Jeff Lieberman is unquestionably one of the most fascinating filmmakers active in the field of horror and peculiar cult. The movies he accomplished are versatile and difficult to categorize, and the man himself is a rather unusual persona as well. I read a couple of interviews in which Lieberman claims not to be a fan of the genre at all and in case his films are reminiscent of others (for example "Just Before Dawn" to "Texas Chainsaw Massacre"), it must be purely coincidental, as he states never to have seen the films. The last thing you could ever say about "Blue Sunshine", however, is that the idea is derived from something else. Its intriguing concept is totally unique and perhaps one of the most original ones ever to feature in a low-budgeted 70's movie. The outstanding I even daresay brilliant premise of "Blue Sunshine" actually makes it all the more painful to acknowledge that the overall execution of the film is slightly disappointing and even a bit boring. The opening sequences as well as the climax are sublime, but unfortunately everything in between moves at an incredibly slow tempo and it's very difficult to stay fully focused the entire playtime. The film opens with footage of several different & seemingly unrelated people beginning to suffer from physical ailments, like terrible headaches and the severe loss of hair. Jerry Zipkin even witnesses one of his friends going completely out of his mind and killing three women. Being the prime suspect in the murder investigation, Jerry discovers that his friend experimented with a type of drugs called Blue Sunshine back in college and possible the side effects only begin to show now, more than 10 years later. Jerry confronts the former junkies, who are now respectable people with important jobs, with their past and hopes to prevent further bloodbaths this way. As said, the plot is magnificent and Lieberman manages to continuously sustain an ominous & moody atmosphere, but the entire middle section lacks panache and memorable substance. Zalman King's performance as Jerry is good but his character is overly weird and not exactly likable. His response to the murders and especially his methods of approaching the other Blue Sunshine users are strange and it's actually no wonder the police suspects him of all the crimes. Don't expect any gory situations, neither, but the hairless psychos look genuinely creepy and menacing. The soundtrack is excellently psychedelic and the sequence shot at the disco is already legendary by now. In spite of Synapse's recent transfer to DVD, the picture quality is rather inferior, which gives a good idea of how obscure this film was all these years. Although not being the masterwork I anticipated (or hoped) it to be, I still wouldn't hesitate to recommend "Blue Sunshine" to any other open-minded fans of eccentric 70's cinema. All the other Lieberman films I've seen thus far ("Squirm", "Just Before Dawn" and "Satan's Little Helper") are worth tracking down as well.