Memorable, crazy movie

Absolutely amazing

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

With the two stars basically reading their lines rather than acting them out, what could have scored a "10" here flows way down to just "good" rather than "excellent". The idea itself is excellent, a pre-"Three Faces of Eve"/"Lizzie" drama about an alleged split personality. Eric Fleming at some points is truly acting and at other parts, simply reciting his lines, as a psychiatrist who in the very first reel interferes on the police chase of a wanted murderer who threatens to jump off a roof until Fleming intervenes. It's Fleming's avant garde ways of dealing with various mental disorders that makes him a press darling, and that leads the pretty but bland Nancy Malone to come to see him in need of professional help. But he doesn't want to help her; He wants to date her. In their next scene, he is indeed counseling her, yet still anxious to get her to go out with him in spite of his claims that dating a patient is not a good moral thing for a psychiatrist to do. Today, his pursuit of her might stir up controversy and jeopardize his license, but for the mid 1950's, he seemingly gets away with it, even though part of her suspects dishonorable motives, although they are not obviously of a sexual nature.Anne, as it turns out, is living the ghostly life of a long dead beauty, the Baroness Mary Vetsera, who had an affair with the married Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria, aka "the Mayerling incident", which lead to the murder/suicide of both of them when his emperor father demanded that the lovers break off. The ghostly baroness continues to haunt Fleming, admitting her hatred for Anne and the fact that Fleming is seemingly in love with her, and when Anne/Mary disappears, the police suspect that Fleming has killed her out of unrequited love. Fleming takes the next step he needs in finding the missing Anne to cure her, but utilizing the incarcerated killer he coaxed off the roof to hypnotize him into thinking he's the crown prince, leading to a confrontation between the legal matters of the state prison, Fleming's desire to cure Anne, and Mary's desire to reconcile with her dead lover. It's a haunting story that is well written, but unfortunately weakly acted. It's apparently based upon a play, but I could not find any evidence of its existence. Still an interesting curio, it is interesting independent cinema that could have been a classic today had the leads had more of a spark than they do onscreen.

"Just relax and we'll have another look at your subconscious." A hypnotherapist, whose career has risen since he successfully put a serial killer on a bridge in a trance, allowing law enforcement to arrest him without incident, has taken on a new client he is also attracted to. This woman feels she might have criminal sensibilities and reaches out to him for help. It seems she can speak and write in German, quite possibly possessed by another. Dr. James Hamilton (Eric Fleming; Queen of Outer Space, who perished in a drowning accident at age 41) believes Ann Summers (Nancy Malone) is suffering from a dual personality disorder and is also falling in love with her. He needs to uncover what triggered this belief that she is a Baroness from 1889 who committed suicide with an Austrian Prince (who was unhappily married) because they were denied their love due to family disapproval. Cullen (Dean L Almquist) is a newspaper reporter who sneaks into Hamilton's office, listens to his recorded sessions with Ann, and writes what he hears despite the immoral invasion of privacy. When her sessions make front page news, Ann's psyche fractures and the Baroness Maria personality takes full control. Vanishing, the police suspect Hamilton might have killed her, and law enforcement tail the psychiatrist. Hamilton needs to find Ann, find the source behind what caused the disorder to begin with, and free her from Maria. He might have to use convicted murderer, George Morley (Frank Marth), because he is so easily susceptible to the power of suggestion, as a means to "kill" Maria for good.Talky, sluggishly paced, and not terribly exciting, the mis-titled "Fright" doesn't exactly illicit such a reaction. I think this film was meant to be called something else, to be honest, its being marketed as a chiller/horror is misleading to those who watch it. Fleming just isn't that charismatic, although he's pleasant and dashing as the leading man. Malone, although lovely, isn't exactly a barn-burner, either, to tell you the truth. It's the clunky direction, stiff and rather uninvolving which is too bad because the premise does sound intriguing on paper. Kind of hurt by its thrill-less performances and inability to make a potentially fascinating plot gripping, "Fright" is actually a snoozer.

I totally disagree with a previous review to this film. We are presented here with an extremely low budget film with mostly up and coming young actors or unknowns. The story is interesting, the acting is erratic- but Eric Fleming is rather good in his first leading role and shows promise for the future lead in TV's Rawhide.The doctor played by Fleming investigates a rash of murders and discovers a young lady believing herself to be the reincarnation of a princess.Due to a erratic script and lack lustre direction, both leads - Nancy Malone and Eric Fleming have to provide us with the interest and for me they succeed.There is one hauntingly good sequence when Fleming is alone studying and he feels the presence of Malone behind him. If you need blood and gore to satisfy your film needs then this is not for you. On the other hand if you are interested in Fleming's early work and also a rare minor film then this is worth a look. Try to judge the film on it's merits and appreciate when it was made, then you could find it's a worthwhile look.I give it a 6 and recommend it for a true vintage film buff, especially for fans of "b" movies and Eric Fleming. Also I note that another reviewer states the film did little to advance the careers of the lead actors, this is totally incorrect. Eric Fleming of course achieved TV immortality as Gil Favor in the classic TV western series " Rawhide " and is forever remembered for the classic command, "Head em up move em out" at the end of each episode. Nancy Malone was an extremely prolific actress for many years and then moved successfully onto directing. I think that both these people did have successful careers, however Fleming's was cut short by his tragic, untimely death.

Shot in New York City locations, this film, also titled SPELL OF THE HYPNOTIST, opens with escaped murderer George Morley (Frank Marth) being trapped by police officers upon a high bridge, prompting a psychiatrist, Dr. James Hamilton (Eric Fleming) to attempt hypnotising, with the approval of the on-scene police supervisor, the killer whose vicious crimes he has been following through newspaper reports. An onlooker at the scene, Ann Summers (Nancy Malone) is apparently simultaneously also hypnotised and subsequently visits Hamilton at his office, with the doctor, attracted to the young woman, beginning treatments for her in a case that he perceives as an instance of dual personality, Ann's body ostensibly being shared with a reincarnated Austrian, Baroness Maria Vetsera, lover of Hapsburg Crown Prince Rudolph, and co-participant in the infamous sex scandal that culminated in the royal hunting lodge, Mayerling, with their mutual suicide pact in 1889. This manner of theme, that narrating a multiple personality disorder, requires a good deal of cinematic talent to be convincing, but such is not on board here, the film suffering not only from a poorly organised script and weak direction, but also from a particularly wooden Fleming, whose expressivity is nearly completely non-existent, a deadly flaw indeed in a story that is depicting his character as being in love with his patient. Malone tries hard but her lines, as with much of the screenplay's dialogue, are not credibly written, and the pacing of the piece is notably erratic with a result that a viewer will probably feel as little emotional involvement in the action as does the stoical Fleming.