word, "Mother" enters Maureen's motel room with plans to kill her. Upon pulling back the shower curtain, it is revealed Maureen has attempted suicide by cutting her wrists, a sight which snaps Norman back to his "normal" side. Due to blood loss, Maureen hallucinates and she mistakes Norman, dressed up as "Mother," is the Virgin Mary holding a silver crucifix. Meanwhile, Duane picks up a girl at the bar, named Red. Norman gets Maureen to the local hospital to save her life. After she is released, he invites her to stay back at the motel and they begin a romantic relationship.
The same night, Red and Duane head to cabin 12 where they make love. Red makes it clear she wants more than just a fling and calls him a pig. Duane, infuriated, throws her out of the cabin. Red heads down to the payphone to call a cab, but "Mother" shatters the phone booth door and stabs Red to death. A group from out of town arrive at the motel where they plan to watch the local football game. Later that night, Norman and Maureen go to a restaurant while Tracy searches Mrs. Spool's apartment. She discovers the Bates Motel's telephone number written on a magazine cover. Norman and Maureen return to the motel to find most of the other guests engaged in drunken stupor. Norman goes with Maureen to her room and they fall asleep in each other's arms having refused to make love. Patsy Boyle, the only sober guest, is murdered by "Mother". Norman discovers Patsy's body and he buries her in the motel's ice chest outside the office.
The next morning, Sheriff Hunt and Deputy Leo appear at Norman's house to investigate Patsy's disappearance. Norman tries to prevent Hunt from entering his mother's bedroom, when he discovers that "mother"/Mrs. Spool has disappeared. Outside, Tracy tells Maureen about Norman, and she leaves the motel and goes to stay with Father Brian, who took care of her at the hospital. Norman searches for his mother all over the house and finds a note from her stating that she is in cabin 12. When Norman arrives at the cabin, he learns it was Duane who took "mother"/Mrs. Spool. Duane attempts to blackmail Norman into giving him a large sum of money to keep quiet about his secret. Norman agree's to Duane's blackmail demands, but he then unexpectedly throws an ashtray at Duane's head. They fight and Norman seemingly kills Duane by hitting him several times with his own guitar. Tracy talks to Statler and Myrna about Mrs. Spool and discovers she was working at the diner before Statler bought it from Harvey Leach. Tracy meets with Leach, a resident at an assisted living facility, and is informed that Mrs. Spool had also once been institutionalized for murder.
Meanwhile, Norman drives Duane's car to the swamp with Duane and Patsy's bodies in it. Duane turns out to be alive and attacks Norman, who accidentally drives the car into the swamp. He struggles out of the car while Duane drowns. Maureen convinces herself that Norman is her true love and returns to the motel. Norman and Maureen share a tender moment at the top of the staircase when "Mother" shouts furiously at Norman, which startles and causes him to lose grip on Maureen's hands. She falls down the stairs into the cupid statue at the base of the stairs. She goes limp and sinks to the floor revealing the arrow had punctured her skull. Distraught, Norman screams and confronts his mother that he will get her for this. Then, Tracy arrives at the motel and tries to find Maureen.
She enters the house and finds her dead. Then she sees Norman dressed as "Mother," bearing a knife, and tries to flee. She tries to reason with Norman by explaining his family history: Emma Spool, who was in fact his aunt, was in love with Norman's father, but he married her sister, Norma, instead. Mrs. Spool, having serious psychological problems, kidnapped Norman when he was a baby, after she killed Mr. Bates, believing Norman was the child "she should have had with him". She discovers Mrs. Spool's corpse in the bedroom, and Norman takes off his mother's dress. "Mother" orders him to kill Tracy, and when Norman raises the knife, he brutally attacks "Mother", dismembering her preserved remains.
The last scene shows Sheriff Hunt taking Norman to his squad car, with Father Brian and Tracy following behind. Hunt informs Norman that they may never let him out of the institution again, Norman replies "But I'll be free...I'll finally be free." Norman, sitting silently in the back of the squad car on the way to the institution, enjoys his victory over his mother by caressing a trophy: the severed hand of Mrs. Spool. He smiles sardonically as the screen fades to black and the credits roll.
Main cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Anthony Perkins | Norman Bates |
| Diana Scarwid | Maureen Coyle |
| Jeff Fahey | Duane Duke |
| Roberta Maxwell | Tracy Venable |
| Hugh Gillin | Sheriff John Hunt |
| Robert Alan Browne | Ralph Statler |
| Lee Garlington | Myrna |
| Janet Leigh | Marion Crane (flashback) |
| Claudia Bryar | Mrs. Emma Spool (flashback) |
Production notes
Filming on Psycho III began on June 28, 1985 at Universal Studios. Director and star Anthony Perkins clearly made an effort to make Psycho III in a style reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock's original Psycho (as well as the 1958 film Vertigo) as opposed to Psycho II. For instance, during a conversation between Maureen Coyle and Norman Bates in a hospital room, Maureen expresses her concern that she may have "gone a little mad" when she left the nunnery. Norman echoing himself from the original film replies: "We all go a little mad sometimes."
DVD release
Psycho III was released on DVD in Region 1 as part of a triple feature package with Psycho II and Psycho IV on August 14, 2007 by Universal Studios Home Entertainment.
Music
There were many songs recorded for Psycho III, some of them were performed by Stanton Miranda. Carter Burwell composed the main soundtrack and also some songs that play on the jukebox in the diner and on the radios in cars. The soundtrack for Psycho III was originally released on MCA Records.
The song, Scream of Love was released as a single on vinyl only. The dance remixes by Arthur Baker was featured on the 12" vinyl. MCA commissioned a music video featuring Carter Burwell, Anthony Perkins and a Hitchcockian woman. Perkins presented the video on MTV as a guest VJ.
See also
- Psycho (1960 film), directed by Alfred Hitchcock
- Psycho (1998 film), a remake directed by Gus Van Sant
- Psycho II, a 1983 sequel to the first film (unrelated to the novel Psycho II)
- Psycho IV: The Beginning, a 1990 prequel to the first film
- Bates Motel, 1987 television movie
External links
Open source encyclopedia content modification information:
This page was last modified on 6 March 2010 at 18:53.
Authorship and Review
Open source encyclopedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by MedLibrary.org. Content is sourced directly from Wikipedia and is authored by an open community of volunteers. It is not produced by or in any way affiliated with MedLibrary.org.
Usage Guidelines
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Psycho III", which is available in its original form here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Psycho_III
All material adapted used from Wikipedia is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. Wikipedia® itself is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.