Psychotic

Terrible film. The acting wasn't great, the effects were awful. The "plot" was non existent and made zero sense. Save yourself some time and watch a half decent film.

Patients and staff in a mental institution are on the rampage and a doctor is trapped. Sort of sounds OK. Unfortunately, the actual execution of the idea fails on a number of levels.

An early reference to the ghost of a girl haunting the institution may explain the demonic possession of some of the inmates and staff. Possession is indicated by eyes turning black and maniacal laughing.

So many questions. Why not untie the rescued doctor? Would a rubbish bin really obstruct a door? Would a throat have a slit before the knife is run across it? And so and so on.

And then there is the homeless girl whose appearance and significance remain inexplicable despite best efforts at explanation.

There is an awkward and stilted gap between many of the dialogue exchanges which destroys tension.

Director, writer and, producer Johnny Johnson is clearly working with a very limited budget and a virtually unknown cast of actors. These tax his own abilities in the various roles he assumes.

Steve Hope Wynne, as fired security guard Thomas Reid, carries the can as far as evil protagonists go. He throws himself into the role with enthusiasm but pulling back a bit, employing a degree of subtly, would have enhanced his characterization. There is something of the Panto to his performance. (Oh, this is an English production.)

Tzevt Lazar, as Leszek Nowicki, the inmate with a story and heart, is the standout cast member but, and forgive the harshness, the bar isn't set that high.

The dialogue is corny, the acting often hammy and the plot at times confusingly incoherent.

I'm certain that all went into the project with the best intentions but Psychotic goes south very quickly.

Psychotic uses that tried and tested horror scenario - the lunatics have taken over the asylum. It's a premise that is usually good for plenty of scares and suspense - you'd have to be a really bad film-maker to screw this up - but writer/director Johnny Johnson fails on almost every level, penning a dreadful script, commanding lousy performances and displaying a total lack of technical prowess.

The plot sees employees at a soon-to-be-closed mental institution celebrating their final shift when several dangerous patients escape, aided by disgruntled guard Thomas (Steve Hope Wynne), who has just been canned. Psychologist Dr. Helen Kingford (Jenna Verdicchio) has to team up with murderer Lara Visser (Kristina Dargelyte) in order to survive the night.

Instead of going down the straightforward route, pitting the staff against the inmates in a fight for survival, Johnson attempts to introduce an inadvisable supernatural element, having Thomas and one of the nutters become possessed by... well, your guess is as good as mine since this is never adequately explained. Johnson also clumsily inserts some rubbish about a little girl called Chloe (Rosie Cochrane) who has been living in the bowels of the building, with Helen assuming the role of the girl's protector. This Ripley/Newt-style subplot makes little sense (how has the girl survived on her own and unnoticed?), the naffness compounded by the fact that Cochrane is a lousy child actor.

In terms of horror, there's a modicum of gore and a couple of cheap jump scares, but nothing that's going to give anyone sleepless nights - except for maybe the backers of this film, who must lie awake wondering where the estimated budget of £2,000,000 went.

George Johnny Johnson produces, directs and writes this 'inmates on the rampage' horror known as 'Psychotic' or 'Psychotic Asylum.' It's clearly a low budget project, but entered into with a certain enthusiasm and some effective moments.

As main character Dr. Helen Kingford, Jenna Verdicchio battles gamely with some awkward medical dialogue that tries to offer some explanation for the actions of deranged warders, specifically Thomas Reid (Steve Hope Wynne).

Initially driven to despair by the imminent closing of the asylum, Reid's mind is invaded by an unexplained demonic influence, which goes onto possess those around him. We know they are possessed, because their eyes go black, and they are occasionally given to answer to a distorted, disembodied voice. Apart from that, however, we know nothing about the nature of the threat. It simply controls its victims, giving them a childlike mentality.

There are a few decent twists here, especially the rather implausible one toward the end involving inmate Lara Visser (Kristina Dargelyte).

There are also a few disappointingly directed scenes of violence, lots of spitting, brief moments of gore, and a highly impressive location. I would say the building is probably the main reason to watch - its dilapidated corridors and dark spaces take your mind off deficiencies in the production which often occur in low budgets films such as this. My score is 5 out of 10.

While having all the trappings of a B-grade production this film initially showed some promise. The set-up was good and the performances were better than the hammy ones you tend to expect from this sort of film.

However, with all this potential to go somewhere substantial, writer-director Johnny Johnson throws this all away and reverts to standard B-grade horror type. What ensues is just your usual slasher-horror killings and bad guys chasing innocent women.

Very disappointing.