Hitchcock

While this isn’t the Oscar bait its studio was hoping for, it’s still a good time at the movies. Alfred Hitchcock (Anthony Hopkins in a fat suit) risks it all to make the slasher film Psycho as wife, Alma (Helen Mirren), struggles with their marriage and helps with the little things, like writing and co-directing with no screen credit. Director Sacha Gervasi throws some weird ideas into the mix, like Hitchcock having hallucinatory conversations with Ed Gein (Michael Wincott), the serial killer on which Norman Bates was based. Scarlett Johansson and James D’Arcy are well cast as Janet Leigh and Anthony Perkins, and there’s a great Ralph Macchio cameo to boot! The movie is just a little too goofy to be taken seriously, but it’s fun watching Hopkins navigate the role. As showy as he is, it’s the Mirren performance that winds up being the most memorable.