By Melissa Garza
“Crazy Love” is more disturbing and frightening, than any horror film I’ve ever seen. It was something that in the middle, I had to get up and leave the room as I was so sickened. Still fascinated, I had to return to watch the rest of the production. I wish I could say this was a fictional movie that was so over-the-top it caused these feelings. Sadly, this isn’t fictional – instead it’s a documentary following a disturbing relationship that began over 60 years ago.
In the late 1950s , Burt Pugach was a successful ambulance chasing attorney. He saw Linda while driving down the street and hit on her. Soon, the two started dating. She was taken aback by the amount of money he had. As a younger woman who wasn’t wealthy, she was flattered by the constant flowers, trips in airplanes and being driven around in nice vehicles. Unbeknownst to her, Burt was married and had little to no intention of divorcing his wife.
When she uncovered he was married, she broke up with him. He quickly forged divorce papers which made her
stick around a bit longer. Revealing himself to be a douchebag near immediately, when he saw her say hello to another man in passing, he forced her to have an exam by a doctor so that he could find out if she had slept around. The doctor informed him that she was still a virgin.
Soon, she found out the divorce papers were faked and she decided to get out of the relationship. Burt, one of the biggest assholes on the face of the planet, began to mentally abuse her by using rule #1 out of the Domestic Violence Handbook. He told her and all of her friends that if he couldn’t have her nobody could.
Linda attempted to move on with her life and became engaged to another chap. From all accounts, this guy – Larry – was a nice man. Though not rich, he treated her well. One night, Burt hid in the darkness and was going to kill Larry. When he couldn’t do it, he hired two men (that everyone in the film goes to great length to point out were black) to deliver an “engagement” present to Linda. When she went to the door to retrieve the gift, she was blinded as they threw Lye in her eyes.
The acid disfigured her permanently and terribly. She forced her to go through painful surgery after painful surgery. The men who blinded her started to blackmail Larry, who planned to kill them as well, but that plan never went into motion as they always refused to meet Burt somewhere dark and desolate.
Burt being a sociopath, talks with little remorse about what happened to Linda. Instead, he discusses how he felt railroaded by the justice system. He did all he could do including slitting his own wrists (too bad he wasn’t successful) to get a mistrial. When he was put in jail, his ribs were broken and he was beaten up. In the interview, he attempts to invoke sympathy by talking about how his mother once abused him.
Burt ended up serving a sentence of 13 years. During this time, he never stopped harassing Linda. He sent her flowers and letters. She reported him to the parole board in an attempt to keep him in jail for several years.
Life wasn’t easy for Linda. Larry almost immediately left her after the incident. Years later, another man asked her to marry him but when he saw her with clear glasses on which revealed the depth of the scars, he rescinded his offer.
If the story ended here, we would have a sad story about a sociopathic freak who severely damaged a young woman, forever altering her life. This wasn’t the end.
When Burt got out of jail – despite the insanity of it all – Linda reunited and married him. Years later, a woman who Burt admits to having an affair with brought him to trial stating he had been threatening to her. She attested he had promised to leave his wife, which he doesn’t deny. She also said he promised to blind her the way he had Linda if she tried to leave. Linda throughout this insanity stood by the waste-of-space.
If one cannot tell, this documentary really pissed me off. I’m still angry about it. For one, the producers via music and old photographs romanticized this courtship. As a woman, this is more than distasteful. Now, I do not consider myself a raging feminist. I never raise hell about fictionalized abuse. Hell, I’m even a fan of the soap opera love fest of Luke and Laura despite it beginning with a rape. It’s fiction. Artists and writers have the right to tell any type of story they want. That said, when showing something that is REAL, there is a responsibility to accurately tell the story. The tone of this documentary was one that spoke of an endless love and adoration that drove Burt to this violent rage. Bullshit. Burt is a complete abusive douchebag who should still be in prison for blinding Linda.
Linda is a sadder case. She is someone who was screwed over by this jerk and like any woman with Battered Person Syndrome was convinced she couldn’t get anyone else. This thought was fed into by the other women who were “friends” of hers reiterating as much in interviews. Even more so by the two men who should have looked passed her disfigurement but instead broke her heart.
Nonetheless, romanticizing this relationship as something uniquely ideal is perverse! One would think that this was something made in the 60s or before. No, this documentary was made in 2007.
Despite my criticism, I’m not saying that this story didn’t have a right to be told. It did however have a right to
be told without all the lovey-dovey 1950s music played in the background. If I had watched this movie as a teenage girl, before I had a lifetime of perspective, I may have been swept up by the way it was told. I may have thought – “wow…look at all the obstacles they overcame. How romantic.” It scares me that other young girls or niave women will watch this and feel the same. Or women already in abusive relationships may see this and say to themselves, “well (enter asshole boyfriend’s name) isn’t that bad. He never blinded me.” That’s dangerous. It’s a dangerous message to put out there.
This wasn’t romantic. It was NUTS and despite the title, there wasn’t enough emphasis placed on this. Showing Burt crying at the end saying he would take it back if he could was vomit-inducing. After defending himself for 90 minutes and talking about how the court was out to get him, it’s obvious the man is a little more than sick.
Also, the focus placed on the abuse he endured as a child was more than unnecessary. Yes, when he was a child he was a victim. The moment he hurt his first woman (who I doubt was Linda) he became a douchebag perp. No longer does his tales of woe invoke sympathy – and they do not define him nor excuse the behavior.
Not that this needs to be added as my opinion is well known. There is so much racism within this movie. At one point, the most annoying caricature who ever lived Bob Janoff who is painted in a pleasant light, reflects while laughing hysterically that he advised Burt to kill the two “n***ers” when he was going down for burning Linda. He doesn’t apologize for the behavior or try to explain it away. Instead, he brings it up while joking around and then says how the place had been bugged and he was brought in by the DA for saying it. He acts as though it was such an inconvenience to be brought down for questioning. The 50 years he’s been on the planet since this happened has not added an ounce of perspective or conscience. In my opinion, he should have gone to jail – but of course this was the 1950s and a white guy threatening black men was going to raise few flags, especially when the two threatened had been responsible for the blinding of a white woman.
Now, Jerkoff …I mean Janoff is filmed while in a suit and in this very respectable setting (like an office.) Before this he talked about all these movie ventures he had been involved with at the side of Burt, so this is obviously an educated businessman’s who was once thought to be distinguished. Rather than to focus on his bigoted behavior and to discredit him by really delving into this – it is brushed over. He goes on to say that he considers himself a friend of Burts, excusing it by saying that even “Hitler” had friends. Again, no follow-up about this; no push from the director; It is just left as an open statement. Truth be known, I disliked Bob almost as much as I despised Burt.
As disturbing if not more-so was the
“support” of some of Linda’s friends. Women would defend the union by basically saying Linda because of her disfigurement couldn’t do any better. The biggest stand any of the women made was for one to dislike Burt but nonetheless still bakes him a cake when he comes by as to not be rude.
Even Margaret Powers, the policewoman who was there to guard Linda during her ordeal worked as a catalyst for these two to reunite. Picture this scenario happening today: A woman is beaten by her husband so bad that she’s blinded for life. She is hiding out away from him and the authorities think its so dangerous that they put a guard on the watch-out 24/7. Instead of the guard ensuring her protection and reminding her how vile this piece of scum is, she sets it up so the two could get back together!
I just wanted to punch these people in the faces. There was a story to be told here. The story is about a psychopathic man who wore down an abused woman so much that she gave up in life.
As a woman, this definitely hits me harder than if a typical man watched it. I see some reviews on IMDB by users who thought the comedic elements in the production were entertaining. That mindset makes me sick. It is only because this is a real life scenario that I think it should have been handled more delicately. Hell, an episode of Law & Order SVU handles this type of situation more seriously. I would bet that an episode of NTSF:SD SUV (look it up – great show) would have handled it more seriously. Instead, we’re faced with something that laughs in the face of abuse.
Even Linda’s recovery and time spent at the hospital was barely mentioned. It was rushed through to get back to the “love” story. If the director wanted to delve into this history of the relationship – fine. If the directors (both men – Dan Klores and Fisher Stevens) wanted to make it look as though Linda was in good mental health when she decided to hook up with Burt – whatever. At least, discuss the absolute torture she had to endure when she was blinded. Really delve into the loss of vision and how it impacted every walk of her life. Instead the documentary played out like the following: Burt falls in love with Linda. Linda breaks up with Burt. Burt makes a mistake and goes to jail. Burt and Linda reunite in a great love affair. It was a disgusting display that encouraged domestic abuse. It completely steered clear of asking the tough questions – like in what way the abuse continued. I wish the second known victim of Burt’s had been given the opportunity to be interviewed, but of course that would put a damper on the love-fest they were trying to show off.
Now, I am not unaccustomed to disturbing documentaries. I think some of the best have been those that tackle topics that are very upsetting. “Jesus Camp” is an example. In that documentary it is clear that the children are being emotionally abused by the glory-hound disgusting camp director Becky Fischer. Within the documentary however, the creators didn’t sugarcoat her behavior. While Becky lied telling the children that she knew everything bad they had done causing some to have breakdowns, we weren’t force-fed happy tunes that seemed to approve with her action. The truth was there to see and the documentary did everything to show it how it happened. The fact that Becky hid behind God and was really out to boost her own esteem and to get applause was evident.
Likewise, “Capturing the Friedmans” showed old footage of a family torn apart because of accusations of child
molestation. Just as in “Crazy Love” home-movies and events captured on tape added insight into the relationships, but in “Capturing the Friedmans” it was shown in an honest manner. It wasn’t an attempt to illicit sympathy nor was it an attempt to skew one’s fundamental belief system of right and wrong as to create something perceived as edgy or revolutionary. It is most certain the desire of the makers of “Crazy Love” to be described as just that. Instead, it is merely cheap, insulting, and no deeper than Prodigy’s music video “Smack my Bitch Up.” Though I’m far from a fan, at least Prodigy’s video was fiction.
Lastly, I want to point out that I am fortunate enough to have married the most gentle and caring man in the world. I love him with all my heart. (Maybe it’s irrelevant but I do enjoy saying it) He would never even think to lay his hand on me nor would I disrespect him by laying my hand on him. That’s not all that shocking, but something that may be is that after 4 years my husband and I have never been in an argument nor have we ever said a harsh word to one another. In my opinion, we have the ideal marriage. I would so much like to see men like my husband highlighted in Hollywood and in movies as the type of partner one would want to have. Instead, the brooding abusive rebel is often the romantic hero. Take “Buffalo 66” for example. Though, one of my favorite films for a variety of reasons, the lead character is extremely abusive to his girlfriend. The relationship begins with a kidnapping. Throughout the movie, he makes fun of, threatens and leaves his girlfriend stranded. She stands by his side and sees the good in him. The male lead character’s behavior is as expected excused away because he had a rough childhood. His father beat him and killed his dog. His mother paid little mind to him. In fiction, I accept this for a few reasons. Again, artists have the right to put forth whatever the hell they want. Also, it usually makes for an interesting watch. Though, immediately after I typically watch the ending of “Enough” for a little female justice. What bothers me, is when delving into real life in the format of a documentary filmmakers should not use techniques that are utilized in fiction to gain support for someone like Burt. Here, the filmmakers could have mentioned the abuse endured by him as a child in a manner that did not insinuate it pushed him into violence as an adult. That type of allowance is demeaning to anyone who survived an abusive childhood and did not follow the cycle. For those of us who became successful in their adult life and entered healthy loving relationships, it is very upsetting to see murderers, sexual predators, rapists and abusers almost excused for their behavior because of bad childhoods. It’s ridiculous and needs to stop.
Another issue is the compliment this couple seemingly obtained for being married for over twenty years. Rather than paint it as an awful result of abuse they focused on pet names they call each other and intimate pictures of them in efforts to display a functioning marriage. This is by far the most aggravating documentary I’ve ever watched, yet I feel compelled to suggest others see it as I hate to be the only one to suffer.
Though I hate sexism and I hate playing any type of bigot card, I will say (and am prepared to take any flack for saying) I think this production would have been in a much different tone if a woman was involved in the direct filmmaking.
Rating ‘Crazy Love” is the most difficult thing I’ve had to do in regards to writing for this site so I’m going to separate it into two different categories.
Scared Stiff Rating: Watch-ability 9/10 ; Quality/Depth 2/10 Overall Rating: 5.5/10
