In 1986, Anthony Perkins attempted to recreate the witty thrills of the original "Psycho." Once again he played Norman Bates, a schizophrenic killer who's assumed the personality of his dead (and psychotic) mother. But when Alfred Hitchcock directed the original thriller, he'd also created a cinema classic that, 26 years later, demanded a follow-up that was tricky and challenging.

"Psycho III" opens with an allusion to "Vertigo," another famous Hitchcock thriller which ends with a blonde woman in a high tower, a nun, and a very startling death. In "Psycho III" the blonde woman becomes a piece in a different puzzle, as she leaves the convent for a destiny at the Bates motel. Anthony Perkins himself directed this movie, giving his own character a hint of romance and even spirituality. When Norman assumes the personality of his psychotic mother to kill the troubled former nun, he discovers she's already attempting to kill herself, and Norman Bates is her only hope of salvation!

Just as Norman's forming a healthy relationship, a drifter named Duane threatens him with blackmail (over the murders Norman already committed). A pesky reporter also suspects new homicides at the notorious Bates motel. And soon the town's sheriff has come for a visit. Will he notice that there's blood from a corpse in the ice machine? As in Psycho II, Bates is a sympathetic figure who's victimized by a cruel world.

But ultimately the tension of the original film is replaced by these less satisfactory plot points. The audience knows Norman has already relapsed into his schizophrenic killing, so the movie hides fewer genuine surprises. In the original "Psycho," Norman told a visitor to the hotel that "Mother's not herself tonight," but it was only in the film's climax that they realize that he'd meant that literally. (Norman himself had assumed his dead mother's personality.) In this film, the jokes are more obvious, as Norman confides to his new visitor that "We all go a little mad sometimes."

Since he's returned to his serial-killing ways, Norman is obviously a much less sympathetic character. Still, this movie shows Norman was a chance to escape his madness and truly connect with another human after all. He grows as a person, and the audience even sees him confronting the memory of his mother. But unfortunately, this movie shows that Norman himself is not immune to nasty surprises.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older