Something Weird (1967)

An accident victim makes a deal with a particularly hideous witch, in which he receives extraordinary ESP powers. He uses these powers to help the police solve crimes.

Director:

Herschell Gordon Lewis

Writer:

James F. Hurley

Stars:

Tony McCabe, Elizabeth Lee, William Brooker

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tony McCabe	...	Cronin 'Mitch' Mitchell
Elizabeth Lee	...	Ellen Parker
William Brooker	...	Dr. Alex Jordan
Mudite Arums	...	The Hag
Ted Heil	...	Det. Maddox
Lawrence J. Aberwood	...	Chief Vinton (as Lawrence Wood)
Larry Wellington	...	Rev. Ammond
Roy Collodi	...	Dr. Roxin
Jeffrey Allen	...	Dr. White
Richard Nilsson	...	EMT Doctor
Carolyn Smith	...	Nurse Browning
Norm Lenet	...	Stein
Louis Newman	...	Ambulance Attendant
Dick Gaffield	...	Drunkard at Restaurant
Janet Charlton	...	Secretary

Storyline

Cronin Mitchell is an average guy whose face is disfigured by a falling electrical power line in which he somehow acquires the gift/curse of strange psychic powers. After withdrawing from public life, 'Mitch' makes a living as a fortune teller when he's approached by an ugly hag who offers to restore his good looks if he becomes her lover. Mitch reluctantly agrees, and although his face is restored, people around him see his lover as an attractive young woman named Ellen. When news of Mitch's psychic powers leak out, he goes on the road with Ellen from city to city and town to town helping people solve crimes. After expelling a ghost from a funeral home, Mitch and Ellen are sent to a small Illinois town to find the identity of a serial killer. But the government sends along a crackpot psychiatrist/playboy, named Dr. Alex Jordan, to oversee the case and possibly debunk Mitch's psychic abilities. When Dr. Jordan turns his sights on Ellen and plots to steal her away from Mitch, she goes ...

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Plot Keywords:

psychic | serial killer | drug abuse | levitation | supernatural | 

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Taglines:

Lust and Passion Surround the Incredible, Supernatural Worlds of E.S.P. & Witchcraft in a Boiling, Bizarre Tale of Mad Love that Sgocks Even the Unearthly!

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Genres:

Fantasy | Horror

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

August 1967 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Eerie World of Dr. Jordan

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hur-Lew Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Included as one of Elvira's "Something Weird" collection (seen on Comcast On Demand Oct. 2006).

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Connections

Featured in Extra Weird (2003)

User Reviews

Goreless Lewis is weird alright - compellingly weird!

Lewis's direction is as drab as usual here (cue long scenes of people executing actions from go to woe, free of editing in slow master shots) and there's no gore so don't expect any, yet I actually think that this appropriately named weird tale of ESP, a witch's pact and the mystery of a serial murderer is the best Lewis film I've seen by the standards of conventional film-making. The story has enough developments, payoffs and odd surprises that you may find yourself beguiled even without the typically sensational Lewis content in evidence. Fear not, though; the schlock quota is more than met by the ugly witch's bizarrely crap performance and by many classy moments of stilted dialogue and acting. The pushy jazz score is completely Wild and Crazy, and there's also a prolonged and silly chase on foot ala Blood Feast. The threads of this film don't logically feed each other at all, yet I think that the whole thing makes for a pretty good story, and as usual, the cheapness of budget means you can see and hear all the details of life in the year in which the film was shot.