...the late, great Richard Burton...mentioned in the same breath as this titular webpage...Really?? Come on...really?? That might well be the reactionary consensus of most run-of-the-mill mainstream film fans; however, for those of us devoted cinemaphiles...the loyal disciples of the film fantastique...those who embrace the odd, the strange, the misfit, the unconventional...well, heck, Richard Burton, despite countless revered, praised and respected performances...a classical renaissance actor, to be sure...is hardly out of place, in the cult film genre. "Where Eagles Dare"..."Night of the Iguana"..."Cleopatra"..."Anne of a Thousand Days"...Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"...not to mention, his many grandeur contributions to Shakespeare, both film and stage...really, shall we go on?? However, surprisingly enough, his contributions to cult films, has definitely proven somewhat lacking, as far as the more arcane, sinister and diabolical, in the sense of the more easily dismissed 'junket' type of films, for lack of a better word. Time and time again, one sees and hears of actors, past their prime...still being sought for what might be considered 'less than desireable' roles; and yet, for good or for bad, Richard Burton never really let such a thing restrict himself from taking on roles, which he perhaps might have found interesting, and yet which for the status quo masses, might be considered unusual and wholly unexpected, in assuming...like this quaint and sinister little ditty of a thriller...a melding of the classic 'disaster' movie, with the paranormal...
...a darkened apartment flat...the only light, coming from a disastrous breaking news broadcast, flickering on the television...a middle-aged man, seated in front of the TV, stares determinately at the horrific occurrence, happening live on the news, talking to himself. Someone enters the apartment...coming closer, closer, closer...the gentleman knows who it is, who has come in, without even looking...closer, closer, closer...as the weapon comes up for the fatal strike, the man turns to his visitor, acknowledging the mysterious person...unafraid, unsurprised, but with the same determinant stare...his last moment of consciousness, as the weapon comes resoundly down on his head...the red spatter, dotting the TV screen...
...Inspector Brunel (Lino Ventura) is at the horns of a dilemma. Brought over from France, to do some field work in England, as part of a law enforcement exchange program, his recent assigned investigation is a real stumper. A renowned, albeit recluse-inclined writer, Molar (Richard Burton), has been viciously and senselessly attacked, almost to the point of death...having been severely bludgeoned on the head...the weapon, a brass-cast table-top statue. With the writer now comatose, and in critical condition in a nearly hospital, Brunel doggedly takes to the case...with his best lead being that of Dr. Zonfeld...the writer Molar's psychiatrist (Lee Remick). Brunel's candid and intimate interviews with the good doctor seem to initially reveal not so much why Molar might have been attacked, or who might have instigated the attack, but more the fact that her patient was a rather deeply disturbed individual...
...flashbacks, both in the timeframe of Zonfeld's bizarre, rage-filled sessions with Molar, as well as looks into his tumultuous past, reveal not only Molar's progressive obsession with disastrous events...both in his personal life, as well as worldwide historically documented tragedies...but his own demented suggestion that he himself, has the capability of causing such disaster. Zonfeld, in her professional capacity, resigns such possibilities as coincidence, and the deranged meanderings of someone wrought with serious mental dementia...and attempts to convince Molar to seek much more intense therapy; however, when one such predicted disaster (...which eerily predates the 9/11 disaster) actually occurs in her and Molar's presence, upon his command...after which he then invokes threats of further disaster upon an upcoming televised space walk, a church cathedral, and a nuclear power plant, Zonfeld horrifically realizes that there's much more than coincidence, taking place...
...the same goes for a perplexed Inspector Brunel, who in the midst of his investigation, and zeroing in on his suspect, is shockingly taken aback when reports of erratic and agitated brain activity, despite Molar assumed bed-ridden comatose condition, are preceded by further cataclysmic disaster...
...despite his reputation as a renowned and acclaimed actor, Richard Burton has often been criticized in some of his more famous and formidable roles, as being overblown, showboat-ish, and...well, hammy. And yet, surprisingly enough, he gets his best accolades in films which inexplicably go by the wayside, and are almost forgotten. "The Medusa Touch", as far as Burton's performance, is very much in the spirit of the latter, than the former. His subtle, albeit determinately crazed and intense 'Molar' persona almost comes across as sort of an 'angel of death'...a man so tortuously wrought with anguish and rage at his fellow man and 'their evil ways', that he feels justified in inflicting pain and death with his power, guilty or innocent...a devastating telekinetic power which, in itself, has long since corrupted him. In a way, at least in a small measure, one cannot help but feel some sympathy for the character...what he has become, or rather, what he has been forced to evolve into, considering his anguished past...
...but then, despite some great support by Lee Remick, Lino Ventura and Harry Andrews, amongst others, this is still most assuredly Richard Burton's show, here...and surprisingly enough, the results are rendered without playing things off in his reputed overblown fashion (...and that's considering that Burton speads a good portion of the film's running time, bandaged up in a hospital bed...but, ohhhh, those eyes...Brrrrrr); this is a very impacting performance, despite the genre-favored subject matter...actually, a sort of saving grace, that Burton can assume this genre, and assume it very well (...that is, in the advent of his terribly wooden performance in a previous genre film, the ill-fated 1977 sequel, "Exorcist II: The Heretic"...but then, that's a story for another time). Burton aside, though...as most genre films go, the special effects are rather striking...at times, visually unnerving...and at other times, unintentionally laughable (...that plane crash...sigh...what, were the 'effects wizards' just being lazy, that day...or did they just run out of money?)...
...in whole, as a great little cerebral disaster flick, masquerading as a mystery thriller, one may find one's self walking away from "The Medusa Touch", having very much enjoyed the film, and yet, at the same time, find one's self disturbed in feeling that way, considering the disastrous events and imagery being depicted. Pretty much relegated to the drive-in circuit, upon initial release, Hen's Tooth has elatedly pulled this cult classic out of relative obscurity, with a strikingly watchable print...deeply colorful and vibrant, though slightly grainy and soft...but not so much, as to be particularly distracting. This is one which might give cause to some, to wonder, "...damn, this is good...how did I miss it; where the heck was I when this came out?"; for we, the select few, who have long embraced this as a cherished guilty pleasure, it's most assuredly a delight to return to...Definitely Recommended.....
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