The Couch

Charles Campbell phones the police, announcing that a murder will occur at seven o'clock. The call sets the stage for his chilling pattern as the so-called 7:00 killer begins to shape the night's events.

At 7:00 p.m., Charles stabs a stranger on the streets with an icepick. He then reports to Dr. Janz for his daily psychiatric session.

Charles reports to his daily psychiatric session with Dr. Janz immediately after the murder. The routine session proceeds as staff remain unaware of the crime just committed.

At the clinic reception, Terry has mislaid her watch and remains unaware of the exact time. This lapse allows Charles to manipulate alibis later on.

After the first murder, Charles returns the icepick to the bar in the clinic's practice area. He had taken it from that bar earlier, and the action is meant to cover his tracks.

During a night walk, Charles tells Terry that he is seeing Janz as a condition of parole following a manslaughter conviction for Ruthie’s death. He is tormented with guilt over the car crash that killed Ruthie.

Days after the first murder, he kills again in the same manner, announcing the act to the police. He has stolen Terry's watch, enabling him to mislead her about the actual time.

In another session, Charles hints at waiting longer than he did, creating an alibi for the second murder. Janz confronts Charles's deeper delusions about Ruthie and his father.

Charles next targets Dr. Janz and stabs him in a crowded passageway at a football stadium. This brutal act marks the escalation of his violence beyond casual murders.

Charles then goes to Janz's office to meet Terry, where they plan to reveal their relationship and marriage to Janz. He lies that he has just come from another meeting confirming a large inheritance, saying that he is now free to do anything.

A phone call interrupts their meeting: Janz has been stabbed but is alive, now unconscious and in a hospital. Terry and Charles race to the hospital and learn that surgery will be required.

Investigators find a handbill in Terry's car tying the car to the stadium area where Janz was stabbed. Because Terry had lent the car to Charles, this evidence makes Charles the prime suspect.

Charles disguises himself with an operating gown and mask from a supply room and confronts Janz in the operating theater. He makes another attempt to kill him, but the plan is foiled by circumstances.

Charles is apprehended by the police in the hospital, with Terry present, as the truth behind the murders and his disturbed mind is laid bare. The revelation closes the chain of killings and solidifies his capture.