Psycho

Filmed with a scant budget amid considerable studio objections, leaving Alfred Hitchcock to use the crew from his “Alfred Hitchcock Presents” television show to save money, Psycho went on to become one of the director’s most iconic films. Its unprecedented violence laid the groundwork for generations of slasher films, yet Hitchcock’s masterpiece is just as compelling when its knife-wielding sociopath is off screen, as the director revels in unrelenting psychological despair and wildly entertaining audience manipulation. For the film’s 50th anniversary, the Times Cinema screens a 35mm print of the movie tonight.