The Astral Factor

1978 "What You Can't See...Can Kill You!"
3.7| 1h34m| PG| en| More Info
Released: 01 February 1978 Released
Producted By: Jordan/Lyon Productions Ltd.
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

Demonstrating that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, a convicted strangler studies the paranormal and finds a way to render himself invisible. Once he escapes, he sets out to find and eliminate five women who remind him of the mother he murdered. A police lieutenant sets out to safeguard them and bring the invisible killer to justice.

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Director

John Florea, Gene Fowler Jr., Arthur C. Pierce

Production Companies

Jordan/Lyon Productions Ltd.

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The Astral Factor Audience Reviews

ThedevilChoose When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.
KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.
Maleeha Vincent It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.
Taha Avalos The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.
bnwfilmbuff This film was dark and unsettling. I think the idea that one could use their mind to make themselves invisible made it believable and, therefore, all the more eerie. Therefore, in spite of the obvious low production values, the movie had me on the edge of my seat. Frank Ashmore is the standout as Sands, the "Invisible Man". And Robert Foxworth is respectable as the chief detective. The women are fairly nondescript with the exception of Elke, who was over-the-top. This was far better than the Invisible Man and definitely worth a midnight viewing with the lights out!
kapelusznik18 ****SPOILERS****Horror flick about this deranged lunatic Roger "The Dodger" Sands, Frank Ashmore, who by speed reading all the books and articles from the prison library about astral projection uses that knowledge to escape from the California State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. That in to him getting even with all those witnesses at his murder trial that had him sentenced and sent there for life. As we soon find out it was Sands mother Chrlotta, Jo Ann Meredith, who warped his mind in her keeping him locked up in the attic away from humanity until he was an adult. Breaking out and finding out all the momentous events that he missed in life, like the Moon Landing and New Yorks Mets winning the 1969 World Series, Sands in a blind rage, in what his not so stable mother did to him strangled her to death. Now free and at the same time, whenever he wants to be , invisible Sands plans to murder those who put him behind bars as well as anyone who stands in his way in preventing him from doing it!To make the movie more sexy & attractive all those who testified against Sands were beautiful blond actresses like his dead mom that made killing them , in like killing his hated mom over and over again, all the more gratifying for him. It's up to LA police detective Lt. Charles Barrett played by Robert Foxman, without his usual mustache,to track this psycho down but as he's soon to find out you've got to be able to see him in order shoot or arrest him. Something that Sands in him becoming visible isn't that likely to do!***SPOILERS*** With all the witness but the gorgeous blond Chris Hartman, Elke Sommers, done away with it's up to Lt. Barrett and his squad of LA policemen to keep her alive. Which anything but easy in Chris' drinking, in order to forget the danger she's in, that makes their job that much harder! Not only can Sands make himself invisible he seems to be an expert scuba diver as well as if he, in making himself invisible,really needs to be. That's when he ends up boarding movie mogul Mario's, Cesare Danova, yacht murdering both him and his girlfriend Bambi Greer, Marianna Hill, who was one of those witnesses on his trial that helped convict him. With what seemed like his just about job done and no more mountains to climb or people to murder with the exception of the drunken Chris Hartman. Sands come out into the open to finish Chris off only to step into a trap set for him by Lt. Barrett and the LAPD that sends him back to the astral world for good.
wes-connors "Demonstrating that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, a convicted strangler studies the paranormal and finds a way to render himself invisible. Once he escapes, he sets out to find and eliminate the five women who testified in his prosecution. A police lieutenant (Robert Foxworth) sets out to safeguard them, and bring the invisible killer to justice," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis. Made and hidden away as "Invisible Strangler" in 1976, and dredged up for reproducing as "The Astral Factor" for 1984.The most interesting aspect of this mother-fixated thriller is that you get to see the stars make asses of themselves. Mr. Foxworth (as Chuck Barrett) shows his bare buttocks while answering the door to Mark Slade (as Holt). Then, you see a bare-naked rear view of sexy Stefanie Powers (as Candy). Mr. Slade's pants are tight enough in the rear to ascertain that he prefers briefs to boxers. "You bet your sweet ass," he tells Foxworth. And, Elke Sommer (as Christina Hartman) models her tightly-clothed behind, too.** The Astral Factor (1984) John Florea ~ Robert Foxworth, Elke Sommer, Stefanie Powers, Mark Slade
lazarillo This movie is kind of like the more famous 70's cult horror film "Psychic Killer" in that it deals with a prisoner who develops psychic powers which he uses to escape and take revenge on his enemies. But while in that movie the convict was an innocent man taking well-deserved revenge, the psychic killer here is a grade-A lunatic out to finish the job. In an interesting back-story he is revealed to be the disturbed illegitimate son of a famous actress/sex symbol who kept him isolated from her social circle to avoid scandal, and ended up being strangled by him. (This might have been inspired by the real-life Hollywood murder of B-movie actress Susan Cabot in the 1960's, allegedly by her troubled, illegitimate dwarf son). It's never really made clear whether his psychic "powers" actually involve astral projection(thus the alternate title "The Astral Factor") or if he is simply able to appear invisible somehow (thus "The Invisible Strangler"). The inept cops are powerless to stop him regardless, even when he is obviously in non-"astral" form and has rendered himself decidedly visible by putting on a scuba suit.What really makes this movie though is the all-star cast(or, as some wag might say, the "all has-been and never-would-be cast"). The lead detective is played by Robert Foxworth, who appeared most memorably in the ridiculous 70's mutant bear/environmental horror flick "Prophecy". German actress Elke Sommers appears as a "special guest star" (as opposed to the other actors who were apparently "regulars"). She plays a sexy former "Miss Galaxy" who the cops try to protect while she lounges around her mansion in skimpy bikinis. Sue "Lolita" Lyon has a five minute role as an early victim without uttering a word of dialogue (which is probably for the best as acting was never her strong suit). Mariana Hill ("Mrs. Fredo Corleone" in "The Godfather Part II") appears also, in accordance with an apparent law that she had to appear in every low-budget exploitation/horror movie made in the 70's and early 80's. The best though is Stefanie "Hart to Hart" Powers, who is VERY sexy as Foxworth's bimbo girlfriend "Candy". She routinely refers to herself in the third person, and buys herself an expensive fur coat on HIS birthday (which he doesn't object to since she's obviously wearing absolutely nothing underneath it). Some will probably tune in for Powers' "nude scene" (if you don't blink you might get to see the top part of her bare butt), but frankly her whole performance is downright wood-inducing (even if, like me, you don't usually go for the whole Marilyn Monroesque dumb bimbo thing). So what, if her entire character is completely superfluous. . .This actually seems kind of like a 70's TV movie or series episode--it would not have been out of place as an episode of "Kolchack, the Night Stalker" actually. But since I like "Kolchack" and 70's TV movies I found it pretty satisfying overall if, admittedly, not all that great.