As the title of this review CLEARLY suggest, this movie is only a tad bit on the strange side. Actually, this is a very very strange films. You could come home around midnight after a hard night at work, go into your bedroom, and see that you yourself are not only home, but fast asleep in your very own bed. That would be a very strange thing to happen, but it's not stranger than Renato Polsetti's "Delirium." The movie is so oddly bizarre, but it's not really the plot or the basic story that makes it that way, but it is everything else, from the actions of the characters, to the way they speak, their dreams, their facial expressions, and even the direction, the camera angles, and the music. Each one of those items is so far out there in this movie, that it could have the mentality of a Pauly Shore film and I would still recommend it.

When you get down to the basic plot of the movie, it's really nothing more than a story about a married couple who are having some severe difficult problems in their relationship. So severe that I really should have capitalized that word. These people are, how do I put this without sounding mean, screwed in the head. But that's one of the things that makes the movie work, indeed helped by the strong performances of the two lead actors.

Former Mr. Universe Mickey Hargitay (I'm waiting for the Schwarzenegger remake) plays Dr. Herbert Lyutak, a criminal psychologist who has a good reputation with the police for helping them solve numerous and horrific crimes. Little do they know that Dr. Lyutak himself is a sex crazed maniac who kills young women after molesting them. Still, he seems good at his job.

The good doctor is married to the beautiful Marcia (Rita Calderoni). As if Dr. Lyutak's problems weren't enough, here is a woman who has some serious mental problems of her own, making the two people perfect for each other. She is a married virgin who often has dark, morbid, and erotic dreams that seem like they're the result of too many "Caligula" viewings and Hot Damn in one night. Her dreams contain lesbian orgies to the S&M degree, with medieval settings a'la chains and dungeons.

Whenever Hargitay and Calderoni are on screen together, there is an odd tension that flows throughout all of their scenes, and one of the things that makes their performances so good is that a lot of the time, they just use mere facial expressions to show their feelings towards on another, and with their icy cold stares, it is not only believable, but oddly creepy. They both seem constantly afraid of each other, but when they do talk to one another, the phrase "I love you" comes up more than it is needed. Another axe is thrown into their relationship when another murder of a young girl occurs, but this time it has happened when Dr. Lyutak was busy at the police station, making him completely innocent of that murder. Who is this second killer?

The whole murder story, as intriguing as it is, seems almost like a backdrop to the emotions that run wildly vampant in this film. Both are indeed enthralling and entertaining to watch, and Polsetti has delivered pure grade sleaze and succeeds at everything he was going for. The onscreen violence works and is necessary to the movie, but I found the more uncomfortable scenes to be the ones where the married couple simply look like they want to rip their heads off just by gazing at the other person.

"Delirium" is a movie that I would rank among some of the oddest viewing experiences I've come across. When you watch it, you feel like you have taken some hallucinogenic drug, and that the DVD box tastes just like a cheeseburger. I've rarely seen a movie like this, not even in any typical Giallo thriller. It's a murder mystery with a wild look at sex WITH violence, and has to be seen to be believed. Hell, I've seen it, and I'm still having trouble putting things together. It has warped my fragile little mind, so much so that this is indeed a rather hard review to write. Sitting down here, I'm constantly not sure of what to say or even think, and if a movie can do that to me, then it gets a positive nod, even if it has confused the hell out of me. And with such a simple plot!

Most people know about how American releases of exploitation flicks are different from the Italian releases. You know, Italian horror films being censored and butchered here in the states during the VHS glory days, and so on. Well, here is a movie that not only was censored in the states, but also given a different ending, fewer subplots, and a Vietnam War tie-in. The hell? This is the biggest difference between markets I've seen in a foreign exploitation film.

The DVD released by Anchor Bay contains both versions of the film, and I would suggest the International version. The ending is better, it is longer, has more sleaze, and doesn't have the poorly tacked on Vietnam footage. This movie is not "Combat Shock." The American version is incoherent and is obviously half assed compared to the original. You can also find out some more of the making-of backstory with a "Delirium" featurette on the disc as well.

While this movie may not necessarily be a fun movie to watch with your closest friends for a night of Grade A exploitation cinema, it does succeed in truly screwing with your mind to the "what the hell am I watching" sense. Watch it alone, right before bed time, and especially if you had been at work all day resulting in you being tired and cranky. It's one of the better Giallos that I've seen, and certainly one of the strangest.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening