Maniac – A Chilling Night at the Movies, with Some Old Stockholm Vibes

I’m just gonna be straight with you, Maniac is not exactly a film you watch with mum on a Sunday, right? It’s this slippery beast of a horror flick from 1980, cooked up by director William Lustig, and with the always intense Joe Spinell playing the lead. You probably remember Spinell from goofy gangster roles in The Godfather, but here he’s something… else. Caroline Munro also pops in with that 80s hair you sort of wish would come back in fashion, if you’re into that sort of thing.

Maybe it’s weird, but I remember the first time I saw this flick. It was, what, late November, probably ‘96 or ‘97? Västerås was freezing, and the VHS shop on Stora Gatan still rented out horror stuff with real grit. I’d just been dumped, so I figured why not traumatize myself a bit more. I called two mates, we grabbed some singoalla biscuits and sat in Leffe’s basement, scared out of our skjortor. That opening scene – the breathing, the subway sound, Stockholm never felt so safe after that.

Maniac is ugly but in a kind of “could be your neighbor” way. The city feels grimy but real – you can almost smell the streets in some bits. Spinell just nails that pathetic loneliness, but sometimes he goes so far it’s honestly hard to watch without peeking through your fingers. The violence? Oy, it’s brutal, jag säger bara det. Tom Savini did the effects (no fake blood like those silly cop shows), and they still mess with me.

It’s sleazy, sure, and pretty nasty- but there’s something sad about it too. Like, you get this feeling, maybe the monster was made by his world? I dunno. Makes you wonder next time you see someone standing alone on a cold Swedish bus stop.

So, yeah. Not something to put on during a fika, but if you want to feel a little dirty and maybe a little sad, give Maniac a shot. Just… leave the lights on, okay?

watch the full movie on Mavshack Movies on YouTube

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