Alfred Hitchcock's PSYCHO is one of the greatest horror movies ever made, with the shower murder of Janet Leigh's character Marion Crane being one of the most talked about scenes in cinema history. Even though this scene only lasts 45 seconds in the finished film, shooting it took up an entire week of PSYCHO's four week production schedule. It was brought to the screen through the use of 78 camera set-ups and contains 52 cuts. Those who have seen it have never forgotten it, and some viewers were so deeply affected by it that they even swore off taking showers.
Director Alexandre O. Philippe had the brilliant idea of making a feature length documentary that focuses solely on this sequence. The resulting film, appropriately titled 78/52, had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival this month, and just days later it has already secured distribution in the US and UK.
In the US, 78/52 will be brought to audiences by IFC Midnight, while in the UK the release will be handled by Dogwoof, who also have the international sales rights.
An Exhibit A Pictures production, 78/52 features interviews with Walter Murch, Peter Bogdanovich, Guillermo del Toro, Eli Roth, Elijah Wood, Danny Elfman, Bret Easton Ellis, and Janet Leigh's daughter Jamie Lee Curtis.
This film definitely sounds like a must-see to me. We'll keep you updated as detailed release plans emerge.