You can see Eli Roth’s fingerprints all over 2001 Maniacs and that really is too bad. Tim Sullivan directs the hell out of this film but Roth’s influence is very noticeable and to me it takes away from overall greatness of the film.
The film is raw, raunchy and in your face. Robert Englund is on hand and gives his usual way over the top performance. It is kind of getting to the point where Robert is just kind of playing the same character over and over again but on the other hand, it does work so what the hell.
In 2001 Maniacs we follow a group of co-eds as they head to the beach for spring break and instead wind up in some back woods town full of folks who still dress like it’s the Civil War. It seems that they are gearing up for some kick ass party weekend and our crew of dim-witted kids decide instead of sea and surf they are going to settle for bedding some of the local wacko’s. Lots of T & A in the film, also lots of blood. The gore flows freely and is actually quite well done. Sullivan maintains a nice comedic balance except for the few points where it seems he drifts into Roth’s Cabin Fever film for some “lets laugh at the hicks” moments. These are those points I refer to at the beginning of the review.
They seem out of place, forced and stupid.
I don’t know if they were put there as an homage to Roth or because he pushed to have them put in but either way, they are a mistake. Overall, I like 2001 Maniacs, it disgusted me in parts, made me laugh at points and even when I didn’t like it, I couldn’t take my eyes off it. The action and laughs are well spaced and well put together. Make no mistake about it Tim Sullivan is now and for quite a while to come is going to be a major force in the genre. He is a horror fan, plain and simple. He loves it and it shows in his work.
The meat and potatoes of this show are in the special features of the disc though. I loved, loved, loved the commentary that features director Tim Sullivan and Robert Englund. Great stuff, the two play off each other and it makes the film so much better. I would watch the film without the commentary track first and then again with it. It was a great experience. There is also another commentary track with Sullivan and one of his producers which is good but not near as good as the one with Englund.
Also featured is a cool little “making of” featurette, outtakes, and usual lot of expected extras.
All in all I came away from the film feeling pretty good about my time spent watching it and I think a majority of the fans will generally embrace it. It is well done, R rated splatter fun. I just hope next time we get to see Sullivan’s vision without any outside influence.
2001 Maniacs hits DVD shelves on Tuesday March 28th
