Ed Gein - Il macellaio di Plainfield

The bizarre story of Ed Gein has inspired many portrayals of screen serial killers, and will no doubt continue to do so. Because in this case the truth really IS stranger than fiction!

The obscure 1970s cult flick 'Deranged' changed the name of Gein to "Ezra Cobb", but stuck pretty much to the facts. 'Ed Gein' fails to surpass that overlooked movie. It has one or two good moments but I couldn't help but be disappointed.

The best thing by far about it is the strong performance of Steve Railsback as Gein. He gives it his best shot, and is almost as good as Roberts Blossom ('Deranged's star), but I don't feel that the movie overall is as effective. Railsback is a talented actor ('Helter Skelter', 'The Stunt Man') who has spent the last twenty years in b-grade hell ('Turkey Shoot', 'Lifeforce', 'Scissors', 'Barb Wire', 'Vanishing Point', 'Disturbing Behavior'). He deserves better, but I don't think this movie is going to help any. Too bad, because as usual he is much better than the material he has to work with. Better luck next time Steve!

This movie gets a lot more criticism than it generally deserves. Indeed, it is extremely low-budget, but it basically nails the whole point of Ed Gein better than anyone ever has, or possibly ever will. What seems to disappoint most people is the fact that the film sticks so closely to the story of what happened. The reality is, Ed Gein was not a serial-killer in any respect, and murdered two women who he may have felt resembled his dead-mother. What he is most remembered for, in-reality, are the ghoulish-excavations and "articulations" of dead-bodies.

It's very difficult for us to imagine in 2005 how much of a bombshell Ed Gein was in late-1950s America. In-fact, it's my own humble opinion that we still haven't entirely coped with the knowledge of such aberrant-behavior. Why do people do such things? Sometimes, there are no clear-answers, but the makers of "Ed Gein" have shed some much-needed light on what is known about Gein's metamorphosis into a full-blown ghoul. Surprisingly, a great-deal of the psychological subtext of his life has leaked-into films "based" on his "true story." Most successful-of-all--naturally--is Hitchcock's "Psycho," but Steve Railsback and Chuck Parello have shown us a very clear scenario into why Ed Gein became the man we know-of today. Gein was basically bisexual and had a strong-desire to BE a woman, like his mother.

As stated in "Psycho" so well, he wanted to "...become his mother," in a sad-attempt to "bring her back" to life. His father was a pathetic-drunk, and as is well-known, his mother had a god-like dominance (coupled with religious-fanaticism and sociopathic-attitudes)over the young boy. Ed was also deeply-traumatized by an incident on the family farm where he saw his parents slaughtering a pig--Ed was unable to assist them, and was often called a "panty-waist" by his mother. The incident, and a few others, are enacted convincingly by Parello and company, and much of the film takes-place in Gein's head (where it belongs).

There are a few continuity-errors: the headlights of a car are clearly from the 1990s in one insert-shot, and there are a few moments where the production-design could have been closer to what 1950s America looked-like. But, all-in-all, you have the definitive film on Ed Gein. It's all here, in all its pathetic-glory. This is what happens when someone is neglected by family and society spiritually and medically;this was simply a sick man who needed help. Nobody did until it was too-late. This isn't sexy and exciting to gore-hounds and thrill-seekers who come to a film like this not to learn something, but merely to stimulate their hunger for viscera. Excellent film! How can you lose with ole' Steve Railsback, anyway?

Postscript: It seems possible Mr. Railsback was a target-for-death of Mr. Robert Blake!

Ed Gein - (Special pre-release preview) USA/2001/18. Dir. Chuck Parello.

Hailed as the inspiration for many of Hollywood's greatest murderers, Ed Gein was a real-life serial killer operating in 1950's Wisconsin. We were treated to a special pre-release preview of this forthcoming biopic. Many may have been left with a strange sense of déjà vu.

'Psycho', the novel upon which Hitchcock's classic horror is based was inspired by the activities of the reclusive farmer, with the author Robert Bloch living just fifty miles from the town of Plainfield where Gein lived. The domineering mother character is consequently a big part of both films, as she instructs her wayward son to kill from beyond the grave. The skin wearing antics of 'Buffalo Bill' in Jonathan Demme's `The Silence of the Lambs' (based on the Robert Harris novel) were also a part of the twisted Gein routine as his butchered and ate his way through his victims, spreading fear through small-town America.

`The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' and `American Psycho' also owe a debt to this true tale, which demonstrates the full extremes of human depravity. Such was the myth attached to this story that it is surprising that no one has tried to bring it to the big screen before. The character of `Psycho's' Norman Bates is undoubtedly far better known than his real-life inspiration but director Chuck Parello takes a brave step and tackles the monster head on.

Ed Gein's shy existence from abused child to grave robber and murderer are carefully charted, with his obsession for anatomy and his mother always in the background. Whether completely truthful or not, the film portrays Gein as more of a misguided bumpkin than a cold-blooded maniac. The opening shows apparently authentic news footage from the time, with neighbours expressing their shock that such a `nice, quiet young man like Ed' could be involved in such horrific crimes. This adds a touch of realism to the proceedings, but the remainder from childhood through killings to capture is standard fare, with few surprises en route.

I caught this film on cable expecting a real waste of time (hey, I wasn't busy), but was very surprised to see that there was a lot more to this movie than it seems on the surface.

Yes, 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre', 'Psycho', 'Silence of the Lambs', and numerous other films have been "loosely" based on the story of Ed. These are all far better horror movies and, with the exception of 'Psycho', depend very heavily on blood & guts. However, all three of those films were fictional accounts. There's something considerably more horrific about the fact that these events actually happened (although many names were changed to protect the innocent/dead/consumed).

Yet another case of showing what happens when children are raised without a sense of love, compassion or happiness. Jeffery Dahmer's problems had very similar origins, as did several other serial killers (and, I'm sure, many who are still out there). Instead of 'love and affection', Ed and his brother are given large doses of 'fire & brimstone'... Ed accepts this without question, although his brother does not (much to Ed's dismay), and the combination of the twisted religious concepts his mother imposed upon him (to her, there seemed to be no good in the Bible, only 'Revelations' and in particular the 'Whore of Babylon', which all other women seemed to be in her mind... upon which most of his killings are attributed to, granted through his schizophrenic delusions of his mother).

Regardless of what made him what he turned out to be, the sensationalistic qualities of the true events are better left for those who wish to learn more. This film touches on much of the creepiness, but explains little motivation (aside from his religious 'logic')... I believe this is intentional, as the movie is really telling the life story of Ed Gein rather than describing his tabloid exploits.

Oddly enough, I was not left with a feeling of disgust, repulsion or anger with Ed; Ed was a surprisingly sympathetic character that you feel more pathos for than anything else. Steve Railsback again has done a wonderful job of portraying a historical sicko (after his wild-eyed performance as Charlie Manson in 'Helter Skelter'), and is utterly convincing.

This is a psychological profile rather than a case history. They hint at several motivations in the film (his comment at the bar of "...any of y'all fellas ever considered changing your sex, like they do in Sweden?", his 'skin suit', his 'rituals' where he is attempting to resurrect his dead mother, etc), but ultimately it is simply the delusions of his mother that drive him to action... actions, which in most case, Ed really seems to object to; but being a loyal son, he obeys his mother.

They do not focus on the truly bizarre elements, such as the skull bowls or the skin lampshades, because for the most part this film is told through the mind of Ed... and these things would have been nothing special to Ed, just another hobby like books on Nazi atrocities, cannibalism, shrunken heads, and taxidermy. To him, these artifacts were simple furnishings that he didn't think twice about. I also question that the skull bowls were something that were used a lot; I believe that they were the equivalent of his 'fine china' that he brought out for special occasions (like have his next dinner over for dinner).

My wife felt that Ed should not have been found insane because he knew what he was doing was wrong. I disagree with that. While he may have known that what he was doing could get him in trouble, were he to get caught, he clearly felt that he was doing what mother told him to do, which for him was the 'right' thing to do... never mind the fact that he accepts these instructions from a delusion (compare this to Russell Crowe's character in 'A Beautiful Mind'... he has delusions as well, but he ultimately acknowledges them as delusions and can ignore them... Ed is so focused on bringing his mother back, that he wouldn't ignore his delusion even if he knew she was not real - it might seem strange to compare the two films, but I happened to see them back to back).

In the end, do we learn anything new? Not really. Do we learn anything about ourselves? Not really. Do we learn anything about human nature? Only that we seem to be fascinated with these sort of aberrations. Serial killers and mass murderers have become the 'freak show' of modern times, and it's ok to stare at them... at least, that's the way it seems. The film 'bookends' with actual footage of his neighbors at the beginning of the film talking about what a quiet, normal guy Ed was, and ends with actual footage of the real Ed being hauled away by the police.

To say that the aforementioned films were based on the life of Ed is like saying that a film about chopping down trees is based on the life of George Washington; they only take snippets of his tale. "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" takes the 'leatherface' mask, bone sculptures and indirect cannibalism (since they are selling the meat, it is a different type of cannibalism), but Ed certainly had no commercial operation; "Psycho" takes the aspects of his isolation, taxidermic skills, and the delusions of his domineering dead mother; "Silence of the Lambs" takes the cannibalism (true cannibalism, which Ed was a 'fan' of), the sexual identity issues, and the idea of dressing up as a woman (as opposed to dressing up LIKE a woman)... but none of these are as horrible as what really happened. To tell the true story of Ed Gein, in full Technicolor blood & guts, would be far more than what most audiences could stomach...

Not a bad film, not a great film. Great performance by Railsback. Best to see if you know a little bit about Ed to begin with, but not required... the actual atrocities are not as interesting as the man himself and how he came to be what he was.

A man in his late forties, who lived in a small community of Plainfield, Wisconson. A local oddity by the name of Ed Gein (Steve Railsback), who is just a little different from others. Ed was tormented and abused years ago by his parents, especially his mother (The late:Carrie Snodgress). Since Ed's repression brought out the worse of him, which lead to brutal murders and countless mutilations from his victims and corpses.

Directed by Chuck Parello (Herny:Portrait of a Serial Killer 2, The Hillside Strangler) made a horrific, unflinching horror film. Which it is Based on a True Story of America's First Infamous Serial Killers. Railsback, who played a true Serial Killer before in Helter Skelter as Charlie Manson back in 1976. Which it was a 2 Part T.V. Movie. Railsback is well cast as Ed Gein.

DVD has an sharp Pan & Scan (1.33:1) transfer and an fine-Dolby 2.0 Surround Sound. DVD only extra is a trailer, but this DVD could have used more features of this fascinating true-life tale. Oddly Enough, they did a better Ed Gein movie back more than three decides ago with the film titled "Deranged". Railsback is also one of the Executive Producers for this film. (*** ½/*****).