| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Joe Spinell | ... | ||
| Caroline Munro | ... | ||
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Abigail Clayton | ... |
Rita
(as Gail Lawrence)
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Kelly Piper | ... |
Nurse
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Rita Montone | ... |
Hooker
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| Tom Savini | ... |
Disco Boy
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Hyla Marrow | ... |
Disco Girl
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| James L. Brewster | ... |
Beach Boy
(as James Brewster)
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Linda Lee Walter | ... |
Beach Girl
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Tracie Evans | ... |
Street Hooker
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| Sharon Mitchell | ... |
Second Nurse
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Carol Henry | ... |
Deadbeat
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Nelia Bacmeister | ... | |
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Louis Jawitz | ... |
Art Director
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Denise Spagnuolo | ... |
Denise
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Frank Zito misses his mother, who was killed in a car accident years before. She was abusive to him, and made money selling her body, but Frank still misses her. He tries to keep her from leaving him, and reform her evil ways, by killing young women and putting their scalps on mannequins which he displays around his apartment. Photographer Anna D'Antoni takes a picture of him in the park, and he pursues and befriends her. Is she the one he has been looking for or just another mother wannabe? Written by Ed Sutton <esutton@mindspring.com>
Poor Frank.
As a child, Momma was a mean hooker who used to lock him in the closet while she turned tricks. She loved those men and their money more than she ever did her own son. How's a sweet & innocent child to recover?
Kill em all!! That's how!!
As an adult, Frank Zito now wanders the lonely streets of New York nightly, looking out for his next victim. Whether it' a hooker, a cheating spouse, a snooty model, or just someone out and about in the late night hour, Frank's M.O. is always the same : Kill em, Scalp em, take their head of hair home, and nail it onto one of the several female mannequins around his scummy apartment.
Good boy Frank!
Now Frankie doesn't have to be lonely anymore. He has a department store full of victims around his apartment, all to himself! They will never leave, and will be kept always by Frank.
This guy has a lot of heart, and it shows.
Maniac isn't the fastest paced movie, but it has some of the most awesome graphic violence that 80's horror produced (thank you Tom Savini!). The late Joe Spinell (who also co-wrote) is simply irresistible as Frank Zito. He's terrifying, childish, maniacal, and downright lovable as the crazed New York madman.
Maniac is gritty, dark, horrifying, and directed in many parts as a "documentary" film, allowing the viewer to see things through Franks eyes. You feel like your right along for the ride with this fine gent!
It's a beauty of a horror film, one not to be forgotten after the credits roll.