The Mad Butcher (1971)

Heavyweight movie heavy Victor Buono (Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? and King Tut on the '60s-era Batman TV series) has a rare leading role in this macabre Italian/West German-produced black comedy. Buono is Otto Lehman, a recently institutionalized Viennese butcher whose return to normal life and his beloved shop is jeopardized by the constant nagging of his wife (Karin Field). After strangling her in a fit of anger, Lehman disposes of her body by adding it to his sausages, which unexpectedly become a hit with the local populace. The diabolical deli man soon seasons his recipe with other troublemakers, including a prostitute and his slovenly brother-in-law, and his designs on a lovely neighbor (Franca Polcelli), before the police and an intrepid newsman (screen strongman Brad Harris) intervene. Directed with broad strokes by Guido Zurli from a schticky, lurid script by co-producer Dick Randall (Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks), The Mad Butcher is a largely bloodless affair, despite its gruesome premise. Most of its objectionable scenes involve Buono leering at or pawing his female castmates while in various states of undress, making it more of a sexploitation comedy-thriller than outright horror. Buono is the main reason to watch the film, showing off his considerable clowning skills in a deft parody of his deranged screen roles (in particular, his 1964 The Strangler). Though lighthearted in tone, the story is based on the unpleasant real-life case of Fritz Haarman, who butchered young men and sold their flesh as meat in pre-World War II Germany (Haarman was the subject of 1973's The Tenderness of Wolves). Image Entertainment and Something Weird Video's letterboxed DVD presentation includes the original trailer, as well as a handful of previews from American distributor Harry Novak's Boxoffice International library. Two cannibal-themed shorts, including the haunting and bizarre Cannibal Massage, are also featured. ~ Paul Gaita, All Movie Guide