Of all the horror efforts Joan Crawford produced after her great success opposite long time adversary Bette Davis in 1962's "Whatever happened To Baby Jane?", this little black and white thriller "Strait-Jacket", from 1964 is my absolute favourite. This film certainly does not enjoy a good reputation along with all of Joan's other 1960's efforts however I find myself coming back to it time and again and I really appreciate it on a number of levels. Of course there is the camp element that seems to come with the package when you are looking at any veteran Hollywood actresses work during the 1960's. However being a great admirer of Joan Crawford's work even in her less celebrated acting assignments I can also appreciate this film for the way in which Joan gives her all to a part that probably doesn't warrant that amount of effort in the first place. It results however in a movie that despite it's small budget and obvious plot holes still manages to actually deliver quite a few thrills along the way in an admittedly "B" grade story.

Joan Crawford plays Lucy Harbin who in a flash back sequence we see unexpectedly finds her young husband (Lee Majors in a very early role),in bed with another woman. In a deranged frenzy she seizes an axe and proceeds to hack both of them to death in front of her young child Carol (Diane Baker). Lucy is judged criminally insane and sent to an asylum where she remains for 20 years. Carol in the meantime is sent to live with her Uncle and Aunt, Bill and Emily Cutler (Leif Erickson and Rochelle Hudson), on their farm and that is where Lucy returns when she is released on a trial to see if she can cope in the world. Lucy has great trouble in adjusting to life on the farm and even Carol's "kindness", towards her which involves her getting new clothes and a younger looking wig fails to help her condition. Lucy begins to be haunted by terrible nightmares where she imagines that the severed heads of her husband and his mistress are lying on her bed and she seems to imagine that while she is out shopping with Carol children in the street are calling her name and making fun of her chopping peoples heads off. Carol has a young male friend Michael (John Anthony Hayes), who she hopes to marry however a visit by Michael to the house turns into a disaster when Lucy begins drinking and comes on to the young man humiliating Carol. Things go from bad to worse however when the asylum doctor visits the farm and when he mysteriously disappears it looks like Lucy's old murderous streak has returned. Before long the murders begin to pile up with nosy farm hand Leo (George Kennedy), being killed by an axe and on a very unsuccessful visit to Michael's parents Lucy reveals where she has been for the last 20 years which horrifies Mrs Fields (Edith Atwater) and results in Lucy running out of the house in a rage. Mr Fields (Howard St. John ),however soon meets a grisly end in his dressing room and when everything points to Lucy having struck again the very shocking and unexpected truth is revealed on just who has been committing all these murders and for what reason. The tragic details help clear Lucy who it is revealed was simply an innocent pawn in anothers unbalanced plans for the future.

A brain child of Theatre showman William Castle who was justly famous for wiring audiences seats in theatres to give them a light shock during tense moments in his films, "Strait-Jacket", actually has some fine credentials in among all the shlock on display being written by Robert Bloch who was responsible for the classic "Psycho", and Amicus' multi story production of "The House that Dripped Blood". Never could this effort be called a classic however it is alot of fun to watch and is helped tremendously by its veteran cast of gifted performers. Joan Crawford never found that great success story in films again after "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" in 1962 however she gives her all here in the role of the axe wielding Lucy like Oscars were being given out in abundance that year. She manages the almost impossible here of injecting in among the sensationalism an element of vulnerability into her performance that does create sympathy for her character along the way. Every emotion in the acting book is employed by Crawford in "Strait-Jacket", from sadness, to manical frenzy, to outright fury, to self assured seductiveness, to tortured uncertainity. She has a field day with all these over the top emotions and so too do we as the audience. It might not be regarded as a very dignified role for this legendary dramatic actress to play but it is a sad illustration of what most of the veteran actresses from Hollywood's heyday were forced to accept in the 1960's if they wished to continue in leading roles. Diane Baker was an interesting and very talented young actress in the late 1950's and 60's and she worked with Joan Crawford three times in those years, twice playing her daughter. She has a great chemistry with Crawford and her rather angelic appearance serves her very well here when she is revealed to not be everything that she first seems. Leif Erickson and Rochelle Hudson were both Hollywood veterans from the 1930's and they are also excellent as Lucy's brother and sister in law who dont really know what to expect when Lucy comes to live with them. Filmed in a grainy and rather drab black and white that choice actually suits this story very well. This harsh photography succeeds perfectly in the scenes of Joan Crawford's bizarre transformation into the woman she was 20 years when she is taken shopping by her "caring daughter", where she acquires a garish print dress, huge dangling jewellery and a horriblly unflattering jet black fright wig that gives her character a slightly deranged look. The famous scene of Joan trying to seduce her daughter's fiance has certainly gone down into camp folklore and has an amusing shock quality to it however for me being a huge Crawford fan it evokes a rather sad impression when I can't help but recall the Joan Crawford of her MGM glory days teaming with the likes of Clark Gable and Robert Taylor in that legendary studio's glossy productions.

The secret to enjoying "Strait-Jacket", is to never for one moment take it seriously and just sit back and enjoy the fun filled ride. I love all the efforts by the likes of Crawford, Bette Davis and Barbara Stanwyck made during this time generally for people like William Castle. They helped create a curious sub genre that only lasted during the 1960's where veteran actresses where given these scenery chewing parts in horror/thriller "camp", efforts often of dubious quality. "Strait-Jacket", is I feel one of the more interesting of the batch due largely to the presense of Joan Crawford and the interesting supporting cast. No classic by any means its a fun romp with a few quite suspenseful moments before its not entirely unexpected conclusion. Long before the famous quote "Tina! Bring me the axe!" became forever associated with Joan Crawford in camp folklore, she was showing expertise with the real thing in William Castle's little 1964 horror effort "Strait-Jacket". Check it out some time.

You can't have a better campfest and good time than with "Strait-Jacket." I saw it on television as a little girl and would say it's good fun for all ages; I remember laughing at the same bits then. Joan Crawford stars as Lucy Harbin, a woman who has just been released from an asylum for killing her husband and his girlfriend with an axe. She is now planning to reunite with daughter Diane Baker who had witnessed the brutal slaying as a child. Everything is going smoothly...until heads start rolling again (literally).

Although the story is played straight, it is so completely over the top that it's delicious. First of all, William Castle was the king of fun, a real showman, and in this case, he doesn't skimp. The bodies and heads are clearly phony like a child's game, and to say Crawford chews scenery is putting it mildly. She is nonetheless effecting -- a true movie star who is always watchable. Diane Baker is fine as the daughter and Rochelle Hudson stars as Diane's aunt. Hudson was the doe-eyed love interest in the Shirley Temple film "Curly Top."

The extras, for once, are almost as much fun as the film and perfect complements. The interview with Diane Baker, who recalls her experience working with Crawford on the set, is wonderful as are the bits about William Castle and the takes of Joan. Highly recommended!

This was Joan Crawford's big comeback film and she puts her all into this Camp Classic! If she doesn't get her way heads will roll. Written by Psycho creator Robert Bloch and directed by William Castle, Crawford gives an Academy Award performance in this B horror film. Her daughter played by Diane Baker takes her in after Lucy Harbin (Crawford) gets out of a mental ward after having chopped off the 6,000,000 dollar man's head (Lee Majors).
When her doctor (played by a non-actor Pepsi executive) comes to take her back to the asylum axes and heads again meet each other. We even get some good scenes with a young and non-fat George Kennedy as a lowlife who does his own take on Marie Antoinette.
The DVD version has some classic head-chopping outtakes as well as a "making of Straitjacket" short.
This was 1963 and though the plot and especially the "twist" ending is ridiculous its got some good surrealism that proved a harbinger of better films later in the decade. If you want to see one of the most hilarious Camp Classics this is the one. If you want to see Crawford in a great performance in a less than great role here it is.

When William Castle (the director of the gimmick classics "The Tingler" and "13 Ghosts") saw Psycho, he liked it so much that he hired the writer (Robert Bloch) to create this gem. Unlike most of Castle's other famous movies, this one doesn't really have a cheesy gimmick, unless you count Joan Crawford decapitating people with an axe as a gimmick. Yes it has definite camp value, but it's a surprisingly well made horror movie that contains many genuinely suspenseful scenes. Joan Crawford's over-the-top performance in this movie is a great example of why she has such a strong cult following today.

The DVD is enhanced for widescreens and the print is in very good condition. Although the audio is only mono, it sounds very good. The DVD also contains a very good documentary on the making of this movie titled "Battle Axe".

In watching this movie for the first time in almost 40 years, I found myself wondering why I liked it the first time around and again in re-watching. Joan Crawford was undoubtedly a "star" in the truest sense of the word; in the special features, William Castle and Diane Baker both confirm the many demands and conditions Ms. Crawford placed on the film. Her performance is definitely camp, but watching her play someone yearning for her youth, it hit home how Crawford's real life was shaping into the fall of a movie goddess.
But in the film, notice the strength Crawford and Baker give in their reunion. Without a word, the two actresses strongly display the range of emotions they are both feeling.
Diane Baker, who unlike one reviewer mentioned, had to this point played the innocent young ingenue, e.g. Best of Everything, Journey to the Center of the Earth, and in this one, she capitalizes on this innocence, so that when the venom comes, it's quite a transition. Seeing a young Lee Majors in his pre Big Valley days just reminds me how much time has elapsed!
Castle's films were gawdy, manipulative, but above all, they were entertaining.
Joan Crawford and Diane Baker are to be commended for rising above the inevitable and making this a classic camp film.