Berserk! (1967)

So much average

A Masterpiece!

A Disappointing Continuation

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

If you are looking for a cheesy popcorn flick that you and your friends can watch in the MST3K style then this will do...but go with Straightjacket instead if you can. In fact, I can't believe it ended up with the same twist ending of Straightjacket! Total ripoff of the great William Castle.However, there is some fun to be had here. Ol' Joan had some pretty good gams for a 62-year-old and it's a hoot to watch her love scenes with boy-toy Ty Hardin (whatta name!). Also, Joan was always a good actor even when she was in a complete piece of crap like this.Fun to watch some of the circus acts too. I fast forwarded through the elephants and lions as I don't approve of that sort of thing but the dog act was adorable!And since when is the "woman in half" trick done with a buzz-saw?!

First, let me start this review off by saying that I may have enjoyed this movie way too much. I enjoyed see Joan Crawford, with her green gloves that went all the way to the elbow, use all her dramatic skills to try to produce some interest into this slow mystery. And I will say that Ms Crawford did not disappoint and could have even got Academy votes had she been in a movie that had some degree of entertainment. And now I will progress to the movie.Other than the mystery there is little that produces any worthy interest in the production. It involves a touring circus where someone is killing off the performers in a rather nasty way. There are many suspects that may look like the killer, including Ms Crawford as the owner of the circus, but it will be right at the end where we will learn the identity of the true murderer. And when the end of the movie approaches and we now know who is doing the killing, the person running from the scene will meet an unusual situation just steps from the big top.I watched this film for one reason, to see Joan Crawford perform. And early in this picture it was apparent that even with Ms Crawford in the lead cast, there was no helping this movie. Watch the movie to see Ms Crawford acting ability, to see her in love with a guy twice her younger, to see her in her green dress and to see her at age 62 in leotards. For if you are watching for any other reason you will feel defeated for being taken so easily.

Murders are taking place at a circus, and people are suspecting that Joan Crawford's character Monica Rivers (owner of the circus) is going "Berserk!". We see one of the circus performers murdered right at the film starts, but most people think it's just an accident. It's after a second man is viciously killed that everyone realizes there is a killer among them. Monica is suspected right away. People believe she's killing people in order to gain a larger audience.We get some circus acts in the film too, pretty lengthy as well. We see circus animals (elephants, lions) perform, cute puppies do tricks, high- wire acts, the bearded lady, etc. Sometimes during these acts, murders are committed. For example, a woman is cut in half in which should've been a routine act after the killer fiddles with the box she lies in. It was around the middle frame that I figured out who the murderer was. Probably the weakest part of "Berserk!" was the writing around the suspects. There aren't that many, and the one's which the film try to lead us to suspecting don't really have great motives. Even the killer's identity was pretty weak.Overall, "Berserk!" is one of Joan Crawford's weaker films. When put up against 'Baby Jane' and 'Strait Jacket', it doesn't have the same excitement or sparkling performance to it. Crawford's character Monica was sort of bland. I'd still check this out though, it's worth at least one viewing. The murder scenes are pretty gruesome for it's time (1967) and the circus acts are very well done.6/10

Joan Crawford's next to last feature film Berserk finds her as boss lady of a circus where a string of murders is being committed. I will say the best thing about Berserk is the circus acts from the Billy Smart Circus where the film was shot in the United Kingdom.As for the film it's your usual slasher flick that could have, but didn't come from Hammer Studios. The whole cast with the exception of Crawford and Ty Hardin playing the hunky high wire artist were from Great Britain and the continent. Hardin's one daring dude, his high wire act not only consists of no net, but he walks underneath a row of very sharp spikes. There's no surviving if he falls.And there's a rapid rate of homicide at Crawford's show unless Scotland Yard in the person of Inspector Robert Hardy can figure out who is killing off the circus, a bit at a time.Maybe Berserk might have been better had Hammer Films actually had done this production. This was the kind of thing they were good at, even if the villain isn't a supernatural one. I will say that the death of Michael Gough is a shocking and original one. You might want to catch Berserk for that alone.As it is there are more red herrings thrown up as potential suspects in Berserk than at feeding time at Marineland.You'll go Berserk just trying to figure it all out.