Violent Midnight Review

This ambitious B-movie, also known as Psychomania and Black Autumn,  from producer Del Tenney (Horror of Party Beach) plays much like low budget Peyton Place with murder, a small town whodunit soap opera with some surprising (for its day) flashes of nudity and violence.

Director Richard Hilliard (The Lonely Sex) keeps things interesting with some nicely composed shots, using odd angles and shadows to atmospheric effect, though he’s almost done in by some sloppy editing and sound work. Tenney claims to have done a lot of the direction of actors himself, but Hilliard is the obvious talent with the camera.

Future star James Farentino makes his feature debut as a motorcycle thug, Sylvia Miles appears as his trampy moll, and Dick Van Patten plays a hard-boiled police detective.

Known for decades only in murky, abbreviated TV prints, this edition presents the original uncut version.