Maniac (1980) Horror Movie Review

by Aidan Ross
(Australia)

***Reader Submitted Review***

Release: 1980
Directed by: William Lustig
Written by: Joe Spinnell and C.A. Rosenberg

Starring
Joe Spinell as Frank Zito
Caroline Munro as Anna D'Antoni

One horror film of the 80's that is often missed in discussions of the era is Bill Lustig's gem Maniac. Many critics pass it (like a lot of horror) over as being just a nasty movie about nasty people or a generic slasher film (an odd comparison as it bears little resemblance to the gleeful hunts of Jason Voorhees and Michael Meyers) but for many reasons it is so much more. The film follows mannequin fanatic serial killer Frank Zito as he works his trade in New York. Director Lustig (who later founded Blue Underground entertainment, an excellent distributor of horror and exploitation) shows a grimy decaying vision of the big apple quite fitting to it's subject matter, and only briefly contrasted by a shiny aerial shot of the city at night (apparently re-used footage from Dario Argento's Inferno). Within this seedy setting Lustig executes the murders with finesse slowly building the tension before the strike, rather than just jumping out (one particularly on edge scene was recently given tribute in Alexander Aja's well honed Haute Tension).

However the focus in Maniac is not on the characters, but on the maniac himself, which allows for the second great factor of this film, Joe Spinell. Spinell was a heavyset New Yorker usually relegated to playing thugs in low budget films, as well as varying size supporting roles in well known classics (The Godfather, Taxi Driver, Rocky). Spinell had wanted to create a self written heartfelt project like his friend and co-star Sylvester Stallone's Rocky and thus wrote Maniac. From there Spinell and Lustig worked together to develop the character of Frank Zito. This dedication and close relationship with his creation make Lustig's performance all the more believable. As a result we get not only a dark and chilling look into a serial killer's mind and life, but also an oddly empathetic one. Though actually liking Frank would be a stretch for most viewers, by the end of the film it's hard not to feel sorry for him.

Unfortunately Maniac meanders slightly towards the end with a slightly ill planned subplot which threatens to weaken proceedings. However this minor and not that bad annoyance is pretty much totally overruled by the final great element of Maniac, Tom Savini gore. This is Savini at his best, rivalling his legendary work on George A. Romero's Dawn/Day of the Dead and Joseph Zito's The Prowler. One particularly memorable and somewhat infamous scene in a carpark takes an effect that Savini uses in his other films and executes it absolutely perfectly making it by far the best effect of it's kind.

So if you're looking for tense golden age horror, a glance deep into a demented mind or some really effective gore you really should track down Maniac and give it a shot.