I, Madman (1989)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Tibor Takács

Writer (WGA):

David Chaskin (written by)

Release Date:

13 October 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

is it fact, fiction, or your worst nightmare escaping from between the pages of a...

Plot:

Virginia works at a used book store. She's really into horror novels and discovers a really good book...

Plot Keywords:

Book | Part Stop Motion | Supernatural | Murder | Obsession

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Jenny Wright	...	Virginia
Clayton Rohner	...	Richard
Randall William Cook	...	Dr. Kessler / Malcolm Brand
Stephanie Hodge	...	Mona
Michelle Jordan	...	Colette
Vance Valencia	...	Sgt. Navarro
Mary Baldwin	...	Librarian
Raf Nazario	...	Lyle, Hotel Clerk (as Rafael Nazario)
Bob Frank	...	Hotel Manager
Bruce Wagner	...	Pianist
Kevin Best	...	Black Actor
Steven Memel	...	Lenny
Vincent Lucchesi	...	Lt. Garber
Murray Rubin	...	Sidney Zeit
Tom Badal	...	Composite Artist

Also Known As:

Hardcover (Europe: English title) (video title)

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Germany:16 | Australia:M | France:-12 | UK:18 | USA:R | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Sarliu/Diamant

Trivia:

A theater in the background in one scene is supposedly showing Metal Messiah (1978), director 'Tibor Takacs'' feature film debut.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: The shadows of the crew and equipment can be seen when Virginia enters her apartment carrying her groceries.

Movie Connections:

References Metal Messiah (1978)

Soundtrack:

Chanson D'Amour

Reading violent books causes severe damage to the mind... Watch violent movies instead!

Even though the premise sounds very ordinary and repetitive, this late 80's thriller features an unusually great deal of tension and slick elements. Tibor Tikács' (love the name) "I, Madman" focuses on a young woman – Virginia – obsessed by reading bloody horror novels. She recently discovered the oeuvre of a bizarre but stylish writer named Malcolm Brand. Especially his book "I, Madman" fascinates her as it describes the acts of a horribly deformed doctor who kills people in order to make an actress fall in love with him. But fiction turns into reality when Virginia finds herself chased by the book's eerie doctor and murders are committed all around her. This film contains a few very bloody sequences but it's not at all a gore flick like so many other similar productions from that decade. The power merely lies in the subtly build up suspense-scenes (with excellent depressing images of a nearly pauperized city) and, especially, the presence of an ultra-grim monster! This mad doctor/writer/hurt romanticist is a fine horror creation that'll certainly appeal to every fan of the genre. Jenny Wright gives away a fairly good acting performance as the petrified heroine. Horror fanatics will surely recognize her from the outstanding vampire film "Near Dark" and a few years after this, she stars in "the Lawnmower Man", next to Pierce Brosnan. The hunky guy who plays her boyfriend Richard isn't very convincing as the police detective, though.

Horror in the 80's got marked by a few obvious milestones (The Evil Dead, Day of the Dead, Nightmare on Elm Street…) and an overload of meaningless slashers. Between all those, there are a couple of worthy gems to discover, and "I, Madman" definitely is one of them. Tikács did a professional directing job here and he clearly controls the horror tactics well. This unquestionably is his best work as he later made the overly silly "The Gate" films