THE AISLE SEAT - by Mike McGranaghan
"X-RAY/SCHIZOID"
X-Ray/Schizoid - On Blu-Ray August 20
Two of the most unusual horror films of the 1980s are about to hit Blu-Ray together. X-Ray (a.k.a. Hospital Massacre) was released in 1982, while Schizoid hit screens two years prior. Both were low-budget productions from Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus, the prolific producers of that decade's most notorious schlock. (In fairness, they had a few decent pictures in there, too.) The fright flicks have been paired up by Scream Factory, and will be released on August 20.
X-Ray - This thriller begins with a flashback in which a heartbroken young boy gives a valentine to his crush, only to be cruelly rejected. Cut to years later. The crush, Susan (Barbi Benton), is now a grown woman. She goes to the hospital for a routine exam, only to find that she can't leave. A mystery man – i.e. the boy she rejected – is killing the hospital staff and manipulating her test results to keep her there so he can extract revenge. (Someone needs to tell this guy to get over it already!) X-Ray is not a good film, but it is absolutely humorous. Susan goes to the strangest hospital ever; the hallways are suspiciously empty, and every single male she meets stops to stare ominously at her. And since Barbi Benton was a well-known Playboy playmate, the film makes certain to include a thoroughly gratuitous nude scene. Hey, Golan and Globus knew what audiences were paying for! One also has to marvel at the fact that an old woman who appears as a minor supporting character is inexplicably played by a man in drag. Such things give X-Ray an undeniable novelty value, even if it's not exactly a movie that will knock you out.
Schizoid - The second film on the double bill is even worse, yet has a novelty value that's even higher. The eternally creepy Klaus Kinski plays a deranged therapist with eyes for his own daughter in this Oedipal slasher movie. One of his patients, Julie (Marianna Hill), is a newspaper advice columnist who starts receiving threatening letters from a reader. Then someone begins murdering members of her therapy group. The fact that Kinski's character has sex with his patients before they're murdered makes him a prime suspect. His daughter Allison (Donna Wilkes) is questionable too; she deeply resents her father's relationship with Julie. Schizoid has a rather tedious pace, but at least there's plenty of messed-up stuff going on. Kinski, never one to shy away from appearing as psychotic as possible onscreen, is certainly a disturbing presence as he thoughtlessly beds women and ogles Allison while she undresses. The seemingly endless array of Freudian behaviors on display are amusing, as well. Schizoid is also noteworthy for giving early roles to Christopher Lloyd (as a shady maintenance man) and Murphy Brown's Joe Regalbuto as a cop.
Both X-Ray and Schizoid have been nicely remastered for Blu-Ray. They look about as good as they ever will, given their low-budget aesthetics. The bonus feature for X-Ray is a 13-minute interview with director Boaz Davidson, who talks about being brought on as director at the last possible second. He has kind things to say about Barbi Benton, while also discussing the challenges of shooting in a real abandoned hospital. Schizoid has a theatrical trailer, plus a fun interview with Donna Wilkes, who contemplates how the film fits into a career that also included roles in everything from the teen prostitute drama Angel to the big Hollywood sequel Jaws 2. Wilkes also offers thoughts on Klaus Kinski, who, according her account, was not a very well-liked presence on the set, especially by the women whose posteriors he frequently grabbed. As always, Scream Factory has done a great job on the extras. They're fun to watch after seeing the main features.
For more information on this title, please visit the Scream Factory website.
X-Ray and Schizoid are both rated R for nudity, violence, and language. The running time for both is 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Buy a copy of my book, "Straight-Up Blatant: Musings From The Aisle Seat," on sale now at Lulu.com! Paperback and Kindle editions also available at Amazon.com!
