I don’t know much when it comes sports-nor do I care to be completely honest- but having said that, for most sports fans March brings on “March Madness,” a basketball event or something. Here at Now Streaming, we like to take that to mean whatever the hell we want and, according to the dictionary, madness is defined as “mentally disturbed; deranged; insane; demented.” Based on this, we’ve decided to put together five horrific films that feature this (cinematically) joyful type of insanity. I’ve specifically taken it upon myself to focus on men going crazy because, honestly, I’m tired of hearing the phrase “bitches be crazy” when it should be acknowledged that dickss can be just as freaking crazy, so here are five instances to clarify that everyone be a little crazy. No, none of these films have anything to do with basketball or any type of sport, but they’re sure to bring out a madness of some variety.
1. Evil Dead 2 : Dead by Dawn
There are several films that focus on Bruce Campbell as the semi-heroic Ash Williams. A man who fights multiple layers of insanity and possessive demons, but this one, in particular, tends to be a favorite, and happens to feature a copious amount of madness. Sam Raimi, a director who has a knack for horror-comedy, decided to basically redo the first Evil Dead, instead of continuing the story line, causing this sequel to be more of a remake. Either way, we’re glad he did, because this movie is all kinds of nuts. Scenes include a dead, headless woman dancing, laughing furniture, and Ted Raimi playing the demonized Henrietta. Plus, if you like your madness a little extra bloody, this is not one to be missed.
2. The Amityville Horror
There’s an abundance of films in this series, or at least variations. On Netflix alone, there are five, among them are sequels and documentaries. The one you should watch is Stuart Rosenberg’s 1979 version, starring James Brolin and Margot Kidder as George and Kathy Lutz. For those unfamiliar with this haunted house story, it’s based on the true tale of the Lutz, newlyweds who move into a new seemingly-dreamy house with a dark past. Soon, the villainous forces of the house come to life and Frank’s affected with evil thoughts and a bad temper. It’s a classic horror film that provides an overall sense of dread and some decent scares.
3. We Are What We Are
After a cannibalistic family loses their mother to a dietary disease, they struggle to continue their lifestyle. The young girls Rose (Julia Garner) and Iris (Ambyr Childers) decide it’s time to progress from eating their peers, but their father, Frank (Bill Sage) isn’t having it. Struggling to keep them under his command and obedience, Frank decides to go full patriarch, forcing his children to live the cannibal life and even cook “meals.” It’s a brutal film with a lovely gothic tone that will leave you feeling slightly uneasy.
4. Madhouse
Vincent Price is featured as Paul Toombes-or Dr. Dead- an old horror actor trying to rebuild his career after a murderous accident that sent him to the mental institution. His journey back to stardom is a bumpy one with various murders he continuously “seems” be committing. His insanity grows as he can’t even figure out if he is the source of death. The film is fun, well-done, and slightly underrated considering its impressive cast consisting of Peter Cushing, Adrienne Corri and Robert Quarry.
5. Re-Animator
Finally, the wonderful cult classic, Re-Animator. From director Stuart Gordon based on a story from the maddest of the mad- H.P. Lovecraft. Herbert West (Jeffrey Combs) is a bit of an oddball medical student interested in re-animating the flesh of the dead. Like Evil Dead, this film is campy, good to laugh at, yet definitely disturbed. Combs does a phenomenal job of portraying the crazed Herbert West alongside David Gale as the disgusting Dr. Carl Hill.