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Norman Bates To Return In Novel Form In “Psycho: Sanitarium”
In 1959, Robert Bloch released the novel “Psycho“, which Alfred Hitchcock would adapt into one of the most famous horror/thrillers. Then, in 1982, Bloch returned to the world of Norman Bates with “Psycho II“, which followed Bates as he escaped a sanitarium disguised as a nun and began slashing his way to Hollywood. A third novel, “Psycho House“, came out in 1990, although Bates was not a part of that story.
Now, author Chet Williamson wants to tackle the time and story of Norman Bates in between “Psycho” and “Psycho II“, a period of 20 years. To do this, he will be releasing the first new “Psycho” book with Norman Bates as a main character in over 30 years. Titled “Psycho: Sanitarium, the book is set to come out March 1st, 2016.
The cover and an excerpt from the novel can be seen below, courtesy of EW.
Nurse Marie was talking to Norman, but he tried not to listen to her. If he listened too closely or, even worse, if he tried to respond to her, to thank her for feeding him, or to tell her that the meat loaf was good or he liked the cake, Mother would get mad and yell at him. He hated it when she did that. It was too quiet in here, and there wasn’t anywhere else he could go to get away from her.
Nurse Marie put down the plastic spoon and picked up the paper napkin. She touched it to Norman’s mouth, dabbed either side of it, and then wiped it. It felt good when she did that, when he felt her fingers through the thin paper trace across his lips as though he was kissing them, and when they were just under his nose he inhaled, trying to get the smell of her flesh into his nostrils. He did it again now, and there was an audible sniff which he hoped Nurse Marie hadn’t noticed, and then…
Bitch.
Norman froze. He stopped chewing and listened, fearing the worst.
“Norman?” he heard Nurse Marie say. “Is anything wrong?”
In spite of himself, he was about to answer, to open his mouth full of carrots and tell her, even though he knew that would be a big mistake. But it was already too late.
Yes, Norman…is anything wrong?
Mother. She was angry. She knew that Nurse Marie’s wiping of his lips had made him have bad thoughts. She knew. Mother knew everything.
Is anything wrong, Norman? Why don’t you tell the bitch? Tell her how much you like having her touch you! Maybe you could dribble in your lap and see if she would wipe it up! You’d like that, wouldn’t you, you dirty boy!
Stop it, Mother. Please.
Then you stop thinking that way, Norman. It was those kinds of thoughts that made you kill that other girl, wasn’t it? You couldn’t have her in your dirty way, so you had to kill her, isn’t that right?
No, Mother! You killed her, not me!
You wouldn’t have done it if you hadn’t wanted to, Norman. Don’t you blame me.
“Norman?” he heard Nurse Marie ask again. “Aren’t you hungry anymore? Have you had enough to eat?”
Norman didn’t answer, but he started to chew again. He chewed the carrots, and the crunching sound was loud inside his head, loud enough to drown out Mother, and he swallowed.
Crunch away, but I know what you’re thinking, boy. I always know.
It was only a whisper in his head, but he heard it clearly. He was finished eating now. He thought Nurse Marie had said something about chocolate cake, and he liked chocolate cake, but he didn’t want Mother to get mad again.
Norman…
Was that her again?
Norman, do you want…
Mother? Or…
“…some cake?”
Nurse Marie. Oh god, yes, Nurse Marie. And he did want some cake, in spite of Mother. He opened his mouth, hoping that Mother wouldn’t speak aloud out of it.
Let’s start with the good news. Lockbox looks far better than its misleading marketing materials suggest, a supernatural horror movie so darkly lit and color graded that you’ll have to squint your way through jump scares. It’s also anchored by reliable genre performers. That’s also about where the good news ends with this rote adaptation of Knifepoint Horror Podcast story “Winthrop.”
The empathetic Carla Gugino gives her all as Ellen, a saint of a woman with boundless patience who takes on life’s hard luck with a kind smile. After giving up her career as a fashion designer to become caretaker for a dying mother, she’s then forced to reinvent herself once more when her caretaker role ends. That catches us up to the events of Lockbox, where Ellen is asked to take in a cousin she hasn’t seen in quite some time who’s dealing with severe PTSD.
Just as Ellen finally establishes a real connection with Winthrop (Lou Taylor Pucci), it’s interrupted by the arrival of peculiar neighbor Vahna (Katharine Isabelle), who spells clear trouble. When Vahna shows up dead, it sets in motion a supernatural battle of possession.
Image Credit: Aura entertainment
Director Daniel Stamm (The Last Exorcism, Prey for the Devil) and screenwriter Justin Yoffe approach Lockbox in the broadest of brushstrokes, dooming it from the start with clunky storytelling and woefully underdeveloped themes of heady topics like PTSD. Winthrop is a character that comes loaded with emotional baggage and trauma that’s piled on throughout his tragic life, but much like its title, his interiority and history are treated like a tightly guarded secret meant to prolong the supernatural mystery.
The problem here, though, is that Lockbox is too sparse to sustain mystery at all, and it instead robs Winthrop of characterization. It winds up trapping the talented Pucci without anywhere to go, toggling between wounded animal and mentally disoriented.
From there, Lockbox bounds through plot developments without any sense of stakes or purpose, peppered by a smattering of haphazard paint-by-numbers jump scares. The only unwavering constant is Ellen’s resolute faith, and Stamm seems to leave it entirely to Gugino to guide confused audiences through this inconsequential story right up until its supernatural climax.
Image Credit: Aura entertainment
To give more credit, Lockbox at least injects an unconventional exorcism here; just don’t expect much in the way of explanation. When the film finally reveals the meaning behind its title, it dangles a fascinating carrot it has zero interest in delivering. More than a severe lack of fleshing out its characters beyond plot drivers or devices, this faith-based flick also seems terrified to offer any worldbuilding whatsoever.
Yoffe’s script stretches the short story beyond its means instead of fleshing it out, and Stamm fills out the gaps with cheap CGI scares and overwrought performances; Isabelle’s Vahna is beyond cartoonish in her villainy. It’s also pretty nonsensical, treating only Ellen’s faith with the utmost sincerity and largely squandering its typically reliable talent. So much so that the final imagery, pure sunkissed saccharine sentimentality, leaves you with the feeling that this horror movie might be better suited as an entry in Chicken Soup for the Soul.
Lockbox releases in select theaters on July 3, 2026.
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