Presented today Memento-style, in the reverse of the order viewed.
The Mist (Black & White Director's Cut) - ★★★★☆
My first time seeing the B/W version. It's been a while since I've seen any version, and happily I'd forgotten a lot of the middle of the movie. Got to watch it this time through the lens of the lovecrafty stuff I've been reading / playing more of lately, which also made it fun.
Psycho II - ★★★☆☆
I wasn't sure what to make of this one. The premise is almost like a comedy, with so many knowing nods and nudges and things to set Norman off, but it comes together as a pretty solid 80s horror. It feels neat to see what's become of the house and the motel and everything, even though of course it's all freshly built to make a movie. I have a little trouble squaring the events of this movie as things that "really happened" in the world of the original.
Psycho - ★★★★☆
I like watching a well-known classic like this (or maybe The Godfather) by trying to see it the way an audience did before it became a pop culture touchstone. You hear about the shower, not the seemingly conventional but still intriguing plot with the money. To a first-time viewer, Norman is lying because he's covering for his terrifying mother, not to stay out of jail himself. Maybe you even feel for him.
Psychos - ★★★☆☆
Seemed to me like this was really speeding along faster than I remembered. I assumed it was because of the intercutting capturing my attention, but no, it's actually shorter. The Hitchcocks I've seen lately, a lot of them could stand to lose 15 minutes, but somehow I don't think I'd have quite the same audience if I did it.
Definitely makes me want to go watch the original again, not just for the fun of seeing how this cut works. Probably not as excited to give the remake another chance.
