The theme song to Herschell Gordon’s Lewis’s 1964 film Two Thousand Maniacs! promised that the south would rise again. 40 years later, the south did just that in the form of writer/director Tim Sullivan’s re-imagining of Lewis’s drive-in classic. Along the way the town of Pleasant Valley added one more citizen, and 2001 Maniacs was unleashed upon the world. Starring genre favorite Robert Englund, the film promised a host of hillbilly debauchery that isn’t seen often unless you make it down to the local Opry in my hometown.
Anderson, Corey, and Nelson are your usual college students: they party on a regular basis, get drunk, and write history papers entitled “General Sherman: Badass.” It’s no wonder they’re flunking history, but that’s the farthest thing from their minds right now because it’s spring break, and they’re headed down south to Daytona. To get there, however, they’ll have to traverse through the back roads of the south. One of these roads leads to Pleasant Valley, where the guys have arrived just in time for the annual “Guts and Glory Jubilee.” Mayor Buckman and the townsfolk designate our boys as “guests of honor,” and they’re soon joined by three more college students and a pair of bikers--a black guy and his “Chinaman” girlfriend (just imagine the looks these two get from the townspeople). It doesn’t take long for the celebration to take a sharp and deadly turn, as the visitors themselves end up on the menu!
This one has everything you’d expect from the south: sweet tea, sheep-cornholing, banjo-picking, kissing cousins, you name it--and it’s all wrapped up in some good-old fashioned southern hospitality. In theory, 2001 Maniacs is a perfect remake because it remains faithful to the irreverent tone of the original while managing to be its own thing by telling its own story. With the exception for a few recycled gags, this is a completely different experience. That said, it totally feels like the type of film Lewis himself would have made if he ever set out to make a sequel to the original film. It’s no doubt a better made film than Lewis’s original (which isn’t saying much, of course), but it still feels very much the same in spirit. A gore-soaked romp throughout, it makes no bones about being a purely entertainment splatterfest that aims to have you squirming in your seat more so than jumping out of it.
One of the biggest departures from the original is the use of college kids as protagonists, but this works well because it leads to some teen comedy-inspired hijinx that’s right in line with this type of film. The protagonists are your usual type in that they’re mostly just there to fill out the body count, but Marla Malcolm kind of stands out as a sweet little thing you can root for. However, the antagonists are where the real meat is at. The always delightful Englund is pitch-perfect as the Antebellum-tinged Mayor Bruckman; he’s obviously having a good time in an over-the-top and demented role. OTH-favorite Lin Shaye is Granny Boone, the town matriarch who is devilishly sweet until she gets a hatchet in her hands. There’s also a couple of cameos from producer Eli Roth (who seems to be reprising his role from Cabin Fever because Dr. Mambo is in tow) and Kane Hodder, who makes an appearance as one of the town yokels. No town is complete without its share of eye candy, and Pleasant Valley doesn’t disappoint in this respect, as there’s no shortage of southern belles willing to show their skin.
The carnage that the citizens of Pleasant Valley enact is just as satisfying. Their victims are hacked up in a variety of ways before being served on a silver platter. I think Lewis himself would enjoy how delightfully demented this film is, as the kids are dismembered, disemboweled, and even literally skewered. While the film doesn’t have anything as immediately memorable as the barrel roll and the teetering rock from the original, it’s still very gruesome and even more grotesque than the original. The effects are generally well done and not too obviously fake, and some are downright convincing. Though the film doesn’t take itself too seriously, the gore effects are serious business and are pretty much the centerpiece of the film.
Otherwise, Sullivan’s direction is as good as it gets for this type of film. It’s a pretty average-looking film overall, but it isn’t without a few stylish flairs here and there, particularly during the film’s climax. It’s at this point where the film (and the jubilee) reaches a frenzied peak, and it’s all handled pretty nicely. The film isn’t without a decent denouement either, as the film’s creepy epilogue has a twist that’s in line with the original film. Overall, this one feels not only like a modern update of that film, but a loving tribute to it, as it has a couple of nice references, including the original theme song itself (here sung in the town by a ZZ Top-esque duo). In the grand scheme of the horde of remakes during the past decade, this is one that’s left out of the conversation (most likely due to the fact that no one is even aware that it is one). While I can’t say it stands with the best the remake trend has had to offer, it’s a solid little number that’s entertaining as hell.
As a native of the south, the film is even a bit better for me because it lampoons so much of the crazy stuff we’re known for around these parts. Imagine Deliverance amped up to 11 and infused with a sleazy drive-in/exploitation ethos, and you’ve got 2001 Maniacs in a nutshell. Lions Gate released the film straight-to-DVD, and it’s a decent release. The A/V presentation is solid, particularly the engaging and aggressive soundtrack. Special features include commentaries with Sullivan and Englund, a making-of featurette, deleted scenes, outtakes, an some trailers for other Lions Gate releases. Witty, gross, deranged, and full of splatter, 2001 Maniacs is a worthy update of the original film and proves that it’s impossible to quell that old rebel yell. Yeehaw! Buy it!
