I, Madman

"Lose Yourself in a Good Book."

1989 1h 29m EN

😐

5.8

MID

🍅

71%

FRESH

⭐

5.9

IMDB

★5.8TMDB · 117🍅71%Rotten Tomatoes★5.9IMDB · 3,817

HorrorThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A bookshop clerk starts seeing the disfigured killer from her favorite 1950s pulp novels come to life and start killing people around her.

“Lose Yourself in a Good Book.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Jenny Wright
Virginia
Clayton Rohner
Richard
Randall William Cook
Dr. Alan Kessler
Stephanie Hodge
Mona
Michelle Jordan
Colette
Vance Valencia
Sgt. Navarro
Mary Baldwin
Librarian
Raf Nazario
Lyle

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Tibor Takács
Writers: David Chaskin
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

RUNTIME

Did you know

89 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

ERA

Did you know

37 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Tibor Takács, shot by Bryan England. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Marcus Manton shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Jenny Wright and Clayton Rohner and Randall William Cook carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Lose Yourself in a Good Book.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0097557 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Tibor Takács directs. Bryan England behind the camera. Marcus Manton cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

189 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
237 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Tibor Takács, shot by Bryan England. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Editor Marcus Manton shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Jenny Wright and Clayton Rohner and Randall William Cook carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "Lose Yourself in a Good Book.".
7IMDB entry: tt0097557 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 8 themes, including "obsession", "murder", "doctor", "book store".

The technical file

Cinematography: Bryan England
Editing: Marcus Manton
Production design: Ron Wilson
Makeup / hair: Bill Myer
Sound: Chris Haire
Stunt coordinator: Wally Crowder
Runtime: 89 min · 1h 29m
Status: Released
Box office: $151,203
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: I, Madman (1989)
Rotten Tomatoes: 71% 🍅 Fresh
IMDB rating: 5.9/10 · 3,817 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

1 win & 1 nomination

Also by

Tibor Takács

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2022-12-25
★ 6/10
An infatuated Frankenstein-like killer is loose in the City of Angels A secondhand book store clerk & aspiring actress (Jenny Wright) becomes aware that what she sees in her imagination while reading books by a weird pulp author is coming to life in the form of a madman who murders people for body parts. Clayton Rohner plays her detective beau and Stephanie Hodge the owner of the book shop. Shot in November, 1987, but not released until 1989, “I, Madman” mixes elements of the Frankenstein story with the popular slasher genre along with the milieu of an attractive bookworm in downtown Los Angeles. In short, don’t expect a formulaic or one-dimensional slasher. Also, while the titular madman is grotesque and his slayings are shocking, don’t expect grim seriousness. The artistic proceedings are decidedly cartoonish, which is to be anticipated with the colorful pulp fiction angle. The remake of "Maniac" (2012) was obviously inspired by it, just grimmer and more arty. Jenny Wright is a highlight as the protagonist. She was a rising star in the 80s with “Near Dark” (1987) to her credit, but “I, Madman” was her last major role, although she had a memorable part in “Young Guns II” (1990). Her career fell apart shortly after due to substance abuse, but she thankfully overcame eventually, although she lost interest in acting. Michelle Fozounmayeh is notable in a bit part. The film runs 1 hour, 29 minutes, and was shot in Los Angeles. GRADE: B-
GenerationofSwine2025-04-09
★ 10/10
I'm a bit shocked that this doesn't have a cult following, but it is yet another example why Tubi is my favorite of the streaming services. I can just subsist off of what Tubi has to offer and have most of my entertainment needs met. It's low budget as all get out, but what it lacks in budget it makes up for in atmosphere. You really get sucked into it on that... and a bit on the lack of budget too, the snippets you get of the book while our protagonist is reading it are just off enough, just staged enough to work as someone's imagination. And despite the budget you have little details, cop cars parking outside the window of a police station, little moans coming form the adult theater on the street, etc, that let you know there is more thought behind each scene than your average B-Movie. The acting is fair to middling. It has just enough camp to fit the budget, none of it seems to take itself too seriously they are all aware of what sort of movie they are making, what genre it's going to fill, and approach it accordingly. It's never too much camp to loose you and never too serious to seem out of place. It walks that line. The idea isn't new, book and reality merging, but it's not so overdone that you've seen it a thousand times so even decades on it still feels fresh enough to enjoy. This is a movie that is screaming for a cult following, but, unfortunately, doesn't have one yet. Hopefully Tubi will change that and it will get the following it deserves.