By Melissa Antoinette Garza
Anthony Perkins was a babe. Norman Bates was one of my first crushes. I still adore him. Oh, how I love this series!
PSYCHO II takes place twenty-two years after the original. Norman is finally let out of his mental institution. He’s a fully recovered gent. Personally, I never thought he should have been sent there. He just needed a good gal by his side to quiet down the rantings of evil old mommy that lingered in his head. Once he got that repression fucked out of him, I’m sure he’d be sane. I know it’s a radical treatment, but one I would have been happy to help with.
Norman’s psychiatrist Dr. Bill Raymond (Robert Loggia) has full faith in his recovery. He tries to explain to Lila Loomis (Vera Miles) that she needs to move on, but she still can’t. She believes Norman will reoffend and wants him locked up. If this role was played by almost any other actress, I’d be insulting the character. I can’t do that to Vera Miles. I won’t do that. I love her and you can’t make me talk bad about her. All I’ll say is that I disagree with Lila’s methods.
Norman is really trying to be a good boy. He goes back to the motel and though he freaked, ignores some notes that seem to be from his dead mother. He tells himself it is in head and uses his therapy techniques to calm him down.
He gets a job at a local diner and starts a friendship with Mary (Meg Tilly). On the surface it appears that she’s a nice girl down on her luck. Her boyfriend kicked her out and with no place to go, Norman plays knight-in-shining-armor. He offers her a free-of-charge room and she accepts.
He’s a sweet host who doesn’t make a move on her. He makes her a sandwich and is genuinely interested in just offering his assistance. I love Norman. I love him so goddamn much. He’s a sweetheart who needs to be protected and kept safe.
Little does he know that Mary is really Lila’s daughter and she’s working with her mother to drive Norman insane. Together they leave notes and make calls pretending to be Norman’s mother. Soon, Mary sees that Norman is really trying to heal. She falls for him and feels badly about the lies and deceit. She wants out, but her mother is insistent on her continuing the plan.
Meanwhile, people start getting offed and the killer’s identity is unknown. One of the casualties is creepy motel manager Warren Toomey (Dennis Franz) who was running Bates Motel in Norman’s absence.
Toomey rents out the place to prostitutes and drug addicts which doesn’t sit well with Norm. Bates fires Warren who rant and raves and then ends up dead. As the bodies mount and Norman finds more and more of the nonsense left behind by Mary and Lila, he starts to think everything is happening again. He doubts himself.
Mary is convinced that Norman is innocent and being framed by her mother. She intends to prove it too.
I love this entry. It gets some unjustified hate because the tone is so different. It was made in the 80s and it’s a continuation of the story and therefore we see an evolved version of Norman. He’s still scared and unsure of himself.
The chemistry between Perkins and Tilly is magnificent. Both characters are victims and perps. Both are struggling in the midst of insanity. Their parallels bring them together.
Mary is also a very strong and confident woman. Her feminine strength is summoned by Norman’s need for security, safety and a friend. She falls in love with that aspect of his personality and so wants to be the one to save him. It’s a feeling many women, including myself, understand. I’m a fixer. I love fixing things. I often say I wish my friends were SIMS so I could just put the ones I want together into perfect lives and relationships.
Further appealing to Mary’s soft side is Norman’s puppy dog eyes and desperation. Even when clutching a knife, you just want to hug the guy. No one can beat Norman up more than he beats himself up – with the exception of his mother. He’s a man who genuinely wants to be saved. He’s not towing some line to get laid or to stay out of jail or trouble. He wants to be a good man. He is a good man. He’s just flawed. One of those flaws is that his panic attacks often result in murder. Nothing a little R&R can’t fix!
Both Tilly and Perkins shined in the leads. Loggia and Franz were welcomed additions as new and interesting characters. Loggia’s Dr. Raymond gave Norman the friendly ear he needed and Franz offered a creepy perv who the fans could cheer when killed. Each gave their characters life and made them far more than just a stereotypical and formulaic means-to-an-end. They made the story more compelling and gave depth to what could have easily been caricatures.
Though there is no hot-and-heavy scene with Norman and Mary, their romance is sweet and paced well. Currently, this baby is on CINEMAX via AMAZON. I signed up for a week free. I doubt I’ll keep it after that, but if you got it – watch it. This is certainly worth a purchase, though. I have a DVD with II and III on it so if you don’t have it available to stream for free, buy this baby. It’s worth it.
Scared Stiff Rating: 8/10
