Unlock the terror. Unlock the fear. And enter into the all new nightmare of Psycho III.

A nun (Scarwid) leaves her convent in despair and ends up at Bates Motel where the owner (Perkins) is still under the spell of his “mother”. Mr. Perkins’ directing debut is not without interesting ideas, but basically comes off as the chapter that definitely took this series into the genre of standard slasher fares. No surprises, no tension. Mr. Fahey’s character is superfluous and Mr. Perkins delivers a performance that is inferior to his previous ones.

1986-U.S. 95 min. Color. Directed by Anthony Perkins. Cast: Anthony Perkins (Norman Bates), Diana Scarwid (Maureen Coyle), Jeff Fahey (Duane Duke), Roberta Maxwell, Hugh Gillin, Lee Garlington.

Trivia: Mr. Perkins allegedly wanted to shoot the movie in black-and-white, but the studio refused. Followed by a TV movie, Psycho IV: The Beginning (1990).

Published 2007-10-14 04:17