Psycho Killer Review: Visually Striking, Tonally Exhausting Horror

Genres– Thriller, Horror
Director – Gavin Polone
Writer– Andrew Kevin Walker.
Cast – Georgina Campbell, James Preston Rogers, and Malcolm McDowell
Release Date – February 20, 2026 (North America)
Runtime – 91 Minutes
My Rating – ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐☆☆☆☆☆

Where to watch/stream Psycho Killer

It had the ingredients, just not the execution.

Psycho Killer had me intrigued as I like these type of films, but in the end I just ended up scratching my head.

Plot Summary of Psycho Killer (Spoiler-Free)

Psycho Killer revolves around a serial killer, ominously dubbed the Satanic Slasher, who terrorizes his city with a combination of violence, planning, and straight-up insanity.

Opposing him is Jane Archer, a state trooper whose life becomes consumed with tracking this killer down, and she’s tough, smart, and relentless,whered the dynamic between her and the Slasher forms the backbone of the story, obviously.

Without giving away plot twists, the film leans into elements of devil worship, heavy metal culture, and dark humor, threading them through the violence and chase sequences.

Psycho Killer Review: Is It Worth Watching?

I have mixed feelings about Psycho Killer, as on one hand, it’s a visually arresting, blood-soaked spectacle with performances that are more than competent, but on the other, it’s a film that seems to have three or four ideas at once and doesn’t fully commit to any of them.

The first thing that grabbed me was James Preston Rogers as the Satanic Slasher, and I thought he commanded the screen whenever he’s on it, with a deliberate menace, and where the killer POV sequences are genuinely quite effective for suspense.

And then there’s Georgina Campbell as Jane Archer., as we watch her track down the Slasher, piece together clues, and confront him in ways that actually put him on the defensive is one of the film’s most enjoyable aspects.

Visually, the film does a lot right too, and some of the set pieces, especially early sequences that highlight the Slasher’s attacks, are quite well-constructed, and there’s a real attention to detail in how the kills unfold, and the cinematography gives each scene a stylized, almost comic-book level feel.

But then the movie starts to unravel.

The tone is just all over the place, where you move from intense suspense to over-the-top dark comedy to devil worship commentary to an almost parody-level heavy metal aesthetic, and suddenly it’s exhausting.

One minute, the tension is decent, watching over whether Jane will survive a confrontation, and the next, you’re chuckling at a Satanist subplot that doesn’t feel necessary, and it just adds to the feeling that the movie can’t decide what it wants to be.

It’s a film trying to be brutal, funny, clever, and shocking all at once, but it’s just too much for any film, and it doesn’t lean into what someone wants to see from a film with this title.

Some scenes did feel like they had potential, but that was completely squandered, and they just feel exaggerated in ways that undercut everything – the danger of escalation is that once everything becomes extreme, nothing feels truly threatening anymore.

The storytelling itself is also uneven, and while I didn’t mind watching the Slasher’s perspective initially, but the film can’t decide whether to focus on his inner workings, Jane’s investigation, or the weirdly comedic side plots.

Scenes cut abruptly between points of view and narrative arcs without smooth transitions, leaving you feeling disoriented at times, and while I appreciate it’s trying something a little different – but in execution, it just makes the movie feel messy.

Tone aside, the dialogue also occasionally lands and occasionally groans, and Jane’s investigation sequences are believable and tense, and Rogers’ lines – when he has any – carry that chilling weight you want from a killer.

But the comedy beats are often poorly timed, and the Satanist-heavy metal material feels like it belongs in a parody rather than the serious horror space the film is aiming for, and there’s an unevenness to the humor that distracts rather than entertains, especially when paired with genuinely brutal sequences.

So by the time we get to the climax, the pacing problems are way too glaring, where the build-up early in the film suggests a showdown with major stakes, but the resolution feels rushed and unimpactful, and it all gets lost under the weight of tonal inconsistencies – that said, there were some flashes of fun, cleverness, and genuine suspense along the way, so it’s not a total wasted experience, but it certainly isn’t anything I would recommend to anyone, either, as it frustrates a hell of a lot more than it thrills.

What I Liked (And What I Didn’t Like)

Pros

Strong Lead Cop

Georgina Campbell as Jane is smart, resourceful, and gives the movie a credible protagonist to root for.

Killer POV Suspense

Opening from the killer’s perspective was decent enough.

Stylish Visuals

Cinematography is bold and striking.

Gore

The film doesn’t shy away from gore and violence, which horror fans often appreciate.

Cons

Tonal Inconsistency

Way too much, infact.

Messy Storytelling

Multiple narrative threads create a bit of confusion.

Weak Climax

The ending wasn’t great.

Humor

Comedy beats often miss the mark.

Abrupt Scene Transitions

Cuts between perspectives and storylines feel jarring.

Unbalanced Focus

Too much time is spent on spectacle, not enough on character development.

Missed Potential

Talented actors and creative ideas are undercut by various other issues.

Who Might Like Psycho Killer

• Fans of blood-soaked, violent horror
• Viewers who enjoy cat-and-mouse thrillers
• People who like dark humor mixed with horror
• Fans of Georgina Campbell or James Preston Rogers

Who Might Dislike Psycho Killer

• Those who dislike tonal shifts
• People who dislike over-the-top violence
• Viewers who want subtle or realistic horror
• People easily distracted by inconsistent pacing
• If you dislike jarring scene transitions
• Anyone expecting a tightly plotted thriller

Final Verdict: Did I Enjoy Watching Psycho Killer?

Psycho Killer is a strange mix of thrills, blood, and style, peppered with flashes of dark humor and strong performances, but it can’t quite hold itself together.

It’s just ends up way too uneven and seems like a missed opportunity, and should had focused on what most people actually want from these kind of films, instead of trying to do too much.

Psycho Killer Trailer

Simon Leasher

A lover of cinema for over 35 years, I have watched many films from around the world in many different genres, yet I still normally always come back to trashy slasher horror films when in doubt. More

And yes, The Godfather 2 is better than The Godfather.