Maniac

[chronic]

Just watched this for the first time in at least 20 years. A great sleazy grindhouse splatter film from 1980, starring Joe Spinell as Frank Zito, a New York serial killer who scalps women and then nails the scalps to the heads of mannequins that he keeps in his apartment (where he also keeps a shrine to his mother surrounded by a couple of dozen candles... subtle, don't you think?). Great dialogue, almost all of it between Frank and himself, and a really great soundtrack.

"Mommy, please! Please don't lock me in the closet again Mommy!"

4 thumbs up!

The is like a mini-play of all of the violent scenes from the entire movie.

 

[d gray]

loved that flick! great tom savini gore effects in that one.

 

[Stavrogin]

The shotgun blast through the windscreen is a real tooth-rattler. Read somewhere once that Savini found inspiration for this scene from a real crime scene photo of a cabbie (NY?) who had the misfortune of taking a shotgun blast to the head. Agree, it's a great example of grindhouse sleaze but it's one of those pick-and-choose who you recommend it to type films. Plus it stars Caroline Munro, she's always worth watching.

 

[pigmantoo]

Boxing Helena -- was good up to the ending which was crap.

 

[mjp]

Uh...okay.

 

[Digit]

Putting Maniac at the top of my list of must see. ....Oh and by the way, what the hell does Helena have to do with it?