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Edge of Sanity

Edge of Sanity (1989)

April. 14,1989
|
5.3
|
R
| Horror Thriller

When his experiments into a powerful new anesthetic go hideously awry, respected physician Dr. Jekyll transforms into the hideous Jack Hyde. As his wife Elisabeth passes her time in charitable work, rehabilitating the district's fallen women, Hyde is drawn into an escalating cycle of lust and murder that seems to know no bounds.

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ReaderKenka
1989/04/14

Let's be realistic.

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VeteranLight
1989/04/15

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

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Sarita Rafferty
1989/04/16

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

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Francene Odetta
1989/04/17

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

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Matthew Janovic
1989/04/18

I've been obsessed with the story of Jack the Ripper since I was a little-kid. Every-other-year, some idiot THINKS they've discovered who it was, and why-it-happened--they never will (cold-case, duh), but we can gain-insight into some areas of it simply by exploring the darkness-within. This film does that, and sometimes even goes-too-far, but it's all-fun here. The real--and only--reason to watch this movie is for the excellent-performance by Anthony Perkins, period. Everything is a setup for him to come-on screen, it's his baby, and I'm sure producer-Towers knew this was only going to be memorable because Perkins was in it. He was right."Edge of Sanity" is a melding of Robert Louis Stevenson's "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" and some elements of the Jack the Ripper story, with an added-dash of exploitation-fare (boobs, drugs, stylized-violence, and psychosexual-excess). As entertainment, it cannot-be-beat, it's a very-satisfying-romp, with lots of decadence to it. The main-problem with the film comes in the production-design, as it really looks like the late-1980s to-the-hilt, but this is not meant to be a solid period-piece, anyway, and more a fantastical film-reality, just a pure-genre affair.But Edge of Sanity really has a passion to it--you see, the Perkins protagonist/antagonist is an unwitting-inventor of crack-cocaine, thus explaining the metamorphosis from his daily-life as a Doctor who bases his life on reason, to the base Mr. Hyde. It sounds nuts, but you knew this coming-in from the title, right? It's a bold-stroke, and a risk in the writing, but I think it paid-off in a way that resonates with our current "drug-problem". The Victorian era was also rife-with drug-abuse, though it was basically-invisible. People took-tinctures of Opium and Hashish as daily-tonics, and even gave Opium to crying-babies so-as-to-quiet-them. Everyone was "hooked", and that is sorely-missing in this tale, unfortunately, but Mr. Hyde DOES go generally-unnoticed until he gets-violent! The MGM DVD is pretty-good, and is widescreen with a solid-transfer and audio--it's never looked-better. People forget that just getting a good-copy of a film like-this was very-very-difficult until-recently, especially in the original aspect-ratio. The film shines, and it has some wonderful-moments of visual-beauty to it, as well as some incredible-makeup on the late Mr. Perkins, probably one of the best American movie-actors ever, and one of the horror's greats. This can only be a film about addiction.

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insomniac_rod
1989/04/19

Excellent performance by none other than Anthony Perkins.This 90's version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is impressive for it's high graphic content of sex and gore. Surely a delightful for horror fans who enjoy little known horror movies.Mr. Perkins' character is shy, and sexual repressed, similar to Norman Bates from "Psycho". But this time Mr. Perkins' great performance is mainly because his character is similar to Norman a shy sexually repressed man), which is Anthony Perkins' most recognized performance ever.The cockaine connection with the original Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is interesting and even uses slasher elements. The result: a wicked movie only for horror fans.6/10

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hippiedj
1989/04/20

*CONTAINS SPOILERS*Those who have been dogging Edge Of Sanity should have known what they were getting into before they watched this film -- the film summaries on the video packaging alone gave enough warning that this was going to be a twisted story full of perverse material. I for one am not afraid to say I really LIKE this film! I first saw it in an "unrated" edition on VHS back when it was first released on home video in the late 1980s, and I was enthralled. Now, MGM has released it on DVD in what I think is the closest to that unrated version there is, if in fact it is "re-edited" like the notice on IMDb. I wouldn't be surprised if this DVD edition was actually that original unrated version, as many titles have been showing up on MGM DVD in uncut editions with the original MPAA rating on the cover. While experimenting with anesthetics, Dr. Henry Jekyll accidentally inhales fumes from an altered drug. This unleashes not only ability to act out his inhibitions, it unleashes repressed sexual feelings he had experienced as humiliation during his childhood. He then goes on a killing spree, murdering prostitutes in the area (possibly to get back at the woman who laughed and taunted him in his childhood?). He also obsesses over a prostitute named Susannah that looks just like that woman from his past, and rather than kill her he relishes in her similarly shared dark nature when he gets her to inhale the drug. Note that near the ending, Johnny is hanging upside down while Susannah laughs maniacally, mirroring the opening scene. This brings the film full circle. It's a fascinating idea that Henry Jekyll/Jack Hyde is also Jack The Ripper.Yes, Edge Of Sanity is sinister, twisted, perverse, and trashy. It's also lavish, elegant, and beautifully done, and downright intriguing. The cinematography is excellent (the DVD is a vast improvement over the old VHS of Unrated and R versions), the costumes are a wow, and the music score is superb as well as appropriate to the scenes it enhances. A lot of imagination went into this production, and it's unfair to say it's an inappropriate film. I found it to be more disturbing and wickedly fun than the more recent FROM HELL (which was more a CGI visual feast) and more sexually appropriate than the grandiose arthouse T&A of EYES WIDE SHUT. There's a fair amount of sex, nudity (more full frontal male nudity in a bathhouse scene than the topless prostitutes combined), and even a hint of male bisexuality during Hyde's tryst with Susannah and Johnny. It also says a lot about how things haven't changed so much in society's decadence in issues of drugs and sex. The only thing that I found distracting was that during the rooftop scene, the actress playing the prostitute seemed to have breast implants, something I'm sure that is quite wrong in the context of the time the film is taking place!Anthony Perkins chews the scenery well, playing his part of Jack Hyde to the hilt. It would be hard to think of any other actor that could have carried this part so well. Those who adored him in Psycho, Pretty Poison, and Crimes Of Passion will find a lot to love about his role in Edge Of Sanity. For film collectors of the dark and sinister, this is a nice addition and I am happy that MGM has rescued this film from obscurity for a whole new audience to discover as well as make established fans like myself very, very happy.Call it trash if you want to, but it's quality, wicked, ELEGANT trash!

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brandonsites1981
1989/04/21

Anthony Perkins finally stars in remake of the Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde story about a timid sexually repressed doctor who is transformed into a vicious, sleazy killer from time to time slashing the throats of hookers. This film is only of interest for yet another one of Perkins truly demented performances, some fine costumes & sets, and a few nice directorial touches. Be forewarned though, this remake is very graphic both sexually and violence wise.

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