While many of the greatest movie monsters are unknowable, unstoppable enigmas, I've always been drawn to the more tragic creatures. Frankenstein's monster is borne into a world that can never accept him, the Fly was the accidental creation of an earnest scientist, and Darth Vader (yes, he counts) was a good man led astray. Ian Curteis' The Projected Man also features a sympathetic villain: Dr. Paul Steiner. Much like Andre Delambre from Kurt Neumann's The Fly (1958), Dr. Steiner was a scientist seeking to perfect a method of matter transportation. However, after a horrific accident, Dr. Steiner was mutated into a sinister creature with an instantly fatal touch. But here's the kicker: Dr. Steiner's experiment was sabotaged by a rival who wanted to steal his research grant. While it can be argued that Dr. Steiner's hubris was mostly at fault for his accident, it cannot be denied that he is also a victim in his own right. While mediocre in other respects (everything appears to be shot through a yellow filter, the special effects and makeup are sub-par, and the transportation device looks like it was cobbled together from spare parts found under the prop guy's sink) the drama surrounding Dr. Steiner is sufficient to make The Projected Man a decent sci-fi B-movie.
5/10
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