Psychic Killer (DVD 2000)

Rustam and Danton gathered a notable bunch of genre stars including Jim Hutton (Timothy’s father) as the psychic killer, Arnold Masters; Paul (VALLEY OF THE DOLLS) Burke as Lt. Morgan, the man hot on the trail of Hutton; Julie (CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON) Adams as the hot Dr. Laura Scott, Hutton’s prison psychiatrist; Neville Brand as a victim of Hutton’s psychic powers; Whit Bissel as Dr. Taylor; Aldo Ray as Lt. Anderson, and a cameo by a young Della Reese. That’s another good reason these seventies flicks are always a hoot, you always see celebrities before or after they were popular.

The movie is basically a twisted revenge scenario. The film opens with Arnold Masters (Hutton) as a man in a prison for the criminally insane. We learn through flashbacks that Arnold has been wrongly convicted of murder, since his departed mother’s doctor was killed shortly after death, and a lazy cop fingered Arnold since he found the doctor’s body. While incarcerated, Arnold befriends a voodoo-practicing inmate who gives Arnold a mystic amulet before throwing himself to his doom. Arnold’s psychiatrist, Dr. Scott, knows Arnold is wrongly convicted. Shortly after Arnold masters the powers of the amulet, he is cleared of the crimes, and is released by Dr. Scott.

Arnold goes back to his home, and his mind is flooded with flashbacks of the individuals responsible for the death of his mother. Arnold’s dead mother had a nurse who mistreated her. His mother had a doctor who mis-diagnosed her. And Arnold had a lawyer who sold him out. So every night, Arnold goes into a trance and uses the powers of the amulet to astral project his tormented soul. Arnold psychically dispatches the offending professionals with out leaving any trace of foul play.

Lt. Morgan (Burke) is mystified about the recent rash of unexplained deaths in his sleepy town. After much research, Lt. Morgan and his associates discover that all the victims have one thing in common: they all have worked with Arnold and his deceased mother. Arnold immediately becomes suspect number one, but he has an alibi for each death. The police watch Arnold’s house as more bodies pile up. The police don’t suspect Arnold because they know he is under observation within his house; little do they know he is committing the crimes via astral projection.

Lt. Burke recruits the one person who knows Arnold better than anyone: Dr. Scott. While investigating leads with a paranormal expert, Lt. Burke and Dr. Scott develop a romantic relationship. When Arnold finds out that Dr. Scott is sleeping with the enemy, he goes over the deep end and mentally contacts her professing his love for her. She spurns his advances, and now the hunters become the prey. But how can the police track a killer who cannot be connected with his crimes?

Here are the violent highlights:

* An autopsy is performed on a living person.

* A car mysteriously drives itself over a cliff killing the law enforcement officer within.

* A sexy nurse takes a shower and is scalded to death.

* A crane moves on its own and drops a block of granite on a lawyer.

* A perverted old doctor gets his neck broken.

* A person is cremated alive.

* A man jumps of the top of off a building to his doom.

* Arnold Masters uses his psychic ability to force a deli attendant to chop up his own body parts in a meat grinder and slicer.

The film suffers from an uneven script. Arnold’s problems are de