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      2,000 Maniacs

      Released Mar 20, 1964 1h 15m Horror List
      45% Tomatometer 20 Reviews 50% Audience Score 2,500+ Ratings The Southern hamlet of Pleasant Valley was the scene of a massacre during the Civil War. Now, once every hundred years the ghosts of the dead return and wreak havoc. Three Yankee couples are lured into town and invited to the centennial of the tragedy, which turns into a murderous parody of rural celebration, as the guests are dismembered, barbecued, stoned and otherwise inventively dispatched. The last living pair, Tom (Thomas Wood) and Terry (Connie Mason), attempt to escape the bloodshed. Read More Read Less

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      Critics Consensus

      It didn't take much to thrill early splatter fans, and Two Thousand Maniacs! proves it with its shrill soundtrack, basement-level theatrics, and goofy flesh-tearing gore.

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      Critics Reviews

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      J. R. Jones Chicago Reader This is a real odd duck -- inspired by Brigadoon, of all things, with a score that alternates between cheesy midnight-movie organ and high-spirited bluegrass -- but its bloodthirsty hicks have become a genre standard. Mar 30, 2019 Full Review Marjorie Baumgarten Austin Chronicle The movie will have you cringing and smiling at the same time. Mar 10, 2003 Full Review Mattie Lucas From the Front Row Nonsensical and illogical. Rated: 1/4 Aug 6, 2019 Full Review Fernando F. Croce CinePassion Having picked up a modicum of craft since Blood Feast, Lewis integrates the gruesome money-shots less maladroitly into the story. Still, his sideshow-barker shamelessness remains undimmed. Mar 30, 2019 Full Review TV Guide Staff TV Guide This is easily Lewis' best film. Mar 30, 2019 Full Review Alan Jones Radio Times While as badly acted and technically inept as any Lewis drive-in exploiter, the cheaply graphic effects still carry a potent charge. Rated: 2/5 Mar 30, 2019 Full Review Read all reviews

      Audience Reviews

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      Wayne K The genres of splatter and, to a greater extent, hicksploitation, are probably not familiar to most moviegoers. A lot of horror films are inherently violent and blood drenched, so most would assume that such a category was completely redundant. Hicksploitation is the kind of genre you've probably witnessed but just never considered. The most famous examples are probably Deliverance and one of my personal favourite horror films, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Two Thousand Maniacs is an extremely early example of the genre, and it makes you wonder what people in the south would think of it today. It's somewhat a commentary on the Civil War, and how it represented a country at the height of its division. The film is a carnival of horrors befalling a group of North country Americans finding themselves stuck in a Southern town during a dubious bicentennial celebration. It's inspired by the musical Brigadoon of all things, and the concept at its heart is pretty clever. Its not the kind of film that you shout about to your friends. The joy of watching it is seeing a low budget film come to life, how so much is done with so little. It's riddled with continuity errors, poor sound quality, flashed frames, awkward cuts and bad dubbing, not to mention a pretty big plot holes that opens up right at the end. But pointing them out is one of the things that keeps you engaged. The grossness and depravity are part of the atmosphere its creating and the story its telling, rather than just being there for mindless exploitation. Many will be bored and/or repulsed by it, but many, including myself, appreciate its earnest, creativity and bargain-basement charm. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 05/18/23 Full Review Eric K check out thoughts on my podcast of this flick at https://open.spotify.com/episode/0rRKhh9C2tXMBVYufmnGS6?si=01b4cd2f97274b26 Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 04/12/23 Full Review christopher c. m There are a lot of gore hounds who love the work of director Herschell Gordon Lewis. That's exactly the problem with his work. It's gore first, character, story or logic, never. If they died in 1865 then what would they know of paved roads, cars or anything that happened after they died. Considering the whole town died and nobody was there for that century for them to see. What gave them the power to manifest and kill? The centennial mark couldn't be enough. Nothing about it makes any sense. Even as a horror comedy it doesn't work. The sound and picture is awful and the story is just lame. At the time of writing this review this is my second Herschell Gordon Lewis and honestly, I'm not impressed. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member worst movie i saw in my life Bad acting,stupid scenario,after 5 minutes you just want that banjo music to ceased and the remake in 2005 was not better Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review steve d ridiculous splatter film with humorously bad acting little story and laughable special effects. So bad it's good? Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member What a blast. Considering its time, place and intention Lewis did a good job with this. Tim Sullivan made a great point, in that it feels a lot like an old EC comic, in so many ways. I'm going to watch the rest of the Lewis films with that idea in mind. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/01/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      2,000 Maniacs

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis The Southern hamlet of Pleasant Valley was the scene of a massacre during the Civil War. Now, once every hundred years the ghosts of the dead return and wreak havoc. Three Yankee couples are lured into town and invited to the centennial of the tragedy, which turns into a murderous parody of rural celebration, as the guests are dismembered, barbecued, stoned and otherwise inventively dispatched. The last living pair, Tom (Thomas Wood) and Terry (Connie Mason), attempt to escape the bloodshed.
      Director
      Herschell Gordon Lewis
      Producer
      David F. Friedman
      Screenwriter
      Herschell Gordon Lewis
      Distributor
      Something Weird Video
      Genre
      Horror
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Mar 20, 1964, Original
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Jan 28, 2017
      Runtime
      1h 15m
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