“Psycho” helped launch a wave of movies centered on disturbed individuals who embark on killing rampages. The nineteen seventies delivered films such as “Haunts,” “The Toolbox Murders,” “The Driller Killer,” and “Don’t Go in the House.” "Maniac" follows in the footsteps of these kinds of pictures, incorporating elements from “Dirty Harry,” “Dawn of the Dead,” and “The Warriors.” The film portrays a disturbing view of New York City's darker side, but in my opinion, it spends too much time showing the killer tracking his victims. Specifically, the scenes with the nurse on the subway and later with the model at her apartment felt drawn out, and I started to lose focus. The 2012 reimagining featuring Elijah Wood as Spinell moves the story to Los Angeles and is considerably more inventive, offering compelling psychological depth. It’s also quite mesmerizing, and you begin to feel some understanding for the character, something that doesn't happen here. Among the female performers are Rita Montone (as a prostitute), Caroline Munro (Anna), and Gail Lawrence (Rita). The movie has a runtime of 1 hour, 27 minutes; it was filmed in New York City during the final three months of 1979 and into the first couple of weeks of January, 1980. GRADE: C

Source on TMDB