Anatomy of a Psycho

Chet has a strange attachment to his older brother that was executed. He has a sister, Pat, that will reveal more about the older brother - reminding Chet of who his older brother was but Chet feels differently about him. In the film, we watch Chet spiral into madness and built up anger over the death/execution of his older brother.

It is true this film is slow at times but the film is better than it's given credit for. I do believe this film will bore some crowds - in particular the younger crowds that want a lot of action. This film is little action and all crime-drama with a few thrills. Worth a watch for fans of the older crime-dramas.

5.5/10

The son of Burns and Allen plays a cold, messed up 25 year old teenager with a group of 25 year old high school friends. His brother is sent to the electric chair and he gets tunnel vision concerning him. There is nothing wrong with the premise. It's just that the acting is atrocious and the plot so stupid. There are two kinds of kids: the punks and the Leave It to Beaver crowd. The scene where the psychotic guy is invited to a party by his sister's boyfriend is absolutely ludicrous. You almost expect him to say, "They're going to have a clown and everything." Anyway, the good guy gets framed and the movie is about how that is handled. One thing I've noticed in watching all these films of the forties and fifties. If you kill someone, no matter the circumstances, they send you to the chair. They try really hard to make this one social commentary, but it's beyond help.

"Anatomy of a Psycho" has a premise that I'm pretty surprised that hasn't been copied to death by other movies - someone swearing revenge against those who were responsible for sending his brother to the gas chamber. There could have been a lot of perverse pleasure seeing judges, district attorneys, and jury members get snuffed. Unfortunately, the filmmakers don't seem to understand the potential they had. Despite a 73 minute running length, the movie is really slow- moving, and the central character only enacts revenge on three people - and two of those people are just RELATED to the people who were actually responsible for the central character's brother's death. With that in mind, the only way the movie could have been saved would be with unintentional humor. While there are some laughs here - miscast actors, bad acting, dopey dialogue - for the most part the movie is just drab and dull. If you want to see a more successful telling of the movie's theme, watch "Law Abiding Citizen" instead.

Ronnie Burns, the star of this movie, is the adopted son of George Burns and Gracie Allen. He guest starred on their TV show many times but I guess he wanted to branch out on his own. Unfortunately this movie, directed by the same guy who did THE UNEARTHLY, is as far as he got. Actually it is quite good as JD films go. Ronnie is a kid bordering on psycho already whose older brother is sent to the gas chamber for murder. Ronnie does not know, or does not want to know, that the brother he used as a role model was a thug, robber and general no-good. Instead he decides to avenge his death by getting rid of everyone responsible for the trial and sentencing. This would be okay if Ronnie's character were any good as a delinquent but in truth he is just an amateur. Early in the film he tries to beat up a guy who insults his brother but only ends up getting slashed with a broken bottle. For the rest of the movie you can watch the scar change size and location. He does manage to burn down the house where his ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend lives and surprisingly no one catches on that he did it. We think the whole plot will be about him seeking revenge but the movie takes a turn when Ronnie kills his best friend and frames his sister's boyfriend for the crime. Will goodness win out? Hey. it's just a 73 minute picture, it won't be long before you find out. One thing you will notice right away is how very low the budget was. For key dramatic scenes the music is instantly recognizable as coming from PLAN NINE FROM OUTER SPACE (1959). A fight scene is backed up by the music where Tor Johnson rises from his grave. That is sure to distract all B movie fans.

The perils of independent filmmaking are demonstrated in this sour, depressing movie, an example of anti-entertainment. Not a "psychotronic" film (with apologies to author Michael Weldon, who I knew quite well back when he wrote that influential tome) with some outre content, but merely a tedious crime movie, with a terrible cast, non-direction and the dubious hook decades later of having Ed Wood as one of the writers.

Were it a sexploitaton movie, within the parameters of censorship of the time, it could have been titillating. Or if it were explicitly violent in some way, that would satisfy a different audience need. But these overage juvenile delinquents on display offer zero point of identification, and the genre hooks of fantasy, horror, you name it, are missing.

So, when this was made fans could watch infinitely better crime shows on TV, ranging from police procedurals like "Naked City" to suave detectives in action, all of which featured the best talent imaginable (including numerous stars of the future like Redford, Duvall and Martin Sheen just starting out).