Hitchcock (2012) directed by Sacha Gervasi, 5th February

Plot

After success with North by North West. Hitchcock tackles his next film "Psycho." A film about the personal trials and tribulations of a film that no studio wanted to make except for Alfred Hitchcock.

Review

The film starts with Hitchcock being lauded with praise for his last film North by North West with every studio banging at his door to make them a film. The suggestion that he is too old and should make another North by North West makes Hitchcock look for a new direction, to prove his critics wrong and show that he is an artist. He chooses "Psycho" based on a true life event which no studio wants to make or finance. Being bullish about this he finances the project himself placing himself in a financially vulnerable position, battles the studio,  battles the censors and believes in the project where others don't. It also deals with his own personal demons of being a peeping tom, his obsession with the mythical Hitchcock Blond, his wife and muse Alma Reville, his insecurities and his obsession with praise from his fellow peers.

Anthony Hopkins is fine but his rubber prosthetics at times looks great and at others a little ropey. Helen Mirren gives a solid performance. Scarlet Johansson gives a likable performance of Janet Leigh as one of Hitchcock's blonds. Toni Collette is quite unrecognisable in this film.

With this great material and star cast of Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren. This should all make for a great recipe for an entertaining and intriguing film but somehow it does not work. The film does not grip and there is no real tension. I suppose it is not really the fault of this film as unfortunately we all know that Psycho is Hitchcock's most successful and probably his most famous film. The tension does not really build and runs quite flat even with all the troubles around him.

The lack of tension makes this relatively short film of 98 mins at times feels much longer and it does drag in places. There were some light moments but these were far and few between.

This is not a bad film and it is watchable but it is also quite forgettable at the same time.

6/10