Highly Overrated But Still Good

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

With its plot details and production characteristics parroted, to say the least, from the soap opera genre, this film made for television has a tired feeling to it, and any energy created by the players appears to be flat and lacking essence. For the medical programmer based in a New York City's psychiatric ward (presented in a quaintly unrealistic manner), top billing goes to Melissa Gilbert as Lisa DaVito, a freshman psychiatrist completing her residency there, and whose career and private life are muddled by a young Puerto Rican patient, Freddie Zamora (Fernando López), whose particular dysfunction leads him to commit extremely violent acts against others. After Freddie physically attacks his cousin with whom he shares a bedroom, he is brought to the hospital by police who have abstained from booking him for assault because his family members will not file charges, and he is placed under the care of Dr. DaVito, who plainly becomes obsessed with her new charge, as indicated in scenes of absurd gaucherie. The more that Lisa becomes involved with the new case of her unbalanced patient, the less likely that her live-in physician boyfriend, in a thin characterization by Kevin Conroy, is apt to be pleased with their own relationship, and this therefore presents an opportunity for the clinic's in-house patients rights attorney, played by Woody Harrelson, to foster a relationship with Lisa, whom he fancies. The most interesting portion of the storyline comes from the obvious risk of releasing agitated Freddie back into the outside world, with his proclivity for violence merely muted by his totally voluntary intake of prescribed depressants, but even this dramatic potential is shun of style and pace by torpid direction and choppy editing. Titled KILLER INSTINCT for video distribution, the drab affair is freighted by a screenplay that is predictable throughout , and with chronic sound problems that often result in dialogue being drowned during outdoor filming by street traffic noise. Gilbert is most effectual when not performing in unconvincing domestic interludes with her beau, while Harrelson is, as is his wont, a cipher, and the playing of López loses its main chance of believability, as with most of the cast, due to the hackneyed writing that only worsens up to and including the ridiculous final moments.

(Some Spoilers) Updated version of "Rebel Without a Cause" with a teenage looking Melissa Gilbert as doctor/psychiatrist Lisa DaVito playing the James Dean part. There's also a moody and manic depressive Fernando Lopez as the troubled youth, Freddy Zomora. Freddy is headed for destruction in the part very similar to that of Sal Mineo in that classic about America's troubled youth in the 1950's. Young Freddy has been going downhill ever since his mother died three years ago and has become not only a danger to those around him but also to himself. After attacking his cousin for using his after shave lotion Freddy is brought, in a straitjacket, to the Elmira Mental hospital for evaluation and treatment for his wild and uncontrollable outbursts. At the hospital Dr. DaVio is assigned to Freddy and sees that his mental problems can be straightened out if he gets the right treatment and medication. But the hospital's director Dr. Butler, Lane Smith, pressures Dr. DaVito to declare Freddy fit to be out in society. It's that Freddy not having medical insurance was a financial burden and Dr. Butler wanted to save the hospital money by not giving him the medical attention,that he so desperately needed. Back out on the street Freddy at first tries to get a job, any job, to be able to support himself. But he slowly descends back into the depressive state that he was in before he was put under Dr. DaVito's care. Not taking his medication an unstable Freddy is later confronted by Dr. DaVito who tries to get him to re-admit himself back into Elmaria Hospital but by then he's too long gone for any help from her or anyone ease. Working at a diner washing dishes Freddy gets into a fight with the owner and runs him through with a kitchen knife killing him. Now a fugitive from the law and wanted for murder Freddy's actions falls right on the head of Dr. Davito for being responsible for signing his release. Getting in touch with her friend at Elmira and hospital attorney Charlie Long ,Woodly Harrelson, to find Freddy before he ends up being killed Dr. DaVito goes to see Elmira' director Dr. Butler. Dr. DiVeto is shocked to find out that he put her on suspension for doing what he pressured her to do: sign Freddy's release papers. Like all persons in high places Dr. Butler passes the buck on to poor Dr. DaVito who's feeling sick over what Freddy's done and what may happen to him, when the police catch up with Freddy, What Dr. DiVeto so desperately tried to prevent. Freddy seeing on the TV at a local diner Dr. Butler put the blame on his friend and psychiatrist Dr. DaVto for what happened realizes that he has to put thing right in exonerating her for his actions. The movie ends with Freddy doing just that but at a terrible cost. Better then average made for TV movie with a hell of a performance by newcomer Freanando Lopez as the troubled and doomed Freddy Zomora who ended up being another victim, together with those he victimized. Freddy who was turned away from the help that he needed ended up a casualty, one of thousands, to a society who's indifferent to those it's supposed to look after helped spawn many like himself .

SPOILERS. Melissa Gilbert (23) is Dr. Lisa DaVito. For reasons that are never clear to the viewing audience, she works beyond reasonable efforts to salvage Freddie ( Fernando López ). He has some problems from the past which results in a hair-trigger temper. He goes off sometimes on very small things and becomes violent. I must give credit to Lopez, his character is very menacing. I would not have wanted to get him angry.Dr. Lisa is his shrink, and works with him diligently to get him to talk about his past, and develop into someone who can live in society. After a set time, her supervisor, Dr. Butler (Lane Smith) pressures her into signing him out of the clinic. He almost loses it while trying to get a job, and finally works as a dish washer. With a very insensitive boss (perhaps unrealistically insensitive), who rides him for working too slowly, and blames him for a customer returning food because of a dirty plate, Freddie loses it, picks up a large butcher knife, and kills the man. Police looking for him, Dr. Lisa finds him, he almost kills her, before leaving her alone, to be chased by the police. He was too young to die, but that was his only destiny at that point.Woody Harrelson, before he became famous, played her doctor sidekick and friend. "B" grade movie.

Melissa Gilbert is Lisa DaVito, a resident psychiatrist at Chicago's Elvira Hospital, whose patient Puerto Rican Freddie Zamora (Fernando Lopez) suffers from rages. She wants to keep him in the psychiatric ward, but Ward Chief Dr Butler (Lane Smith) agrees to release him, and Freddie subsequently stops taking his medication, with dire results. The search is on - will the police or Lisa find him first?Gilbert's makeup and hair stylist Jayson Jeffreys deserves special mention here for his overkill in the way he presents her, as if being an over-styled psychiatrist is a clue to the fate of her patients. Gilbert only looks beautiful in repose, ie when she isn't trying to be, but apart from an occasional ability to handle a laugh line, a slow reaction to news her boyfriend Stephen Nelson (Kevin Conroy) is dumping her, and a fall to the ground in tears, this role doesn't do much for her.The teleplay by Conrad Bromberg has Lisa describe her method as `touch the hurt and clean it out', and it appears that she has no office since her sessions with Freddie are held in the men's toilet. The dialogue features such cliches as Stephen's threat to Lisa `If you go, I won't be here when you get back', and Dr Butler to Lisa `I loved your idealism. It made me young again'. Woody Harrelson is around as the hospital lawyer Charlie Daimler, though he has nothing to do except provide an 3rd romantic interest for Lisa, and director Warris Hussein over-uses the music score of Paul Chihara which it's obvious latin riffs.