La meurtrière diabolique

And so with those words begins this wacked out slasher film/murder mystery that shows Joan Crawford lopping off the heads of her husband and his girlfriend while they lie in post-coital repose -- and that's before the opening credits have even started!

"Strait-Jacket" has the look and feel of "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" and all of those other exploitative films from the 1960s that put once-great declining actresses in campy schlock and let audiences howl at them. But somehow, this movie doesn't feel exploitative. If Joan Crawford had delivered a bad performance, it would have. But she tackles the role with such seriousness and commitment that she single-handedly ends up selling the film to you, and making you genuinely care about her character and what happens to her. Joan Crawford may have been hell to live and work with in her personal life, but it takes an actress with a unique skill to make a film like this not only competent, but almost fascinating.

As for the movie itself, it's laughably predictable. I called the "surprise" ending about fifteen minutes into the film, and then talked myself out of it because I thought it would be too obvious. Well, I should have stuck to my guns, but it didn't much matter -- by the end I was no longer watching the film for the ending -- I was watching it for Joan, which is the only reason (albeit a damn good one) for watching this film at all.

Grade: B

Joan Crawford, the Arched Eyebrow Queen of Melodrama, is surprisingly vulnerable throughout most of this thriller involving a former axe murderess who gets released from the sanitarium and tries to make peace with her estranged daughter (Diane Baker), now a pretty twentysomething living on her uncle's farm. Curiously, Crawford thought little of this movie, yet she's quite good in it: shaky, confused, and yet hopeful, she has a great scene telling off her future in-laws and I was right there on her side. Despite the obvious camp appeal--and Crawford's penchant for baubles, bangles and beads--it's a creepy character-study about insanity (not quite a horror flick, although a genuine thriller) and the stark black and white photography and eye-popping design gives "Strait-Jacket" a terrific look. Superb supporting turns, particularly by Baker, help make this William Castle outing one of his best screamers from the 1960s. *** from ****

The movie opens with shocking betrayal. Lucy Harbin (Joan Crawford) returns from a journey only to find her husband (Lee Majors) in bed with another woman. She spins into a murderous rampage. With an axe, she evens the score by lopping of the heads of her adulterous husband and his mistress with a big, shiny axe. Her revenge is the fuel for local legend, but the price is twenty years in a mental intuition.

When Crawford is released from custody (fully recovered) the story begins.

The prison bus drops Crawford off at the home of her sweet and innocent daughter, who is very popular and happens to be dating the richest boy in town. She also watched as her mother brutally murdered two people, including her father, but in spite of life's little setbacks, Diane Harbin is perfectly fine.

With such a humdrum cast of characters, it seems strange when headless corpses start showing up all over town. Who could the murderer be?

This movie is one of the five best movies I saw in 2003. It's lots of fun, and Crawford's performance outclasses any I've seen. It is a GREAT movie. It's got LOTS of decapitations, but no gore or fake blood! A modern marvel!

I was expecting this to be another cheesy Castle flick. It would be entertaining but nothing memorable. However, this film was much better than the rest of Castle's films. The direction of the ax sequences was superb. You are constantly expecting the ax to drop, but it just never does. You can definitely see the influence that this film as had on horror films from Halloween to date.

Of course, I would be remiss if I did not also mention that having Crawford and Baker in the cast made it a much better acted film than most of Castle's as well. Crawford's ability to move from mood to mood with her character was mind boggling. It was almost like she was playing three or four different characters in the same film. Baker was beautiful and played really well off of Crawford. For a horror film, this was actually a very good movie.

No matter what script she was given to do, Joan Crawford was a pro. In this William Castle classic, she proves it again. The plot has been rehashed in previous reviews, so I can get to the heart of the matter here. Joan plays an ex-axe murderess with typical fury, beautifully combined with a poignancy which may be completely unexpected, but nevertheless completely appropriate. Well supported by the underrated Diane Baker, Leif Erikson, Rochelle Hudson and George Kennedy, she gives meaning and depth to what otherwise would have been just another horror film. Whether playing scenes with daughter Baker's boyfriend (John Anthony Hayes) or his snobbish parents, (Howard St, John and Edith Atwater), Crawford is on the money, using her years of experience to transcend her material. Thanks to her, "Strait-Jacket" is a worthy thriller from a Legendary Star and a fondly remembered director. See Castle's other collaboration with Joan, "I Saw What You Did" (1965). It's a winner, too!