Well this is quite a strange movie, British/Canadian film set in an asylum where the doctor/mad scientist in charge is as crazy as his patients, in whom he has implanted electrical devices so that he can create the perfect being (or something, I found it rather confusing to say the least). "Welcome to the last good old fashioned madhouse" he says to a new arrival. Only thing is I doubt that many mental institutions stage musical numbers and accompanying dance routines, performed by the patients, they are very frequent in this film and I found it to be too much. At one point they sing "One for all and all for one" over and over, no doubt inspired by the classic "Freaks" (1932). One of the main characters is Veronica, a beautiful patient who - along with a few other women - sheds her clothes throughout, Hysteria was directed by Rene Daalder, a protege of the infamous Russ Meyer, so the nudity is hardly surprising. Most of the running time takes place in the dimly light old building, the picture is quite dark though in fairness the print that Talking Pictures TV (UK) screened was poor, VHS quality. It looked like it was from 1987, not 1997. Hysteria is described as a psychological thriller but it is also a horror that has a dose of black humour. I didn't really enjoy it, the plot isn't easy to make sense of and I found the dance numbers too repetitive, at 103 minutes it was too long. It is an unusual movie and while it is far from being instantly forgettable it is not one that I would want to watch again.
