Psychic Killer (1975)

Psychic Killer: Directed by Ray Danton. With Paul Burke, Jim Hutton, Julie Adams, Nehemiah Persoff. A former mental patient uses astral projection to destroy the people he believes have wronged him.

“u0026quot;Psychic Killeru0026quot; is a strange story about… guess what? A psychic killer! A killer who wants revenge and is able to get it from a rather considerable distance. Beyond that, there really isnu0026#39;t much to know about the plot.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe film comes from director Ray Danton, who is/was largely a TV director. This is rather evident in the style of the film, which seems like it could have been made for television or at least used similar equipment. Thereu0026#39;s a different feel from television to cinema, and this just didnu0026#39;t feel like a silver screen production. Not that this makes it a bad film, necessarily.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWhat does make it a bad film is pretty much everything else. We early on get a body falling off a building that is about as fake as can be. And this wasnu0026#39;t a comedy. Other deaths are equally cheesy, with maybe one that was at least a bit worthy of respect — though not praise.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThere was also bad music which doesnu0026#39;t match the scenery. Iu0026#39;m not sure if the music would have matched much of anything, but it certainly didnu0026#39;t go with what we saw. That Internet Movie Database users have given this film a 2.7 out of 10 is no surprise once youu0026#39;ve seen it. I have to give the movie more credit than that, but not much.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOne interesting thing about this film is discussion of Kirlian photography. In the 1970s (when this film was made) there was some serious discussion about the Kirlian photography and its connection to the paranormal. Dr. Thelma Moss of UCLA led the parapsychology laboratory and much of her time was devoted to efforts to avoid factors proposed by skeptical peer-review in order to confirm some connection. How successful she was is unclear, though I doubt she had much luck.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe film is hyped up on the back of the box comparing the killer (Arnold) to other notorious movie killers. But donu0026#39;t be fooled. Even if Arnold came first (and, being from 1975, thatu0026#39;s a valid point) he didnu0026#39;t really leave a lasting mark then and he wonu0026#39;t leave one now in the filmu0026#39;s DVD release. Horror fans may find this a good film to pass the time with, but unless youu0026#39;re drinking or have a high tolerance for bad movies, this one isnu0026#39;t anything special.”