Lo strangolatore di Vienna

Odd blend of black humour and gruesomeness featuring a good, over-the-top performance from Buono, whose bulk and mild manner make for an effective psychopath.

The story is a Sweeney Todd rehash that catches the sinister aspects, while retaining the comic elements and being relatively gore-free.

Otto Lehman is shown to be sexually inadequate and belittled by his wife, resorting to voyeurism to satisfy his desires as he spies on a woman across the street. His frustrations trigger his aggression, while the butcher theme is used as a means of disposing of bodies, but isn't the motive for the killings.

Obvious similarities to 'Psycho' and 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'; also real-life German serial killers Fritz Haarman and Peter Kurten.

The film has enough to recommend it as an above average entry into the slasher genre, although the light hearted approach does tend to outweigh the horror elements too much.

Master Butcher, Otto Lehman (Victor Buono) has just been released from his 3-year stay in a mental institution. He was there for hitting a woman in the head with 2 lbs. Of liver. Otto was quite comfortable in confinement, and has a hard time adjusting to the outside world.

Thankfully, Otto has his career in sausage making, and goes right back to slicing and grinding his meats into tasty links of fleshy delight.

Otto also finds that killing those who irritate him helps to relieve his tension. But, what to do with those pesky bodies? Well, let's just say that Otto's sausage output increases exponentially.

THE MAD BUTCHER is a rather tame horror-comedy. In spite of the title, there's no real gore to speak of. There are a few, brief scenes containing nudity. Mr. Buono is superb in his unhinged role. His jovial demeanor is unsettling and humorous.

So, as long as you're not expecting blood spraying everywhere, you might enjoy this...

Big, creepy looking Victor Buono is released after serving 3 years in a mental institution but it's not long before he's committing murder and turning his victims into sausage meat at his Vienna butcher's shop. Watched this on VHS as Strangler of Vienna. I think a better title would have been The Mad Butcher of Vienna. Anyway it is a black comedy, very similar to Sweeney Todd. Very little gore in the print that I saw so and apparently uncut, so I'd question the parents guide here. The film dies suffer from bad dubbing but there are some colourful characters, the humour works reasonably well and we get a few instances of female nudity. Pretty tame by today's standards.

With Buono's comedic performance as a butcher who decides to take back over his butcher shop after 3 years in the asylum, and the film's overall tongue-in-cheek approach to the story, this film is an entertaining, dark-humored thriller. The film's bloodless approach to the subject matter is also a welcome change as well to numerous others of its ilk. Also, watch for the well-directed climax!!

Don't rent this cheap flick... A guy who kills people and feed their meat to his customers? Boy, no wonder his sausage is so good. Yeah right. The Mad Butcher will put you to sleep and leave you bored to death... not on the edge of your seat.

THIS MOVIE SUCKS, DON'T WATCH IT!!!!!