Going Berserk

A drummer/chauffeur (John Candy) engaged to a congressman's daughter (Alley Mills) encounters a sleazy film director (Eugene Levy), the leader of an aerobics cult (Richard Libertini), and other crazed characters during the days leading up to his wedding.

If you want to see a very skinny Eugene Levy, or a young pre-ghost busting Ernie Hudson, this is the film for you. Obviously not as big as other John Candy films, but well worth a watch if you happen to be a fan. (As someone who is more familiar with "Freaks and Geeks" than "SCTV", it was a special treat for me to see a young Joe Flaherty.) That is really all I can say. A fun film to be sure...

It's not really a story film, despite the goings-on of John Candy, who's a limo driver with squirrelly acquaintances and his efforts to marry Alley Mills. She's the daughter of Congressman Pat Hingle. A cult led by Richard Libertini is trying to kill Hingle, and they figure to hypnotize Candy into doing it because why not?

It's an excuse for the members of the cast who were members of Second City -- Candy, Eugene Levy, Joe Flaherty -- to do Second-City-style sketches. they range from mediocre to pretty funny. There's also the inevitable bit, when they have Candy hypnotized, that they seem to think it is very funny to have him do.... nothing. Film makers seem to think that this is funny. I do not.

Your enjoyment of this film will depend on your taste in comedy and whether you enjoy Second City.

John Candy. Need we say more? He is the main reason you should see this film. Most people don't realize how gifted he was as an actor. Witness him changing from poor slob to horny jerk. Just a simple(subtle) facial change and off we go. There are many great bits in this movie and many really dumb bits. The best moments for me are the KUNG FU U scenes as well as the great moment when John(in a trance) goes up on stage and talks about how much he loves his girlfriend-that is how much he and his genitals love his girlfriend. I'm sure reading this you might think this sequence sounds really crude. It is, but it is also very funny mainly because it is John Candy doing this bit. The story in general is pretty lame and Eugene Levy and Joe Flaherty(both SCTV alumni with Candy) are not given enough to do in the film. Levy has his moments, especially filming the wedding at the end(think Rod Serling) and the great scene when he is talking to his mother on the phone. Overall a good movie if you have had a tough day and need to put your brain on stupid. I give this one 4 out of 10.

Yeah,it's low budget. Yeah,it's one of Candy's earliest films, but it is maybe his funniest! John Candy was not so far removed from his SCTV days in "Going Berserk" and it shows. If you don't crack up when Candy tries to help a guy with his groceries while being hand-cuffed to an escaped cohort in the process of having sex with his girlfriend with only the apartment door separating them (huh?, see the movie!), or the way Euguene Levy (the creator of Kong Fu Yu) is talking to his mom on the phone, or just the countless number of facial expressions that only Candy could deliver you better check your pulse! If you like the John Candy of "Only the Lonely" this may not be a movie I would advise you to see, but if you enjoy the SCTV days of John Candy, this movie is a must see!

You should not take what I am about to say lightly. I've seen many, many films and have reviewed a great deal of them, in print. So when I tell you that this film has the single funniest scene I have ever seen in a movie, you might want to listen to me. There's a lot of diversity of opinion as to what makes this INCREDIBLY stupid movie as funny as it is. And to those who just didn't get, well, I can't blame them, too much. The scene I speak of, comes at about the 30 minute mark and involves a dead convict shackled to John Candy. Up until that point, I had found the film dumb, confusing and it was beginning to lose me. When this scene came up, I laughed so hard, I peed my pants. No movie has ever done that to me before. When the project began, "Going Berserk" was supposed to be the SCTV movie. I remember it being announced. As time went on, the cast was whittled down To John Candy, Joe Flaherty & Eugene Levy. There also must have been a regime change at Universal, while it was being shot, because upon being released, it was shown in nearly ZERO theaters. When watching this a second time, I listened to the theme song (which actually flaunts how incomprehensible the plot is, in the lyrics), relaxed my logic nerve and figured out what was going on. Aside from the aforementioned routine, "Going Berserk" has many other hilarious scenes to recommend it. This is almost a 3 Stooges flick, except it's much funnier. Director David Steinberg has razor sharp timing, and he must have been laughing all through this. As for Candy, who's basically in charge here, he has NEVER been funnier. With all the plot devices and explanatory scenes thrown out the window, he absolutely runs wild. Flaherty and Levy follow him effortlessly. There is a plot, but it's a plot like "Animal House" had a plot, and yeah, the script is uneven, and a little slow to start. Once you know this, however, you can well appreciate the full SCTV style craziness that transpires. It IS stupid, but it's stupid on purpose, and you need to remember that when you see it. DO see it, and discover for yourself, if it has the funniest scene of all time in it.