Psycho !

Another great Hitchcock thriller, Psycho has the constant element of what is going to happen, curiosity, suspense and tension build as the film progresses. The story is all a Maguffin we are originally led to believe  that the money stolen at the beginning is the reason for things happening, however the plot unravels and the story is really about a motel owner Norman Bates a man with a deranged mind that shows a twisted ill side of him.

Psycho has lots of action that all happens in different ways, not like current action or thriller films where one guy is shot, ten minutes later another guy is shot. The first bit of action that causes suspense is when Norman Bates kills Marion Crane who is the person who steals the money at the beginning, this character we are led to believe that she is a main character but she gets killed so early in the film which flips our views we then start to wonder whether her murder will be found out. Marion dies in the famous scene whereby she is killed in the shower by being stabbed multiple times.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VP5jEAP3K4
The music in this clip is very dramatic and the high pitched instruments mimic the knife movements. You can also hear the knife cutting/slashing sound it is very high pitched and quite disturbing just like the scene. Back when this film was shot they had to be careful on what was exposed the camera angles help to reduce any nudity. The different shots also cause more drama close ups on her face show her real emotions of fear and panic, and the views of the knife create more fear and tension. There is only a silhouette of the murderer which makes the audience's mind wonder as to who the murderer is, the audience suspects it is Norman Bates' mother.

After Marion is killed another blast of suspense is dished out, Norman puts her in the boot of her car and rolls it into a swamp, tension is built by the slow swallowing of the car, at one point we believe that the car can not be swallowed any more and then as it is still showing above the swamp we think that he has not got away with it and his plans and failing him, but the swamp does engulf the car and his plans have worked like he thought.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPt2PNpjOq4

So Marion's family notices she is missing and start to get concerned a private investigator is also looking for Marion in association with the money she stole, he also ends up at Bate's motel he asks questions and investigates Normans behaviours, he is sent away by Norman as he doesn't want to answer any more questions he also forbids the investigator to question his mother without a warrant, the investigator goes back when he thinks Norman is not about he goes up to the house and tries to find Normans mother to ask her some questions as to whether she knows anything about what happened to Marion but a shocking twist happens and the following clip explains the twist...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bieIiX5KLQ

Not what you thought would happen is it. The film has lots of action, tension and the constant element of suspense to keep the audience on the edge of their seats.