Mask of Murder (1985)

In a Canadian village are women being killed by a psychopath. Chief Rich and Inspector McLane have no clue until McLane shoots a suspicious man. Now the killing seems to have ended, but the... See full summary »

Director:

Arne Mattsson

Writer:

Volodja Semitjov (screenplay)

Stars:

Rod Taylor, Valerie Perrine, Christopher Lee

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Rod Taylor	...	Supt. Bob McLaine
Valerie Perrine	...	Maria
Christopher Lee	...	Chief Supt. Jonathan Rich
Sam Cook	...	Supt. Ray Cooper
Terrence Hardiman	...	Dr. Paul Crossland
Heinz Hopf	...	The hairdresser
Christine McKenna
Cyd Hayman
Mark Harrison	...	Martin Engels, violent man at the hairdresser's
Petrina Derrington
Christopher Guinnes
Frank Brennan	...	Johannes Krantz (as Frank Brannan)
Bill Redvers	...	Police officer
Hjördis Petterson	...	Ida Swanson, movie theater cashier (as Hjordis Petterson)

Storyline

In a Canadian village are women being killed by a psychopath. Chief Rich and Inspector McLane have no clue until McLane shoots a suspicious man. Now the killing seems to have ended, but the killer picks yet another victim...

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Plot Keywords:

serial killer | masked killer | murder | murder investigation | independent film

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Taglines:

Who is innocent... Who is guilty... Who is safe... Who is next...

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

Canada Sweden

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 December 1988 (Australia)

Also Known As:

The Investigator

Filming Locations:

Övre Slottsgatan, Uppsala, Uppsala län, Sweden

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmtrust, Master Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

User Reviews

Inept crime thriller

Being a big fan of thrillers in general, I actually went into this film with some expectations in spite of all the bad things I'd heard about it; and that was a mistake as Mask of Murder, while perhaps not quite as bad as I'd heard, is definitely a bad film that doesn't make the best of its positive elements. The plot is actually a decent base for a film, in spite of not being very original, and focuses on a serial killer who butchers women. The main bulk of the plot focuses on an investigation into the killings. The film kind of feels something like an inept Giallo as we have several Giallo trademarks without much intrigue to string it all together. The reason why, I would assume, many people tune into this film is almost certainly down to the fact that Christopher Lee is billed as the main star; but this is actually a bit of a rip off as he doesn't have a great deal of screen time and he isn't put to very good use in the time he does have. The killer himself fails to generate a great deal of intrigue and the way that the investigation plays out is largely laughable (and not in good way). Director Arne Mattsson fails to give the film much in the way of atmosphere and overall it's a largely lacklustre affair. Still, at least the film does have a plot and it never becomes completely boring

• though that might owe more to the fact that it isn't very long rather

than the execution.