The mysterious Dr. Dienys (Carlos Villarías) is both feared and mocked by the medical scientific community. And why not, when he experiments with psychic powers with which he has kept himself from aging. He also can directly effect others and controls a monster (Raúl Urquijo) that he keeps in a cell, but no one knows about those last two besides his trusty, knife-wielding servant Idúa (Emilio Fernández). Dr. Alberto (Ramón Armengod) studies under Dr. Dienys, who he holds in great regard. He has virtually abandoned his fiancée Margarita (Consuelo Frank) to spend more time with Dienys, that and rescue his drunken friend Sóstenes (Leopoldo Ortín) from one predicament after another. This upsets Alberto’s aunt Susanita (Aurora Campuzano), with whom he lives, as she questions his behavior toward Margarita and loathes Sóstenes. It will all come to a head when the scientists meet to judge Dienys and Margarita tries out her plan to make Alberto jealous by flirting with Dienys.
Being drunk is funny. Not doing amusing things while drunk, but simply being drunk. That’s the key to El superloco. If you giggle every time you see anyone taking one shot too many, or laugh uproariously at the mere concept of alcoholism, then you’ll love this movie. Everyone else is in for an uneven ride.
Outside of writer-director Juan Bustillo Oro, Mexican cinema had little interest in pure horror; El superloco (released as The Super Madman in the US) is comedy first, horror later. But it doesn’t do that by adding a bit of comedy across the board. Nor does it do it with a comedy relief character as those belong to the supporting cast. Instead it has a horror plot, in which the dialog is serious and the actors play it straight, and a completely separate…hmmm…I’ll call it a plot though it isn’t one…for the comedy. Dienys, Idúa, Alberto, Margarita, the Monster, and the medical association are all in a horror film. No one laughs, no one smiles, and there are no gags. And it’s not a bad little horror story. It isn’t great, in large part because Alberto is such an ass while also being a non-entity. He isn’t ignoring his fiancée is some grand, insane manner like Henry does in Frankenstein, but as a generically crappy boyfriend. Meaning the answer to everything is for Margarita to dump him and move on. But we are clearly supposed to like Alberto and be rooting for these two kids. However, Margarita is engaging, in part because actress Consuelo Frank is stunning. Idúa doesn’t do a lot, but he’s also the kind of fanatical and effective sidekick I want in a horror film, aided by being played by Emilio Fernández, one of the most important actors and later directors of Mexican cinema. Finally we have Carlos Villarías, most famous in the US as Dracula in the Spanish language version that was made alongside the Lugosi one, as Dienys. He’s properly commanding, charming, and a little freaky. The idea of a man who has gained such control that he can master others and stop aging, yet if he gives in to his desires he will lose it all, has potential. And there’s plenty that can be done with Alberto’s obsessive behavior and Margarita’s hurt. So, not great, but not bad.
The problem is El superloco’s horror part isn’t larger than its comedy, nor equal. The comedy non-story dominates. Alberto isn’t the lead. Nor is Margarita. Nor Dienys. That is, none of the people important to the story is the lead. It’s their story, but they are supporting players for Sóstenes and his drunk act. There is around 20 minutes of the horror story in The Super Madman. The rest is Sóstenes getting a funny drink at the bar, doing a funny drunk walk down the street, sneaking to get a funny drink at night, stealing someone else’s drink in a funny manner. Except I didn’t find any of it funny. I don’t think this can work no matter how funny the act is since it is irrelevant to the story. However if the drunk bit had ever made me laugh, that would have helped. Integrating it into the story would have been better—perhaps by making Alberto the drunk.
I am curious how El superloco was written. My guess is the first draft was all horror and then somewhere in pre-production they decided to graft on the drunk routine. Did they stumble upon Leopoldo Ortín’s doing a drunk act at the tent theaters popular at the time and find it so hysterically funny they decided to stick the bit into their film no matter that it didn’t belong? That at least is some kind of explanation.
I won’t call it a total loss as there is something of interest (mild interest) in the horror part. Call it mostly a loss.