DR. GIGGLES should have been a lean, mean, gritty, surreal little horror movie. It is enjoyable, is never boring, but is a Kitchen Sink Movie, meaning there's everything in it but. Sometimes less really is more and a bit less would have been advised here. The primary influence on the film appears to have been Sam Raimi (star Larry Drake -- who is excellent -- was hot off the success of DARKMAN) and Tim Burton (who's BATMAN had just ushered in the era of 1990s overkill event films), neither of whom are known for their restraint.<br /><br />DR. GIGGLES is actually so busy and cluttered that it's story becomes overwhelmed in a cacophony of arty camera angles, dark cartoonish neon lighting, plot twists, secondary characters, background development sketches, musical segues, billowing clouds of steam, leering closeup faces, hysterical supporting players, over-choreographed shock sequences, jam-packed picture frames that never sit still, excessive cutting for continuity, obscure character motivations, disposable unuseful dialog, people banging doors & breaking glass, and a self-conscious ongoing effort to never allow Attention Deficit Disorder plagued viewers from ever getting bored. Here is a movie who's use of graffiti on set walls is even obnoxious, self-aware and -- in the eyes of the filmmakers -- as equally worthy of the viewer's attention as what the main characters have to say.<br /><br />It's a great concept for a film: Nutzo sick maniac doctor escapes from the local sanatorium and promptly sets up a home practice & starts killing people in various inventive ways. The problem is that some of those ways are a bit too inventive. Doctors are scary by nature, with their face masks, drab clothing, bags of sinister instruments that are supposed to cure ailments, and a seeming joy of delivering the worst news possible to their patients. Want to watch your family physician freak out? Do some sit-ups right before he takes your blood pressure, or maybe walk up a flight of stairs to their office. We're supposed to be getting more exercise but you show an elevated heart rate and the son of a bitch will have you on some medication that puts you to sleep & call that progress. Amazing.<br /><br />So the idea of having a doctor in a horror movie become a creepy, sinister juggernaut of evil isn't that far off the track of everyday reality. The problem with Dr. Giggles is that he is never allowed to just be scary. Check out a movie from about the same time, 1989's THE DEAD PIT for another sinister psychotic physician who actually is frightening, and whose creators were happy just to let him lurk around the bowels of a condemned sanatorium carving people's brains out. But being chased around by some giggling, squeaky voiced loon with a giant tongue suppressor isn't my idea of scary. It's weird, and the shame with this film is that it confuses weird with scary. It's sort of an overblown surrealist melange of sight, sound, fury, noise, color and obnoxiously arty camera angles.<br /><br />The movie is so busy and cluttered I have no idea what the story really was about even after two viewings, and that might be telling. Here is a film who's story isn't really important but instead consists as a tightly edited & flamboyantly produced series of set-pieces about a surrealist, over the top insane doctor. It passes the time well enough and fans of late 80s/early 90's teen horror will be well served, but after wards the one thing you will probably want more than anything are a couple of aspirins and a nice quiet well-lit room to sit in for a few minutes so you can catch your breath. Ahh, that's better.<br /><br />4/10: Not without its merits, but less would have been more.