PSYCHO KILLER - - Run, Run, Run Away From This One

Review by Steve Barton II

When folks rank the best horror/thrillers over the last 30+ years, Se7en is always near the top of everyone’s list! The writer of Se7en, Andrew Kevin Walker attempted to get back to his roots with Psycho Killer, but failed miserably. Psycho Killer follows Officer Jane Archer (Georgina Campbell, Barbarian) after she witnesses the murder of her husband and makes it her life mission to take down the perpetrator. As she looks into the killer more, she finds that her target is responsible for a spree of violent, satanic ritual killings. 

The plot isn’t the weakest I’ve seen from the genre, but it lacks anything to differentiate itself from other “cookie-cutter” movies on a streaming service. The movie starts with an intense inciting incident to motivate Jane to avenge her husband, but we don’t get to know Jane beyond that. Andrew didn’t care to flesh out the protagonist and it makes it difficult for the audience to become fully empathetic to her. With a weaker protagonist, one might think that the villain must be written incredibly well, but that’s incorrect. While you never get a face reveal of the killer, the mask reveal and his motivations are spoon fed to you right away before you can even start to form any questions or theories.

When you look into the director, Gavin Polone's previous works, this is his directorial debut and it does show. He’s produced a few movies and several television shows and he made Psycho Killer feel like an episode of television that was drawn out too far. There isn’t anything personable or compelling about the killer, other than his satanic devotion while also having an odd moral compass and empathy for the innocent (sometimes). The odd, deep voice that’s intended to strike fear into the protagonist and audience only musters laughs from the masses. The one thing that most people will take away from the killer is how insanely muscular he is, especially for being an anti-technology nutjob. What gym is he a member of and does he wear the mask? 

It ends up feeling like an episode of Criminal Minds with Malcolm McDowell as the week’s special guest. With it being advertised with Se7en all over the promotional material, you’d also expect some gnarly practical effects and spooky settings, but Psycho Killer misses the mark yet again. While the motel room is creepy and eerie, the digital blood splattered on the walls takes all the tension out completely. The eyes on the killer’s mask may pierce your memory for the next few days, but no one will be thinking about any of the death scenes in a disturbing or memorable way. 

In the end, Psycho Killer doesn’t live up to the Se7en shoes that the marketing claimed to fill. Georgina Campbell is chasing the success of Barbarian, but her performance in Cold Storage will be the one talked about at the end of 2026. The story is entertaining enough for genre fans, but the gore hounds will be extremely underwhelmed and let down. Thanks for trying Malcolm McDowell, but you couldn’t save this one. 

Psycho Killer is in theaters starting February 21st! 

Rating: 2/5