The Astral Factor (1978)

The guy has a mommy complex similar to Norman Bates, saying "hello mother" when he kills - invisibly kills that is. Yep this guy has found the key to invisibility somewhere.It really is like a very cheap 1970s cop show - one of those that is easily forgotten about because no one cared enough to watch it or remember. It's that bad.I got this dud in Mill Creek's Sci-Fi Classics 50-Pack. I was hoping that this would be a hidden rough gem - but it's just a plain old rock. If you skip this one, you will not miss a thing. OK one thing maybe, I saw Powers' butt cheeks when she bent over in that pink shirt she was wearing... like I really cared to see that - but some of you might.2/10

AKA--The Invisible Strangler Roger raised by starlet mom--hidden and angry"The Astral Factor" is also known as "The Invisible Strangler", though I prefer to think of it as "That Stupid Robert Foxworth Movie"! This is because no matter how good the film is (and it isn't very good), the basic story idea is so stupid that you cannot help but hate this film. Not surprisingly, it's slipped into the public domain--doubtless because no sane person could ever see this film as a potential money-maker!When the film begins, convicted psychopathic killer Roger Sands is practicing his psychic powers. The nut-job has been studying on his own--trying to develop psychic skills that will allow him to escape his prison cell and return to a life of murdering models and starlets that remind him of his mother...who he previously murdered. But, considering that Sands can turn invisible and do other cool things with his mind, the cops are stumped how to catch this ingenious nutter!As I mentioned above, the plot idea for this one is just nuts! And, some of the acting isn't particularly good. So overall, it's an awful little film--one who simply isn't really enjoyable or worth your time. You could EASILY do better!

Yes, that pen-clicking detective was annoying. But when Barret took the pen away from him, HE started clicking it. Personally I would have taken the pen away from him and thrown it away. The only humorous part was when Barrett tried to eat the birthday cake Candy made for him. Apparently it was a sponge cake made from a real sponge. I got my copy from the same 20 Blood Chilling Classics set that someone else mentioned. So far, the black and white movies are looking better than the color movies (except maybe for The Terror featuring an early appearance by Jack Nicholson).I think this movie ranks at about the same level as The Galaxy Invader (also from the same set) about drunken rednecks chasing a space alien.

Ten years after 'Star Trek' and this film features an escaped convict using the 'beam me up Scotty' routine without a teleporter device. Roger Sands (Frank Ashmore) is on the hunt for celebrity starlets who remind him of his mom so that he can practice his strangle holds on them. Roger was kept in isolation by his mother growing up and never got a chance to play nice.On the hunt for the invisible killer is perennial TV movie actor Robert Foxworth, a police lieutenant teamed up with a pen clicking detective (Mark Slade) and a wife who only dresses her upper body (Stefanie Powers). Her standard line when hubby Chuck goes off to do his police work is "Have a nice time".In early scenes when Sands becomes invisible, he does so clothes and all. That's why it's a bit curious during a beach scene when the lieutenant finds Sands' scuba suit discarded following an escape using his powers, an interesting lapse of continuity.The film's original release title is probably a better fit for the story than the one I saw it under - "The Astral Factor". About midway through I began to feel just like Roger Sands commenting to his mother in a flashback scene' "...I just can't do it any more". If anyone recommends getting together to watch this flick, consider making yourself invisible.