Good Eeeevening.  Tonight’s story is a tantalizing tale of a man obsessed with making a film about a perverted serial killer.  Don’t be alarmed, it all comes out right in the end.  Of course, “right” is all a matter of opinion…

I love Alfred Hitchcock.  His tv show Alfred Hitchcock Presents (probably in the 3rd or 4th round of re-runs by the time I got to ‘em) were a constant source of joy to my little eyes, as were the short story collections he edited.  With titles like “Stories Not for the Nervous”, “12 Stories They Wouldn’t Let Me Do on TV” and “A Hangman’s Dozen”, is it any wonder I’m a horror junkie?  To me he was the equivalent of The Cool Uncle, the member of the family that made you feel as if you were in fact bonded with somebody.  Later on, when I was finally allowed to see Psycho, The Birds and Frenzy, I was already predisposed to love ‘em.  And love ‘em I did.  All this build-up is to give a bit of context; I was also predisposed to love Hitchcock, and love it I do.  It’s a marvelous love letter to the master of the macabre that shows exactly how hard he worked at crafting the movies we now consider classics.  Though I’m sure it won’t get any film historians seal of approval for accuracy, Hitchcock is accurate enough for fans like me who would rather see Hitch as a benevolent but off-kilter genre poppa-bear than see him as a twisted horror of a man like the one in HBO’s The Girl.  (All apologies to Toby Jones and his remarkable portrayal.)

Based on Stephen Rebello’s book “Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho”, Hitchcock centers around the filming of Psycho, or more specifically how Hitch became interested in the Robert Bloch book, then in Ed Gein (the real-life killer that Bloch based his novel on), and then Hitch’s struggle to get Psycho filmed.  Let’s just say the Hollywood star machine of the 1960s wasn’t exactly keen on making a film based on a killer that kept human-skull bowls around the house….  Hitchcock also delves into the relationship between Hitch and his wife, writer Alma Reville, who was a powerhouse in her own right.  (Hit her up on IMDb and be amazed.)  Though I’m sure the real Alma wasn’t nearly as sexxx-y as Helen Mirren, it’s nice to see “Mrs. Hitch” get the props she so richly deserves.  Mirren is able to pull you into Alma’s head, giving you a glimpse of what it must have been like living with such an exacting, focused man.

The real surprise here is Scarlett Johansson’s Janet Leigh, who breezes into the film like a breath of fresh air.  This is a woman who treated Hitch like a co-worker rather than a girl who was easily cowed.  Johansson brings not only her trademark sex appeal to the role (Janet Leigh was quite the head-turner at that time), but a head-on-straight portrayal of a working mom who understands the difference between work and home life.  It’s a stark contrast to Hitch’s obsessive preoccupation with his pictures, and Johansson gives a performance that should get some positive buzz this awards season.

Speaking of Hitch, Anthony Hopkins sinks his teeth into the role, giving a nuanced performance that has just enough frenzied antics without becoming caricature.  There are also moments when things stop, and Hopkins allows the man behind the mania to come through.  I was especially touched by the scene when Hitch gives Leigh a ride home and she shares some candy corn with him.  Having never tried Leigh’s daughter’s favorite candy before, he’s as delighted as a child.  It’s a touching moment, and a wonderful performance.

Hitchcock does dabble in a bit of sturm und drang; Alma’s work with another writer (John Adams’ Danny Huston as Whitfield Cook) and Hitch’s determination to find a “replacement” for Grace Kelly become sore points of jealousy for the couple.  As the real-life Hitch and Alma lived a pretty non-traditional marriage, I’m guessing that’s more movie fantasy than fact, but as there’s a happy end to these resentments it’s a sweet love story rather than movie padding.  Then there’s Ed Gein himself, who is a sort of strange angel on Hitch’s shoulder.  Michael Wincott plays Gein as the soft-spoken loner that Gein probably was, and it’s a performance that’s understated but effective.  Especially interesting are the scenes where Hitch daydreams about being psychoanalyzed by Gein.  Ahh, so that’s where all those ideas came from.

Don’t like scary movies?  That’s okay; Hitchcock is a great piece of filmmaking based on just enough fact to make it tantalizing, like Band of Brothers, The Right Stuff and Mirren’s The Queen.  Add to that seamless — literally — FX by Greg Nicotero and a score by Danny Elfman that tweaks the usual “Funeral March for a Marionette” (da-dum-dee-deedly-dee-da-dee) and keeps things very Sixties cool, plus killer era costuming?  It’s like a love letter to a byegone era.  And the final scene, a fourth-wall-bashing that winks at the audience just like the old Alfred Hitchcock Presents?  Delightful.