45 Years Later: Celebrating William Lustig's Maniac

I told you not to go out tonight, didn't I? Every time you go out, this kind of thing happens.

With its voyeuristic opening where an unseen assailant watches a young couple on a beach before mercilessly slaughtering them in cold blood, William Lustig’s grimy and gruesome slasher Maniac burst onto the scene at a time when American slasher movies were a relatively bloodless affair. A shockingly brutal character study of the lasting effects of childhood trauma that’s anchored by a desperately disturbing performance from Joe Spinell, Maniac remains one of the most notorious horror movies ever released, with a legacy that continues to live on even after more than 45 years.