I felt that I needed to comment on this film for a couple of reasons. (smiles) Raysond mentioned "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest", "Shock Corridor", and "Girl, Interrupted", but neglected to add in what, I feel, is a worthy addition to said list of movies that actually portray mental illness and the institutions to which we relegate the unfortunate souls who suffer from these illnesses of the mind. The movie I felt was left off that list was "Gothika", and I thought, often, of that particular film while watching this one...What happens when the border between the Psychiatrist and the Patient is crossed, or breached, or, in the case of the movie from which I take my name, "Mister Frost", violated outright? Psychiatry and Psychology is the Religion for the "New Millennium". These Doctors with their PhD's are the new Priesthood. As was said several times in this movie (Crazy As Hell) and was mentioned in a couple of the other movies, these Doctors -- quite a lot of the time, I should think -- do not really view their patients as people. They are, at best, "cases" to be solved. Or, at worst, as the Psychiatrist in this movie was accused of, "...another notch in the win column": Another successful wager won… In the movie "Mister Frost", the Devil (Portrayed Amazingly well by Jeff Goldblum) says, "Because I'm chaos, it is my destiny to destroy." At the end of the day that is what this movie (as well as "Gothika") is truly about: Our fear of the destruction of our sanity by chaos. We all know that we walk a truly fine line between the sane and the insane, one that is made all the more precarious by the ever-changing opinions of society and the medical profession as to what constitutes "sanity". How many of us have feared that we might wind up locked away in one of these wards, against our wills and without recourse? Trapped there among the terribly wrong and delusional inmates, who would believe that we were sane? And, of course, this begs the question, "Are any of us TRULY sane?" As one character in "Gothika" points out, "You can't trust someone who thinks you're crazy." "Crazy As Hell" I would rank right up there with the best, easily, of the purely psychological thrillers. It portrays its contrasts using tricks of light and shadow…a blurring of what is real and what is not…from sharp focus to a soft blur… Director Eriq La Salle has us hook, line and sinker from start to finish… It was very refreshing to see an ending on a movie FOR ONCE that I just hadn't seen coming whatsoever. I didn't even pick up on the Hades/Sedah connection until after the movie was over.I felt that the way the production designer MUST have worked with the set designers and property masters was particularly effective. As the main character's world slowly crumbles over the course of the movie his environment and the objects contained in it begin to reflect this slow shifting of sanity into insanity. For example, the pictures and certificates on the walls of his office become progressively askew as the movie progresses, as do the Rorschach Ink Blots on the walls in the corridor leading to the ward the main character is put in charge of for the purposes of the documentary which is being filmed.This movie does have some shortcomings, as do all movies, but they are easily glossed over and are not severe enough to mention. Nor will these minor shortcomings (mostly in the realm of technical issues) detract from the basic enjoyment of what is a very enjoyable movie.Psychosis is an all-pervading mental disorder. Those who suffer from it DO NOT understand the distinction between "consensual reality" and their own particular version. How can any of us truly ever know if we are sitting here, right now, or if we are locked away, forgotten, in a mental ward somewhere hopelessly banging our heads against the wall…?As Jeff Goldblum's character in "Mister Frost" says, "I'm the Ga Ga Man! Boo!"

It took me a minute to understand it. Well at least I think I understood it. I think this movie can be very easily perceived in different ways depending on the personal beliefs/ ideas of the viewer. For me, I think Dr. Ty Adams was already dead at the beginning of the movie. And since he was one of those people who spent their life trying to help others but not really believing in God or the Devil his soul kinda got stuck in the middle. Which is why he was placed in his element (the hospital) and confronted by the devil, who stated in their first meeting that he wanted Ty's soul. I think the Sinbad character may have been God in a human form to maybe try and save Ty's soul. But Ty never gave him the time of day and said throughout the film that he didn't believe in God. This in my opinion may have prevented Ty's soul from going to heaven thus ending up in hell at the end of the movie. Ty's last words were "I'm a good man!" Thinking that good people don't go to hell. I think that this movie isn't trying to force religion on you, put I do think that it wants you to believe in something. In Ty's case his ego got in the way of him going to heaven.

I just watched Crazy as Hell and am completely baffled and not a little frustrated. I do not understand the ending at all. I really enjoyed the movie; the acting was excellent and the plot was compelling, even though the state hospital setting was implausible in that they are nowhere near as nice, patients can't smoke inside, can't have a lot of personal belongings all over, neckties, sharp things, etc. At least not in Washington State. Even so, it was a thoroughly engaging movie up until the last ten minutes when I became totally lost. If anyone can explain what happened, please email me and/or post a comment. *****spoiler***** Help, please explain: was the Doc really in hell the whole time, or was it a test which he failed and went to hell when he let Satan escape? Was Satan's mother the same being, changing forms, or were they two separate entities? What was the point of the Lupa character, and the custodian (Sinbad) character?

i didn't really appreciate this film. the dialogue was decent but they seemed to tread a thin line between spiritual and emotional, as if the writer was trying to dodge stereotype.personally, i spent a lot of time trying to figure out the "who-dunnit" scape of the cast. i first thought la salle's character was a figment of ty's psychosis in dealing with the loss of his daughter. at one time i thought that ty was a schizophrenic that killed his family, or whose family was made up to torment him. for a while i was convinced that he was in hell cause he had jumped, and his daughter was a rep of his mortal form. the director i figured as ty's real psychiatrist who was trying to convince him to go on meds for his schizophrenia. then that completely unconnected scene in the club with the girl was ridiculous, and i have yet to realize what significance the video/documentarian crew played except to limit the supernatural in the plot, and maybe develop ty's character (making it more confusing).i don't know what else to say. i ranked it 4 cause i'd rather watch something that poses intelligent with a promise of depth, than something that's all 8th grade level understanding. i just think they could lead us a little more and not be afraid to wrap it up.