Although director Lucio Fulci had excelled in the early '70s with such marvelous gialli as "Lizard in a Woman's Skin" and "Don't Torture a Duckling," his 1977 offering, "The Psychic," is not really a giallo at all. Indeed, to my surprise, it turned out to be more of an old-fashioned murder mystery, with decided overtones of the supernatural. In it, beautiful Jennifer O'Neill plays Virginia, a decorator (American, I take it) who is newly wed to a hunky Italian businessman. Gifted with transient powers of ESP (she had, as a child, seen her mother's free-fall suicide off the White Cliffs of Dover from hundreds of miles away), she is now being bothered by troubling visions again. But what do the mental images of a broken mirror, an old woman's bloody face, an ornate red room, a limping man, an excavated wall, and a blue ashtray have to do with her? With a cleverly executed plot, Fulci & Co. bring all their great talents together to create one fairly suspenseful stew...especially as Virginia slowly begins to realize that her visions may not necessarily be of events already transpired. "The Psychic" hardly qualifies as a giallo in that the body count is extremely low, the gore is mostly absent (that drippy face excepted!), and the murderous set pieces are kept at a minimum. Still, the film holds the viewer's attention, and even boasts several riveting sequences, such as the pursuit of Virginia by a sinister man (the always dependable Gabriele Ferzetti) through an abandoned palazzo (somewhat reminiscent of Florinda Bolkan's pursuit through an empty cathedral in "Lizard"), and the film's Poe-influenced, claustrophobic finale. The film's plot does hold together well, although a repeat viewing may be necessary to really appreciate all its complexities. While the gorehound fans of Fulci's later period may feel a bit disappointed by the film's restraint, those seeking a stylish, well-acted and genuinely eerie entertainment could certainly do a lot worse. The wet-blanket editors of the "Maltin Movie Guide" rate this movie a "Bomb," and even my beloved "Psychotronic Encyclopedia" calls it "dull," but I think they're being way too harsh here. See for yourself....
Review of The Psychic
