Harry Benson suffers from violent seizures. So much so that he requires a police guard when entering a Los Angeles hospital for treatment.<p>Dr. Roger McPherson, head of the prestigious Neuropsychiatric Research Unit, is convinced he can cure Benson through a procedure known as stage three. During this highly specialized surgery, electrodes are placed deep in Benson's brain, sending monitored soothing pulses to its pleasure canyons.<p>The operation is a success -- until Benson discovers how to get the pulses with increasing frequency. He escapes from the hospital, a homicidal maniac with a deadly agenda....