Video Psycho — Video Psycho (Blu Ray)
Video Psycho is a SOV serial killer movie from the early 1999’s. It features a fairly decent/ believable young cast, some rewarding moments of both tension & unease, with an effective score that blends psycho ambience with post-industrial disquiet. Here from SRS Cinema- the main/ key labels releasing SOV films, is a recent Blu Ray release of the film, taking in a director's commentary & a few other things.
Video Psycho was made in 1997 and shot in and around Yakima, Washington. It was directed and co-written by Del Kary, been his first feature, and I’d say all things considered, it’s not bad, with a well-picked late teen to twentysomething cast, and some nice moments of tense drama and unsettlement with a rather nihilistic resolve. Mr Kray has only two other credits to his name- taking in a segment in low-budget extreme horror anthology Snuff Perversions: Bizarre Cases of Death (1999), and slasher/ who-done-it Cheater, Cheater (2024).
On IMDb, it’s claimed the film has a runtime of seventy-five minutes- but the version we have here runs at just under the hour mark. After the credits and the nicely unsettling opening soundtrack cue, we find ourselves on a road, with a hitchhiking figure being picked up. This is Ryan (James Paulson), our soul patch, and short, curly-haired killer. He’s picked up by baseball cap-wearing Samaritan Jason (Adam Kraatz)- who agrees to let the stranger stay at the house for a few days, which he shares with his girlfriend Julie (DeAnna Harrison) and sister Kylie (Jennifer Jordan).
From the off/ when they get back there’s something not quite right about Ryan, as well as the pair are having a few beers, he admits he’s killed someone- and produces a VHS tape which shows him tieing up and strangling another young man- Jason bats it away as fake, but as things unfold it’s clear that Ryan is well and truly a psychopath, whose got his sight set on the permed bob haired Kylie- even though she already has a boyfriend.
For the most part, the mainly late teen to early twenties cast is good. Memorable/ effective scene-wise wise we get a nicely tense shower scene, and is it a dream or not, flicking on & off torch-lit bedroom scene, and a screaming/ smearing with blood tied up scene.
The film is largely goreless, save for a brief glance of blood & a moment of very low-grade Herschell Gordon Lewis gore where our killer is meant to hack off & eat some of one of the victims. The killings in the film are mainly chair-based strangulations/ suffocations- these are somewhat mixed, moving between be semi-believable, to not great, so if I had one criticism of the film it’d be this element. That said, for a SOV film, the script and technical side of things are pretty good, with the only issues appearing with car-based scenes where dialogue is difficult to hear, and some of the scenes in the half-light/ dark don’t look very clear.
So, Video Psycho is both a decent first film and an effective enough SOV serial killer picture, as long as you're not looking for gore.
The region-free Blu-ray features a fairly standard SOV scan, so some of the dialogue is a little unclear, and the picture quality is not great in places, but really, this is expected as it was filmed on a standard VHS camera in the 90's. And really, I find such issues are all part of the charm of the genre.
The extras here all seemingly date from 2021, which I’m guessing was the last time SRS reissued the film. We get a good selection of things- first off is a very down-to-earth/ honest commentary track from the director. He begins by letting us know this version of the film has been reissued from the original master tapes with a new soundtrack and credits. He talks about how the film was made with family, friends, and friends of friends. He details how it was shot on a standard Hitachi video camera in the summer of 1996, going on to be released in 1997 on VHS. We find out he’s lost contact with lead man James Paulson, as he went off to serve in the services. He talks about how he hated filming the in-car scene, as he was bumping around in the back seat, and it was very noisy. He discusses how he met the two male leads, and we find out that Jennifer Jordan, who played Kylie, was his niece. Later on, he talks about the fight scene and how it took a few takes to get it right. And that the film was shot in his then family home, and one of the outdoor scenes was filmed with neighbours watching. So, it's well worth a play track.
Otherwise, we get the following extras: Victims Of The Psycho (18.30) a selection of interviews with those killed in the film. Art Molina Interview (5.21) who played the older video shop owner. Adam Kraatz Interview (5.21) who played Jason. Jennifer Jordan Interview (9.54), who played Kylie. Rehearsals, deleted, and alternative scenes (16.19). Outtakes (15.19), and a selection of three different trailers- so a good selection of things.
If you like your serial killer films with more of a drama tilt, then I think you’ll be entertained by Video Psycho. This SRS Cinema release is well loaded with interesting/ worthy extras.