Maniac Review: Forget Frodo, Wood Shines as Serial Killer

This isn’t the Elijah Wood you remember from “The Lord of the Rings.”

This isn’t even “Green Street Hooligans” or “Sin City.”

This is scary stuff.

“Maniac” features the often safe and sterile Wood as a psychotic killer who takes women’s heads as trophies.

A remake of William Lustig’s 1980 cult-classic, Frank Khalfoun’s redux has to be seen to be believed.

Wood stars as Frank, a psychotic serial killer who owns a mannequin shop. One day he meets Anna (Nora Arnezeder), a photographer who is interested in using Frank’s mannequins in her show. What follows is a pseudo slasher movie/ love story hybrid. The movie is nothing more than being in the mind of a deranged serial killer. It’s is even filmed from the first-person point of view. This may sound like a gimmick that never works but, in a way, this helps the movie in that, unlike typical slasher movies, this adds to the movie’s overall style. We get to see what it is like to be a serial killer and get a better understanding of how the killer acts and thinks.

The tone of movie, combined with some clever cinematography and music, gets us inside Frank’s mind. On top of that, using downtown Los Angeles as the backdrop (the original took place in New York City) gives the film a gritty feel. It’s the perfect set up.

What also adds to the movie’s strength is Wood’s superb acting. Hetakes this character concept and runs with it. He really shows off his acting ability by making the audience think this is a real person. The lines and facial expressions (seen only when in front of a mirror) bring out the character perfectly.

Arnezeder does a fine acting job as well. She’s the total opposite of Frank in that she’s more of a beacon of life in this movie. She’s also a vessel for everything that is upsetting Frank and making him kill all these women. She’s like a comfort to Frank and gives him a sense of security.

If you’re looking for gore, “Maniac” does not disappoint. Khalfoun said that he was inspired by Tom Savini and it shows. The gore effects are as realistic as they come. You actually think that Frank is really pulling real human flesh off of a girl in order to get her hair and we see her brain. It is not for the faint of heart.

The film is not without its problems. There’s an obvious symbolism to this film and the silent film “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari” in that both main leads are fascinated by women and want to kill them. The film does not hide this fact at all. The film also at certain points shows Frank from a third person perspective instead of from the first. This “outer body experience” takes the audience out of the whole experience. There are also one too many flashback shots that disrupt the flow of the film.

Regardless, “Maniac” is worth watching to see a new perspective on the genre. Wood’s wonderful acting also solidifies this film as a must see even for fans of the original.