Deranged is a frustrating movie. It's so close to being good that I feel bad that I can't give it a better rating.
The first half of the film is pretty bad, campy and boring. It has a few interesting moments, although very brief, and a couple of laughs to sustain the viewer until the movie gets going in the second half. Unfortunately the second half isn't that much better. It does do an about-face however and starts to take itself more seriously. There is a nice scene where Ezra brings a pretty girl home, however, that is the high point of the movie.
What Deranged is lacking is a focus. Ed Gein wasn't a very prolific killer and neither is Ezra Cobb so there isn't much suspense in his stalking of victims. However, there also isn't much done about his use of dead human flesh and bone in making furniture etc. (which is what Gein did) other then in the scene with the pretty girl mentioned above. Deranged needed to focus on the bizarre hobby Ezra Cobb had instead of focusing on how unassuming he was and why nobody would ever peg him for a killer. Ezra was a dull country bumpkin, which makes the movie dull too.
Deranged is far too campy for the first 40 minutes for it to be totally enjoyable. Roberts Blossom does a nice job as Ezra, adding a bit of comedy to the film, however he's not very imposing and therefore not scary. While it has a couple of moments of interest, on the whole Deranged is a pretty dull movie, lacking in suspense, scares or insight into the life of Ezra Cobb. Deranged rates a 3 out of 10.
The first half of the film is pretty bad, campy and boring. It has a few interesting moments, although very brief, and a couple of laughs to sustain the viewer until the movie gets going in the second half. Unfortunately the second half isn't that much better. It does do an about-face however and starts to take itself more seriously. There is a nice scene where Ezra brings a pretty girl home, however, that is the high point of the movie.
What Deranged is lacking is a focus. Ed Gein wasn't a very prolific killer and neither is Ezra Cobb so there isn't much suspense in his stalking of victims. However, there also isn't much done about his use of dead human flesh and bone in making furniture etc. (which is what Gein did) other then in the scene with the pretty girl mentioned above. Deranged needed to focus on the bizarre hobby Ezra Cobb had instead of focusing on how unassuming he was and why nobody would ever peg him for a killer. Ezra was a dull country bumpkin, which makes the movie dull too.
Deranged is far too campy for the first 40 minutes for it to be totally enjoyable. Roberts Blossom does a nice job as Ezra, adding a bit of comedy to the film, however he's not very imposing and therefore not scary. While it has a couple of moments of interest, on the whole Deranged is a pretty dull movie, lacking in suspense, scares or insight into the life of Ezra Cobb. Deranged rates a 3 out of 10.