Two Thousand Maniacs

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Flush from the breakthrough success of Blood Feast in 1963, producer David F. Friedman and pioneering goremeister Herschell Gordon Lewis followed up a year later with Two Thousand Maniacs!. The drive-in movie would never be the same. Filmed in 14 days in St. Cloud, Florida, on a luxurious budget of $62,000, this instant cult classic revels in the grisly fate of three unwitting Yankee couples who've been falsely detoured to the Southern hick town of Pleasant Valley (population 2000--get it?). These unlucky lovers are the guests of honor at a Confederate centennial celebration. What they don't know is that the twisted citizens of Pleasant Valley are vengeful ghosts of the Civil War, determined to dispatch their "guests" in deviously unpleasant ways. Simply put, Two Thousand Maniacs! (with Blood Feast) is the original "splatter" film.

On the murder menu: death by amputation, dismemberment by horses (one per limb), crushing by boulder, and, the most unsettling (or creative?), death by barrel rolling... with flesh-ripping nails in the sides. Tame by later standards yet still absurdly shocking, Two Thousand Maniacs! is the pure, funny-freaky essence of exploitation cinema, complete with the obligatory Playboy Playmate (Connie Mason) in the cast. Lewis (a former literature professor, no less) frequently cited this as his proudest achievement, and who's going to argue? With its crude direction, atrocious acting, and delirious redneck flavor, the movie genuinely deserves its place in cinema history, its dubious entertainment value proving surprisingly durable through the decades. A milestone of movie bloodletting, it was followed, appropriately enough, by Color Me Blood Red in 1965. --Jeff Shannon

Description

An entire town bathed in pulsing human blood from madmen crazed for carnage! The 2000 Maniacs of a small Southern town celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Civil War by forcing a handful of Northerners to serve as "guests" for a variety of macabre, blood-crazed fun and games. The festivities include a screaming man placed in a rolling barrel lined with nails, a hit-the-bull's-eye carnival game with a pretty gal and a boulder, and a blonde sexpot whose arm is hacked off and barbecued! But before they can slaughter the only smart Yank (Thomas Wood), he and the lovely Terry Adams (Connie Mason, "Playboy's Favorite Playmate") try to escape.

Customer Reviews:

Southern Hospitality.......2007-04-30

Blood Feast may be Lewis' most famous film and the one that he'll always be remembered by, but 2000 Maniacs is seen as probably his best film by many fans. The budget's higher(just a bit), the acting is better(but just a bit), and the story is more imaginative(quite a bit). Though it's a gore film, I'd have to say that Blood feast was actually gorier than this one. But 2000 Maniacs(due to the budget it looks more like 20 maniacs) manages to be entertaining coz it actually is interesting and funny. Blood Feast only had the gore going for it(as well as a few laughs), coz you really can't say it was terribly interesting as far as story goes. But any way you slice it, both 2000 Maniacs and Blood feast are required viewing for the cult/exploitation/horror film fan, as well as any film historian for that matter.

The movie that started it all..........2007-03-05

Two Thousand Maniacs! (Herschell Gordon Lewis, 1964)

I think I may be the last fan of gore movies on earth to see Herschell Gordon Lewis' infamous Two Thousand Maniacs!, an exploitation-flick take on Brigadoon whose influence on the horror film genre cannot be overstated. In other words, everything there is to say about this hugely amusing little flick has already been said, and probably better than I would say it. This flick, right here, is the genesis of the "inventive ways to kill people" movie; in other words; it's pretty hard to think of more than one or two American horror flicks a year since The Abominable Dr. Phibes that aren't influenced by this movie, as outright bad as it is.

And yes, it is bad. The special effects have the cheesiness for which Lewis is known. The acting plumbs depths of "hideous" that even exploitation films rarely explore. The script is threadbare in its best moments, and unintentionally hilarious throughout. Is Two Thousand Maniacs! bad? You'll have more suspense waiting for an answer if you ask the kid behind the counter at Taco Bell what a beef and bean burrito is made of. And yet, it's driven by such earnestness and played so straight that it transcends bad; it's got the kind of cornball appeal that lends rewatchability, though I grant you that you'll get much more of a kick out of it the second (and third and fourth and...) time around if you're at a party and doing some serious drinking. **

"In 100 years, we'll be chasing them Yankees in rocketships!".......2006-12-19

What can one say about this film?

It is easily one of, if not the BEST Herschell Gordon Lewis films.

The plot is intriguing, the acting decent (exception for Connie Mason), the gore pretty good (Especially the barrel roll sequence. Its very chilling)

This movie is a hoot, and as others have said, the commentary track is very VERY interesting as well.

Worth seeing... Once........2005-08-16

'Two Thousand Maniacs' is apparently the second gore flim ever made. Technically speaking, it's superior to Lewis's 'Blood Feast' in pretty much every way, but I think I like that film more than this one. Suffice to say, you can be a lot better than 'Blood Feast' and still really not be very good, which this film proves amply. The direction is less flat, the acting is somewhat more natural, or intentionally over the top, rather than by accident, as it appeared to be in 'Blood Feast'. Still, this movie is quite a bit longer than 'Blood Feast', which is liable to hurt you, and the intentional humor and wackiness of this film can't match the unintentional humor and wackiness of that movie. Also, it's quite a bit less gory, though it's still severely out there by the standards of the time. Occasionally, the film does manage to generate a somewhat disturbing atmosphere, via the juxtaposition of the violence and the jovial behavior of the southern town. Of course, some people think the light-hearted behavior of the townsfolk actually lessens the impact, so you never know.

Most people seem to think that 'Two Thousand Maniacs!' stands out from Lewis's other films because it actually has something going for it other than the violence, i.e. the nutty southern townfolk. I'll admit it, there over the top antics are kinda amusing for a while, but it starts to were thin well before the film is over. (Much like how the terrible acting/dialogue in 'Blood Feast' starts to lose interest pretty quickly, though I found that stuff more amusing to begin with) Southerner's may not be too fond of how they're portrayed here, but it's so over the top that it really shouldn't be taken personally. The film also earns some points for it's somewhat novel premise. (For those who don't know, it's about a group of northerner's who are tormented and assailed by the ghosts of a southern town that was massacred in the Civil War.) Also, the countrified soundtrack is kinda fun, particularly the theme song.

Overall, this film certainly isn't great, or even good, but it's sufficiently amusing, and is definitely worth a look for serious horror fans.

Grade: C

Southern Discomfort..........2005-04-28

2K MANIACS is a blessedly twisted ghost story with enough goofy gore and bad acting to satisfy any / all fans of cinematic idiocy. Herschel Gordon Lewis' opus of hicktown vengeance is a marvel considering it's 1964 release date! Without the bloodletting, TWO THOUSAND MANIACS would be fairly dull. With the scenes of communal sadism however, it's like watching a bizarre cross between THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW, HEE HAW, and THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE! Never before (or since) have so many hillbillies gathered together in order to mutilate and kill unwary visitors from north of the Mason / Dixon line! Lewis has created a ghoulish feast of horror, a cautionary tale for any who would dare travel to the southern hinterlands! Beware! Rufe and Lester just might be waiting, putting up their fake detour sign, and hoping a car full of damn yankees will happen by! Stay away from Pleasant Valley! Drive right on past and avoid it's hellish centennial celebration! Don't end up like the poor saps who were cut, chopped, hacked, drawn and quartered, crushed, poked, and otherwise eviscerated! You have been warned...

Average customer rating:

3.5, but very enjoyable, so I'll give it a 4

Two Champions Of Shaolin

Manufacturer: Red Sun
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000FBSN76

Customer Reviews:

3.5, but very enjoyable, so I'll give it a 4.......2006-07-04

Another venoms film and again only slight changes made to others.

First off, those stupid hair cuts always catch me by surprise. And as "beckybwoy" always says, you seen one venoms film, you seen em all. This is no different. Shaolin vs. Wudang. Wow, haven't seen that plotline before. But Chang Cheh actually puts some uneeded spice into the gumbo. I mean I don't mind calling a character fong sai yuk and havign him be an AWESOME fighter, but San Te is in this and I didn't see SHlT!!! He has a battle they show for like 20 seconds? And they throw Pai Mei's name out there like 10 times and he doesn't freaking fight!!!!! DON'T FREAKING TEASE EM LIKE THAT!!!!!!!!!!!

Now the only reason this mvoie gets a 4 is because of the appearence of one of the newest venoms-Chin Siu-hou. You may recongnize him starring along Jet Li in Twin warriors and Fist of Legend. I didn't recognize him until late in the movie, but man was he awesome!

So I don't want to give away the story at all, but I have to give away a small detail in hopes of havign a question answered. Rarescope has released a movie called Showdown at the Cottonmill. I HIGHLY recommend that movie for any fu fan. But it was directed by Wu Ma, one of cheh's assistant director, and it c ame out the same year as this. Now only beign 23 years old, I am hoping a real hardcore buff can tell me which movie came out first, this or Cottonmill. In this one we have Lu feng playing the scholar, and of course he is also the villian, so he takes down the hero, Lo Meng, but in a very certain fashion. Well, in Showdown at teh Cottonmill, Dorian Tan plays a scholar (from a wudang school no less), he makes a rare appearence as the villian in that movie. Well, Chi Kuan Chun attempts to impress tan and tries the same feat as lo meng did but gets taken out in a WAY cooler way. So does anybody know which one came out first? Cause I think happen to think that 2 champions copied cottonmill.

ALSO THE DVD QUALITY IS REMASTERED VERY GOOD. SOUND IS ALSO PRETTY GOOD. BUT LETTERBOXING IT IS MUCH MORE IMPORTANT:)

Average customer rating:

martial arts perfection
The indrocuction of Chin Siu-hou
Old "skool" kun fu!!
Venoms Classic
Top five Shaw brother Kung Fu bloodbath

Two Champions of Death (Sub)
Starring: Meng Lo , Sheng Chiang , Li Wang , Feng Lu , and Chien Sun
Director: Cheh Chang
Manufacturer: Crash Cinema Media
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000063JZU
Release Date: 2002-01-22

Customer Reviews:

martial arts perfection.......2007-08-08

this is one of the best movies that i've ever added to my collection.it has non-stop action and endless scheming that will make you enjoy watching it over and over. if you want to see a real martial arts movie with non-stop action i highly recommend this movie

The indrocuction of Chin Siu-hou .......2006-10-06

This is the first movie ever credited to Chin Siu-hou who co-starred with Jet Li in 'Twin Warriors' and 'Fist of Legend'. This story has got all kinds of stuff going down. Pai Mei is looking to take down Shaolin, the Wudang have these flying daggers that Sun Chien will have to take care of, and then heroes like San Te, Fong Sai Yuk, and many others show up. Lo Meng and the acrobatic Chiang Sheng are the main stars. Plenty of fights, though not wall to wall, all of the fights were good. When Lu Feng finally throws down it cannot be missed. Also this is a Chang Cheh film so we know how it is going to end, but we also know that it will be super violent. A guy gets his nuts ripped off, so yes it is certainly a classic Venoms film introducing a new wonderful new player-Chin Siu-hou.

The Red Sun version of this movie is perfectly letterboxed with crystal clear picture and good English dubed sound. So obviously seek out the Red Sun version over the Groundzero.

Old "skool" kun fu!!.......2006-06-02

It suffice to say am just a sucker for the venom crew!!!This flick will always remain one of my top 5 favourites!! Lo Meng is da man!! Three words,,,TOUGH, TOUGH, TOUGH!!!!!
I must have watched this flick more than 4 times, and each time seemned like it was the first!!

Venoms Classic.......2003-03-15

This is another Venoms classic with lots of typical Chang Cheh action. However, it doesn't have the flair of Kid With The Golden Arm and Five Deadly Venoms.

Top five Shaw brother Kung Fu bloodbath.......2003-03-12

You may not wanna watch this one with your little brother. Sooo many people die in this movie it's insane. Cool story, plenty of action, original Venoms, need I say more? Sholin gets revenge on Wu Tang, Wu Tang strikes back, back and forth until Wu Tang viscously crosses the line. You have got to see it.

Average customer rating:

martial arts perfection
The indrocuction of Chin Siu-hou
Old "skool" kun fu!!
Venoms Classic
Top five Shaw brother Kung Fu bloodbath

Two Champions of Death
Starring: Meng Lo , Sheng Chiang , Li Wang , Feng Lu , and Chien Sun
Director: Cheh Chang
Manufacturer: Ground Zero
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B00005UQ79
Release Date: 2002-03-26

Customer Reviews:

martial arts perfection.......2007-08-08

The indrocuction of Chin Siu-hou .......2006-10-06

Old "skool" kun fu!!.......2006-06-02

Venoms Classic.......2003-03-15

This is another Venoms classic with lots of typical Chang Cheh action. However, it doesn't have the flair of Kid With The Golden Arm and Five Deadly Venoms.

Top five Shaw brother Kung Fu bloodbath.......2003-03-12

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