CriminallyInsane

Criminally Insane (aka Crazy Fat Ethel) (1975)

Ethel is crazy and she is fat. When her grandmother brings her home from the hospital (for the crazy don’t you know) she makes a terrible mistake. See in an effort to help Ethel lose some weight she locks the cabinets and empties the fridge. Ethel is more or less docile when she can stuff her face, but take her food away and you are in a world of trouble! First she takes her revenge on Grandma, then the boy who delivers the food, then her slutty sister and her sister’s abusive boyfriend. But everything is all good as long as Ethel can keep the panty stocked and no one notices the smell from the upstairs bedroom.

So I’ve had an awful time trying to write this review. You see this is one of those movies that has no business being as good as it is. First of all there isn’t much to the story. Ethel is crazy, fat, and somehow gets away with killing people for a while. That really is the whole plot of the film and should get old pretty quick. But I think that the director/writer, Nick Millard, manages to catch lightning in a bottle with the sleazy characters (especially the sister’s boyfriend) and goofy situations that dominate the movie’s rather short runtime (61 minutes). Toss in some really terrible dialogue and the movie is entertaining in spite of itself. I also have to say that the late Priscilla Alden gives a performance, as Ethel that I can’t say is good, but is impossible to ignore. Sort of like how you can’t help but stare at a car accident, when you really don’t want to see it. Still without her in the lead role I just can’t see this movie working, so you have to give her some credit.

The special effects fit in with the quality of the script and acting. In other words they aren’t good, but somehow work well on screen. Basically it looks like ketchup or some other kind of red food coloring is tossed around the sets when Ethel goes on her “bloody” rampage. Also their idea of decaying bodies is to toss what looks like oatmeal or maybe some sort of paste on the skin of the actors. You know I have to say that as goofy as the effects come off they do work when tossed in with the rest of the movie.

God help me there is no reason why I should like this movie, but I do. For every argument or example that I can give as to how this is a poorly made movie I have to at the same time admit that it is a fun watch. The lead actress isn’t good, but she is fascinating to watch. The effects are “Z” grade and annoying, but still put a smile on my face. The damn movie isn’t really about anything at all and mostly takes place in a small cramped house, but is never boring! So in the end I just have to give up and tell everyone they need to check out Criminally Insane, aka Crazy Fat Ethel, for the sheer cheesy goodness of it.

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer