One of the strangest remakes in a genre already verging on a sideshow of inbred congenital deformities, director Gus Van Sant's shot-for-shot re-creation of Alfred Hitchcock's shocker Psycho begs the question: What if Kink... more »o's ran Hollywood? Which probably isn't fair to Kinko's. Given Van Sant's virtual-film sensibility and typical record-label-niche-marketing obsessions (now, there's a psychological thriller), this album ends up being the project's most original facet by default, if only because it's a spawn of that dreaded new genre, "music from and inspired by the motion picture." "From" gets repped by three of master Bernard Herrmann's original Psycho cues, run through--make that over--by Danny Elfman at a tempo that only an antsy crankhead could appreciate. "Inspired by" is a decidedly mixed bag that runs the gamut from typical Rob Zombie hoodoo ("Living Dead Girl") to embarrassing alternative folk (James Hall's painful--and painfully obvious--cover of the Talking Heads' "Psycho Killer"). Even the occasional interesting track ("Madhouse" by Mono; Lamb's "Fly" ) often succumbs to the project's photocopier philosophy and ham-fisted thematics; four of the pop songs contain samples from Herrmann's score, including hapless Steve Earle being punctuated--if not punctured--by the piercing strains of the infamous shower scene. Where's Tom Bodett when you need him? Our advice for the next album that's a soundtrack to a remake of a classic film: check the toner. --Jerry McCulley« less
One of the strangest remakes in a genre already verging on a sideshow of inbred congenital deformities, director Gus Van Sant's shot-for-shot re-creation of Alfred Hitchcock's shocker Psycho begs the question: What if Kinko's ran Hollywood? Which probably isn't fair to Kinko's. Given Van Sant's virtual-film sensibility and typical record-label-niche-marketing obsessions (now, there's a psychological thriller), this album ends up being the project's most original facet by default, if only because it's a spawn of that dreaded new genre, "music from and inspired by the motion picture." "From" gets repped by three of master Bernard Herrmann's original Psycho cues, run through--make that over--by Danny Elfman at a tempo that only an antsy crankhead could appreciate. "Inspired by" is a decidedly mixed bag that runs the gamut from typical Rob Zombie hoodoo ("Living Dead Girl") to embarrassing alternative folk (James Hall's painful--and painfully obvious--cover of the Talking Heads' "Psycho Killer"). Even the occasional interesting track ("Madhouse" by Mono; Lamb's "Fly" ) often succumbs to the project's photocopier philosophy and ham-fisted thematics; four of the pop songs contain samples from Herrmann's score, including hapless Steve Earle being punctuated--if not punctured--by the piercing strains of the infamous shower scene. Where's Tom Bodett when you need him? Our advice for the next album that's a soundtrack to a remake of a classic film: check the toner. --Jerry McCulley
CD Reviews
"Psycho" by Teddy Thompson is the best.
03/13/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I am of course prejudice to "Psycho" written by Leon Payne, because I am his daughter. But I think Teddy Thompson did a wonderful job on the song and I am sure Daddy would have been proud of his version"
A great soundtrack
04/25/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I don't know why people want this CD to be like the original one and they end up disappointed when listening to it...This album can't be like the original because it's from a remake. The purpose of the modern version movie was not to make an exactly copy of it but to recapture and make us relive the incredible story of psycho in our modern world. I think the CD recapture well the essence of this new version and if you are a fan of Psycho, you will certainly like it. It's special in its own way."
Why bother?
gesualdo77 | Kirksville, MO United States | 02/07/2004
(1 out of 5 stars)
"If you're going to attempt to remake a classic film shot-for-shot, especially one in which the original music carried so much of the drama, would't it stand to reason to market that score rather than the dreaded "music from and inspired by"? I'm so completely sick of these compilation albums that have nothing to do with the movie. This is just another example of the Hollywood tail wagging the dog in an attempt to use a movie to sell records (and vice versa). I wonder if there used to be a time when the movie was used to sell the movie? Besides, like so many "music from and inspired by" soundtrack albums, few of the songs appear in the film proper.
If you like the real music for "Psycho" (and I'm of course referring to Bernard Herrmann's FANTASTIC score), get Joel McNeely's rerecording with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra on Varese Sarabande records. That's first-rate!"
An ok soundtrack
S. Schofield | Langley, B.C. Canada | 12/08/2002
(2 out of 5 stars)
"The only good things on the soundtrack is Danny Elfman makeover of the origianl score and Rob Zombie's Living Dead Girl.Other then that,kind of a waste of your money."
Pretty Good
S. Schofield | 03/01/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Altough the movie was somewhat of a flop, the soundtrack really captures the mood of the film. You can really relate the lyrics to the film, and there is enough variety in it for those people who , well...like variety! At first I thought some of the songs were wierd, but as you listen to them more you can really pick out all the good stuff from them. Each song has something unique about it. It usually turns out that the songs you think are wierd at first, you end up liking the best."
Track Listings (14) - Disc #1