Psycho

This scene from Psycho is an iconic scene of Marion being killed in the shower by Norman.  The back lighting in the frame hides Norman's face, and the darkness shows that the evil side of Norman's schizophrenia has taken over and he is his mother at this point In time. 

By using a point of view shot it helps the audience feel fear as you are in the place of Marion. The phallic weapon used by Norman is a representation of his power and his sexual frustration.

Due to the institutional context at the time the Hays’ Code, lead to the scene having no body horror and restricted narration.  You never see the knife going into the victim only hear it. By using collision cutting from a slow montage for suspense to a quick montage adds fear to the scene. This links with Hitchcock’s auteur influence ‘ the master of suspense’.   Fear is also added by the sound, the iconic parallel music used in the shower scene is high pitched with shrill violins, making it uncomfortable for the audience. This is emphasised by the fact the scene is very quiet before, with just the sound of the shower.