Greetings & Salutations Fellow Movie Fanatics!
The summer of 2016 is gone. Done. Finished. In The Books. Not quite the year’s home stretch yet but the end of the year is looming just around the bend. That being said, the ‘insanity’ that is October is finally here. What does that mean? Halloween (for the non-super religious types anyways). The time of year where the movie themes automatically click to thrillers, mysteries, and horrors. Said films are usually topped off with murder, gore, and revenge like adding extra shots or foam to your morning large coffee accompanied by a quad espresso. Today’s movie for your consideration has all that in great abundance except for the caffeine-laced beverages. They substituted moments of fast-paced adrenaline-fueled rampages for that in this film.
Originally titled ‘Fury:The Tales Of Ronan Pierce’, ‘Crazed’ is a 2014 adventure/horror/action film directed by Kevin A. McCarthy and Edward Payson. The movie stars Michael McCarthy, Wade Gallagher (in his final role), Jordan Elizabeth, Robert Crayton, Jordan Elizabeth, Brad Potts, Joel D. Wynkoop, R.A. Mihailoff, Rick Montgomery Jr, Harry Aspinwall, Circus-Szalewski, Tovah Duffaut, David Astone, and special guest star Kane Hodder as Eddie White.
The film centers on police officer and vigilante Ronan Pierce (McCarthy). Driven by the death of his young daughter and the disappearance of his estranged wife McKenzie, Ronan does away with police procedure and exacts his revenge on the criminals of the city one person at a time. His ultimate target is is the Luna Cartel and Damien Logan (Gallagher). Responsible for kidnapping and selling thousands of women as slaves and forced prostitutes while operating a black market organ harvesting business, Logan and the Luna Cartel own the city. Logan himself has a deep seeded hatred towards Ronan and seeks his own revenge against the vigilante cop. Starting with the kidnapping of Ronan’s wife and then proceeding to send him DVDs of her and other victims being tortured and tormented in front of the cameras. However, there are two factors Logan and the cartel didn’t count on. A woman named Karina McCoy (Elizabeth) who escaped from the clutches of the of the criminal network and Ronan’s shear thirst for bloody revenge. With the efficiency of a machine and unhinged rage of a man with nothing left to lose, Ronan is a man unhinged and the recipients of his rage are the drug dealers, the pimps, the murders, the crooked politicians, and anyone else he thinks might have something to do with or know anything connected to the horrors visited upon his family. With his partner Rex Gallagher (Potts) and the young woman Karina McCoy (now adopting her circus clown persona) at his side, Ronan brings the fight to the cartel itself for a final bloody showdown against Logan and his partners.
If you’re a fan of ultra-violent movies, you’ll definitely find this movie entertaining. It’s has the grand streaks of gory violence seen in horror films and ultra violent video games of the late 80s. The main characters of the film stand out as over-the-top and amalgamations of stereotypes seen in graphic novels. The look and art direction of the film itself appears to incorporate the look and vibe of stills seen in a graphic novel. It definitely has the potential rank up there as a Halloween B-Movie classic. It’s nothing ground breaking. Nothing revolutionary. It doesn’t take filmmaking, directing, or acting to new levels. It definitely has a place in film though. It’s one of those films you imagine a bunch of friends who happen to be made up of filmmakers, artists, and movie fanatics got together to make. As the final film for actor Wade Gallagher, it’s not the worst way to go out at all. Watch it with friends at a Halloween gathering or a B-movie marathon. There are infinitely worse ways to spend your time and infinitely worse movies to watch. 2.5 out of 5 stars.
