Psycho IV: The Beginning (1990)

Plot Outline: During a late night phone-in, Norman Bates tells a radio talk show host about his childhood and has flashbacks before starting to go crazy again.

The Review: It's not bad at all for a TV movie and is a step up from the crap that was Psycho III but still it's poor for a horror/slasher film and Hitchcock would turn in his grave if he saw how far his series had fallen. There are a few murders as Norman has flashbacks but nothing gory, although Norman never was one to kill people using fish hooks, pick axes or machetes like his horror film comrades. However the characters and acting are the films' strong point. Anthony Perkins reprises his role once more (did he actually do anything else barring the Psycho films?) as Norman Bates. He is still believable as a nut case and kudos to him for playing this part because he was dying of AIDS at the time and managed to hide that fact from people for fear of prejudice. Although his role is fairly limited, he still manages to keep Norman Bates' character alive. Olivia Hussey is mental as Norman's mum and she'd drive anyone mad if they were getting abused constantly. Henry Thomas also does a good job as a young but confused Norman Bates. The main problem with the film is that there are a lot of plot holes which confuse other instalments of the series and it seems to re-write history a bit. Things happen which go against what has been said and done in the other Psycho films. But they had run out of steam here and seem to be clutching at straws so anything that they threw, they hoped would stick. Unfortunately after he's confessed his story to the radio host, Norman Bates goes crazy again and chases after his wife (for crying out loud, hasn't she ever heard of the crimes he committed?) in generic slasher mode and it ends the film on a weaker note.

Final Verdict: Psycho may have been the original slasher but it's sequels are no more than run-of-the-mill slashers no better than any of the Friday the 13th or Halloween sequels. Psycho IV: The Beginning seems to exist solely as an explanation for the previous films however it could have been worse.

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