22
Metascore
4 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 60L.A. WeeklyL.A. WeeklyA Freudian nightmare with a lead who looks like the guy who runs your local pizzeria, Maniac also features one of the great head explosions in cinema history.
- 50Slant MagazineChris CabinSlant MagazineChris CabinManiac simply exists as a wretched yet unforgettable succession of scenes meant to corrupt even the purest of minds, if you can help yourself from laughing uncontrollably at its overwhelming amount of inconsistencies.
- 25TV Guide MagazineTV Guide MagazineThe film leaves the viewer feeling violated and ashamed. Avoid.
- 10The New York TimesVincent CanbyThe New York TimesVincent CanbyWilliam Lustig is the film's director, and Joe Spinell, who plays the maniac, also collaborated on the screenplay (with C.A. Rosenberg) and wrote the original story. He is terrible in all capacities, though his performance is more immediately objectionable. Watching him act like a psychopathic killer with a mommy-complex is like watching someone else throw up.