12 Actors Who Were Brilliant In Utterly Sh*t Movies
12. Viggo Mortensen - Psycho
If ever there was a film that didnt need remaking, it was Alfred Hitchcocks horror masterpiece Psycho. The fact that they did so by casting Vince Vaughn as Norman Bates is as inexplicable as the scene where youre forced to both watch and listen to him get his rocks off to a showering woman. So with the main villain and central character being by far the least enjoyable aspect of Gus Van Sants Psycho, where are the audience to find joy in this cynical cash-in?
The answer lies with Viggo Mortensens stoic hero Sam Loomis, the boyfriend of Norman Bates first onscreen victim. Not knowing that his significant other has been stabbed to death by a man with mommy issues and a love of floral dresses, after being contacted by her concerned sister he decides to track her down. Mortensen gives what could have been a very one-note character a thoughtful intensity, he may be a flawed character but when it comes to it hes willing to place himself in danger to do the right thing.
You really find yourself rooting for Mortensens Loomis in a way that no other character manages throughout Psychos runtime. Something definitely went wrong somewhere when the rugged alpha male became more layered and interesting than the cross dressing psychopath.