State of Mind

Quite a difficult movie to come across, this "State of Mind", but it sure looks like a worthy purchase in case you're an avid cult-collector…at least, on the surface it looks like that. The DVD-cover proudly lists the names of famous horror stars like Fred Williamson, Jill Shoelen and – above all – Paul Naschy and the film is produced by James Desert, known for unleashing the notorious "Lucker – the Necrophagous" upon the world. The famous names are merely just touts (especially Paul Naschy's appearance is incredibly brief) and the story isn't nearly as shocking as that of "Lucker". Still, this movie isn't a total waste of time and, if you don't expect much, you might even find it enjoyable. The plot makes absolutely no sense and contains more holes than a teabag but, at the same time, it's delightfully deranged and awry, and thus very appealing to sick puppies as myself. The story is typically set in James Desert-world…This means there are no normal people at all. Everyone is either an eccentric loner with a dark past… or a homicidal maniac on the loose. "State of Mind" combines both as an escaped female serial killer finds shelter at the mansion of an insane single woman. Two serpents on one film-set…satisfaction guaranteed! Handsome police duo Loomis & Wishman (Fred Williamson and Jill Shoelen) don't have a clue since they assume that the serial killer died in a car accident. I counted a handful of really atmospheric sequences and there's a lot of sickening gore. Like we expect from James Desert, the violence is very graphic and thus definitely not for the squeamish among us. Of course, if you want to enjoy this film, you have to look past the terrible acting performances and the imbecile dialogues. Perhaps it's mainly because I'm Belgian myself (like James Desert is) but I'm glad to have this movie in my collection. The absurd plot, the violence and the cheap production values make it feel like an old-fashioned exploitation film and I applaud that.

This movie, which was actually directed by a former teacher of mine, is yet another production of John Desert, who already delighted us with the horrorflick Rabid Grannies. It stars Kevin Williamson, who got some fame from appearing in From Dusk Till Dawn and a short cameo by Jacinto Molina aka Paul Naschy, no stranger to those familiar with the B-movie universe.

The story (as far as there is any)revolves around a psycho woman who escapes by killing the ward (played by Paul Naschy) and hides somewhere in a stately manor and kidnaps a young woman. Offcourse, the story isn't what matters here. It's the bad acting, the hilarious dialogues, the gore and the blood and the totally unbelievable plot.

I saw this movie as part of a 'bad movie' night with some friends, and we had the most of fun. This movie is truly a must-see for all the lovers of campy gory B-movies out there!

I don't know who had the idea of making this film? or why? but,I discovered that the film contains quite a few classic names i.e. Fred Williamson,Paul Naschy and Darryl Hannah,s only brother Don Hannah and all that in Belgium? to my knowledge this doesn't happen to often,whoever convinced those actors to come over must be a good pr. I am not familiar with the director nor the writer but,this could have been a much better film in all aspects.I did a long career study on Fred Williamson(The Hammer)and I am very familiar with all the feature films he has done in the past but,there was one film lacking(not mentioned on his CV)and now I know it is State of Mind.When checking the credits for this film, I noticed the name of the amazing Sydney Ling as casting director.Whoever convinced him to participate in this adventure is a question-mark for me but,I am almost sure that he convinced the actors to come over to Belgium.Having studied the many careers of Sydney Ling, he remains the greatest dealmaker and negotiator as well.Why would these guys do a film like this in Belgium and to please who?

L.F.Berman.