Madness Plot Summary
Read the complete plot summary and ending explained for Madness (1980). From turning points to emotional moments, uncover what really happened and why it matters.
Note: This summary reflects the edited version; the unedited cut contains additional explicit scenes.
Joe Brezzi escapes from prison by scaling a wall, then steals a car after striking a man with a rock. A second confrontation unfolds when an older man comes upon him with a pitchfork; a brutal fight ends with Joe knocking the man unconscious and then killing him with the weapon before driving away, beginning a tense, spiraling chase of impulse and danger.
In a disturbing display of social manipulation, Joe uses a ruse to learn about a nearby house. He stops on the roadside and convinces an old man that he is an insurance salesman, coaxing the man to reveal when the homeowners are home, when they might be away, and when the man himself hunts. With this knowledge, he drives toward the house, hides the car, and bribes the moment with a quick break-in, slipping away as another car approaches.
That evening, Liliana hosts a dinner with her sister Paola and her husband Sergio. The gathering is tense but carefully choreographed to mislead Liliana, because the trio is entangled in an affair that they keep from her. Paola openly probes Sergio about when they will have sex, while Sergio talks about going hunting the next morning, laying the groundwork for the following morning’s plans.
The next morning, Sergio heads out to hunt with a shotgun, Liliana goes into town to shop, and Paola arranges a chair to bask in the sun. Joe reemerges, silent and patient, and slips up on Paola, knocking her out and forcing her to dig beneath the fireplace. When Liliana returns, she is forced to assist in the digging as Paola is bound, and Sergio comes home to join in the labor, all under Joe’s coercive control.
As the plot thickens, Joe exposes the hidden affair between Paola and Sergio to Liliana, and then tries to seduce Liliana himself, keeping a shotgun trained on the two lovers as a grim leverage. Paola and Sergio hatch a plan to rush Joe while he is distracted, but their attempt is thwarted as Joe gets the shotgun first and shoots both of them. He then asks Liliana to run away with him, hoping to salvage a future together amid the wreckage.
When Joe ventures to the car, he leaves the shotgun behind. Liliana, seizing the weapon, turns the table and fires a fatal shot into Joe’s back. The frame freezes on her decision as the screen strips away the remaining tension, and the film ends with Liliana standing over the crater of the night’s violence.
Madness Timeline
Follow the complete movie timeline of Madness (1980) with every major event in chronological order. Great for understanding complex plots and story progression.
Escape from prison
Joe scales down the prison wall to escape, slipping into the open. The breakout propels him onto a desperate flight from custody as he looks for a way to disappear. This opening act sets the tone for a tense, improvised criminal journey.
Car theft and fatal confrontation
To continue his flight, Joe hits a man with a rock to steal his car. An older man witnesses the theft and attacks with a pitchfork, forcing Joe to defend himself. He subdues the attacker and ends up killing him before driving away.
The old man’s information and entry plan
Joe befriends an old man on the road and uses a ruse to learn detailed information about a nearby house, including when the owners are home and when they hunt. He uses this intel to position himself for a break-in later. After taking precautions, he leaves when he hears a car approaching.
Burglary of the house
With the owners away, Joe breaks into the house and moves through rooms, listening for cues that someone might return. He remains hidden and observant, waiting for the right moment to slip out. When a car is heard outside, he exits quickly.
Dinner and deception at Liliana's home
Liliana, Paola, and Sergio arrive and settle in for dinner, creating an ordinary domestic scene. Paola and Sergio's affair remains hidden from Liliana as they pretend normalcy. The tension between them undercuts the dinner's surface calm.
Morning routine and looming danger
The next morning, Sergio heads out hunting with a shotgun, while Liliana shops in town and Paola basks in the sun. Joe lingers nearby, watching the family and plotting his next move. The ordinary routine stands in stark contrast to the danger quietly gathering inside the house.
Paola is kidnapped and forced to dig
Joe sneaks up on Paola, knocks her out, and drags her inside to begin digging under the fireplace. Liliana returns and finds Paola bound, heightening the sense of danger. The family’s private space becomes a site of coercion and control.
Sergio's reveal and tension
When Sergio returns, Joe makes him dig for a while before revealing the affair between Paola and Sergio to Liliana. The exposure shatters the pretenses and escalates the conflict within the household. Joe asserts control, deepening the psychological hold on the family.
Forced intimacy and coercion toward Liliana
Joe forces Paola and Sergio to have sex at gunpoint while attempting to seduce Liliana. The coercive act exposes the film’s brutal power dynamics and leaves the women in a precarious position. The situation intensifies as Liliana confronts an impossible choice.
Plans to rush Joe and the shooting
Paola and Sergio scheme to rush Joe while he is distracted, trying to regain control of the situation. The plan backfires as Joe stays in command and shoots both of them. The violence cements Joe’s grip on the house and its occupants.
Liliana bargains for escape
Joe asks Liliana to run away with him, dangling freedom as bait. He goes to check the car, leaving the shotgun behind, which Liliana secretly retrieves as a means of resistance. The couple’s fragile alliance teeters on a blade’s edge.
Liliana's final act: the shotgun ends Joe
Liliana picks up the shotgun and shoots Joe in the back, ending his threat. The freeze-frame ending punctuates the tragedy and the collapse of the attempted escape. The film closes on a note of shattered dreams and ruined relationships.
Madness Characters
Explore all characters from Madness (1980). Get detailed profiles with their roles, arcs, and key relationships explained.
Joe Brezzi (Joe Dallesandro)
A violent, resourceful escapee who uses cunning and brutality to survive. He exerts control through threats and manipulation, breaking into a house and coercing others with a shotgun. His actions reveal a ruthless, impulsive nature that escalates the violence of the story.
Killed Cardriver (Omero Capanna)
An older man who encounters Joe during his street ambush and becomes a victim of the unlawful intrusion. His brief, brutal death underscores the film's blunt approach to violence. He represents the indiscriminate danger that follows Joe's rampage.
Sergio (Gianni Macchia)
Liliana's husband, quietly involved in an extramarital affair with Liliana. His complicity and role in the couple's dynamic fuels the conflict and Joe's assault on the household. He is pragmatic, sometimes calculating, and ultimately a target of Joe's violence.
Paola (Lorraine De Selle)
Liliana's sister who becomes entangled in the danger within the house. Her presence intensifies the sense of domestic vulnerability and the plot's power dynamics. She plays a key role in the tension and the final confrontation.
Liliana (Patrizia Behn)
Liliana is the sister of Paola and wife of Sergio, at the center of a secret affair. Her attempt to escape with Joe clashes with the couple's plan and results in a fatal confrontation. She embodies the film's themes of desire, risk, and consequence.
Madness Settings
Learn where and when Madness (1980) takes place. Explore the film’s settings, era, and how they shape the narrative.
Location
Secluded house, Country road
The central action centers on a secluded rural house where Liliana, Paola, and Sergio live, and the nearby country road that frames their daily routine. The house is an intimate domestic space that becomes a trap when Joe invades. Rural surroundings include hunting and a quiet backdrop for violence.
Madness Themes
Discover the main themes in Madness (1980). Analyze the deeper meanings, emotional layers, and social commentary behind the film.
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Violence
The film's plot escalates through a series of brutal acts, from a prison escape to a murder, and finally a fatal shootout. Violence drives the narrative, revealing the fragility of safety and the thin line between prey and predator. The sequences are blunt and intense, creating a grim, relentless mood.
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Deception
Deception is woven into Joe's social hacking and manipulation: posing as an insurance salesman to gather details about a house, and using keys to break in unseen. The lovers' ruse — a staged affair to mislead Liliana's husband — further blurs truth and motive. The plot relies on misdirection to keep characters off balance.
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Betrayal
Betrayal sits at the core of the relationships: an affair between Sergio and Liliana, and the precarious trust within the trio. The plan to trap Joe reveals how far characters will go to protect their secrets. The final confrontation exposes the fragility of love when stakes turn lethal.
Madness Spoiler-Free Summary
Discover the spoiler-free summary of Madness (1980). Get a concise overview without any spoilers.
In a remote stretch of countryside, an isolated cottage stands alone against a bleak horizon, its quiet walls belying the fragile peace that lives within. The landscape is stripped of distraction, allowing the thin veil between normalcy and terror to feel almost tangible. Light filters through dusty windows, and the wind carries an uneasy stillness that hints at secrets waiting to surface.
Joe arrives on the scene as a figure cut loose from the world he once inhabited, a man whose very presence turns the calm into a pressurized standoff. He moves with the restless energy of someone who has just escaped the confines of order, his motives as opaque as the shadows that cling to the cottage’s corners. The atmosphere tightens around his arrival, the ordinary world slipping into a nightmarish arena where every breath seems measured against an unseen timer.
Inside, Liliana tends to the rhythms of daily life, while her husband Sergio and her sister Paola navigate a tangle of unspoken grievances and fragile alliances. Their interactions are marked by a delicate dance of affection and tension, each gesture hinting at deeper fissures beneath the surface. The trio’s relationship, already strained by hidden desires and past resentments, is set against the stark backdrop of the isolated home, making the ordinary feel increasingly precarious.
When the stranger’s intrusion forces the household into confrontation, the cottage transforms from a sanctuary into a pressure cooker of fear and resolve. The characters must grapple not only with an external menace but also with the internal demons that have long lingered in the corners of their lives. As dread pools and the line between predator and prey blurs, the film sustains a relentless, oppressive tone that keeps the audience perched on the edge of uncertainty, wondering how far the bounds of survival will be pushed.
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