Deranged

Based on the diabolical doings of psycho-mama's boy Ed Gein, this film is guaranteed to leave you feeling uneasy for days after viewing. Some images are so horrific that they are fairly certain to haunt your dreams. Character actor Roberts Blossom in his best role ever is chillingly good as the overly devoted son who, not quite all there to begin with, goes completely round the bend when his beloved mother dies. He digs the old lady up, brings her back to the family farm, restores her corpse, and kills an occasional female passerby to keep her company. It's every bit as strange as it sounds. But when it's over, you can't simply shrug it off and say to yourself, "Oh well, it's only a movie", because it's based on the truth. Viewers familiar with the Ed Gein case will note that the filmmakers have, for the most part, stuck close to the facts. It leaves a strong impression, and, to put it mildly, a rather disturbing one. What's truly amazing is that the filmmakers have brought a sense of humor to these gruesome events and it ISN'T offensive. DERANGED is one of the best scary/funny movies I have ever seen. It is most definitely not for children. As for the adults, you"ll just have to take your chances.

FINALLY got to see 'Deranged' recently after wanting to for years, and what a surprise it is. Low budget yes, but takes its subject matter much more seriously than you would expect. There are some touches of black comedy in places, but overall this is no "funny" gorefest ala the 'Evil Dead' flicks. Roberts Blossom puts in an excellent performance as Ezra Cobb, the Ed Gein inspired protagonist. You may not totally understand why he ends up doing what he does, but Blossom successfully conveys Cobb's loneliness and isolation, which explodes into full blown delusional behaviour.

The only negative comment I have about 'Deranged' is the clumsy and unnecessary intrusions of the narrator into the plot. Without that we'd be looking at a complete classic. Even so, 'Deranged' is much more than a "video nasty" and deserves a much larger audience.

Ok, we've seen "Texas Chainsaw Massacure", "Motel Hell" and that other newer film I forgot the name but all are not as good as this one. This movie tells the true story of cannible Ed Gein known in this movie as Ezra Cobb. Ez is a sympathetic character in this movie and I really do feel sorry for him as he takes care of his ailing mother and then she passes away. Ez kidnaps her corpse and sends her home and treats her as if she were alive again. During his state of dementia he finds himself being facinated with embolming bodies, cannibalism and things that are down right gross. This one is one that must be seen for those into real life crimes of the deranged.

If you can stomach the plot of this movie, then I think that it's fair to say that you will like it. The bloodshed is kept to a minimum (considering the subject matter), but the film should still probably be avoided if you are squeamish or easily offended. However, for people like me who can enjoy a warped sense of humour and don't mind a little gore, it's a pleasant way to spend some time.

Ezra Cobb (Roberts Blossom) loves his mother and is intimated by women. When his mother dies, he still hears her voice and decides to keep her around the house. But he does not want his mother to get lonely and has to get her some new friends...

Blossom is amazing as Ezra Cobb. You can say what you want about this film, but one thing you cannot say is that Blossom is a horrible actor -- he made Cobb come to life and seem as believable as such a character could be. Cobb, being the movie version of Ed Gein, is more or less exactly the way I picture Gein being. Blossom's facial expressions make this whole picture worthwhile.

I would like to commend them for the faithful version of this story. So many people take the Ed Gein story and add all these elements to it or just take a grain of it and run wild (as in "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" or "Silence of the Lambs"). While not all of this movie is factually what happened in Gein's life, the similarities are quite striking -- right down to the death of the hardware store clerk and the gutting of the woman like a deer.

Although this film is now almost forty years old, almost nothing is lost from the passage of time. In some ways, the film quality really adds to the setting (the story could only take place in the past). Another great feature is the narrator, who enters the story at random intervals to do an overview of the situation. Not only is he great, but watch the camera -- in one scene, the camera leaves Ezra in one room, goes to the narrator, and returns to Ezra in another room, in a seamless fashion (no cuts or edits) and visually showing the passage of time. It is quite well put together.

For a great Gein film, check this out. Whether Tobe Hooper admits to it or not, I do not know, but he owes a debt to this film (much as John Carpenter owes a debt to the late Bob Clark -- who coincidentally produced this). This film is plotted wonderfully, acted wonderfully, and flows wonderfully. With one small detail changed (the plastic looking blood) this would probably be considered a lost classic. Heck, maybe it already should be. (Okay, and maybe we should not be able to read the license plate saying Ontario.)

For a bonus: not only is the legendary Bob Clark an uncredited producer, but Tom Savini worked as a makeup artist for the film's corpses. This was Savini's first film, and the undisputed horror effects master is still going stronger today.