SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

CommentsXp Best movie ever!

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Scarlet The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Mr_Ectoplasma "The Killing Hour," alternately titled "The Clairvoyant," follows Norman Parker as a New York City detective attempting to solve the mystery behind the murders of multiple women; an ever-handsome Perry King plays a local talk show host with alternately vested interests in the crimes, but the presence of an art student who appears to be able to draw the murders on paper before they occur brings a whole new dimension to the solving of the mystery. Armand Mastroianni writes and directs here, two years after the release of his slasher film "He Knows You're Alone"— in my opinion one of the most underrated and charming of the eighties—and the direction is solid. Mastroianni has a knack for photographing the city and milking it for all the atmosphere it offers. With "He Knows You're Alone," the suburban gloom of Staten Island set the backdrop, while Manhattan serves as the primary location here, but the photography and direction are moody and evocative. The script, as some have noted, does slack a bit at times, but the sleek photography and strongly-established atmosphere really overshadow any losses of momentum in the screenplay.The film is similarly fashioned to a giallo, and at times evokes the work of Mario Bava or Dario Argento, with a psychic splash of Nicholas Roeg's "Don't Look Now," but all that said, these are respectable influences to have. The psychic element is the standout component here, which elevates the proceedings from mere "killer-in-the-city" fodder to something slightly more interesting. Norman Parker and Perry King make competent leading men, while Elizabeth Kemp is also solid as the tormented clairvoyant art student.Overall, "The Killing Hour" is a solid thriller that wears its influences on its sleeve. As with some of his other films, Mastroianni is great at evoking atmosphere from the camera and the locations. Despite a few pacing issues, the giallo undertones and the grand finale make this worth a watch. 7/10.

Scott LeBrun "The Clairvoyant", a.k.a. "The Killing Hour", is just a passable thriller at best. Working like an American version of an Italian Giallo, one thing it does have going for it is a killer with an unusual modus operandi: they handcuff their victims to their killing implements. The first person is handcuffed to the bottom rung of a swimming pool ladder and drowns, the next is a Con Ed worker who is electrocuted, another is imprisoned on top of an elevator. The detective on the case is a quirky character named Larry Weeks (the reasonably likable Norman Parker), who moonlights as a stand-up comedian who does bad impressions of Woody Allen and George Burns. His friend is Paul "Mac" McCormack (Perry King, "Class of 1984"), a sleazy TV show host who exploits the case for all it's worth. And rounding out our trio of main characters is Virna Nightbourne (Elizabeth Kemp), an art student who has psychic visions of the murders and then sketches them. It's not too hard to figure out whodunit in this boringly handled film; director / story co-author Armand Mastroianni fails to bring much style to the proceedings. Things get more interesting by the end but by then it's too little too late. There's also a serious lack of true dramatic tension; one never becomes too involved with these characters or this mostly familiar scenario. There is some value in watching this cast at work; Kenneth McMillan is good (if not as good as he can be) as Weeks's superior, and it's nice to see character players Jon Polito (thinner in build but sporting a thicker moustache) and Joe Morton near the beginning of their careers. Also in the cast are Brooke Palance (Jack P.'s daughter) as a hooker, Ted Sorel ("From Beyond") as Ben Cosley, and Robert Kerman ("Cannibal Holocaust") as the medical examiner. King is quite animated and pretty entertaining, injecting a little bit of spark into the film, and Kemp, who's commendably more average looking than the typical leading lady, does have some appeal. The film does begin quite effectively, with two murder set pieces shown in succession, and doesn't go out of its way to explain things, letting the viewers work out the plot for themselves. And the on location shooting in NYC is always a bonus for films of this kind. In addition to Mastroianni and actress Kemp, other hands from the previous year's slasher "He Knows You're Alone" were involved in the making of this one. Five out of 10.

Brian T. Whitlock (GOWBTW) Ahhh! The Big Apple, New York to say the least . My home state, well enough of that part, there's a strange killer running around. He is coined, "The Handcuff Killer". He put a young model, nude and in the Hudson River. A swimmer gets his ankle cuffed on the bottom rung of the pool ladder. Then to say the least, a ConEd worker get the shock of his life. This killer is methodical. Next you have this detective(Norman Parker) who is not only hard-nosed, hut has a funny side to him. He's a comedian off duty. Then in the film, there's this artist/medium(Elizabeth Kemp) who helps him crack the case. The last big help is this reporter(Perry King, "Riptide" and "Switch"[1991]) to lend a hand. Or so he does. The police department doesn't like him very well. Especially, Det. Weeks. Weeks and Mac do partner up, until Virna stays with him, while trying to piece up the murders. It turns out that Mac was more than just a TV talk show host. The crab claw she visions points out to her. This movie could used more of a twist to it, yet it was all right to watch. 2 out of 5 stars

Jonny_Numb "The Killing Hour" is a surprisingly solid (if not overly surprising) entry in the sparsely-populated annals of American jabs at the "giallo" (a genre rooted in Italian pulp mystery novels, and popularized by the films of Dario Argento, among many others). Armand Mastroianni, who also directed the "Halloween" cash-in "He Knows You're Alone," shows considerable directorial skill with a story that's not nearly as convoluted (or as garishly stylish) as an Argento pic, but builds a fine aura of mystery and suspense nonetheless. When a woman's nude, handcuffed corpse is fished out of the Hudson River and two seemingly random men are murdered soon after (including a very effective sequence in an empty gym swimming pool), an NYC cop (Norman Parker) and a talk-show host (Perry King) become involved with a psychic art student (Elizabeth Kemp) who has a "sixth sense" about the murders. While the pace sometimes slackens due to the "suspicion building" middle act (a necessary evil in most gialli), and the film suffers from offering us only two potential killers (there are a few red herrings so transparent they don't merit mention), "The Killing Hour" is still a satisfying whodunit, complete with a chilling climax that doesn't over-explain things. Recommended.