Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

This follow up to the seminal Blood Feast seems to be regarded by many as the best film that H. G. Lewis ever directed. Personally I can't agree with this view seeing as I just can't see past Blood Feast, a film of much more excessive gore, belly laughs and sheer trash value. That said, Two Thousand Maniacs! ain't bad. It's a more expansive film, although anyone familiar with Lewis's output will know that this is a very relative statement because despite having a more elaborate set-up this is still an ultra-cheap drive-in movie. What keeps it interesting though is the combination of inventive murder set-pieces, demented humour and an overall deranged feel. Its Southern town of Pleasantville gives the movie a sense of place which adds nice detail as well. Not only that but there is also the highly infectious title song 'The South's Gonna Rise Again!' by The Pleasant Valley Boys. Yeeeeha!Like all of Lewis's other gore films this one has a curious mixed tone. It combines broad comedy with pretty mean-spirited violence, usually in the same scene. It's a bizarre thing to see and it gives Lewis's movies an edgy sensibility that remains compelling no matter how unrealistic the gore might actually be. His films are all comedies as much as horror films, maybe even more so. There's never really any suspense in the build up to the acts of violence. They're just presented in front of us in a way that must've shocked early 60's audiences due to their draw-dropping audacity. This one could maybe have done with a little more carnage for it to have been entirely satisfying but there sure is enough here for trash movie enthusiasts to lap up.

A group of "yankees" from "up north" are driving on the highway when they are purposely diverted by detour signs into a small "backwoods" Southern town where a joyful local gathering invites them in with welcome cheers to be their very special, "selected" guests for a Centenniel celebration commemorating past history not revealed. Two different cars, one carrying two married couples, another with pretty Connie Mason(..as Terry Adams)and her hitchhiking passenger, William Kerwin(..referred to as Thomas Wood in the film's credits;portraying Tom White), whose car broke down as he was on his way to a teacher's convention, are removed from their vehicles pretty much against their will, set up in a hotel with food free, not knowing that they are actually to be the entertainment for their celebration festivities, victims of gruesome games arranged as a "blood revenge" for a dark period in Civil War history. This Southern town, Pleasant Valley, was actually slaughtered by Union soldiers and the vengeful spirits of those killed participate in the celebration of destroying yanks. While the other northerners are unable to see what horrors lie ahead, Tom is suspicious almost immediately and coerces a confused Terry into planning an escape..it won't be easy with hick crazies all over the place.Considered by his beloved fans as director Herschell Gordon Lewis' masterpiece, TWO THOUSAND MANIACS!, his second film, is much better than BLOOD FEAST, in that the black comedy works to a greater extent, and he's operating completely tongue-in-cheek. While the camera work is still suspect, there are some overhead set ups early on which are effective, and the film doesn't drag as much as in BLOOD FEAST, where scenes would often linger tediously. The non-actors in the film are not as dreadful as in HGL's previous flick, and the cast portraying the "rednecks" really get into their roles, particularly when the victims are about to be executed. Jeffrey Allen, as the blustery mayor, is memorable as the overseer of his town, really relishing along with the folks over executing the yanks one at a time, mocking each victim as they are about to die. The gory set-pieces are certainly shocking such as one poor soul whose limbs are pulled apart from his torso by four different horses going in opposite directions, a woman's finger(..taken off by a knife)and arm(..chopped off by an ax)being removed, another victim bound as contestants attempt to drop a boulder on top of her by hitting a target with a softball, and one victim is rolled down a hill in a barrel with nails hammered inside. The twisted imagination for coming up with such grisly set pieces, HGL deserves credit for setting a standard others would soon surpass as demand for such movies increased with talented make-up artists and production values emerging. Still, the film features crude photography and bad sound(..sometimes, the dialogue is a bit drowned out by bluegrass music)..and I wouldn't say the acting is of superb quality, far from it. But, there's an irresistible energy and a method to the madness, with some terrific bluegrass numbers to entertain as well. In order to appreciate a sick gore comedy such as this, you must gloss over HGL's inadequacies as a filmmaker, still learning his trade, but the man has a knack for repulsive murder sequences. As a gorehound, I admire his contributions to the artistry of graphic violence, even if I find his cinematic prowess lacking.

Decided to watch this film, but I really was not very sure if I was going to enjoy this flick with unknown actors, but as I started to view this film I became very interested. A young couple gets themselves involved with a town where strange things start to happen to people. The town's folks remember the Civil War days when their town was destroyed by the Yankee's up North and it seems this town celebrates this event by having Yankee guests participate in some games of chance for both men and women. These games of chance will greatly surprise you and you just will not believe just what is going on until it actually happens. There is one scene when a man gets into a barrel and rolls down a hill which becomes very tragic. This is a rather short film, but great to view on Halloween night, or anytime you find it showing on TCM. Enjoy.

Where to start, well, the southern accents are bad, plain and simple, in fact, the best portrayed southern accent was by Tom White (William Kerwin), whom was, in the film, simulating the twang in attempt to phone out of Plesantville. Additionally, Lester MacDonald (Ben Moore) and Rufus Tate (Gary Bakeman) gave horrible portrayals. Rufus being in a pressed clean shirt, an obviously new hat and perfectly white teeth, not to mention a ghastly attempt at a southern drawl. Coupled with Lester, whose character made a more valiant attempt at being the country bumpkin, wearing overalls and covered in dirt. However, Moore's overacting was enough to make your teeth itch. In addition, the audio is bad, the dialogue sounds as if the players are shouting in a small quonset hut (although, the sound track is awesome and fitting). That being said, believe it or not, I enjoyed the movie. The hokiness seemed to fit and some of the scenes of gore were great. Guy cuts woman's thumb while showing her his knife's sharpness. To resolve the matter, he cuts off her thumb. Things obviously out of hand (no pun intended), brings the bleeding, crying woman to the town mayor where they cut off her arm, in spite of her thumb (pun intended), priceless and silly, in a backwoods, Deliverance kind of way. In one scene, the troupe of maniacs separate husband and wife David Wells (Michael Korb) and Beverly Wells (Yvonne Gilbert). After some pressuring, you see David being lead up a hill where there is a yellow barrel with the confederate flag affixed to the surface. The barrel is on its side and without top or bottom. They tell David that is it a tradition to have a Yankee crawl through the barrel before it is rolled (you can see where this is going). Naturally he resists, however, they coerce/bully him to travel through, and as you can guess, once inside the barrel, they hold him there. Although, before the barrel is pushed down the gently sloping mound, the mayor produces a hammer and some wicked looking long nails which he then pounds into the barrel. Needless to say, David didn't make it through the ordeal. This was sinister indeed, I found myself proclaiming the proverbial "No Way". Another gruesome demise was when John Miller (Jerome Eden) was Quartered (pulled apart by four horses). Speaking of this, which I found a little misplaced. After the quartering, the group that was once elated, became sullen, after an uncomfortable silence, Lester said something along the lines of "You know what happens to those that don't follow through" this didn't fit, no harm though, the scene was quickly recovered. The movie continues in an expected way with the Hero and Heroine narrowly escaping after the usual cat and mouse. Beverly Wells, is smashed by a boulder that is propped up and rigged to drop in the fashion you may see with a carnival dunk tank. There is an epic twist though, that I enjoyed very much and it is here that I will stop, I feel that in this case, to give it away, would make it a little less enjoyable. I will state that the remake with Robert Englund is very good, adhering to the original interpretation and incorporates more humor (without ruining the feel). The remake also had a superior set, where the original utilized a more modern town that didn't fit. In addition, 2001 Maniacs expounded on the ending's twist, in a way that I thought improved the film. We can't discount though, the plain creepiness of some of the characters in the original, I got the feeling that these people, really were homicidal inbred yolkels. Happy Horrors