Psycho vs Psycho Pits Alfred Hitchcock 1960s Version against Gus Van Sant's [BLOG]

It sounds like the kind of project that should be in the running for the Turner Prize, but Psycho Vs Psycho is actually a unique way to experience classic Hitchcock.

This innovative screening uses the set up of the Leicester Square Theatre to pit Alfred Hitchcock's 1960s Psycho against Gus Van Sant's 1998 remake.

Hitchcock's film will be shown on the main screen and his soundtrack will play in the theatre, while Van Sant's film will be displayed on four smaller screens in the same room.

"This fascinating experiment provides a unique insight into the nature of directorial technique and the role of actors' interpretation, while asking the question: can a story be told exactly the same way twice?" said Josh Saco from Cigarette Burns Cinema, which is responsible for the event. The screening is being held as part of the 13th Hour Horror Festival.

Van Sant was met with howls of derision on the release of 1998's Psycho, his shot-for-shot remake of Alfred Hitchcock's legendary 1960 thriller. With only a couple of minor changes to the original (to make some scenes more explicit and to bring some of the topical references up-to-date), many critics were left asking - why?

Roger Ebert dismissed the film as "an attempt to re-create remembered passion... it demonstrates that a shot-by-shot remake is pointless; genius apparently resides between or beneath the shots, or in chemistry that cannot be timed or counted".

However, other critics argued that the original film's basics were so strong that the remake remains a powerful work in and of itself, with the New York Times claiming the 1998 film "remains the most structurally elegant and sneakily playful of thrillers... at least some things never change".

It's Hitchcock vs Van Sant. Anthony Perkins vs Vince Vaughn. Janet Leigh vs Anne Heche.

Psycho vs Psycho plays for one night only at the Leicester Square Theatre on 25 October.