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The Psychotronic Man

Play trailer Poster for The Psychotronic Man PG Released Apr 23, 1980 1h 30m Sci-Fi Play Trailer Watchlist
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A paunchy Chicago barber (Peter Spelson) has the psychic power and desire to kill people with the blink of an eye.

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The Psychotronic Man

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member Such an inept movie that is all over the place and gives us a character that we don’t care about. It is hilarious for all the wrong reasons. A so bad it’s good but you will tell yourself what the heck did I just watch. Plus your eyes and face will mimic the last scene of the movie. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 03/19/19 Full Review Audience Member I don't even know what this is. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Audience Member This is another film that's so bad that it's good. Shot in just 17 days, this low-budget sci-fi feature is best known to movie geeks as the source for the word Psychotronic, a term that became generic for quirky, personal, obscure and under appreciated movies since its debut in 1980. Peter Spelson, who was an insurance agent when not making films, produced, wrote and starred in this independently made Chicago feature. The Psychotronic Man is often considered one of the first true independent feature films. Rocky Foscoe, an unhappy barber who has turned to alcohol, finds he has a new more bizarre problem to deal with. In stressful situations he begins to experience strange psychic effects. He dashes out of his shop in a kind of trance, with his bottle as his only comfort. Rocky later has a terrifying dream that his automobile is hovering hundreds of feet in the air, something he later finds out was true. To his despair he also discovers he has a subconscious power that causes him to kill people with a mental blast. The Psychotronic Man's combination of acting, cheap effects, and spare, sluggish editing creates a dreamscape environment that the director couldn't have intended. Spelson, an Omar Sharif look alike, shows a gift for unintentional humor. He summons his violent powers by touching his forehead and frowning. A wind machine blows onto the set during action sequences to suggest Rocky's vast power, and along with some stop-motion camerawork, a floating car along with a carefully staged car crash, comprises most of the film's special effects. Beyond good or bad and in a whole other category completely, it's gloriously weird and certain to alienate nearly any viewer who stumbles across it, aside from the select few who will celebrate it for precisely these reasons. This movie is developing a renewed cult status. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 01/12/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Psychotronic Man

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis A paunchy Chicago barber (Peter Spelson) has the psychic power and desire to kill people with the blink of an eye.
Director
Jack M. Sell
Producer
Peter Spelson
Screenwriter
Phil Lanier, Jack M. Sell, Peter Spelson
Distributor
International Harmony
Production Co
International Harmony, Spelson Productions
Rating
PG
Genre
Sci-Fi
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 23, 1980, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 24, 2017
Runtime
1h 30m
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