I actually know something about this film because the producer of the movie was my landlord at one point. The Psychotronic Man is a grade B movie that's true, but it is actually an important and noteworthy piece mostly because of its relationship to film history and several other oddities that surround it.
It was the first feature film made entirely in Chicago since the Essanay era before WW1. It was only able to be made after the death of Chicago's longest reigning mayor, who would not allow movies to be made anywhere in Chicago. It was also an independent feature film, made entirely outside any of the existing studio systems. It was shot completely on location and it used only local talent. Many of the centrally located automobile chase scenes and running gun battles were shot on the sly without the permission of any authorities because no film commission existed. Part of the movie featured a car chase in Lower Wacker Drive which is an odd funky piece of roadway under downtown Chicago. In the next year the Blues Brothers came out and featured a car chase in the exact same place.
It was produced, written, and starred in by an out of work actor named Peter Spelson who decided the best way to get into the movies was to go out and make one himself.
It is however probably most noted for its name. The term "Psychotronic" has come to be an almost generic term for grade B cult films. Google turns up 88,600 different references for the word, all of which come as a result of this movie.
It did well in Europe under various names but it played only once in Chicago where it was made on April, 23, 1980 at 7:00 P.M. in the now demolished Carnegie Theater.
Like many first efforts it is crude by comparison to the things that follow it, but it is truly one the beginnings the of modern American independent movie trend. In truth even Ed Wood had more help.
