3rd Psycho Image Analysis

This scene is the moment in the film where everything is revealed and we learn that Norman’s mother was dead all along and that Norman has been dressing up as her and killing innocent people for his enjoyment. This links to Ed Gein because it is a known fact that he was a serial killer and would kill women for their skin so that he could become his mother. The fact that the skeleton is smiling suggests that the mother is proud of her son. Norman’s Oedipus Complex has led him to become obsessed with his mother even after she has passed and he brings her back to life through himself. The skeleton of the mother is found in an enclosed creepy basement which is a convention of the mise-en-scene in horror films. The low key lighting also puts forward the idea of good and evil parts of the mind and that this body sparked the psychotic acts that Norman performed. When the mother’s skeleton was revealed, the moving light bulb produced the illusion of the eyes and mouth moving which made the scene much more terrifying as it didn’t seem like the mother was dead. This illusion is relevant because it shows us that to Norman, his mother isn’t dead and so we are made to feel sympathy for him as he doesn’t really know what he is doing. This revelation is an important moment in the narrative of the film because it shows the source of Norman’s deranged mind and ties up any questions the audience may have had while watching the film.