Madman

Rating:
Summary: Atmospheric, but formulaic and slow slasher film...
Review: Having heard many good things about this purported 'Drive-In Classic', it was with a great deal of anticipation that I sat to watch Anchor Bay's DVD of Madman. The film and DVD left me with mixed feelings.
The film has a very strong beginning with a group of camp counsellors huddled around an autumn campfire recounting the origins of the titular 'Madman Marz' by the pale moonlight. Marz was a behemoth of a man, a farmer with a penchant for bar brawls, hard drinking and abusing his wife and children. For no apparent reason, one night he murders his entire family with his trusty axe. Upon learning of his heinous acts, the townspeople set upon 'Marz' vigilante style and hang him. The next morning, his body has disapeared, never to be found. From this stems the legend that if 'Madman Marz' hears his name uttered aloud he will return to slay all in his path. Of course, one of the camp counsellors cannot resist the opportunity to taunt 'Marz' by calling his name, setting a murderous chain of events in action.
Where this film falters is in trying to sustain any type of suspense or atmosphere, it is just too slow moving and large segments of the film seem devoted to truly inane character development. Another problem is that none of the camp counsellors are particularly interesting or likeable, truth be told the actors are quite unattractive and uncharismatic, they certainly pale in comparison to the teens in 'Halloween' or even 'Friday The 13th'. A huge flaw with this film is the terrible, annoying music too. The incidental music would be better suited to a seventies porno, while the 'love song' during the hot tub scene has my vote for one of the worst songs of all time. Imagine the most insipid folk song you have ever heard and cross that with the most syrupy love song you know of and you will begin to get an understanding of the fetid stench of this song, which goes on way too long. Fans of Tom Savini style gore effects are in for a huge letdown, the effects featured throughout 'Madman' are amateurish at best and downright awful at worst. The decapitation scenes are akin to seeing a department store mannequin splattered with ketchup, yes it's really that bad.
As for the good parts, the film does make great use of the nocturnal forest locations evoking a genuine sense of dread and creepiness in certain scenes. A couple of scenes also managed to conjure the appropriate amount of tension and resulted in minor jump worthy moments, these were few and far between however. The best part of the film is the character of 'Madman Marz', a huge, wild haired humanoid creature almost more beast-like than human able to communicate only through animalistic noises. The 'Madman' is truly one of the slasher genre's more memorable characters, right up there with Jason Voorhees(Friday The 13th) and Leatherface(Texas Chainsaw Massacre).
Anchor Bay's DVD presentation is unusually substandard, with poor sound and a vast amount of scratches and blemishes apparent on the film print throughout. This is normally expected of low budget films appearing for the first time on DVD, but in the case of 'Madman' it was a very prominent fault and one which detracted from my enjoyment of the film greatly. The DVD does at least feature audio commentary, a trailer and tv spots.
In closing, 'Madman' is a negligible contribution to the slasher genre that should be viewed by completists only. It is not the worst of its kind, but certainly not the best either with very little to recommend it. For above average slasher mayhem, check out: Sleepaway Camp, The Prowler, The Burning, My Bloody Valentine and of course, John Carpenter's seminal Halloween.

Rating:
Summary: Unsatisfying
Review: "Madman" attempted to cash in on the success of "Friday the 13th" and John Carpenter's "Halloween." Unfortunately for the producers of this movie, every other guy in Hollywood with a few dollars decided to cash in at roughly the same time. Thus the late 1970s and early 1980s are rife with cheap slasher films sporting a crop of youngsters and a maniac on the rampage. You have "My Bloody Valentine," "Graduation Day," "April Fool's Day," and a dozen other similarly themed films. With the advent of DVD, these movies are starting to make a comeback. In a few cases, the rerelease of some of these cheesy slasher films is a good thing. For the most part, however, the films look little better now than they did back then. Occasionally, one of the DVD companies will through a few extras on the disc or punch up the sound to 5.1, but this is usually a rarity. Sadly, many companies continue to release these slasher epics on disc just as they appeared in theaters, which means edited versions missing critical seconds of gore. I don't know if the "Madman" disc is missing crucial gore footage, but I somehow doubt it. Overall, the movie is so unexciting that even an unedited version wouldn't accomplish much.

When you think of "Madman," think of a summer camp and a bunch of counselors. Sound familiar? It ought to considering nearly every other slasher film employed the same fundamental plot elements. In this film, the counselors for a "gifted" kids' camp are sitting around a campfire listening to the owner of the place tell the weird story of Madman Marz. According to local legend, Marz was once a farmer in the area who went crazy one day and killed his entire family. Not content to commit such an atrocity and melt away into the forest, the farmer turned up at the local bar and ordered a beer afterwards. What a nice, upstanding member of the community! Moreover, the owner of the camp solemnly swears that speaking Marz's name above a whisper will result in a rather gruesome return of the maniac. Predictably, a goofy kid stands up and starts roaring Marz's name at the top of his lungs. As if that wasn't enough, it turns out Marz's abandoned farmhouse sits just feet away from the campfire. Well, you know the legend is true and that Marz will show up, but what really angered me was the fact that the kid who yelled Marz's name walks away from the fire to explore the farmhouse and thereby escapes most of the ensuing carnage. In a perfect world, this jerk would have been the first one to get it. Instead, the rest of his colleagues go to their doom while looking for this dunce. The whole incident disgusted me, a sensation that only increased by degrees as I viewed the rest of the film.

Another thing that caused me some consternation was a hot tub scene that ranks as one of the cheesiest sequences in film history--and not in a good way. The music playing over this scene was like ice skates on a chalkboard, a stomach churning synthesis of ABBA and the guy who did "Dreamweaver." Well, it sounded like such a mix, except it was lamer. By this time I decided everyone in camp had to die or else I would blow a gasket. Anyway, the owner of the camp decides to head into town to play cards, effectively removing him from the nightmare about to descend on the campers and counselors. Marz does indeed show up, although we rarely see him clearly for most of the film. What we see is an extremely unruly mop of hair, some bib overalls, and huge hands and feet. An impressive movie villain, to be sure, except he doesn't do anything spectacular. Oh, he is strong enough, capable of tossing human bodies around with seeming ease or pulling an axe out of a stump with barely a ripple of a bicep. On the surface, Madman Marz promises a heap of bloody violence, but in execution he's a rather timid sort of fellow. His victims tend to go out with a whimper, not with a bang.

The atrocious acting didn't help the movie in the least. Even worse, the cast of "Madman" is the least attractive bunch of victims ever dispatched by a psychotic. I have said it once and I will say it again: if you cannot feel some connection to the victims, the slasher movie will fail. This adage doesn't always hold up, but it does for the most part. Not one character in "Madman" rose above the role of cardboard cutout/cannon fodder. As if these negatives aren't enough, the gore scenes weren't all that effective. A hanging promised much but delivered little, as did a decapitation via the hood of a truck. I expected a little more grue from a slasher film, but such is life. The positives of the film, including a few suspenseful sequences where we see the shadow of Marz moving around in the background and a surprising ending for a film in this genre, did help on occasion. Overall, though, "Madman" is strictly bush league.

The DVD version actually came with a commentary track! This addition to the disc surprised me to some extent since I figured everyone associated with the movie would feel it best to simply let it sink into oblivion. The fact that the commentary isn't that good sort of took the surprise out of the whole thing, but it is there for anyone who wants to waste time listening to it. "Madman" is required viewing for horror aficionados, especially for fans of the slasher genre, but all others should ignore the movie.

Rating:
Summary: Another FRIDAY THE 13TH clone, but fairly good.
Review: As usual, this is another Friday the 13th clone, which borrows elements from many slashers from the 80's. But suprisingly, it is better than some of the rest of the pack. Quite original, in some parts (dig that death-under-a-car-hood scene!), but in a way, you feel you have watched Friday or Halloween once again for the 50th time.

The story is about a summer camp (surprise, surprise!) where a group of counselors and campers are telling ghost stories. The manager of the camp, Max, tells one about a man named "Madman Marz" (I know the name is corny) who murdered his family and was then hanged, but the body disappeared. Max claims that if you say his name above a whisper, he will come after you (this is supposed to be a true story). But then a disbelieving, idiot camper shouts his name out loud, and then for the rest of the night, there are murders galore by a hulking figure with a deformed face.

Most of the cast is unknowns to me, all except for Gaylen Ross(!), who starred in Dawn of the Dead and Creepshow. In some ways, this film is very disappointing, but on the other hand, the effects are very good (and very gory), and the atmosphere is spooky and disturbing. And everyone who you think won't die, does.

I would recommend this film to fans of the slasher genre, not to people who are looking for a masterpiece. I guess this film has gained somewhat of a cult following, and I can see why (most cheap horror films of the 80's have, including 1983's Sleepaway Camp and 1986's Mountaintop Motel Massacre). But don't get me wrong-- I would definately watch this again...

Rating:
Summary: A nice try...for a FRIDAY THE 13TH clone
Review: Axe-weilding murderer goes on a killing spree at a summer camp after a loud-mouth councilor shouts his name - "Madman Marz". Offers more contenuity and pace then that of FRIDAY THE 13TH, but not nearly as stylish (which isn't saying much). Still, not the worst of the genre. Anchor Bay who have a reputation second-to-none for releasing outstanding horror DVDs still do a good job with this one, but fans of the film may be slightly disappointed. Presented in widescreen which is actually well rendered with respectable visual clarity, especially since practically all of it takes place at night. But the transfer is a "letterbox" and not anamorphic which will suffer on widescreen TVs. The audio track is a plain but satisfactory Dolby mono track and the extras are the theatrical trailer and selection of TV spots and an interesting commentary track. If you are a devotee to the genre, then you can't go wrong with having this item in your collection, just don't expect THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN.

Rating:
Summary: A nice try...for a FRIDAY THE 13TH clone
Review: Axe-weilding murderer goes on a killing spree at a summer camp after a loud-mouth councilor shouts his name - "Madman Marz". Offers more contenuity and pace then that of FRIDAY THE 13TH, but not nearly as stylish (which isn't saying much). Still, not the worst of the genre. Anchor Bay who have a reputation second-to-none for releasing outstanding horror DVDs still do a good job with this one, but fans of the film may be slightly disappointed. Presented in widescreen which is actually well rendered with respectable visual clarity, especially since practically all of it takes place at night. But the transfer is a "letterbox" and not anamorphic which will suffer on widescreen TVs. The audio track is a plain but satisfactory Dolby mono track and the extras are the theatrical trailer and selection of TV spots and an interesting commentary track. If you are a devotee to the genre, then you can't go wrong with having this item in your collection, just don't expect THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN.

Rating:
Summary: Total early 80's slasher cheese
Review: Can't believe this one's on DVD! Typical Friday the 13th ripoff with "Madman Mars" as the bad guy seeking revenge. The best thing about this film has gotta be the theme song... "Beware of the Madman Mars". LOL!!!

Rating:
Summary: Madman Marz stalks now on DVD!!! Check it Out!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: Happy to see this great eighties Camp-Slasher on DVD! The movie is about some Axe-swingin' Psykko named Madman Marz. Way Cooler than those crappy modern Slasher-flix like Urban Legends and Scream. Some nice Gorescenes in this one 2! PLEASE Anchor Bay, release more of those camp-flicks like "Just Before Dawn", "Final Terror", "Memorial Day" and the Uncut Version of " My bloody Valentine"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rating:
Summary: Did Something in that tree Just Move???!!
Review: I first saw Madman years ago when it was first released on VHS. I was probably in me early teens or pre-teens, and I remember it scaring my brother and I witless. About 10 years ago I found a copy for sale in a mom & pop video store in the neighborhood and picked it up. Now here I was in my mid 20's, newly married and decided to put this in one night when my wife was out of town. Damn if Madman still didn't pack a punch that had me holding onto my dachshund for some comfort. Then flash forward 10 years later, here I am in my mid 30's , well past the demo for this kind of flick, and I get the DVD. I watch the DVD, again alone in the dark, and damn if it still doesn't get under my skin and creep me out. What is so goofy here is that I love horror films. I have seen all of the 80's slasher movies scores of times, I enjoy all of the latest and greatest scream-fests Hollywood can pound out, but there is just something about Madman that stands out. I don't know if it's the cheap production, or the bad acting, or the synth soundtrack, but somehow it really strikes a chord that produces genuine fright with me. I see by other reveiws here that I am in the minority with Madman, but I would recommend this movie very highly! This thing has scared me for three decades. Maybe you just need to watch Madman alone in the dark for it's power to work, but whatever it is just make sure that when you do watch it, that someone is in the house you can talk to afterward, or get a dachshund to try and ward off the willies!!

Rating:
Summary: good 80's horror
Review: I had first seen this movie at the show and i have been looking for it in video stores ever since then (big and small) and nobody knew what i was talking about.So i gave up my search until i just recently found it at Amazon.If you like Michael Myers,Jason,Texas Massacre and so on then you are going to like this just as much.Put this one in your collection,it's worth it.Because besides The Exorcist i have never seen so many people get scared and leave out of the theater (including my dad).And more people left on Madman than on The Exorcist.That is why i give it 5 stars just based on that fact alone.It has an 80's setting but watch it with an open mind and you won't be disapointed.I promise!

Rating:
Summary: I was disappointed!
Review: I have read all of the reviews on here and being a huge fan of Horror flicks I thought I would give it a shot but I was very disappointed. It was poorly acted (which is common for those films)and boring.. I just could not get into it at all and my husband actually fell asleep.. it was certainly not the worst I have seen but I wouldn't see it again!