Camera-work in Thrillers (Psycho Alfred Hitchcock 1960)

To analyse lighting in thrillers, I used the film Psycho by Alfred Hitchcock. The scene I'm using is just after Marion has left her boyfriend and instead of going to work she has taken some money from her boss and is driving away from the city. Through this scene Marion is worried someone might be following her and this anxiety is shown through the use of chiaroscuro lighting. 

In the shot below, Hitchcock uses a zoom shot of Marion's face to show the close up shot of her face to explain her emotions and the details on her face which reflect the tension in the scene. Her make-up is very fierce with the bold eyeliner and mascara to accentuate her eyes and how they react with the conversation in the background and the cars on the road. Her bold red lipstick suggests she is a  promiscuous and slutty character. This is shown by the way the man crossing the road smiles at her and implies she is dangerous which creates tension for the audience, as they know she will die because of conventions in thrillers. In the scene, she bites her lip often which connotes the agitation she has with the slow traffic and the suspense it builds by moving slowly. As the conversation continues her thick, bold eyebrows are the main focus of the scene. They move like she is reacting to the conversation, however the voices are only in her head. This anxiety is shown because it is a mystery on when this conversation is happening and whether she is just making it up. This creates tension because the anxiety of not knowing makes it more suspenseful and mysterious.

The chiaroscuro lighting used in the shot below shows Marion driving at night by herself. This use of lighting tries to highlight her face and reactions to what is happening in her life, present time. The dark corners and spaces create an internal frame to force you into looking at her emotions. The fuzzy shadows created by the steering wheel show the use of common conventions in thrillers used to accent her features, but also show her two sides. Her innocent scared side of being alone at night and a promiscuous lady who likes to sleep with married men. By using the high contrast of blacks and whites, it intensifies the theme of danger because she is driving at night alone and although she is a profligate woman, she shows a sense of innocence by being and acting scared while alone at night. The blurred background of the rear window of the car implies that she is trapped in the car and isolated from the rest of the world. This constriction highlights the suspense of Marion getting to safety and away from the deadly darkness of the never ending roads. 

The use of music also creates a tense scene. It co-insides with the narration of the diegetic conversation which is being played over the scene of Marion driving because when the conversation gets heightened the music gets more intense and louder. The non diegetic sound is of violins. This type of music is very interpolating and allows you to become submersed in what's happening in the scene. The music is full of fear and worry. She realises she is not in a safe place so the music reflects her raw emotions and how she realises she is exposed to the elements.