Such was Psycho's impact on the horror genre, that the reverberations could still be felt well into the '70s (it could be argued that Hitchcock's classic still 'inspires' film-makers to this day). A Reflection of Fear doesn't do very well at hiding its main influence, with its blatantly batty central character Marguerite (Sondra Locke), who provides a creepy voice for her doll 'friend', is a little too affectionate towards her estranged father (played by Robert Shaw), and prattles on incessantly about the reproduction of flowers and how amoebas replicate themselves. Clearly something is very wrong with the girl, and given her particular obsessions, it doesn't take a genius to figure out what (a similar twist ending would be handled far better twelve years later in Sleepaway Camp).
Directed by cinematographer William A. Fraker, the film looks nice enough, but the action is largely uneventful and moves at a glacial pace, and with Locke's monotonous tone (deliberate or just bad acting?), it all makes for a rather tedious experience. Apparently, the film was heavily censored on initial release to achieve a PG rating, which probably goes some way to explaining the sheer banality of proceedings. Perhaps somewhere there lies lost footage that would turn this into a more serviceable and memorable thriller, but as it stands, it's quite the snoozefest.
Directed by cinematographer William A. Fraker, the film looks nice enough, but the action is largely uneventful and moves at a glacial pace, and with Locke's monotonous tone (deliberate or just bad acting?), it all makes for a rather tedious experience. Apparently, the film was heavily censored on initial release to achieve a PG rating, which probably goes some way to explaining the sheer banality of proceedings. Perhaps somewhere there lies lost footage that would turn this into a more serviceable and memorable thriller, but as it stands, it's quite the snoozefest.