Crazed

Crazed doesn't rewrite the rules of the horror genre or offer anything we haven't seen done to some extent or another, but for a low budget horror film, it accomplishes more than most and the attention to character drama and dynamics instead of offering a predicable slash fest is appreciated.

I really enjoyed every part of this movie. It was never dull and the characters were very well done. I especially liked the "crazy" guy Graham. Papas does a remarkable job portraying this kind of psychotic. He is charming and shy on the outside, but has real potential to lose his mind if provoked.

There are so many good things I could say about this hidden gem of a movie. The old ladies are fun - they talk about bad breath and halitosis and super market employees who are "hoodlums" and "all hair and pimples" - but it's not done in a cheesy way, and that's why it's so good.

There are unpredictable moments and unexpected twists. You know the guy is going to go crazy, but you don't know exactly how. He does a really good job hiding his feelings. And I must admit, being a girl alone in her apartment while watching this film freaked me out a little bit. The story is flat out creepy!!

One correction needs to be made on here, however. The crazy guy is not "mother dominated". The old lady is NOT his mother. His mother abandoned him when he was only 4 or 5 years old. This is when we see the flashback scenes to his childhood. His life may be dominated by the old lady, but accepts this willingly, and out of loneliness. She is not an evil dominatrix whatsoever. Just a kind old lady who is also lonely.

It's too bad "Rodney" didn't act in any other movies. He could play Mac Davis, if they ever made a film about him. ha, yeah right.

I also thought Karen was a good character. I would like to clear up another idea on here. Some reviewers don't know why she left the farm. It seemed plain to me that she left because she wanted to become a writer and couldn't do so while living with her boyfriend. I think she also wanted to get away from him and that kind of country living. She needed to get into a city and spend some time alone with her writing in a place of her own.

If you like good characters and psychological movies that keep you wondering what's going to happen next, you should see this one (if you can find it). Never a dull moment and not too unrealistic. 8/10.

And remember, in the words of the over-acting professor: To be a <insert overused swear words in here> good writer you don't just need discipline, you need DI-CI-PLINE!! (I could have done without this guy).

Filmed on a meager budget sometime during the later 1970s, this is an intriguing forerunner to the glut of psycho/slasher fare which dominated the horror genre for a decade following the release of HALLOWEEN. Unfortunately more-less forgotten, CRAZED is a well handled and out-of-the-ordinary project with exceptional performances, and it deserves a broader fanbase.

Spare on the sensationalism common to films of this variety, emphasis is instead placed on the anguish of a dissociative young man in an emotionally fragile state. Tortured as a child(as seen in flashbacks), years of physical, mental, and sexual abuse have rendered him a socially disconnected and passive adult, trudging through his life with a horrible dead-end job and humble subservience to his hoary, demanding landlady. His awkward amatory anxieties are piqued by a young lady who takes residence in the room next to his, then a tragic card is suddenly dealt by the hand of fate. In this moment of unfortunate circumstance, a contrite and most pitiable killer is born.

Rarely frightening in conventional ways, CRAZED is nonetheless effective in its phlegmatic gravity...the story is thronging with an unrelenting pervasive sadness, straight through to its benumbing closing shot. Impatient viewers may find the methodical slow pacing a chore to endure, but to those with tastes leaning toward a more visceral brand of horror, CRAZED comes highly recommended.

7/10

A diabetic seizures sufferer Karen wants to take a part in a creative writing course.She rents a room in Mrs Brewer's boarding house.One of the tenants is Grahame,obviously disturbed and mentally unstable ex G.I,who lives at the top floor.He falls in love with Karen and the consequences are deadly as the murders begin..."Crazed" is leisurely paced,but suspenseful psycho-slasher that owes a lot to Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho".The acting is very good and the plot offers some twisted surprises and two gruesome killings including one fairly nasty stabbing scene and a strangling."Crazed" is quite similar in tone to "The Silent Scream" and "The Killing Kind",but I enjoyed it.8 out of 10.

I can't imagine what movie the other reviewers watched as only one person get's killed? Must have been another movie? Yes it takes about 45 minutes for the first victim to be slaughtered but we have some humor and some sleaze to grasp first. This movie had a great Hitchcock feel to it, and a must see for true horror fans. No it's not the best movie ever but it's quality early 80's slasher trash. Some drowning's in bathtubs, brutal knife murders, strangeling, etc. I have the cover as well as a female is lying nude and bloody!!!I have the Regal Video version of Bloodshed and it was 87 minutes. Slasher reviewer gives this twisted fiasco 3 thumbs up out of the full 5. That means check it out!!The incest overtones were a bit much but the religious brainwashing flashbacks made me laugh like a priest on his wedding day. Enjoy trash cinema and don't be so critical you other reviewers!!