How low is Burt Reynolds willing to stoop, during this late phase of his career? Apparently pretty low indeed, judging from this tedious thriller that was barely released theatrically. Reynolds seems miscast in his change-of-pace villainous role, and the snail-like pacing and poor production values remove most of the "entertainment value" this movie might had possessed. (*1/2)
Plot summary
David and Cassie Osborne have an argument one night. So the next morning after David goes to work, Cassie runs off to her sister's house for a few days with their daughter Samantha. Only they never get there. David starts looking for them, and her sister, Joanne, thinks David had something to do with their disappearance, and calls the police. Actually Samantha and Cassie are with Roy and Georgina Scudder, and their daughter Jill. Roy picked them up after their car broke down. The only problem is, the Scudders, who seem a little odd at first, won't let them leave or call anyone.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
March 13, 2020 at 10:25 AM
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Failure....
No career comebacks were made here...easily one of the worst movies ever made
Appalling thriller from director Danny Huston went straight-to-video in 1995; one look at it and you'll understand why. Based on the book "Playmates" by Andrew Neiderman, Mia Sara plays an unhappy wife who is kidnapped along with her toddler by a highly dysfunctional rural family. Note to Burt Reynolds: never again try to attempt a Hollywood comeback with a role as a psychotic hick in a curly hairpiece. Shameful, amateurish dud gives off bad vibrations all the way. Huston tries hard to be repulsive (Reynolds punching Sara in the face, a big ugly bug resting on Brian Wimmer's mouth) rather than make an attempt to explore these characters with any kind of depth. He doesn't want viewers to invest their interest, he just wants to shock and provoke. That works for about two scenes...with a seat-numbing 90 minutes still left on the clock. NO STARS from ****
Great fun
I'm surprised by the negative reviews on here because THE MADDENING is great fun for those of us who enjoy psycho-thrillers. It's one of the cheesiest of the '90s, in no small part thanks to the presence of Burt Reynolds as an out-and-out nutcase whose open madness becomes more and more apparent as the running time goes out. He plays a rural hick, living in a big old country house with wife Angie Dickinson, and the story begins when innocent Mia Sara ends up at the place a prisoner. The sub-plots that follow are laced with plenty of comedy, with a Nedry-style cop hunting for Sara's put-upon husband whom he suspects of her murder. None of it's remotely convincing, but watching the actors chewing the scenery is certainly entertaining, with things building to an appropriately OTT climax. They don't make 'em like this anymore!