Violins and Violence

April 1, 2010 7:26 PM

In 1960, Alfred Hitchcock created the most notorious sequence in the history of cinema - the shower sequence from Psycho. Thousands film students have studied it, dozens of books have been written on it) and...

One man became so obsessed with the sequence that he murdered The Girl In Hitchock's Shower.

Kenneth Dean Hunt murdered the wrong woman. Graysmith's book is now in my library queue and appears to be a completely bizarre and horrible tale of mistaken identity.

posted by cinemafiend (10 comments total)

I'm a chapter into this book right now. So far it proves interesting. He writes quite well and I really had no idea how odd Hitchcock was and how much he liked feet.
posted by kanata at 7:37 PM on April 1, 2010

1000 frames of Psycho
posted by Wolof at 9:12 PM on April 1, 2010 [2 favorites]

Robert Graysmith is also the author of Zodiac, which at the time of its publication was the most detailed available book on the Zodiac Killer. It might still be, although his pet theory about the identity of the Zodiac was later disproved.

There was a short profile of Robert Graysmith in the Washington Post a few years ago. He's written several other true-crime books. Two movies, including the 2007 movie Zodiac, have been based on his books. A Killer Obsession: Robert Graysmith Was a Cartoonist Until the Zodiac Case Drew Him In
posted by hat at 9:13 PM on April 1, 2010

8 frames of "Psycho." Blog post with a comment by Marli Renfro Peterson.
posted by kirkaracha at 9:31 PM on April 1, 2010 [3 favorites]

That kid gets no tip.
posted by total warfare frown at 9:46 PM on April 1, 2010 [1 favorite]

Wow. I went to buy this without pause - and then paused to read the review. Publisher's Weekly was pretty brutal. I think I'll wait and see how you folks like it before I buy it.
posted by Kimothy at 12:02 AM on April 2, 2010 [1 favorite]

That was my take on it as well, Kimothy. They really hated it: "As sloppy as Hitchcock's shower scene was precise, Graysmith's jumbled account never finds its footing, despite the fascinating subject matter."
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 3:41 AM on April 2, 2010

Do we really know that the guy who did these killings was a psycho obsessed with the film? Seems like the kind of thing someone would just make up to spice up a story.
posted by delmoi at 3:43 AM on April 2, 2010

Graysmith? Jumbled? The hell you say.
posted by Ogre Lawless at 11:50 AM on April 2, 2010

Ugh. I retract my comment. First chapter interesting and written well as it describes the setting up and shooting of the shower scene. From there just peters out and feels like the most feeble ties ever to the movie Psycho. Just made to sell a book or get publicity. Ended up abandoning it after awhile. Subject seemed so interesting too. I guess I just need to find a good book about Hitchcock instead.
posted by kanata at 5:00 AM on April 4, 2010