2001 Maniacs (2005) Reviews

• "Over the top" is just scratching the surface...

  horrorfan9212006-02-21

  Those already familiar with the original will know what they've gotten themselves into as our main characters follow a bogus Detour sign—just after narrowly avoiding Justin and Professor Mambo, character favorites from CABIN FEVER who are trying to hitch a ride—and arrive in the town of Pleasant Valley, whose residents are hard at work preparing for their weekend "Guts and Glory Jubilee." Soon the Confederate knife fodder arrive with Yankee good looks and are declared "guests of honor" by the one-eyed Mayor Buckman, played pitch-perfect by everybody's favorite sadist, Robert (Freddy Krueger) Englund. But what else can you expect when there's a population of, you guessed it, 2001…maniacs, that is! What follows, surprisingly given our times and political climate, is refreshingly vulgar, completely un-PC and, much like the original, an expected excuse for extremely sadistic humor and gore. Where the first film now seems boring and slow, the new version is upbeat and well-paced. Happily and sadly, the first and only fully clothed female victim to get tied up and quartered by horses is the film's only waste of T in a movie overflowing with T&A. Many viewers may be offended by the black humor and straight-up racist jokes that pepper the film's dialogue, but those of you can rest assured that everyone gets their due by the end. It'll be interesting to see how the red states will react to such a searing and scabrous document of the South. Englund seems to imbue Mayor Buckman with a well-judged imitation of President Bush, and even the lives of his two sons in the film appear to closely ape those of the Bush daughters. Longtime Lewis fans will be ecstatic that much, if not all, of his score from the original has been transferred to the new film by way of musical narrators Johnny Legend and his strumming sidekick Scott Spiegel. Somewhat in the vein of THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY, these musical country bumpkins pop up from time to time, like Sullivan's version of a Greek Chorus, hinting at the dangers to soon befall our ethnically and morally diverse blue state victims. "The South will rise again!" The supporting cast is stocked with many fine new actors and veterans of the genre. Fans will enjoy the cool seething evil of Giuseppe Andrews (Fever's Deputy Winston) as he kills Yankee belles with kindness, and Lin Shaye (fast on her way to becoming a middle-aged scream queen after her role in the haunting DEAD END), who stars as Granny Boone, the murderous matriarch of Pleasant Valley. One day, this fine actress will hopefully be cast in a role that capitalizes on her real-life beauty and sassy charm; in the meantime, she here has a ball pushing the envelope, as when she sucks the red gore off a spear protruding from the gullet of a hapless victim! Newcomer Jay Gillespie evokes a REAL GENIUS or TOP GUN-era Val Kilmer with stern good looks and a thrill for the action around him. The rest of the MANIACS cast seem to be having fun with the bloody lowbrow horror and are in on the joke, all ready to "take one for the team" and die in a less-than-flattering manner. As each member is dispatched, you can tell they were having a great time taking it to the next level. This is a movie where "over the top" is just scratching the surface. Just ask Peaches, the Southern belle who wears a "retainer" that would make the shark in JAWS envious when she "services" a good ol' boy! (He doesn't last long.) By the third reel, characters are walking around town all alone for no good reason, so we know they aren't going to end up much better than their missing brethren. Then Sullivan and crew punch up the action a bit with a scene that doesn't necessarily match the vibe of everything we've seen thus far, but has a maggot-worthy moment that makes up for the switch in tone. If you're looking to get scared, this is not exactly the right film, but if you're familiar with Lewis and his brand of goremongering, you'll squirm, screech and then writhe with laughter. 2001 MANIACS has all the elements of a good time yet still raises a dialogue among viewers that not many have had the balls to address in horror, or film-making in general, since the '70s.

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• This Is What The Monkees Meant By A "Pleasant Valley Sunday"...NOT!

  cchase2008-12-05

  Let this be a warning to you right off the bat, dear reader and horror fan: if you have the kind of 'political correctness' meter that sounds the alarm at fart jokes, you will want to stay VERY FAR AWAY from the likes of 2001 MANIACS. If you're a hardier horror buff who likes your flicks to follow the "Triple-B" Rule, (Babes, Boobs and Blood), then YEEEE-HAAAW, Bubba! Y'all jest struck GOLD! There's more swingin' jugs and spurtin' jugulars here than you'd find everywhere else, plus the 'bestest 'finger-lickin' good' barbecue this side of a Texas Chainsaw Family Reunion! If you know your horror history, you know that 2001 MANIACS is the lovingly-rendered redo of the gore-tastic Herschell Gordon Lewis' signature grue-fest 2000 MANIACS, here given the full-tilt millennium 'makeover.' The good-humored ghouls of Pleasant Valley, GA. (population: well - look at the title, genius!) are 'DIED-in-the-wool' Southerners who don't take too kindly to stray Yankees who trespass on their turf. It probably doesn't help that over 200 years ago, every inhabitant was slaughtered by Sherman's army as he and his men raped, razed and rip- snorted their way through to HOTLanta. So their vengeful, zombiefied ghosts return each year for a little payback. A fake detour sign misdirects unwitting travelers to Pleasant Valley, where every day is the celebration of the "Guts And Glory Jubilee", and the lost tourists are always the 'guests of honor' at the Jubilee barbecue...where they also do double-duty as THE MAIN COURSE!!! But in-between those two plot points, seduction and slaughter of every imaginable kind abounds. This time, eight friends who are classmates from the same college are on their way to Daytona Beach for Spring Break...and all the babes, booze and beer they can handle! Thanks to a wayward short cut that gets them lost, and that rigged "detour" sign that points them right into the heart of Pleasant Valley, there's one element they can add to that list - BLOOD - as in their own!!! Once the kids hit town, it would take a moron not to figure out that there is something unpleasantly weird about these grinning, welcoming, backwoods "hell-billys" (led by a gleefully demented Robert "Freddy Krueger" Englund.) But then for college students, none of these guys (or girls) are particularly the brightest light-bulbs in the pack. What they are, are the soon-to-be 'entrées'...er, I mean 'guests of honor' welcomed to the Valley by the overly friendly Mayor Buckman (Englund), who are at first as charmed as they are freaked at this little backwater burg, where they seem to take dedication to the whole "Civil-War era reenactment" thing a little too seriously. Of course, they learn all too late...it's NOT an act. Director Tim Sullivan, scripting here with co-writer Chris Kobin, knows that 'Ghouls Just Wanna Have Fun' - and that includes the audience. Those movie watchers who would be profoundly outraged and insulted by 2001 MANIACS probably wouldn't (and shouldn't) be renting or going out to see this anyway. For the rest of us...well, we know what we want and what we like to see in our horror films, and thankfully, Tim provides it in abundance! Not content to merely rehash the Lewis original, he surprises with hysterical references to other movies, while keeping the action going and the blood flowing! (Think of a couple of scenes here as DELIVERANCE by way of AIRPLANE!, and you get the tone of it!) The death scenes, if not completely original in some ways, are still delivered with gruesome effectiveness, and there is a nice "Tales From The Crypt"-style ending to wrap it neatly with a pretty, dripping-red bow. Oh, and BTW, did I mention that this is unofficially a 'musical'? That's right, gore-hounds! A couple of ZZ Top-types, (just with banjos and 'sharp-dressed men' for the 1700's) deliver some spicy song commentary on the action! But thankfully, the ditties are inserted in a way that is terrific and not tiresome. All in all, for an evening of blood and boobs, you might think you can do better than 2001 MANIACS, but that's debatable. I know you can do worse! And I have - trust me.

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• 2001 Maniacs Delivers The Goods!

  JoeHorror20062006-04-03

  When you go through the long list of films in horror that could use a major overhaul, the films of Herschell Gordon Lewis are the last films that tend to come to mind. Today, Hollywood's exploitation consists of a PG-13 rating and Jennifer Aniston and they want films with a wider fanbase established. It just doesn't seem likely that's there's ever going to be a bunch of suits sitting around a conference table, pitching ideas and coming to the conclusion that Two Thousand Maniacs must be remade. Thank God for Tim Sullivan. It's so damn refreshing to know somebody out there is hearing the fans. Sullivan's 2001 Maniacs is set to prove to the mental midgets making cookie cutter horror for my little sister that horror fans really do want original, adult horror. Three college screw-ups head out on Spring break in search of a bit of fun and relaxation when they hit a detour that lands them smack dab in the middle of a sleepy little southern town by the name of Pleasant Valley. The town is a' jumpin' as the townsfolk prepare for their Guts & Glory Celebration! They're greeted by the boisterous Mayor Buckman(Robert Englund) and asked to stick around as the Guts & Glory Celebration's guests of honor! The three decide to stay in town when a few girls they met at a gas station show up. The two carloads of college kids aren't the only guests though as a motorcycle roars into town with Malcolm (Mushond Lee) and Leah (Bianca Smith) aboard. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that a black guy and Asian girl are the unwelcome guests! Pleasant Valley is a quiet little town full of smiles and hot freaky babes but there's only one problem…one by one the guests are disappearing and being dispatched in horrifying ways including being drawn and quartered and drinking acid from a hose! If that wasn't bad enough we get a long steel pike up the ass! As guests start dropping off like flies we're left with brave Alexander Lee (Jay Gillespie) and his gal, Joey (Marla Malcolm). A final confrontation ensues between the two, Mayor Buckman, Granny Boone (Lin Shaye) and the townsfolk! Will they escape Pleasant Valley? Will they become the main course?! Will poor Cory (Matthew Carey) finally get some from the kissing cousins? The town of Pleasant Valley will not rest until the slaughter of two thousand and one of the townsfolk are avenged on the Northerners! Watch the movie! Do yourself a favor, buy some beer, grab some chili cheese corn chips, give little Suzy and Sarah a few bucks to go see Stay Alive, put the dog out and send the wife to the store because this is one of those movies only a horror fan can truly appreciate! We get blood, boobs, gore, comedy, guys chasing sheep, kids killing cats and super hottie cousins "boning" each other! The comedy is actually funny…the gore is actually…well…gory! The T&A is top notch(its Christa Campbell guys!) and the acting was excellent. Not only do we get a damn good horror film but we get a DVD that actually puts most "Special Editions" to shame! This release is packed with extras! I would like to point out to readers though that no matter how hard a DVD company tries to convince you…subtitles and closed captions are not bonus features. I'd like to point out a few facts as well…for starters; Eli Roth is back to reprise his role from Cabin Fever as wonky drifter Justin (Eli Roth) and his good buddy Dr. Mambo (the dog) is back as well! Eagle eyed viewers may also spot Tim Sullivan hammering on a coffin and Scott Spiegel (Evil Dead 1 & 2, The Dead Next Door) as one of the hillbilly banjo singers that constantly wander about the movie! I'm also officially going on record as having said that I consider Lin Shaye to be a hottie. There, I said it! So, for those of you looking for a damn good film, run, don't walk, to your nearest Best Buy and purchase 2001 Maniacs. Don't hesitate! Remember to keep your eyes peeled on Sullivan's upcoming horror flick, Driftwood!

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• Fun remake...perfect for fans of blood, guts, and boobs!

  2reelers2006-04-02

  Tim Sullivan's remake of TWO THOUSAND MANIACS, to me, was nothing but fun from start to finish. From the first kill to the last, this film rocked. Like EVIL DEAD 2, this is more of a comedy/horror, which Sullivan himself describes as "Splatstick"...sure it's over-the-top, but it's supposed to be, and that is what makes it so much fun. Robert Englund and Lin Shaye are a blast as "Mayor Buckman" and "Granny Boone", but I must say there were some excellent casting choices for everyone involved...the group of gorgeous girls who play both hapless victims and charming? Southern Belles...Giuseppe Andrews, who lends his unique style to the film...Dylan Edrington who plays the perfect smart-ass...and the actors portraying incidental characters like "Hucklebilly" and "Lester" really help add to the film's humor and creepiness. While some are complaining about the few off color jokes the film offers, and these might get some people's panties in a bunch, this is not a racist picture. Personally, I found the jokes to be pretty funny (Malcom, a black character, is told to "wait just a cotton picking' minute" at one point in the film). Others are criticizing the acting...I thought the acting was fine. Not Shakespearian by any means, but remember, this isn't GHANDI and it won't be nominated for an Academy Award (and exactly how many of your favorite films have been?) Bottom line is enjoy this for what it is, a throwback to good old-fashioned blood n guts, T & A horror.

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• Good times!

  ravyn_jensen2005-07-10

  I saw "2001 Manacs" last night at a midnight screening at the Fantasia Festival and I really enjoyed it ... so did the 300-400 other people in the theater with me. Tim Sullivan and Christa Campbell introduced the movie and held a Q&A session after (I had to leave, it was 2am) but I'm sure they were pleased with the audience response. It was great to see Robert Englund again, he always does a great psycho. The movie was funny and gory ... sure the plot wasn't Oscar caliber, but anyone looking for that is going to the wrong movie. If you want to see a good horror movie, the real 'guts & glory' kind, this is the movie for you. I feel confident in recommending this movie and plan on picking up the DVD (especially since the version that was screened hasn't gone to the ratings board yet, so the DVD will probably be the only place to see this exact version).

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