Well...from the plot description, you would certainly be forgiven for thinking this one sounds promising, and indeed it does; but what we have here is a very turgid movie that doesn't make good use of any of it's positive elements. The base of the plot is not particularly original as it had been used in previous (and superior) films such as The Collector in 1965 and focuses on a man who takes a girl hostage. In this case he is the insane makeup man B.J. Lang and he keeps the girl in his prop room. Former child star Mickey Rooney takes the lead role and succeeds only in making a fool of himself. The film really lacks direction and the characters' motivations are never really made clear, which often made me question why I was actually watching it. Director Yabo Yablonsky clearly doesn't have a clue and it's not surprising that he didn't direct anything else after this film as his direction adds nothing and he obviously didn't know where to go with his own story and doesn't get the best out of his central performers. Overall, this film certainly doesn't come recommended. See The Collector instead!
Review of The Manipulator
