VIOLENT MIDNIGHT (1964)
aka PSYCHOMANIA Directed by Richard Hilliard/Del Tenney
Dark Sky Films DVD
THE FILM
A lawyer, a tormented artist, and a punk biker walk into an all girl's college. A black gloved killer watches through a couple of bushes. Stop me if you've heard this one before.
You can throw a number of genre-based buzz words at Violent Midnight aka Psychomania and the film will take it. Giallo. Krimi. Slasher. Three easy slings and you're done. Or are you?
The fact is, the ingredients of New England based Del Tenney's first film as a producer might seem familiar, but the entire pie is harder to peg down. Imagine an early Jean Luc Goddard touch processed through a strictly American set of exploitation culture, then fitted with a by-line from 1940s/50s crime novelist David Goodis. Not exactly what you'd expect from the man behind I Eat Your Skin, eh? The stylish Violent Midnight is a consuming, haphazard crime thriller that approaches inner perfection, but never quite hits it. Is perfection overrated? Maybe Elliot Freeman has the answer.
Elliot Freeman (TV vet Lee Phillips) is a famous, hotsie-totsie oil painter with a troubled past and the temper to match. A relationship with his latest nude model, Delores, comes to an end in a burst of bar fight angst, pregnant secrets, and finally, bloody murder. The killer remains unknown. Adrian, Elliot's beady-eyed lawyer, just wants the best for his client. See, Elliot is the sole heir to his late father's millions, so life was pretty good up until this point. When Elliot's half-sister (Margot Hartman, Del Tenney's longtime spouse) blows into town, things get even hotter. The local deadbeat falls under scrutiny, both with intrepid copper Dick Van Patton and a spicy blonde. College girls do the frug in their underwear. The assumptions roam freely, but through it all, Elliot sticks to his guts. That's a good thing too; he's gonna need 'em.
If the plotline of Violent Midnight is a tangled knot, the visuals sure help to loosen things up. Cinematographer Louis McMahon and directors Richard Hilliard and Del Tenney push the edges of their backyard budget to yield a beautifully composed motion picture. The angles are expertly placed and the shadows overtake everything. That alone produces a level of emotion that really pushes the script, especially when suspense falters thanks to an overly sappy string section...and a few surprising exploitive digressions. The power of ragged edits and slicing post-dubs do much to help the odd, semi-realist mood, but the mush strikes often; the tone can't sit still. The characters, while well acted, aren't interesting enough to plow through the inconsistencies. Still, no matter how erratic things get, the impact of the film is never less than striking.
Exquisiteness doesn't exist inside Elliot Freeman's studio gazebo, but that doesn't mean his paintings won't impress you. No matter how commonplace it all may seem.
AUDIO AND VIDEO
Making its DVD debut after complete obscurity on home video, Violent Midnight looks terrific. Aside from some very light compression artifacting, the black and white, full frame print is a knockout; next to no defects, crystal clear clarity, and rich blacks all dominate the transfer. The mono sound was a bit scratchy at times, but I'd take that over a hi-tweak job any day. Optional English subtitles are also included.
EXTRAS
In addition to the brief image gallery (lobby cards, posters, a few stills) and keen theatrical trailers for Del Tenney's quintessential The Horror Of Party Beach and The Curse Of The Living Corpse, Dark Sky offers us a welcome treat. With the help of an uncredited moderator, Del Tenney himself sits down for a full length commentary track. Although the talk offers little in the way of earth shattering information (and Del's memory sometimes fails him), the soft spoken filmmaker is never less than pleasantly charming. The broad discussion covers most of the bases regarding the film, including locations, actors, and thoughts on the state of the industry in the 60s versus making films today. I particularly enjoyed hearing about the large part Del's wife, Margot, played in the development of the film. Split it up over a few days and enjoy.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Violent Midnight is a surprise from Del Tenney; a voguish thriller that keeps its chin a notch above the usual early 60s exploitation, but never fully clicks. Love it or not, it's worth a looksee.
— Joseph A. Ziemba, 03.16.06 | 
Keep on knockin'
Johnny Angel
Black gazebo
Delores, we knew ye well
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