| Going Berserk | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | David Steinberg |
| Written by |
|
| Produced by | Claude Héroux |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Bobby Byrne |
| Edited by | Donn Cambern |
| Music by | Tom Scott |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 84 minutes |
| Countries | United States Canada |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $234,950 |
Going Berserk is a 1983 American-Canadian comedy film starring John Candy, Joe Flaherty, and Eugene Levy and directed by David Steinberg. [1]
John Bourgignon is an amiable chauffeur and would-be drummer who is engaged to the daughter Nancy, of an extremely disapproving United States congressman Ed Reese. As the wedding date approaches, John's sleazy film-director friend, Sal DiPasquale, blackmails the senator into allowing him to record the ceremony. John has assorted misadventures, including being handcuffed to a dead man, running afoul of a motorcycle gang, and getting brainwashed by an aerobics cult that wants him to assassinate the congressman. The conditioning goes awry, causing John to behave like "a schmuck" and nearly ruin his engagement, but a second attempt appears to have the desired effect. At the wedding ceremony, John reveals he resisted the conditioning; the cultists are arrested, John more or less saves the day, and more or less lives happily ever after.
The New York Times review stated, "John Candy is easily the funniest thing in Going Berserk, an affably stupid comedy that's saddled with too much plot and that hasn't nearly enough energy to go with it." [2] Vulture Hound wrote, "Going Berserk co-written by Dana Olsen misses the mark with its bare minimum of plot to get us from scene to scene that reference films/tv shows you’d rather being watching than this movie." [3]
John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian who is best known for his work in Hollywood films. Candy first rose to national prominence in the 1970s as a member of the Toronto branch of the Second City and its SCTV sketch comedy series. He rose to international fame in the 1980s with his roles in comedic films such as Stripes, Splash, Brewster's Millions, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Spaceballs, The Great Outdoors, Uncle Buck, and Cool Runnings. He also appeared in supporting roles in The Blues Brothers, National Lampoon's Vacation, Little Shop of Horrors, and Home Alone, and featured in dramatic roles in Only the Lonely and JFK.
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