Well this is quite a strange movie, British/Canadian film set in an asylum where the doctor/mad scientist in charge is as crazy as his patients, in whom he has implanted electrical devices so that he can create the perfect being (or something, I found it rather confusing to say the least). "Welcome to the last good old fashioned madhouse" he says to a new arrival. Only thing is I doubt that many mental institutions stage musical numbers and accompanying dance routines, performed by the patients, they are very frequent in this film and I found it to be too much. At one point they sing "One for all and all for one" over and over, no doubt inspired by the classic "Freaks" (1932). One of the main characters is Veronica, a beautiful patient who - along with a few other women - sheds her clothes throughout, Hysteria was directed by Rene Daalder, a protege of the infamous Russ Meyer, so the nudity is hardly surprising. Most of the running time takes place in the dimly light old building, the picture is quite dark though in fairness the print that Talking Pictures TV (UK) screened was poor, VHS quality. It looked like it was from 1987, not 1997. Hysteria is described as a psychological thriller but it is also a horror that has a dose of black humour. I didn't really enjoy it, the plot isn't easy to make sense of and I found the dance numbers too repetitive, at 103 minutes it was too long. It is an unusual movie and while it is far from being instantly forgettable it is not one that I would want to watch again.
Hysteria
1997
Action / Drama / Sci-Fi / Thriller
Hysteria
1997
Action / Drama / Sci-Fi / Thriller
5.2/10
357
Plot summary
Legendary actor Patrick McGoohan turns his famous character from THE PRISONER upside down as the psychiatrist in charge of an insane asylum. He has connected his inmates into a group mind where they share each other's psychoses, dreams and sexuality with all the scary and titillating implications imaginable! Like his highly acclaimed cult classic MASSACRE AT CENTRAL HIGH, director Rene Daalders provocative excursion into sci fi-horror filmmaking looks at first glance like a classic grindhouse movie, but it is up to much more. In addition to its operatic mayhem, HYSTERIA is a mind-expanding reflection on individual vs. group consciousness, power, control, and freedom.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
May 23, 2022 at 10:27 AM
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Fame (1980) meets Asylum (1972)
What starts out like a thriller,ends like a fairytale.
The ending of this is just a polling and so is the sixties free love vibe that surrounds it.
The old doctor seems to be some miracle worker and can cure any disorder and it turns them into an entertainment group.
This dragged on for way to long that at times I thought I was watching a musical and I was waiting on some sort of revolt that would end it all.
Finally the young doctor leaves the place but after a few minutes decides he was better of at the asylum?!.
The first part was interesting but the second part totally blew it. This movie has way to many inconsistencies for it to truly work.
A 4 over all. And that's me being kind.