Monday, December 17, 2018

Blu-ray Review: Maniac 3-Disc Limited Edition

Parents should be aware that whatever happens to children can shape the rest of their lives, sometimes with disastrous results. It’s a lesson illustrated in several horror films, including the 1980 movie Maniac, which has now been re-issued as a special three-disc Blu-ray edition, with new 4K restoration. It stars Joe Spinell as Frank, a man whose childhood trauma still affects him in ways he doesn’t quite understand, in ways he cannot control, in ways that horrify him, in ways that mean death for several unsuspecting people in New York. Joe Spinell also co-wrote the screenplay.

The film begins from Frank’s perspective, as he watches a couple on an otherwise deserted beach. They are soon killed, and the man’s scream becomes Frank’s scream, as he suddenly sits up in bed. Was it all just a nightmare? Or a memory? It’s unclear at first, but what seems clear is that the corpse of a woman is next to him in bed. We then see that the corpse is actually a mannequin, just one of many dolls in Frank’s apartment, though one that is covered in blood. Frank quietly gets dressed and leaves, several keys visible in a case by the door, one of many intriguing details of his home. That’s the movie’s excellent opening sequence, turning a somewhat ordinary slasher scene into something far more disturbing and odd and unexpected. We have come to expect horror movies to go from those opening scenes of murder to tranquil daytime scenes in a town or something. This film doesn’t bother with that. It goes from that opening murder scene to a more eerie scene in the killer’s apartment. And in fact, after this sequence Frank goes out and almost immediately finds another victim.

What is also interesting and unusual about this is that the killer is actually the film’s protagonist. We are dropped into this guy’s world. And it is through his eyes and from his perspective that we experience the story, which leaves us feeling uneasy. He is not the sort of mindless monster that often populates slasher films. In fact, he is a sad and pathetic figure, particularly as he asks a prostitute to pose for him like the women in magazines. Is this the only way he can attempt to connect to women? Of course, he soon kills her, and as he strangles her he sees her as another woman. And when he is done, he is immediately horrified and upset. That, however, does not stop him from scalping her.

One day in the park he sees a beautiful photographer named Anna (Caroline Munro), who happens to snap his picture. He glances at the tag on her bag to get her address, and we assume she will be his next victim. But the film offers more surprises. When he shows up at her house, she is not startled or worried. And it seems he believes he’s found a kindred spirit. When he’s with her, we see a different side of his personality, a more normal side. It’s interesting that we get to know his violent, crazy side long before seeing anything ordinary about him, sort of the opposite of what many films do. But it is the more violent aspects of his personality that are dominant, and his past is never too far from Frank’s mind, as we learn when he pulls a photo of his mother from his jacket pocket while on a date, or from what he tells a model after tying her up.

There are some bits of odd humor in the film. For example, Frank keeps a naked doll in a bird cage, and at one point offers it a cracker. Also, another couple who have just met pull off the side of the road to fool around. The woman says, about the roadside rest stop, “This is really a nice place, isn’t it?” She then asks, “Do you come here a lot?” But the overall tone of the film is dark and serious and sad and unsettling. And there are some seriously frightening moments. The man in that scene, by the way, is played by Tom Savini, who is also responsible for the film’s special effects makeup. Some of the scenes from this film are famous, like the shotgun scene. But for me, one of the more compelling images is that of Frank in bed, handcuffing himself to a mannequin and crying, “I’m so happy.” This movie is so effective in large part because of Joe Spinell’s performance.

Disc 1 Special Features

This three-disc set contains a whole lot of bonus material. The first disc contains two commentary tracks. The first is by producer/director William Lustig and producer Andrew W. Carroni, and it was recorded in July of 2010. Lustig mentions that the opening shots are a nod to Jaws. They talk a lot about Joe Spinell. They tell several interesting anecdotes, such as the one about police coming into the hotel while they were shooting there, and about how a music cue from this film ended up in Saturday Night Live. They also tell some of the lessons learned from the making of this film.  The second commentary is by William Lustig, Tom Savini and editor Lorenzo Marinelli. They go over a lot of the same material, but offer different details and thoughts, and talk about Cannes.

The first disc also includes seven different trailers for the film, nine television commercials and four radio spots.

Disc 2: Special Features

The second disc includes a lot of great material. There are outtakes from the film, footage recently found in a warehouse. William Lustig provides audio commentary for this footage, which includes some great stuff shot on the streets of New York, plus other special effects makeup shots. There are some shots that Lustig says he wishes he used in the film. On the first disc’s commentary tracks, Lustig mentions how Joe Spinell would write funny things on the card in the hotel scene to make William laugh. Well, in these outtakes, we see a moment of that. We also get some shots of the details of Frank’s apartment. There are approximately nineteen minutes of outtakes.

Returning To The Scene Of The Crime has director William Lustig revisiting the locations of the film, while talking about the experience. Things certainly have changed. This is approximately eight minutes. Anna And The Killer is an interview with Caroline Munro, in which she talks about Maniac and how she got the role. She also mentions that she wanted to be an artist, not a model or actor. This is approximately thirteen minutes. There is also an interview with Tom Savini, in which he talks about the special effects makeup, particularly about the shotgun scene. That interview is approximately twelve minutes. Dark Notes is an interview with composer Jay Chattaway, in which he mentions how the music was designed to get you into the head of the main character. He talks a bit about his career leading up to Maniac. Maniac Men is an interview with songwriters Michael Sembello and Dennis Matkosky, in which they talk about the song “Maniac” from Flashdance. They then perform the song, with lyrics more fitting to the film Maniac.

The second disc also includes The Joe Spinell Story, a documentary by David Gregory that features interviews with friends, family and co-workers including Bill Lustig, Robert Forster, Caroline Munro and Jason Miller. The story of his Joe Spinell’s pay for The Godfather is crazy, and the footage of Spielberg is great. I need to see The Last Horror Film. There are some interesting anecdotes about it here. The documentary is approximately forty-nine minutes.

The promo reel for Mr. Robbie: Maniac 2 is included. And there is a radio interview with William Lustig, Joe Spinell and Caroline Munro, with a promotional spot for it playing first. Another cool special feature is an episode of Movie Madness from 1981 featuring William Lustig. On this program, he talks about some of the city fears the film touches upon, and about the criticism of horror films like Maniac. This is a show where people call in with questions, and not all who call in are fans of the film.

There is a very short interview with Joe Spinell at Cannes, as well as a brief interview with Caroline Munro. There is also a segment from The Joe Franklin Show on which Spinell appears. Interestingly, in that segment, they talk about Shakespeare. There is a short and goofy segment with Katie Kelly, a movie critic who talks about her new review policy in which she will give a certain number of barf bags to each film. Also included is a Q&A shot at The New Beverly here in Los Angeles, in which they talk about the shotgun scene and about the guy who designed Frank’s apartment. Of course, I’m wondering how I missed that screening of Maniac. I used to go to the New Bev all the time. Anyway, that feature is approximately twenty-two minutes. This second disc also contains a still gallery of 123 photos, including behind-the-scenes shots and poster artwork. Finally, there is a section of television reviews and reports on the film’s controversy. Yeah, this disc contains several hours of bonus material.

Disc 3: Soundtrack

The third disc is an audio CD containing the film’s soundtrack, which is approximately thirty-three minutes. There are some sound effects too, such as at the beginning of “Maniac’s Theme,” the first track. That theme is wonderfully creepy and sad. This is actually a really good soundtrack, surprisingly powerful and even startling at times. It is especially effective if you give it some volume. By the way, Frank’s voice over is included.

This set also includes a booklet with an article by Michael Gingold titled “Maniacs That Might Have Been” and several photos.

This special 3-disc edition of Maniac was released on December 11, 2018 through Blue Underground. Blue Underground also recently released a special limited edition of Zombie. I’m hoping they’ll be putting out a lot more of these great packages.

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