It’s Friday the 13th, the perfect excuse to take a look at one of the most famously frightening movies from the camera side of things. Psycho and its infamous shower scene can make an everyday event extremely horrifying. Interestingly, one of the ingredients behind the famous scene’s most unforgettable moments belongs in a much friendlier spot in the home.
Today’s Trivia Question
What familiar food product stood in for blood in the famous shower scene in Psycho?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
Bonus if you know what made this scene so groundbreaking for the female character.
| A Few More for Fun… |
The kitchen ingredient was just the beginning of the fun and illusion of the film. The sound effects and music did lots of the heavy lifting, too.
According to the BFI’s account, which fruit helped to create the sound effects for the shower attack?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
Composer Bernard Herrmann wrote Psycho’s musical score for which instrumental group?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
| A Few More Trivia Questions Before You Go… |
Movie illusions rely on a lot more than props and effects. Here are a few questions about the people, sounds, and setting that made Psycho such an iconic film.
Science
The high notes in a tense film score have a higher pitch because their sound waves have what?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
History
What silent film thriller had Alfred Hitchcock directed decades before he made Psycho?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
Geography
Movies
Who plays Detective Arbogast in the film?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
Language
Answers
| TODAY’S QUESTIONAnswer: A. Chocolate syrup. Because the film was shot in black and white, the color of the blood had to be finessed, and chocolate syrup was the winner. The British Film Institute’s interview about the scene includes testimony from body double Marli Renfro and proves that movie magic can come right from the grocery store. Bonus points if you knew that Psycho was widely seen as a groundbreaking mainstream film for killing off its apparent lead so early. The shower scene takes out the female character we had connected with for 45 minutes! | |
| 01 | Answer: D. A casaba melon. The filmmakers used a casaba melon as part of creating the gruesome stabbing sounds. They couldn’t honestly say “no produce was harmed in the making of this film.” |
| 02 | Answer: C. String instruments only. The famous score uses strings to incredible effect. The musical “attacks” sound almost like another character in the scene. Herrmann didn’t need the full orchestra to make an audience uneasy or a scene powerful. |
| 03 | Answer: D. A higher frequency. Higher frequency vibrations create higher-pitched sounds. Pitch and loudness are different, and turning up the volume doesn’t always affect a listener. Turning a low note into a high one often can, and Psycho’s soundtrack uses it effectively. |
| 04 | Answer: A. The Lodger. The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog was released in 1927, proving Hitchcock had long worked in thrillers before he made Psycho, and terrified viewers without a single spoken word. |
| 05 | Answer: C. Phoenix. The film opens in Phoenix with Marion Crane, whose journey leads her to the Bates Motel… and ends there, too. |
| 06 | Answer: C. Martin Balsam. Balsam plays the ill-fated detective in this film. He was later the original voice of HAL in Stanley Kubrick’s classic 2001: A Space Odyssey, but was replaced by Douglas Rain before the film was released. |
| 07 | Answer: A. A cameo. A cameo is a small role or brief appearance, and Hitchcock is known for making them in many of his films. Sometimes he appears in person, other times in an ad. It became a game for viewers to spot him during his films. Now you know a bit more about Psycho and why it keeps scaring audiences of all generations. The next time you reach for the chocolate syrup, buy a casaba melon, or hop in the shower, try not to think about the film, and give a nod to Hitchcock for making such mundane things so horrifying. |
How did you do? Score 1 point for each correct answer and 1 point for the bonus if you knew it. Perfect score: 9.
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