Maniac (1980)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

William Lustig

Writers:

C.A. Rosenberg (writer)
Joe Spinell (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

14 November 1980 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Run from this man!

Plot:

A schizoid serial killer randomly stalks and kills various young women in New York, which he sees as revenge for the mistreatment he got while being raised by his own abusive mother.

Plot Keywords:

Park | Mannequin | Photographer | Serial Killer | Bathtub

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Joe Spinell	...	Frank Zito
Caroline Munro	...	Anna D'Antoni
Abigail Clayton	...	Rita (as Gail Lawrence)
Kelly Piper	...	Nurse
Rita Montone	...	Hooker
Tom Savini	...	Disco boy
Hyla Marrow	...	Disco girl
James Brewster	...	Beach boy
Linda Lee Walter	...	Beach girl
Tracie Evans	...	Street hooker
Sharon Mitchell	...	Nurse #2
Carol Henry	...	Deadbeat
Nelia Bacmeister	...	Carmen Zito
Louis Jawitz	...	Art director
Denise Spagnuolo	...	Denise
Billy Spagnuolo	...	Billy
Frank Pesce	...	TV reporter (voice)
Candace Clements	...	Mother #1 in park
Diane Spagnuolo	...	Mother #2 in park
Kim Hudson	...	Lobby hooker
Terry Gagnon	...	Woman in alley
Joan Baldwin	...	Model #1
Jeni Paz	...	Model #2
Janelle Winston	...	Waitress
Randy Jurgensen	...	Cop #1
Jimmy Aurichio	...	Cop #2
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Andrew W. Garroni	...	Nurse #2's boyfriend in car (uncredited)
William Lustig	...	Al (hotel manager) (uncredited)

Directed by
William Lustig

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
C.A. Rosenberg		writer
Joe Spinell		screenplay
Joe Spinell		story

Produced by
Andrew W. Garroni	....	producer
Judd Hamilton	....	executive producer
William Lustig	....	producer
John Packard	....	associate producer
Joe Spinell	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Jay Chattaway

Cinematography by
Robert Lindsay

Film Editing by
Lorenzo Marinelli

Makeup Department
Rob Bottin	....	makeup effects
Tom Savini	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Andrew W. Garroni	....	production manager (as Andrew Garroni)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
William Adams III	....	second assistant director
Steven Andrew	....	first assistant director
Nelia Bacmeister	....	second assistant director

Sound Department
Rick Dior	....	sound re-recording mixer
Erno Sephy	....	sound editor

Camera and Electrical Department
Jim Canatta	....	assistant camera
Robert K. Feldmann	....	key grip (as Robert Feldman)
Bob Halloran	....	best boy
Steven Hirsch	....	still photographer
Kevin Jones	....	gaffer
Robert Lindsay	....	camera operator
Luke Walter	....	assistant camera
Bobbi Leigh Zito	....	still photographer

Music Department
Pete Levin	....	electronic music realization

Other crew
Arthur Blum	....	production assistant
Jim Harte	....	production assistant
Janie Heath	....	production assistant
Deborah Ledendecker	....	script supervisor
Janine Stover	....	script supervisor
Luke Walter	....	assistant: Joe Spinell
Debi Zimmerman	....	production coordinator

Production Companies

• Magnum Motion Pictures Inc.

Distributors

• Analysis Film Releasing Corporation (1980) (USA) (theatrical)
• Citadel Films (1981) (Canada) (theatrical) (cut version)
• Hollywood Boulevard Diffusion (1982) (France) (theatrical)
• René Chateau Productions (1980) (France) (theatrical)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2001) (USA) (VHS)
• Astro Distribution (2001) (Germany) (DVD)
• Blue Underground (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Blue Underground (2008) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• CMV Laservision (2000) (Germany) (DVD)
• Elite Entertainment (USA) (DVD)
• Elite Entertainment (USA) (laserdisc)
• Media Home Entertainment (1981) (USA) (VHS)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2005) (Australia) (DVD)

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:(Banned) (original rating) | Australia:R (uncut) (2004) | Australia:R (cut) (1982-2004) | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | West Germany:18 (cut) | Sweden:15 | Italy:VM14 (video rating) | France:-18 | Argentina:18 (re-rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Italy:VM18 | New Zealand:R18 | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 (heavily cut) | France:-16 | Norway:18 | UK:(Banned) (original rating) | UK:18 (video rating) (cut) | USA:R | West Germany:(Banned)

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Magnum Motion Pictures Inc.

Trivia:

Gene Siskel was so disgusted by the infamous "shotgun head explosion" scene that he walked out of the movie, saying on his TV show with Roger Ebert that the film could not redeem itself after the ultra-violence that he had seen.

Goofs:

Continuity: The nurse is supposedly alone in the subway station, but during one shot (from inside the subway train as it pulls away) we can see several people walking about on the platform.

Quotes:

Frank Zito: I told you not to go out tonight didn't I? Every time you go out this kind of thing happens.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Post Traumatic: An American Nightmare (2009) (V)

Soundtrack:

Non Gettarmi la sabbia negli occhi

Excellent make-up FX and claustrophobic atmosphere.

I'd like to applaud Tom Savini for his work here--MANIAC contains some of the most realistic and unrestrained gore FX I've seen. Anyone who says that horror film make-up men (and women) don't deserve to be called artists is an idiot. Here you get explicitly bloody multiple scalping, stabbings and strangulations, plus an excellent head-being-blown-off-with-shotgun murder and a man being ripped apart nightmare and it all looks pretty damn convincing to me.

Aside from the FX, director William Lustig does an OK job with color schemes (especially considering the budget), the seedy New York locales are well used and the film, I thought, was scary, disturbing, intense and suspenseful in parts (the subway sequence was especially well handled). Reliable character actor Joe Spinell (from TAXI DRIVER, THE GODFATHER, etc.) also offers an effective performance as the sweaty, overweight, emotionally-scarred killer.

On the down side, a plot would have been nice and it's unforgivable to waste talented British actress Caroline Munro on such a poorly scripted nothing role. Her beauty, charm and smile light up the screen and could have been better harnessed to counteract the ugliness on hand. Anyway, the film at least provokes some kind of reaction from it's audience. Seeing a few of my squeamish female friends appalled and horrified by the film made it well worth the watch to me!