Eccentric sci-fi/horror based on the novel by Paddy Chayefsky (who also wrote the screenplay but decided to use a pseudonym when he didn't like the finished product) this stars William Hurt, making his film debut, as a brilliant scientist who's experimenting with sensory deprivation in order to try and bring the mind to an all-new "level" of conciousness. After a trip to Mexico where he picks-up an exotic mushroom-based hallucinigenic liquid he starts getting deeper into his experiments and suffers from heavy visions and eventually goes back to an apeman-like feral state.

This science based film is certainly interesting (even if not enough is explained) and its filled with heavy religious imagery and a lurking mix of sexuallity that works alright until it reaches its over-the-top finale (which not only is sloppy but has some really dated visual effects).

Directed By: Ken Russell.
Written By: Sidney Aaron (Paddy Chayefsky).

Starring: William Hurt, Blair Brown, Bob Balaban, Charles Haid.