Shade of Pale

Although the mythical Banshee--the traditional Celtic angel of death--gets this would-be thriller off to a seductive start, San Francisco radio host Kihn (Horror Show) weighs his tale down with clunky prose and eventually allows an initially intriguing plot to deteriorate into a shambles of wimpy protagonists and cartoonish villains. When highly neurotic New York psychiatrist Jukes Wahler is referred a patient who believes he is being stalked by the Banshee, the doctor realizes that he has recently encountered an ethereal red-haired woman who fits the same description. Secrets from the ancient Book of Kells, an Irish terrorist, a serial killer and various exploding (or imploding) corpses decorate a story line that also features a likable quasi-psychic cigar-smoking cop and an appealing love interest: a sexy professor specializing in ancient Irish mythology. Unfortunately, this potentially potent Celtic witch's brew is drained of its magic by sappy dialogue, inane metaphors and wooden exposition. The serial killer is unmasked far too soon and, at the end, the ineffectual hero still has feet of clay. What promised to be a spellbinder disintegrates into a mawkish parody of itself. (Nov.)