Last night Islington’s Union Chapel housed Jameson Cult Film Clubs screening of Hitchcock classic Psycho, as part of its Chills in the Chapel Halloween event.
Not able to conceive a better location for watching one of my all time favourite films, I was concerned about the locations underwhelming entrance. Scaffolded, with just a small neon ‘Motel’ sign, I wasn’t entirely sure I was in the right place. But as I entered, greeted by retro clad usherettes distributing free drink vouchers and Anthony Perkins look-a-like, all concerns dispersed and I was grinning like a child. Spooky green and red-lit spires, an orchestra playing the films score and flowing free cocktails set the mood perfectly and the buzz in the air assured me I was amongst fellow Psycho appreciators. After the difficult task of finding a seat (pew) in a church at full capacity, the lights dim and by candlelight we are treated to a re-enactment of the famous shower scene. The crowds roar of applause led to me to wish for more of these touches, but for a free event one mustn’t complain.
Psycho starts as a story about Phoenix office worker Marion Crane, who, unhappy with her lot, steals $40,000 from her employer and heads towards her lover Sam in Fairvale. Caught in a storm, she pulls in at the Bates Motel to be greeted by Norman Bates. Norman is attracted to Marion and we hear his mother, who he lives with in a creepy old house overlooking the motel, chastise him for this. In one of the most famous and well-shot scenes in film history, Marion enters the shower and is murdered. The murderers silhouette suggests a female, but as this psychological thriller unravels not all is what it seems, with themes spanning confused identities, Oedipal murder, privacy and voyeurism.
The grandiose setting adds a certain poignancy to the films script and I find myself, despite having seen this film countless times, noting new qualities to its lines. The atmosphere in the bar afterward assures me this event has been enjoyed collectively, and I’m already hoping its success inspires a similar event for next Halloween.
Published on thefilmpilgrim.com
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