Psycho IV: The Beginning actually isn’t a half bad prequel/sequel and features fine performances from Anthony Perkins reprising his iconic role and Henry Thomas as his teenaged counterpart. For a TV movie, it’s well shot and the story is a nice culmination in the franchise following two sequels that were less than stellar.
Psycho IV: The Beginning
(1990)
Genre(s): Thriller, Horror
Shout Factory | R – 96 min. – $27.99 | August 23, 2016
Date Published: 10/07/2016 | Author: The Movieman
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PLOT SYNOPSIS
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| A seemingly rehabilitated Norman Bates (ANTHONY PERKINS) is drawn to a late-night radio show where the host (CCH POUNDER) encourages him to share his views on the topic of matricide. Reliving his childhood, Norman recounts his trials as a young boy (HENRY THOMAS) living with his widowed schizophrenic mother (OLIVIA HUSSEY). These haunting memories are more than just disturbing visions of the past; they threaten to rekindle his killing urge. |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.0/5 |
| Not much here but we do get an Audio Commentary with Director Mick Garris & Actors Olivia Hussey and Henry Thomas; The Making of Mommy with Tony Gardner (27:41; HD) is a new interview with the special makeup effects artist recounting his work on Psycho IV; a vintage Behind the Scenes (13:15; HD) featurette; A Look at the Scoring Psycho IV (6:12; HD) is another older featurette on the score; and last a Photo Gallery. |
VIDEO – 3.5/5 |
| Shout Factory releases Psycho IV: The Beginning onto Blu-ray and is presented in its originally televised 1.78 widescreen aspect ratio and given a nice 1080p transfer. Although I doubt much restoration was done and it does look like a made-for-TV flick, it’s actually doesn’t look half bad. Colors aren’t terribly vibrant but detail was half decent even with the heavy dose of grain and noise. Even with the occasional dust or dirt specs, it’s a fine looking transfer. |
AUDIO – 4.0/5 |
| The disc includes a 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio track and either option is more than adequate. The bulk of the movie is dialogue driven so the center channel gets the most usage, however where the depth kicks in is with the finale and the fire sequence at the end with some ambient noises coming out of the rear channels, primarily the score. |
OVERALL – 3.25/5 |
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Overall, Psycho IV: The Beginning actually isn’t a half bad prequel/sequel and features fine performances from Anthony Perkins reprising his iconic role and Henry Thomas as his teenaged counterpart. For a TV movie, it’s well shot and the story is a nice culmination in the franchise following two sequels that were less than stellar. The Blu-ray released by Shout (who also distributed 2 and 3 on Blu-ray) offers good video/audio transfers and a nice selection of bonus material. |