3. Psycho (1960)
Easily one of the most famous thrillers of all time, and there is very good reason why. While on the surface it may look to be a stereotypical slasher movie, there are numerous things which set Psycho apart from all other similar films. For starters, most slashers are defined equally by the killer and the main character. There is usually at least one intended victim who escapes the wrath of the murderer throughout the film. This is done to give us a hero, someone to relate to, someone to care about. In Psycho, we're introduced to our main character, Marion Crane. She stops at the Bates Motel for a night and meets the proprietor Norman Bates. That night, Marion is killed. Yes, Marion. The main character, the one on all those posters, and the actress who has top billing in the movie. Furthermore, this is another movie where Hitchcock doesn't present a mystery to us. We learn that the only other person in the hotel is Norman's mother, and Marion is killed by a shadowy figure that looks... rather maternal.
Which brings us to another aspect of Hitchcock's brilliance in this film - the famous twist. While many directors and filmmakers try to shove a twist on the end to shock us, Hitchcock strings us along, convinced we know everything and all that's left is for the police to capture Norman's mother. Except it actually is Norman, and his mother has been dead for years. And thus the film ends, with Norman captured and sent to jail. Not content with having creeped us out enough yet, Hitchcock ends the film with Norman despondently watching a fly on his hand, then slowly looking up, straight into the camera, and giving us a look not even a mother could love....
