Psycho Legacy, The (2010)
*** 1/2 (out of 4)
It took quite a while but fans of the PSYCHO series finally have a documentary that covers all four films. Although the end result isn't as great as one might hope, there are still enough original cast members and nice stories being told to make this a must-see. Jeff Fahey, Lee Garlington, Mick Garris, Stuart Gordon, Adam Green, Tom Holland, Olivia Hussey, Robert Loggia, Diane Scarwid, Brinke Stevens and Henry Thomas are just a few of the faces who give interviews and it's good to see that so many of the supporting players from the three sequels are on hand. Again, this documentary is certainly a mixed blessing but it's also the only thing out there that really covers the sequels. I think a little too much detail is given in regards to the original movie and it's nothing we haven't heard before. I mean, there's the brilliant THE MAKING OF PSYCHO already out there plus countless books and magazines so I think less could have been said here. Things really pick up when we start to discuss the three very good sequels starting with a few notes on PSYCHO II including one story involving Perkins and Meg Tilly not getting along. Hearing Holland discuss the fears of trying to do a sequel was certainly interesting. PSYCHO III gets most of the main cast members back and both Fahey and Scarwid tell some great stories about working with Perkins who not only acted in the film but directed it. Director Garris doesn't shy away from saying Perkins was very difficult to work with on PSYCHO IV and some of this might have been due to the actor wanting to direct the film himself. Thomas and Hussey also share some very good stories about what they were trying to do with their roles. All three sequels are given equal playing time but one wishes that they had gone a bit further in the discussion of them. The DVD features plenty of bonus features that go into more detail but this documentary, I think, would have been better with more stories we haven't heard instead of going back over countless stories we've heard about the original. It's also worth noting that both BATES MOTEL and the remake are never mentioned. Still, even with the few minor issues, THE PSYCHO LEGACY is the only way to really hear about the sequels and there's no question that fans will enjoy seeing some of their favorite characters again.
*** 1/2 (out of 4)
It took quite a while but fans of the PSYCHO series finally have a documentary that covers all four films. Although the end result isn't as great as one might hope, there are still enough original cast members and nice stories being told to make this a must-see. Jeff Fahey, Lee Garlington, Mick Garris, Stuart Gordon, Adam Green, Tom Holland, Olivia Hussey, Robert Loggia, Diane Scarwid, Brinke Stevens and Henry Thomas are just a few of the faces who give interviews and it's good to see that so many of the supporting players from the three sequels are on hand. Again, this documentary is certainly a mixed blessing but it's also the only thing out there that really covers the sequels. I think a little too much detail is given in regards to the original movie and it's nothing we haven't heard before. I mean, there's the brilliant THE MAKING OF PSYCHO already out there plus countless books and magazines so I think less could have been said here. Things really pick up when we start to discuss the three very good sequels starting with a few notes on PSYCHO II including one story involving Perkins and Meg Tilly not getting along. Hearing Holland discuss the fears of trying to do a sequel was certainly interesting. PSYCHO III gets most of the main cast members back and both Fahey and Scarwid tell some great stories about working with Perkins who not only acted in the film but directed it. Director Garris doesn't shy away from saying Perkins was very difficult to work with on PSYCHO IV and some of this might have been due to the actor wanting to direct the film himself. Thomas and Hussey also share some very good stories about what they were trying to do with their roles. All three sequels are given equal playing time but one wishes that they had gone a bit further in the discussion of them. The DVD features plenty of bonus features that go into more detail but this documentary, I think, would have been better with more stories we haven't heard instead of going back over countless stories we've heard about the original. It's also worth noting that both BATES MOTEL and the remake are never mentioned. Still, even with the few minor issues, THE PSYCHO LEGACY is the only way to really hear about the sequels and there's no question that fans will enjoy seeing some of their favorite characters again.