MovieChat Forums > The Psycho Legacy (2010) Discussion > Totally Disappointed

Totally Disappointed

posted 13 years ago by RHPSvegas
8 replies | jump to latest

This "documentary" was way too short and included too many opinions of people not associated with the series. There's so much that's left out here that's actually included on the Universal BluRay and current DVD double-disc that's much more informative. The extra stuff about Psycho 2-4 was interesting and nice to see that those films finally got some recognition. However, as much as I hated it, they should have discussed the remake (awful) and also Bates Motel, the TV movie that was supposed to serve as a pilot for an entire series. There's too much focus on collectors and memorabilia and not enough on the actual backstories of the original film itself. It is nice that Robert Bloch finally got some recognition, but that's included as a separate "special feature" on the second disc. A lot of the footage presented was pixellated and poorly transferred. I realize that much of it was preserved from old tapes and interviews, however there's really no excuse for the new footage and interviews to look like that.

AND ANOTHER THING: WHY IS THIS NOT PRESENTED IN 16x9 ANAMORPHIC WIDESCREEN??? We're in 2010 here! Although I could have stretched it out, what's the point? I had to watch it boxed in on my HDTV. I hated the "original music" also; nothing more than a cheap re-arrangement of the main theme so as to avoid copyright infringment.

I feel like I spent way too much for a mediocre 2-disc set that could have been included as maybe a bonus feature on the Universal set of parts 2-4. Keep your money and rent this (if you can) - I tried to get it off Netflix and it's not available there, so I wound up actually buying it. What a mistake.

[–] ugotit-1 13 years ago

Everyone is entitled to their opinion however I loved this documentary!!

We all go a little mad sometimes...

[–] RHPSvegas 13 years ago

If you loved it, fine. I personally didn't. I just felt that what it was being advertised as and what was actually presented were two very different things. I was hoping for something comprehensive like Halloween: 25 Years Of Terror or Never Sleep Again (A Nightmare On Elm Street documentary), where each film was fairly presented and discussed with facts and behind-the-scenes info. Instead, what I got was a lot of rehashed stuff with some new, somewhat decent interviews that were poorly shot and strung together with poor music. There was no mention of Bates Motel or the awful remake! I just felt very let down by the overall presentation. The special features were also not what what was promised, especially the Bates Motel Walk-Thru. They should have contacted the guy from Horror's Hallowed Grounds! I think that with some more effort and time this could have been a really good thing.

[–] ugotit-1 13 years ago

As unfortunate as it is, this documentary is probably all that we're going to get on the PSYCHO sequels. The sequels are so overlooked that alot of fans of the original film aren't even aware that the sequels exist. It's pretty sad considering that pretty much all the sequels (except the remake and TV pilot) are well made films and much,much better than average horror sequels especially PSYCHO II. So frankly, I really appreciate this documentary and I think it has alot of information to offer on PSYCHO II,III and IV. If you're a fan of the sequels then this is the perfect DVD to own. But that's just my opinion.

We all go a little mad sometimes...

[–] RHPSvegas 13 years ago

I guess I was hoping for something more along the lines of Halloween: 25 Years Of Terror, where they actually gave you the entire backstory on the original film, then detailed all of the sequels, the fandom, etc - it was the whole thing, all-encompassing. This was just sort of, "well, the original's great and all - have you seen part 2? It's amazing! And there were 2 other sequels also!!" That's just how I felt about it.

[–] ugotit-1 13 years ago

Well I already knew a wealth of information on the original film before I saw this documentary. I've seen the fantastic "Making of PSYCHO" documentary, I've read the book "Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of PSYCHO",I've watched old interviews with Hitchcock talking about making the original film but I barely know anything on the sequels. So I was perfectly fine with THE PSYCHO LEGACY mainly focusing on II,III and IV, because I know that those films will never get special editions. In fact, the director, Robert Galluzzo went to Universal with the idea of putting together a DVD box set of all the films including THE PSYCHO LEGACY documentary and Universal said "No, only the original film sells". It just goes to show that Universal could really care less about the sequels. And I think that's the main reason why THE PSYCHO LEGACY didn't include alot of information on the original film because PSYCHO fans like me already know everything there is to know about the first film but nothing on the sequels.

We all go a little mad sometimes...

[–] jdw2691 12 years ago

RHPSvegas, I agree. I got it today and was severely let down. The camera work was awful, the sound was all over the place, and it had so many random people in it that had nothing to do with the series of films.

The WORST was the sound during Jeff Fahey's interviews. And he was bundled up like they did the interview in a meat freezer in the Arctic Circle or something. The makers of this should have taken lessons from the people that did the "Never Sleep Again" and "More Brains!" documentaries.

It really was so amateurish. It looked as though someone just took a 75 dollar video camera into these people's apartments and said "tell us something about whatever film you were in" and had no external microphones, lighting or anything.

Really a major let down.

And really...they give us a "tour" of the set and all they do is walk down the porch of the motel? I know that the office and room 1 are the only dressed areas, but show us the backs of the place while you're there...open a door and let us see if it's just dirt floors, storage, or whatever. Same with the house...at least show us the lumber that's holding it up.

[–] peddlerwhospoke 12 years ago

I found more interesting stuff in the extras section than the whole film put together.

[–] DarrienBlack 12 years ago

Agreed, just bought it and threw money out the window. People should not a pay a cent for this doc, it's garbage. Everyone that posted above pretty much summed up why this isn't even worth watching.