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DEADLY OBSESSION (1988)
Directed by Jenö Hodi
Republic Pictures Home Video VHS
Reviewed 04.06.06
Review by Joseph A. Ziemba
THE FILM
I've heard that multi-taskers often
burn out their batteries prematurely.
If that's true, Duracell's about
to see a peak in sales.
During the first ten minutes, Deadly
Obsession starts a party in
your pants: heavy metal, pot, naked
lesbians, cocaine, gambling, rats
puking blood, dorm room humping,
illegitimate children, and a janitor
poisoning a pint of chocolate ice
cream. A frizzy mulleted cop says,
"Yo, police! We're confiscating
the ice cream!" Does it need
to be said that director Jenö
Hodi was on fire?
During the next half hour, we get
an old guy in the shower, more boobs,
a racist Asian sight gag, a fat
cop that opens a bottle of exploding
seltzer water (sucker!), a vomitous
comb-over, a killer that kisses
men after he cuts 'em up, and a
pair of gigantic novelty glasses,
the likes of which haven't been
seen since Trick
Or Treats. The flame is
growing dimmer.
Once the plot actually rolls around
(a janitor with a colorful vocabulary
is threatening to poison college
students unless he is paid...wait
for it...ONE MILLION DOLLARS!),
Deadly Obsession rolls
over and groans. The semi-slasher
roots take hold. Subsequently, the
film just won't end. We spend one
fourth of our time in a dorm room,
another fourth dodging terrible
one-liners from both good and bad
guys (the killer chops a fat slob
in the legs and spits, "Walk
like an Egyptian..heh heh!"),
and the other half in a mazy recreation
center. There's a dismal attitude
throughout and a couple of convincing
stalk sequences, but the charge
is empty. 95 minutes of running
around locker rooms, pools, and
gymnasiums without the benefit of
even ONE additional cocaine sniffing
sequence beguiles all common sense.
Lights out.
Spread it out, share the wealth,
and take it easy. All good words
to live by. Deadly Obsession
thinks it knows better. It does
not.
AUDIO AND VIDEO
The $10 an hour metal songs are
usually louder than the rest of
the film, but other than that, pretty
good. The print is well lit, clear,
and generally free of defects.
EXTRAS
Hey-o! Feel like watching a kick
azz trailer for Richard Friedman's
(Phantom
Of The Mall, Doom
Asylum) 1987 howler Scared
Stiff? You're in luck.
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you've got to sit through every
obscure slasher on the face of the
Earth, I won't stop you from seeking
out Deadly Obsession. It's
worth at least 40 minutes of pleasure.
Be warned, though; the end is never
nigh. |
Barf patrol
For godsakes, let it melt
Tube time
"I'm not fuckinwitchoo!"
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