This was promoted at the time as a star vehicle for Richard Burton who also appeared in THE WILD GEESE the same year . What wasn't promoted at the time was that the screenwriter was John Briley who would go on to Oscar winning success with the screenplay for GHANDI . Briley's structure follows that of a whodunnit . Novelist John Morlar is found battered nearly to death in his flat and French detective Brunel traces Morlar's life by talking to witnesses and realises bad things happen to people who cross Morlar
It's hardly Oscar winning stuff but as a piece of low brow entertainment it serves its function . What makes it such a morbid delight is that the audience can empathise with Morlar's telekinetic abilities and to be honest we'd all use them to get back against sadistic teachers , noisy neighbours and cheating lovers . Morlar only becomes a villain when he starts killing people he has no argument with like plane passengers and astronauts
There's also some wonderfully bitchy dialogue that Burton delivers in an appropriate dead pan style such as when Mrs Morlar introduces her fancy man to her husband , the fancy man being a renowned West End actor
" You might like to pour yourself a large drink "
" Why ? Is he going to perform for us ? "
The climax takes place at a cathedral where a large amount of VIPs are congregating and guess what happens next ? There's a high amount of amusement to be had watching a bunch of well dressed film extras being crushed to death by polystyrene boulders crashing down . In fact the scene with the bell ringers being bonged to death by bells caused me to collapse in tears of laughter
That scene sums up the whole movie . You'll feel slightly dirty watching it but you'll have almost two hours of undiluted entertainment even though you don't want to admit it
It's hardly Oscar winning stuff but as a piece of low brow entertainment it serves its function . What makes it such a morbid delight is that the audience can empathise with Morlar's telekinetic abilities and to be honest we'd all use them to get back against sadistic teachers , noisy neighbours and cheating lovers . Morlar only becomes a villain when he starts killing people he has no argument with like plane passengers and astronauts
There's also some wonderfully bitchy dialogue that Burton delivers in an appropriate dead pan style such as when Mrs Morlar introduces her fancy man to her husband , the fancy man being a renowned West End actor
" You might like to pour yourself a large drink "
" Why ? Is he going to perform for us ? "
The climax takes place at a cathedral where a large amount of VIPs are congregating and guess what happens next ? There's a high amount of amusement to be had watching a bunch of well dressed film extras being crushed to death by polystyrene boulders crashing down . In fact the scene with the bell ringers being bonged to death by bells caused me to collapse in tears of laughter
That scene sums up the whole movie . You'll feel slightly dirty watching it but you'll have almost two hours of undiluted entertainment even though you don't want to admit it