Psycho II (1983)

Although it was well-received (and is still well-remembered in some circles), Psycho II has sort of become an odd footnote in horror movie history, which isn’t surprising since the film had the deck stacked against it from the start and the fact that it was made and achieved some popularity on its own is remarkable in of itself. The first of three Psycho sequels made starting twenty-three years after the original, Psycho II was at least in part made to cash in on the popularity of the slasher genre by reviving a classic ‘proto-slasher’. Friday the 13th, which with its hard-edged cynicism (expressed in the timeless tagline, "Come, watch them die!") and capitalistic-over-artistic instincts, set the stage for the genre, had debuted three years before in 1980. Even the inevitable genre parodies, Pandemonium and Student Bodies, had just gone into circulation, so it was only inevitable that someone decided to ‘re-envision’ a classic that fit into the genre, albeit haphazardly (it’s worth pointing out that when the success of Scream brought about the Slasher Renaissance of the late 1990s, Psycho was ‘re-envisioned’ again in 1998, that time as a dreary and completely unnecessary scene-by-scene remake of the original.)

Although the ‘need’ for a Psycho II was questionable, the talents behind it were not, which was fortunate enough for the audience but unfortunate for the filmmakers who didn’t deserve to be tarred and feathered as the ones daring to make a follow-up to a milestone classic filmed by one of the most influential and critically successful directors that ever lived. Starring beside Anthony Perkins, whom I would argue is a great talent in his own right whose career was spoiled by typecasting (much like his old co-star Janet Leigh), is Meg Tilly, sister of the prolific and better known actress Jennifer Tilly, who puts in a subdued but emotionally complex performance as Mary, a waitress who apparently accidentally enters Norman’s life. Vera Miles, who played Lila Crane in the original, reprises her role here. Screenwriter Tom Holland had written for some of the 80s' more memorable horror flicks, including Child’s Play and Fright Night (and the much less successful The Beast Within) as well as The Class of 1984 and Cloak & Dagger. (Contrary to what some think, though, Robert Bloch, the writer of the novel Psycho was based on, had little to do with the sequel. He did write his own sequel to the original novel, confusingly titled “Psycho II”, but this sequel was not based on that sequel, although Bloch did approach Universal Pictures about making his “Psycho II” into a film. They rejected it, but apparently got the idea to do their own spin on a continuation of Psycho from it…).

So, surprisingly, the end result is a film that stands well on its own and, besides from the inevitable increased violence and gore, isn’t brought down by any attempts to imitate Halloween or Friday the 13th. The movie focuses again on Norman Bates, picking up in a sense where the original left off, showing him released from the mental institution where he had been confined for 22 years. Besides being accosted by Lila Loomis ne Crane, who, armed with a petition, shrilly opposes Norman’s release, given that he killed her sister and nearly killed her and all that. Despite that, most people seem somewhat accepting, if more than a bit nervous, about Norman’s integration back into the small, dying town he ‘left’ 22 years ago (a nice piece of realism, especially given that most filmmakers would have had Norman attacked by a small mob within the first ten minutes of the film and harassed in every other scene). With state help, he gets a nice job as assistant cook at a local greasy spoon, content to leave Bates Motel, which he still owns, under its current manager Mr. Toomey (Dennis Franz!). On his first day at work, though, he winds up involved with Mary, a waitress at the greasy spoon who befriends Anthony and accepts his offer of a place to stay when she claims her boyfriend has kicked her out of their apartment, and angrily fires Mr. Toomey that night when he discovers that he's turned the Bates Motel into a refuge for horny teenagers and drug dealers. Almost immediately, Norman starts to be beseiged by notes and phone calls that claim to be from 'Mother' and they get even worse when Norman decides to quit his job to run the Bates Motel himself. Is Norman Bates diving back into insanity? Is Lila Loomis trying to get Norman reinstituted? Or are things more complicated than they seem?

It really would have been so easy for Psycho II to have been a movie about young, carefree, and horny young people reopening Bates Motel and then being hacked off by someone dressed as Norman's Mother. Instead you have a movie that tries to be faithful to the spirit of the original and yet become a film its own right. Unfortunately, it cannot decide which of the two aspirations it should focus on. It tries to establish an atmosphere of its own, but it's rooted in the original film - inevitable, probably, considering that the premise itself follows the continuing adventures of Norman Bates, but there's too many playful references to the original Psycho and very little exposition - there's no explanation who Lila Loomis is, which is a mistake since more information on why she despises Norman Bates and wants him back in the asylum would have added depth to an otherwise shallow character, and we don't see much that's definite about Norman's 'past' despite the fact that he's the film's protagonist.

Nonetheless, it's a surprisingly well-executed and confident follow-up to a classic, taking on an excellent premise - what happens when Norman Bates tries to rejoin society? There's an interesting mystery here, even if it does start to come apart at the seams toward the end thanks to the scriptwriters making a few too many demands on credibility. Still, it's a more solid effort than you'd expect it to be; not quite a classic in its own right, but not from a lack of trying.