Wrongfully convicted of murdering a doctor, Arnold Masters serves time at a mental institution until the real killer is caught and confesses to his crime. Upon his release, Arnold is not alone but with an amulet with supernatural power that lets him leave his body and settle the score with those responsible for his mother’s death and his incarceration. Will the police find out and can they stop him?
Directed by Ray Danton, Psychic Killer (1975) is a crude mix of supernatural horror and thriller genres that stays focused on the story and builds up toward a climax. The dramatic elements are fairly proportioned and not overdone; the dialogue between the main characters conveys the psychological conflict – which is the most interesting part of the movie.
For its horror scenes, the stalking and killing of the target characters ranges from fairly clean to violent and extreme gory (in one scene). The astral projection appearance shots, however, are on the spooky side and provide the foundation for the scares in the script – most notable of these being Arnold’s final encounter with Laura.
Speak of performances in the movie, Jim Hutton as Arnold Masters delivers the shades of his character. Paul Burke as Police Officer Jeff Morgan and Julie Adams as Dr. Laura Scott both do fine in their respective roles. Mary Charlotte Wilcox as the exhibitionist nurse makes sure the viewer doesn’t leave the screen with zero dirty thoughts.
For a supernatural horror story and thriller, the plot is average to interesting but with one or few holes that are difficult to ignore – the missing backstory of the amulet and lack of explanation of the link between the physical body’s destruction and the spirit/projection of the person. The professor’s character (played by Nehemiah Persoff) could have done the latter, but didn’t.
On the whole, Psychic Killer is worth watching at least once to relive the characteristic 70s’ horror vibes.
