Mind Games

My review was written in August 1989 after watching the movie on CBS/Fox video cassette.

Though briefly receiving film fest exposure and wet coast bookings in March, MGM/UA's "Mind Games" is a small-scale psychological thriller that will play better on tv.

A piece for four actors (there is no supporting cast), Bob Yari's pic follows the traditional format of an appealing but dangerous stranger disrupting a family. Maxwell Caulfield, (previously effective a a heavy in "The Boys Next Door"), is Eric, a psych student who attaches himself to Edward Albert and Shawn Weatherly, who are traveling in the Southwest i theri rec vehicle with 10-year-old Matt Norero.

Caulfield, as part of a self-assigned psych project, manipulates the threesome, working on the son first (with discreet overtones of homosexuality), then the adults. Tension among the characters is dissipated when the film turns to unconvincing melodrama.

Caulfield is a commanding presence here, even when the script has him reveal too much of his ulterior motives. Weatherly is dramatic and provides needed sex appeal, while Albert is saddled with an underwritten part as the weak husband. Newcomer Norero gives a subtle reading of the kid's part.

With good technical contributions, Yari keeps the pot boiling up to a point. Ambitious finale tries for an open-ended effect, but lacks credibility.