Schizoid

This played out more like a murder mystery than a horror flick. The box art made it seem like another slasher film. This was another one of those that got lost in the shuffle of cheap fright films during the video boom in the 80's.

Did it deserve to stay lost? No. Did it deserve any accolades? Again, no.

Tha cast was the best part. A lot of names either slumming, (Kiniski, Heard) pre-fame, (Regalbuto) or just getting an easy paycheck (Lloyd, Wasson).

Klaus chews the scenery as only he can. But I couldn't figure him to be a sex symbol. And Donna "Angel" Wilkes did a good job as the emotional daughter. Lloyd played an understated role which showed how good he could really be. Wasson's tendency to overact was the only minus.

The script was terrible however.

And if the cops were wearing long jackets, doesn't that mean it's cold? If so, why were so many of the women wearing shorts? That's typical 80's cheap horror. I get the feeling that if this had been made by Fulci or Bava, it would have been light years better.

The most unbelievable part of Schizoid is the fact that every female patient of Klaus Kinski's therapy group wants to sleep with him. Not to be ugly or anything, but the man looks like a serial killing rapist and seems mentally unstable himself. Maybe this would have worked with a less creepy actor in the role, but it doesn't ring true the way it is.

Anyway, Schizoid is about a newspaper advice writer who keeps getting creepy letters that look like ransom notes. Could these be connected to the recent string of scissor murders that have terrorized her therapy group - the one run by Klaus Kinski?

Schizoid wants to go down a classier road than the other slashers at the time with it's relative lack of blood and adult cast. That's admirable, but there's not a whole lot of mystery here, especially after the opening murder where we can clearly see the killer's reflection in the rear view mirror of the car they're driving.

It also gets things off on the wrong foot by having the most boring opening scene of all time. Instead of starting off with the first murder, we spend a few minutes in our leading lady's apartment at night as she writes, goes to the fridge, etc. There's nothing interesting or gripping about it.

Schizoid is a good movie to have on in the background while you organize your clothes, but nothing more.

A vicious killer is bumping off members of the therapy group run by creepy Dr. Fales (Klaus Kinski). Can reporter Julie (Marianna Hill) discover who is responsible before she becomes the lunatic's next victim?

Armed with a long pair of very sharp scissors, dressed in long black coat and hat, and with his (or her) identity always hidden in the shadows, Schizoid's mysterious murderer could have come straight out of a giallo movie, as could the film's umpteen shifty suspects and numerous red herrings; creepy Euro-horror regular Klaus Kinski also adds a hint of European flavour.

Sadly, despite these similarities to the giallo, Schizoid lacks the verve and unpredictability of that genre's typical logic-free narrative, becoming mired in dreary familial strife and unnecessary police procedure, ultimately floundering in its own predictability; furthermore, the film's cinematography is devoid of the glorious visual excess often found in Italian horror.

Kinski is dreadfully miscast as a womanising therapist (not exactly the kind of role he was born to play), Wasson's performance is simply terrible, and Christopher Lloyd hardly stretches himself as an oddball handy-man. Far better than all three is Donna Wilkes, who convincingly plays Kinski's emotionally disturbed jail-bait daughter Alison, and who even gives fans (and her pervy on-screen father) an eyeful during a brief shower scene.

For the hilarious ending, when all the suspects converge on one location for a very daft finale, and for the lovely Wilkes, I give Schizoid 4.5/10 (rounded up to 5 for IMDb), but this is far from essential 80s horror.

"Schizoid" is a fair early-80's slasher flick that suffers from a distinct lack of personality. It boasts a somewhat name, B-list cast, and derivative yet effective stalking scenes. Writer-director David Paulsen tries, in vain, to make everyone a suspect, but you eventually stop caring because of the clumsy script contrivances he expects us to swallow. But there's nothing here you haven't seen before, except maybe Klaus Kinski, wildly miscast but still highly entertaining as a marriage counselor who carries on affairs with his patients! I'm not ashamed to admit he kept me watching the whole way through. 2.5 stars out of 5.

Newspaper columnist, Julie (Marianna Hill) begins to receive threatening notes at work. In no time, members of her therapy group start being slaughtered by a black-gloved maniac with a huge pair of scissors.

We're given a rogue's gallery of suspects to choose from almost immediately, including Julie's soon-to-be ex-husband, Doug (Craig Wasson), a sullen handyman named Gilbert (Christopher Lloyd), and Julie's slimy, chain-smoking therapist, Dr. Peter Fales (Klaus Kinski). Oh, and let's not forget about Fales' bitter, messed-up daughter, Alison (Donna Wilkes)! As the perforated bodies stack up, the police are suitably baffled.

Part giallo and part slasher, SCHIZOID shows what can happen when a doctor cavorts with his patients. While not a brilliant effort, this movie does build a modicum of suspense, and the killer's identity isn't overly obvious.

For added fun, count the number of cigarettes Dr. Fales stokes up!...