You won't be disappointed!

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

"Multiple Maniacs" follows Lady Divine's Cavalcade of Perversion, a wayward traveling group of sideshow freaks who have a penchant for the perverse, which includes murdering their audience members. I've always considered John Waters something of a less pretentious Andy Warhol, and this film-his second directorial feature-reiterates the sentiment in my mind. "Multiple Maniacs" is patent garbage, and I mean that in the most loving way possible. While watching it, it is obvious that Waters and his crew were fumbling their way through learning to make a movie. This is especially clear in the cinematography and performances; actors continually flub their lines, look into the camera, and chew the scenes apart-there is better acting in high school plays. At the center of it all is Divine, who has rightly attained a cult following of his own, playing his signature character, and his performance, though by no means stellar, is what will inevitably draw the audience in.For all the rough edges present, there are themes and ideas circulating throughout the film that are by turns bizarre and unique, and it has rightly earned a reputation for containing a particularly blasphemous montage. The last fifteen minutes ostensibly contain the film's most well-orchestrated moments, with Divine alone descending into madness and chasing civilians through the streets. I don't think anyone could classify "Multiple Maniacs" as a masterwork of filmmaking by any stretch of the imagination-but it does stand as a celluloid capsule of Waters quite literally learning how to make a film, and there is enough wackiness, debauchery, and utter madness to please the most jaded of trash cinema fans. Good or bad, there is really nothing else quite like it. 7/10.

The reason Pink Flamingos has been recognized as John Waters' signature film of the 'exploitation' genre is the uncomplicated script with the sole purpose to titillate with acts of depravity. It is a film that shocks, albeit making no particular reference to any event of the period in which these movies were made. Nearly everyone who watches Pink Flamingos would've heard of transsexualism, cannibalism, foot fetishism, voyeurism, zoophilia, coprophilia etc and therefore the film can be enjoyed by a person who wasn't born in the seventies. The script has been written with devilish acumen, incorporating over-the-top sequences and campy humor to tone down some of the objectionable content. The film was shot in color, and thus could highlight some of the outrageous palette John Waters used for the house and Divine's costumes. All these reasons give Pink Flamingos its noteworthy status in the world of trash, not just the singular coprophagous moment.Multiple Maniacs released about two years before Pink Flamingos and made on a shoestring budget (even though the latter itself was a low-budget film) of about 5000$. Therefore, one actor assumes multiple roles and we are to believe a different hairdo implies a different character (by the way, read an intriguing explanation by a reviewer who elaborates on the religious connotation of the films. It sounds credible at first, but I rather stick to the general belief that Jesus and his followers didn't represent Divine and her vagabonds. Edith who plays both a bar owner and Virgin Mary wasn't a part of the Cavalcade, otherwise the reviewer's explanation would've held more credit) The film is shot entirely in black and white on 16mm and the camera shakes horribly at times and is sometimes so overexposed you can barely see the actors' bodies. The horrible white circle (indicating change of reel) flashes luminously like some extraterrestrial sign. Honestly, this film is dreadful and rather introductory to John Waters' Pink Flamingos, a vastly polished effort compared to this shoddy piece of junk.When I read the plot line, my mind swirled with images of a colorful circus with Divine and her crew treating the audience with their acts only to slaughter them in the end. This does happen in the beginning of the film but it digresses into a completely different act that places massive focus on 'Divine', contradicting the title of the film itself. What happened to the puke-eating guy or the foot-fetish girl or the homosexuals remains unknown with the focus suddenly switching to Divine, her promiscuous daughter, her estranged boyfriend David, her brief lesbian flinger Mink and a nemesis Bonnie. In fact, while it was Divine and Mary Vivian Pierce (who plays Bonnie) taking on the duo of David Lochary and Mink Stole in Pink Flamingos, the characters are simply switched here. This makes the movie seem a rough-cut version of PF, instead of continuing with the circus act to raise the shock value.The movie also makes references to Sharon Tate's mother and a Weatherman Underground organization, but they flew over my head since I wasn't born then (plus I'm not from US). At that time, such a facetious approach towards incidents like these would've caused a storm (I read about Ms. Tate's incident later and found the film's take on the event offensive), but now they seem irrelevant. The blasphemous religious sequence here would've made Lady Gaga blush (at least Gaga puts the rosary beads in her mouth). The final fifteen minutes are just codswallop and bullsh-t. Had the movie developed on the lines of Freaks (a 1932 classic), but edgier, crasser, vulgar and campier, it may have worked. Instead, it succumbs like Rob Zombie's first attempt 'House of 1000 corpses', which was completely overshadowed by the wicked 'The Devil's Rejects'.My Rating: 0.8 out of 10

John Waters is quoted in Hoberman & Rosenbaum's "Midnight Movies" (1981) as saying, with "Multiple Maniacs" he had finally flushed all the remaining religion out of his system, and that his intent was to "scare the world." In 1970, he likely did so with this. One shudders to ponder what he'd have to come up with Today, to achieve the same goal.However, when one considers the parade of human failure and misery that willingly allows itself to be showcased in a weekly strip's worth of Jerry Springer episodes, Waters' Dreamlanders, not only in "Maniacs," but in "Flamingos," "Female Trouble," and "Desperate Living" too, come off as a misfit bunch of lovable zanies.

Multiple Maniacs (1970) was Waters' second feature length film. Heavily influenced by the Manson Family murders, Waters creates this film about a band of murdering, sideshow freaks/performers who travel from town to town robbing and murdering their rich,nosy customers. This is a weird film that showcases what Waters likes to do best. Try and repulse the audience as much as he can (mirroring the side show performers themselves).Unfortunately, most of the humor is pretty dated and the very low, low budget might turn off most viewers (if they were not repulsed by the first twenty minutes). Other than that, it's a very enjoyable movie.Waters will finally perfect his film-making a few years later with the back to back to back releases of Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble and Desperate Living. Shot on 16mm, B/W.Recommended