Psych:9 (2010)

Directed by: Andrew Shortell | 95 minutes | horror, thriller | Actors: Sara Foster, Cary Elwes, Michael Biehn, Gabriel Mann, Colleen Camp, Winter Ave Zoli, Susie Amy, Katherine Shanklin, Ryan James, Brian Caspe, Joel Kirby, Stephen Fisher, Kendrick Ong

Abandoned hospitals, institutions or country houses always do well in horror films and are usually welcome sources of inspiration for directors who have become proficient in that genre. In ‘Psych:9’, a recently closed hospital is the hub for a series of gruesome murders committed by the mysterious serial killer Nighthawk. Roslyn, an unstable woman recruited to file the mountain of old medical records during the night, soon discovers a disturbing connection between the various victims, all women who turn out to be former patients of the hospital. As paranoia slowly creeps in, Roslyn begins to see a potential culprit in just about everyone—including her own boyfriend. Roslyn decides to turn to Irvin Clement, a psychiatrist who also works night shifts on the ninth floor. On that floor, she also discovers Psych 9, a barbaric-looking treatment room with a checkered history.

In terms of setting and camera work, ‘Psych:9’ is fine in many respects. The abandoned and dilapidated hospital breathes mystery and is an ideal backdrop for creating the scary atmosphere that is indispensable for a good psychological horror film. In addition, many scenes are attractively lit and beautifully shot. Certainly during the first half hour the film sticks and a few quite effective scare scenes are fired at the viewer. But after that ‘Psych: 9’, especially in terms of storytelling, gets a bit out of hand. It seems that director Andrew Shortell isn’t quite sure whether to continue the mystery of the unidentified serial killer, tell a classic ghost story, or focus primarily on the rollercoaster ride into insanity that leads protagonist Sara slowly but surely. . The result is a somewhat muddled whole with many ambiguous scenes, several intertwined plot lines and vague transitions. The acting is generally quite decent, although Sara Foster doesn’t seem versatile enough for the delicate role of a woman who slowly but surely sinks into a pitch-black swamp of absolute madness. Visually and thematically, the film is clearly indebted to films such as ‘The Resident’, ‘House on Haunted Hill’ and ‘Session 9’, although the tension and the enormously high level of the latter film is hardly approached anywhere.

Although ‘Psych:9’ certainly has potential due to the gloomy atmosphere and the clever location and is worth a viewing, the feeling prevails that more could have been possible. In the end, too little happens to hold the viewer’s attention for more than an hour and a half and the story is worked out too muddled to come to a truly memorable film.