The Doctors in...sane.

As I continue to explore some Horror films from the 90's, I find for every fifteen bad ones I find a gem like Dr. Giggles, the essence of 90's horror in every way. Directed by Manny Coto ( known mainly for directing an episode of Tales from the crypt)in 1992, Dr. Giggles hits all the marks that make some of the 90's horror films so fun, for example it does not take itself seriously at all, it stays entertaining from beginning to end, it combines gore and gags perfectly and it just feels very 90's with the fashion and the attitude of some of the High school students.
Larry Drake plays Dr. Even Rendell, the son of a psycho mass murdering doctor who was finally killed after a long reign of terror. Even Rendell is placed in a mental institution but escapes when he is older to seek revenge on the town that brought his father down in unique and memorable ways. The film moves along like a freight train of frightful fun and never gets boring. Dr. Even Rendell is really creepy and "giggles" before and after each kill adding his own unique stamp to the slasher genre. Along the way we get tons of medical puns from the doctor like "get ready to take your medicine", "Take 2 and call me in the morning", "If you think that's bad, wait until you get my bill","I haven't discharged you!" and many more. There are many awesome kills throughout the film and in the end the body count is at 18. The acting by Drake and most of the other actors in the film is pretty good and never gets too campy. In some of the sequences director Coto did a great job of making it feel like a dream, and in that respect at times it feels like it's own strange version of Nightmare on elm street.
Warner home video released a DVD of Dr. Giggles in 2007 with absolutely no extras, which is too bad because this one deserves it. It's just another example of how the studios could care less about horror films and their fans.
Dr. Giggles is a complete blast from beginning to end and merges the comedy and horror perfectly, in the end it's pure entertainment. I feel that this film is highly underrated and if you are a horror movie fan you will probably love it just as much as I did. So make a appointment with the doctor, you won't be sorry.

Review by Jason

Rating: C+