Psychomania

Amazon.com

Somewhere in the English countryside a nihilistic biker (Nicky Henson) decides to make the name of his violent motorcycle gang ("The Living Dead") more than just a slogan. With the help of his dear old mum (Beryl Reid), who just happens to be a frog-worshipping occultist, he dives to his death only to leap out of his grave (still astride his motorcycle) like a black leather bat out of hell. This is one young rebel who makes the dictum "Live hard, die young, and leave a good-looking corpse" a reality. Soon he's recruiting for his undead biker army. ("Oh man, what are we waiting for?!" exclaims a restless gang member before driving headlong into a truck.) This zombie version of The Wild Angels is less horror film than biker nightmare, and Don Sharp, a former Hammer horror director, doesn't quite know how to straddle the line. The obscure supernatural elements feel creaky next to the restless violence of the rebels without a pulse and their sadistic reign of terror. Though he revels in gallows humor (the gang's "extreme sports" suicide montage is ghoulishly hilarious), Sharp never lets it descend into camp--though at times perhaps he should have. It's an inventive if not altogether successful genre mix highlighted with a sardonic turn by George Sanders as a shady servant who seems completely bemused by the entire spectacle. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews:

Psychomania.......2007-01-04

This movie is a blast- 1970's motorcycle movie with a horror twist. Acadamy Award winner it isn't, but a lot of fun. One scene was an inspiration to the band Motorhead for their "Ace Of Spades" video (cemetery scene). A few friends and I saw this film in @1981 on a late-night local station and talked about it for years and I was very happy to get my hands on a few copies. Only one scene could I say was out of place (making the anti-hero main character look like the picked-on outcast) with a stupid song, but hey, what do you want for a 1970's English motorcycle horror "B" movie??? Buy it and enjoy!

"It's not me that scares you...it's the world.".......2006-11-22

From Elite Entertainment's Euroshock Collection comes the film Psychomania (1971) aka The Death Wheelers, a curious feature that followed the tail end of the motorcycle genre popularized in the mid to late 1960s (Amazon indicates the film released in 1974, but I suspect that was when it was released in America, as I believe it was originally released in England in 1971). Directed by Australian Don Sharp (The Kiss of the Vampire, Curse of the Fly, The Face of Fu Manchu), the film features Nicky Henson (Vampira), whom fans of the British television series "Fawlty Towers" will most likely recognize given he was prominently featured in a 1979 episode titled `The Psychiatrist' as the character Mr. Johnson (he played a swinger of sorts who snuck a chippie into Basil's hotel claiming it was his mother). Also appearing is Mary Larkin (The Razor's Edge), Ann Michelle (House of Whipcord), Robert `Cornelius Fudge' Hardy (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets), Beryl Reid (Dr. Phibes Rises Again), and George Sanders (The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, A Shot in the Dark). Appearing in a bit part is John Levene, best known to `Dr. Who' fans as the character Corporal/Sergeant/RSM Benton from the long running series.

The film opens with a groovy, instrumental tune played against a slow motion motorcycle montage used as a backdrop for the opening credits. After this we meet a young mop head named Tom (Henson), the anarchistic, death obsessed leader of a coed motorcycle gang known as The Living Dead. Members of the gang include Tom's main squeeze Abby (Larkin), Jane (Michelle), Hatchet, Chopped Meat, Hinky, Bertram, and one or two others. Learning their names wasn't difficult, especially since they're spelled out in large letters upon their jackets, which, I must say, made them seem about as threatening as that gang of hoods Ritchie Cunnigham and his friends crossed in the television show "Happy Days", and needed the Fonz to save their cheese by the end episode. Anyway, Tom has gotten the notion it's possible to come back from the great beyond, most likely from his mother Mrs. Latham (Reid), who holds séances, and her butler Shadwell (Sanders), who appears exceptionally well versed in all things occult. Turns out there is a way, and it somehow involves a mysterious, locked room in Mrs. Latham's house, the same room Tom's father had ventured into some eighteen years earlier and never returned (um, okay). Tom enters the room and some weirdness follows involving a smoky mirror, some visions, and a...frog. The next day Tom and his cohorts set out to blow some minds, eventually leading up to a chase with the police and Tom launching himself off a bridge and ending up all dead and such...or is he? Apparently not, as a few days later, after a unorthodox memorial service, Tom rises from the dead with some strange, new powers, and is now intent on sharing the secret of his return with his friends as you see, once you die, you can't die again...

This was definitely one of the more peculiar films I've seen in a while, and I suppose that's probably why I enjoyed it as much as I did...from the outset there's difficulty in seeing where the story is going as the path is often muddled and frustratingly indistinct at times, and often open to a good deal of interpretation (I'm still in the dark with regards to the aspects of the story involving the frog). The film is listed in the horror genre, but one should know there's absolutely no blood and very little violence, although quite a few people do die throughout the feature (most all of the deaths are of the off screen variety). My favorite part of the film comes after Tom returns and starts convincing his friends to kill themselves (and they do, in various ways), if only so that they may share in the benefits acquired once one returns from the beyond. I won't detail the secret provided in the film of how to return from the dead, but know it doesn't seem all that difficult as long as you have a certain amount of faith. While the story does involve characters returning from the dead, this doesn't involve them becoming flesh eating zombies or anything like that. The characters are as they were before they passed, only now they seem to have a great deal more strength and lack any of the fears they possessed while living. Another great bit comes as Tom's friends, after his death, request from his mother to bury him in their own fashion, one that includes digging a hole in a field and placing Tom, atop his motorcycle, in full motorcycle gear, into the ground (this, of course, sets up a memorable bit once Tom returns from the dead and blasts his way out of the ground on his motorcycle). As far as the performances go there really wasn't much there, but in terms of a film like this they capable. A note of interest... George Sanders, who appeared in this film, took his own life about a year after the film was released, but, unlike the characters in this film, he did not come back (as far as I know), so either he didn't follow the path detailed in the film, or maybe he did and it just didn't work, you know, because this is just a movie. All in all I thought this a fun film, but then I'm partial to oddball features from the 1970s.

Seems there's a couple of DVD releases out there for this film, but the one I own is the Image Entertainment release, which appears to be out of print at the time of this review. The picture, presented in the original theatrical ratio of 1.66:1, looks decent enough, but minor signs of age are present from time to time. The clarity of the picture looks slightly dingy, but I've seen a lot worse. The Dolby Digital mono audio, available in both English and Spanish, comes across well. There are absolutely no extras on the disc, but chapter stops are provided. There's another, inexpensive DVD release out there from a company by the name of Geneon [Pioneer], but I haven't seen that release so I can't comment on the quality, but I suspect it probably isn't as good.

Cookieman108

Cult movie with an awesome soundtrack!.......2006-11-01

This film is one of my all-time favorites... There's just something about it that's so deliciously kooky it's completely priceless. It's the very definition of a cult film - it's certainly not for everyone, but those who love it love it with a passion. For me, it's part of a small group of films (including the likes of 'The Abominable Dr Phibes', 'The Omega Man', and the 'The Asphyx') that I saw on late-night TV many years ago and have loved ever since.

It's a virtually bloodless, blackly comic journey into the bizarre that concerns the leader of a gang of bikers - prophetically named The Living Dead - who discovers that the secret of eternal life is to commit suicide in a state of mind of absolute conviction that you will return. Once a couple of members of the gang pull this trick off, and quite literally become the living dead, the rest of the gang kiss their doubts (and their mortality) goodbye in a suicide free-for-all that's as amusing as it is inventive.

Throw in black magic, frog-worship, stone circles, Beryl Reid (!), an undead biker leaping from the grave bike and all, and the devil himself ... and you have the ingredients of a film like no other that's a genuine-article cult item.

And finally, there's the soundtrack - an unforgettable dose of psychedelia without which the film just wouldn't be same and might even not work at all, it's that integral to the atmosphere. The recurrent riff that runs through the film is every bit as much a part of the 'feel' of the movie as anything that's on the screen. The thundering bass-line, towering minor-key organ chords, and funky 70's wakka-wakka guitar riffs are more than just the icing on the cake.

Fans of the film's soundtrack may be interested to know that is available on CD in the UK, released 2003 on the Trunk Records label. Head on over to Amazon.co.uk and you'll find it there. :)

The film's only on DVD in the US and the soundtrack's only available in the UK - go figure - but hopefully one day there'll be a Special Edition of this film which includes the soundtrack as a bonus disc. Hey, Anchor Bay / Blue Underground / Elite - that last comment was aimed at you guys!

Great service, GREAT movies.......2006-03-06

How very cool to get a copy of Psychomania on DVD! Never knew it was released that way! Honestly, I've not even watched it yet, but I
have no reason to believe it's anything less than Satan's Sadists, which I purchased as a duo with Psychomania. Satan's Sadists is not properly titled: It is a classic, cheesy, F-em up
Biker movie...No Satan. Just Brutality, the kind found in the 7o's. Early. The movie was well packaged, timely sent, and in perfect condition; brand new. As is Psychomania, which was the movie I really wanted. Really GOOD price on Psychomania, as well. Movie came new but is very thin (not in a heavy, plastic
container) and cheaply packaged. Not the sellers fault, as far as I can tell. Satan's Sadists came very well packaged. High price, however...

Undead Biker Frog Cult.......2005-11-13

The Living Dead are bikers who worship Satan in the form of a frog. They find out that, with the help of black magic, you can kill yourself and achieve immortality. AWESOME capers and excellent music follow.

Needs a deluxe DVD.

Average customer rating:

Psychomania
"It's not me that scares you...it's the world."
Cult movie with an awesome soundtrack!
Great service, GREAT movies
Undead Biker Frog Cult

Psychomania
Starring: Nicky Henson , Mary Larkin , Ann Michelle , Roy Holder , and Denis Gilmore
Director: Don Sharp
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 6305871078
Release Date: 2000-06-20

Amazon.com

Description

Look out! The Living Dead motorcycle gang is on the rampage, wreaking havoc in their small English town. For gang leader Tom, however, mere earthly violence is not enough: he's obsessed with the occult and is convinced that he can kill himself and then return from the dead--with the help of a frog-worshipping cult and his seance-conducting mother (Beryl Reid). Remarkably, Tom succeeds and soon joins the ranks of the walking--and riding--dead! Now if he can only persuade his girlfriend and the rest of his gang to join him, but Mother and her diabolical butler Shadwell (George Sanders) may have other plans for the Living Dead, who are dangerously trespassing on uncharted spiritual grounds. "Psychomania" is a pre-punk, British horror cult classic featuring trashy violence, suburban witchcraft and some amazing motorcycle stunt sequences. Come and ride with The Living Dead--if you dare!

1.66:1 - Color - English - Mono - Add'l Language: Spanish

Customer Reviews:

Psychomania.......2007-01-04

"It's not me that scares you...it's the world.".......2006-11-22

Cult movie with an awesome soundtrack!.......2006-11-01

Great service, GREAT movies.......2006-03-06

Undead Biker Frog Cult.......2005-11-13

Average customer rating:

Laugh Track Presents: Psychomania
Starring: Willie Brown (IV) , Charles Cozart , Annie McKnight , Steven Pearl (II) , and Cha-Cha Sandoval
Director: Charles Cozart
Manufacturer: York Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Psychomania
Starring: Various
Manufacturer: Wave Imports
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B000GAKCC0
Release Date: 2006-07-18

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Psychomania
Starring: Martin Boddey , June Brown , Roy Evans , Denis Gilmore , and Linda Gray
Director: Don Sharp
Manufacturer: 905 Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B000HDZKEQ
Release Date: 2006-10-24

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Psychomania
Starring: Various Artists
Manufacturer: Cherry Red UK
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000F3T8T6
Release Date: 2006-07-25

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