Bloody Wednesday (DVD)

I enjoyed watching 'Bloody Wednesday' so much that I had to buy it! The film has a BIZARRE way of showing the audience what happens when one loses touch with reality. It goes great with all my other odd-ball Horror flicks I've collected over the years. What I find great about 'Bloody Wednesday', is that there's never a dull moment, as in WTF moments! There's plenty of them. I enjoyed the strange approach used to describe the infamous crime inspired by the 1984 McDonald's massacre in California by James Huberty. Raymond Elmendorf does a fantastic job in playing a weirdo. I love how the film captures Raymond's character, Harry, is losing his sanity, slipping further from reality, and becoming even more swallowed up in a sick, dream-like state of mind. His conversations with his teddy bear and how, in his mind, brings the bear to life, is creepy stuff! His teddy bear has all the "right" answers. The last fifteen minutes of this flick is even crazier! Lets just say that when Harry does walk in the restaurant and starts spraying bullets everywhere, you'd think the scene is never going to end! - It's that insane. Note: I personally think it's messed up that a film like this was given the green light right after the McDonald's massacre. That's what's keeping me from giving this film a five star rating.

Bloody Wednesday, 1985 film

"Television news tells us we live in a violent world. Most stay out of public parks and streets after sundown. Are we safe in out homes behind locked doors? This film tells what happened in a coffee shop." The first scene shows bodies on a floor. A man in a suit goes to a big car garage to pick up his repaired car. "There's no motor in my car!" "I can't put it back together" says Harry. "I forgot. Nothing fits." Something is really wrong here. Ben takes Harry home. We see people in a church singing a hymn. Harry shows up nude! "Is he crazy?" A born loser? Mrs. Curtis leaves. Harry is in the psych ward; he is dangerous. "There's nowhere to hide, you adapt" days his doctor. Too angry? Harry is released on probation (due to overcrowding). Harry finds a place to stay, an empty hotel building. "Keep all the doors locked." Harry is delusional.

We hear cats crying. Harry sees three men tearing up an apartment. The men are taken away by the police. At night he hears a woman screaming for help. No one is there when he opens the door. Later his brother arrives to check up on him. His teddy bear talks to him. At night a snake enters through the open window and crawls into his bed. It turns into a twisted sheet. He gets a phone call from room 1327 for a pot of coffee. But that room has been empty for years. Harry goes there to investigate and finds a woman there! "I tried to stop her." "What bellboy?" Harry hears men at his door. Can he escape? The police and firemen arrive to rescue Harry. Next Harry climbs over the wall to find a large swimming pool with a blonde woman. They talk. Harry plays the piano very well. [Its not really him.] The woman dances. Is it his fantasy? The FBI arrives to question Harry about a rifle aimed at an airplane. He is told not to aim a broomstick out a window.

Those three men return to Harry's hotel. They chase Harry again through the building. Will his teddy bear help him? In a way. Harry pulls a pistol to defend himself. [Harry's .44 magnum?] The teddy bear says `guilty' for two of the men, `not guilty' for the third. A shot is fired. Next we are in a pool hall. Those three men report to their leader. Harry visits that blonde again at night. They talk. Cups fall to the floor and shatter. Harry returns to Jake's place to ask for his old job back. "No, I can't take that chance." A job in the paint shop? That doesn't work out well. Harry returns to that hotel to find a job. He learns about the suicide of a diamond salesman. Where are the missing diamonds of Walter Burns? Harry must find Luke Cramer, the house detective. He does. Harry pulls his big pistol to shoot Luke so he falls out the window.

"Its all yours." But that suitcase has snakes in it! One of the three men abducts Harry. What would he do with a machine gun? A club is more practical for earning power. Next his wife shows up at the hotel, her lease was up. They talk about their past. She undresses. Harry attacks her in the bath tub! "Its been a terrible day." Brother Ben arrives with bad news. They system is falling apart. Small companies have hard times. What about Elaine? Harry visits his psychiatrist to talk about his condition. Where will he go? "I can't play." What can they do? Nothing, unless Harry commits a felony. "Help me!" That man shows up with an UZI! "Use it." The doctor goes to the police: sign a complaint. What will Harry do? He visits a coffee shop and starts blasting away. His gun never runs out of bullets! None of the people can defend themselves! At last one man shoots Harry to terminate his rampage.
[You wonder who produced this crazy message movie? Read the credits.] This is a very scary story. No mention of the cause of his madness. Exposure to industrial chemicals is one cause, so too the use of illegal drugs. Some physical condition? What about the economic times? Or all of the above. Do bad economic times result in more mental illness? What does that mean?

From the description of this movie, it sounds like one of those Texas Chainsaw Massacre clones they made so many of during the 80s. That's what I expected: Not a great cinematic masterpiece, but 90 minutes of mindless entertainment. Unfortunately, this was not at all what I expected. The movie is about a guy with hallucinations and then goes berserk, killing people in a diner. This scene is a couple of minutes at the end of the film, and up until that point it's s a bad attempt at some kind of psychological thriller.

Don't get fooled by the title, the plot description or the fact that this was written by an Oscar winning screenwriter. We all have our bad days, I guess. Don't waste your time and money.