Sorry, this movie sucks

Fresh and Exciting

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

I watch a LOT of horror, from quality to sh*t and I generally try to look for the positive aspects in even the poor ones, but I have my standards (as I do with every other genre, horror doesn't just get a free pass although I am more lenient in suspending belief). I do have my limits as to what I'm willing to believe or take seriously ...First of all, the first person thing has been done to death at this point and really doesn't add much to this specific movie. Nothing original there.... that being said, the cinematography is beautiful and the soundtrack is awesome. That's about all this movie has going for it.The acting is pretty atrocious by most of the cast including Elijah Wood himself. The dialogue seems so forced and unnatural by him and the first few females he encounters. It all sounds incredibly scripted and forced....and corny.The intro to the movie starts out by showing the night lights of the city, people mingling and walking around, city full of life...yet for some reason every time he decides to stalk a female in this very lit up city, not a single soul is anywhere within sight conveniently enough, regardless of desperate screams and plodding chase scenes. It feels incredibly silly. This is not a minor detail and cannot be brushed aside. The only people that seem to be conveniently around at JUST the right moments are the beautiful females he encounters, who regardless of how unsettling and creepy (Elijah) looks and behaves, somehow become attracted/infatuated with him and hand themselves over on a silver platter. There's one scene specifically where the girl is asking him to grab her breasts and he does...only thing is his hands have cuts, bruises, dirt, scabs and everything else you can think of, yet she doesn't bat an eye.I found the entire film to be rather pretentious, and each scene more predictable than the previous. I was incredibly bored and rather irritated. I tried to like it, but it is just not a very good horror flick...

I am not writing a review because unlike the others (not pointing fingers and i apologize if i offend) i don't want to spoil anything and don't want to say anything majorly about the story I see that people rate it for something it isn't and i feel like that is a problem. I just feel like people should know at least what I gathered from this film. I have not watched the original but what i have understood is that people seemed irritated that some "proffesional" reviewers wrote it off as a women hating, violent movie and nothing more.Now i have read some of the reviews for this and a lot of people say the same thing. Just a violent nasty and judges/rates it on that. IT Isn't. In fact this is one of the saddest movies i have seen. I think its wrong to say that it isn't violent. It has violence that makes you want to turn away. But its not about that. It doesn't rely on violence. The main character is a troubled man that tries to live his life, dealing with his issues. He doesn't have anyone and doesn't know how to deal with them alone.Its a 1st person drama/thriller with a sad but beautiful techno music to blend in with the neon lighted feel of this movie. The acting of Elijah wood is brilliant in that he mostly needs to act with his voice and not his face. The story is sad and i cant help but feel sad for the main character much like The Voices staring Ryan Reynolds. The movie focuses so much on there psychological problems that it just comes of as tragic and sad. This isn't a horror movie with no story and disposable characters. This is a character built, character driven sad movie that is beautiful both visual and story wise.

A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Last House on the Left, The Amityville Horror, Cabin Fever, The Wicker Man. These are all classic horror films. On the other hand, I believe these classic horror films have not been remade into classic remakes. In my opinion, many remakes fail to capture the energy, wisdom, and likeness of the original. It is very difficult to capture lightning in a bottle twice. Especially horror movies, many directors, producers, and writers of horror all tend to follow the same format, and end up being predictable, bland, and lifeless. However, director Franck Khalfoun (P2, High Tension) brings some new life into a cult classic, a new direction, and in my opinion a new better film. I believe that Maniac (2012) is a rare exception of the remake actually being better than the original. Much like the 1980 cult classic, Elijah Wood (Lord of the Rings, The Goodson) plays Frank. Frank is socially awkward, and a vicious serial killer. Frank collects the scalps' of his victims, and puts the finishing touches on his mannequins. One day he meets a beautiful, artistic woman, named Anna. Played by Nora Arnezeder (Safe House). The two bond, and everything seems to be going well at first. Elijah Wood may be short, and doesn't seem all that threatening. But he really does a fantastic job as the character Frank. Elijah Wood brings a new take on Frank, that we didn't see in the original. For example, in the remake we get more of an understanding and backstory (his childhood with his mother). The original was more of a typical slasher, violent guy, and killer with messy hair, etc. But Elijah Wood is a very normal looking guy, and I think that adds to the film. We almost feel sympathy towards him. Everything from his childhood, how people treat him, etc.I honestly believe this is the best film by Franck Khalfoun. He is becoming on of my favorite directors. He really brings a new artistic take on a very good cult classic. Even though he changes a few things from the original, he stays true to the original source material. For instance, the violence (train station ANKLE SNAP scene made me CRINGE). Also, this film has some of the best cinematography and camera scenes I've seen in a very long time. Every shot was gorgeous, and unique. I personally can't remember the last time I've seen a film, where a majority of the film is the main character's P.O.V. Maybe someone can let me know down in the comment section. The P.O.V. I thought was very well done, and it truly does add a to the movie. The viewer's literally get to go inside the killers world, and become apart of this character, both physically and mentally. So these are my final Bitchin' Buddha thoughts on Maniac (2012). I love this movie! This really is one of my favorite horror films, and just one of my favorite films in general. It's unique, gory for a reason, character development is good, and the cinematography/camera shots are something we don't usually see today. In my opinion, this is a blueprint on how to do a remake. Also, this would make a great double feature showdown. View the original, and this one back to back. Call me crazy, but I believe Maniac (2012) deserves...10/10!This review is brought to you by Boogie Buddha, and remember don't just get down, but get Boogie. Thank you for reading/viewing, and I hope you have an amazing day as always. :)

This is the first film I've seen where the vantage point is 99.9% through the eyes of the main character. Thankfully this is accomplished without being more of that found footage garbage where the camera gets dropped 12 times and the other characters just so happen to stumble across it in the middle of a 1,000 acre forest and just carry on filming. This film chronicles a bit of the life of a mannequin repairman who becomes fixated on this stunning blonde and his pursuit to impress her while engaging in some dubious hobbies. Gory, creepy, obsessive. It would seem that the ring finally drove Frodo to madness. The acting is well carried out and there's some decent music. I would recommend this for someone that has an interest in peeking into a few days in the life of the criminally insane.