Mind Over Murder

Ah, the little but pleasant surprises in life! I didn't have any specific expectations whatsoever when I sat down to watch "Mind Over Murder", but it turned out to be a great discovery after all! For a good 30 years already, there's a vague sequence spooking through my head. A sequence of a woman who witness an ordinary egg rolling out of the fridge, in slow-motion, and falling on the floor. While the egg is rolling and falling, the woman has a paranormal experience in which she overhears a panicky conversation between two pilots as their plane is crashing down.

I saw this when I was maybe 9 or 10 years old, but it must have made an everlasting impression. I was never able to find out what movie this footage came from, until now. In "Mind Over Murder", female protagonist Suzy has a couple of supernatural visions like this one, all involving a sinister bald man and the harsh crimes he commits. The airplane of Suzy's vision actually did crash, and an unknown bald man has sabotaged it. Her fiancée doesn't believe her, but the handsome executive of the Airline Company does. And the bald killer doesn't exactly like Suzy's gift, neither.

It's pretty obvious why I never remembered the film's title, though. Apart from the intriguing premise and actress Deborah Raffin's good looks, "Mind Over Murder" is a tame, predictable, and disappointing thriller. Especially the last half hour, when the killer lures Suzy to his hideout and holds her captive, is inexplicably dull. The script never really bothers to clarify Suzy's paranormal abilities, or the reason why Baldie put a bomb on a plane that caused the death of 83 people. There are a few interesting names in the supportive cast, like Andrew Prine as the bald creep and an early role for Robert "Freddy Kruger" Englund.