The Clairvoyant (1982)

Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

"The Killing Hour" is an American thriller with Italian giallo ambitions. The murders, the killer's disguise & modus operandi and especially the final denouement – which obviously can't be revealed here – are seemingly taken straight from the screenplay of an early 70's Italian giallo highlight. Even the additional topic of clairvoyance doesn't make it typically American, because near the end of the seventies the Italians were experimenting with supernatural themes, like for example in Lucio Fulci's "The Psychic". This certainly isn't a bad little movie, it's just somewhat unfortunate that the pacing is very uneven and the second half is boring and lifeless. What you can't afford to miss about "The Killing Hour" are the first ten minutes. Imagine if you agreed with some of your friends to watch this movie and you're ten minutes late to the party, well than you're just terribly out of luck, because 99% of the horrific images and carnage are already over and done with by then. In the opening sequences we witness the discovery of a naked girl's body floating in the Hudson river and two highly imaginative murders, one in a pool and one in a road construction site. All three victims wore handcuffs and there's undoubtedly a common element that links them all to the same killer. Whilst copper Larry Weeks and TV talk show host Paul McCormack are arguing about whether or not to keep the story out of the media, a shy young girl reports herself to the police. She's an artist in training but claims that at certain moments her hand uncontrollably takes over and draws the murders as they occurred or will still occur. McCormack sees the girl as a sensational guest for his talk show, but obviously doesn't realize this brings her in great mortal danger. The film starts out as a compelling whodunit full of suspense and curious characters (a cop who's a stand-up comedian in his spare time?), but gradually becomes just another dull and predictable little thriller. There's hardly anything exciting going on in the film's second half and the climax is only original and efficient if you haven't seen a single Italian giallo ever before in your life. As soon as you have, the ending of "The Killing Hour" will leave you underwhelmed and stone cold. Writer/director Armand Mastroianni, who probably has some sort of Italian roots despite being born and raised in Brooklyn, was a competent horror director back in the early 80's. He made the underrated slasher "He Knows You're Alone" as well as goofy horror flicks like "The Supernaturals" and "Cameron's Closet". This was his most serious horror effort, but the result is only semi-successful.

THE KILLING HOUR is an American movie made in the same vein as an Italian Giallo.Whilst many may assume by the director's Italian name that this movie is a giallo, I can most assure them that it is not.The director of this movie also directed HE KNOWS YOU'RE ALONE. Having liked that movie and also being tempted by the attractive DVD cover depicting a gloved hand over a woman's face, I had high hopes for THE KILLING HOUR.How wrong I was.The plot of this movie is actually very interesting. A police detective and a TV show host form an unlikely alliance in tracking down the "handcuff killer". Also entering the scene is a young clairvoyant with the ability to draw pictures based on her premonitions.But the interesting aspect of the movie finishes here. The plot is really all that it has going for it.In the hands of an experienced Italian director - Dario Argento, Mario Bava or Lucio Fulci - this movie could have made a great giallo.Unfortunately, the movie was placed in the wrong hands and the superb concept on paper degenerates to a crashing bore on the screen.The director of this movie obviously failed to understand that there is more to making a giallo than just the mere presence of a glove-wearing killer, a few arrogant cops, and occasional nudity and sleaze.The movie is severely hampered by Mr Mastroianni's pedestrian direction that is without suspense, tension or the ability to invoke emotion.The few killing scenes to be found are nothing to write home about and most last too short a time to have sufficient impact upon the viewer - or even the plot for that matter!Without revealing spoilers, I can reveal that there is a killer in this movie - mostly unseen. But the killer shows very little threat or menace and as such it is almost impossible for the viewer to attach themselves to situations that should be tense, frightening and horrific.Without revealing spoilers, I can also mention the presence of another scene in this movie outside of the killings but was clearly meant to be disturbing. But even this scene lacked any impact.The two lead actors are incredibly bland with one-dimensional characters that can be found in any random American movie of this period.Kenneth McMillan basically "phones in" his performance as a police lieutenant. Believe me, he was more interesting to watch in the infinitely superior SALEM'S LOT, a movie in which he had several great scenes.On a positive note, Elizabeth Kemp delivers a good performance as the clairvoyant. But she is clearly restrained by a script lacking inspiration and a director lacking a coherent vision for the character.Overall, I do not recommend this movie at all. I would, however, advise people to see HE KNOWS YOU'RE ALONE because I believe the director did a much better job on this earlier effort. Or even better, check out some genuine giallos such as DEEP RED, THE BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMAGE, TORSO and DON'T TORTURE A DUCKLING just to name a few.

Since this film is a thriller directed by someone with an Italian sounding name, I was expecting something like an American version of Italy's finest export - the Giallo. The film certainly has elements that resemble the Giallo, but it constantly falls down as everything in the film is just so DULL. The plot opens with the discovery of a dead body making its way down the Hudson River. We than follow the investigation into the crimes, which is a joint venture between a police detective and a TV talk show host. The story also gets an extra element of mystery through Virna Nightbourne; a clairvoyant who draws the crimes before they happen. Obviously the idea of someone being able to draw crimes before they happen is more than a little bit preposterous, but to be honest I could live with that if the resulting film was entertaining. However, the film is not entertaining; we've got a couple of decent murder scenes, and that really is the only point of interest. The way that the film plays out is far too serious given the silliness of it, and by the time it ended I was thoroughly bored! Not recommended.

As a fan of B-rated movies, I didn't know what to expect when I saw this film advertised in the TV guide on a local independent UHF station known for showing off-the-wall movies. I must say, I was pleasantly surprised. First of all, this movie is perfect for people who love those tacky memories of the early 80's. You'll see the rotary dial phones. The 1980 Ford Fairmounts. The old rabbit-ear televisions. But this movie is more than all that. Despite having a lot of lesser-known actors/actresses, the storyline was unlike most other B-films. It was actually very good ... as a TV reporter and a cop try to figure out who's committing various murders in New York City ... both seemingly having personal interests vested in solving the crimes ... and both getting on each other's nerves in the interim ... this all being made worse when a supposed clairvoyant steps into the picture who seems to have the ability to know someone's going to die before it actually happens. All this makes for a film that I think deserves more credit than it must have ever got ... being I never even heard of it. If you manage to find it at the bottom of some discount barrel of old VHS movies, or you see it advertised on some late night channel, by all means, watch it. It'll be worth your time.