Review of Psycho IV: The Beginning

There's not a whole lot to say here. I finally watched Psycho IV...yes I'd been avoiding it because most people told me it sucked. And while I wouldn't go so far as to call P-IV a great movie (it's an adequate send off for the beloved series), it is better than I thought it would be. There were some interesting scenes here that shed some light on Norman Bates' transformation from a disturbed and somewhat chemically imbalanced teenager, into the psychotic monster that we see in films I, II, and III. One of the best parts of this movie is the return of Anthony Perkins as the adult Norman. And Henry Thomas does an admirable job as Norman the teenager. But the best performance in the movie, or at least a performance just as good as Perkins', comes from Olivia Hussey as Norma Bates. She effectively plays the part of Norman's very abusive and overbearing mother. Even someone who does not have homicidal tendancies can be pushed past their breaking point. So it stands to reason that a psychotic like Norman, when pushed past his breaking point, turns to serial killing...a murder spree that included the killing of his own mother. One can almost see why Norman turned out the way he did, and no, that is not a justification for killing people. It's simply just the way it is. Psycho IV surprised me. I was prepared to watch this final chapter, and then, more than likely, conclude that it was pretty bad. Well, I watched it, and I can honestly say that it isn't a bad movie. It's actually a pretty decent one, and a admirable addition to the Psycho saga.