Screening Times: Thu, May 4 @ 9:30pm, Fri, May 5 @ 3pm

There may be no more iconic sequence in the history of cinema than the shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 masterpiece Psycho. In 78/52, Hitchcock historians, horror aficionados, filmmakers, critics and actors—from Peter Bogdanovich and Guillermo del Toro to Elijah Wood—gleefully pick apart this legendary movie moment, uncovering its enduring power and influence. A turning point for modern filmmaking, Psycho pushed the boundaries of what was possible in Hollywood storytelling. Discarding its star, Janet Leigh, at the end of the first act was a radical gesture that completely defied audience expectations. And the psychosexual subtext in Hitchcock’s cinema was never more prominent and unapologetic. Psycho found the master of suspense at the peak of his powers and at his most rebellious and subversive. Nearly 60 years later, the shower scene remains his most talked about stroke of genius, the one for which he threw out the rule book altogether. – Adam Cook

– 78/52 Hot Docs Film Page