Maniac
1934 : 1 hour 3 minutes
This video is only available with Night Flight+.
Director: Dwain Esper
synopsis
There’s no way around it. DWAIN ESPER’s Maniac can justifiably be called one of the greatest exploitation films ever made. Not content to crank out another sex hygiene or dope film, Esper and his wife, HILDAGARDE STADIE (who wrote the screenplay), concocted a uniquely delirious mix of horror film, discourse on mental illness, and whacked-out girly show. The plot – if you can call it that – pulls elements from Frankenstein, Mystery of the Wax Museum, and Poe’s “The Black Cat,” as well as the spicy spectacle of exploitation epics of the day.
recommended
X: The Unheard Music
X: The Unheard Music takes long, detailed, and often funny look at the LA music scene of the late 70s and 80s and focuses on the group that critics had singled out as the leader of th...Read More
Nightclubbing: The Birth Of Punk Rock In NYC
Nightclubbing is the first ever documentary about the renowned New York City nightclub Max's Kansas City (1965-1981) which had an indelible impact on the world of music, fashion, art,...Read More
Chuck Berry - The Original King Of Rock 'n' Roll
The official fully-authorized feature documentary on the life and music of Chuck Berry, the absolute instigator of Rock and Roll, directed by Jon Brewer. Chuck Berry was a prolifi...Read More
Night Flight - Julee Cruise, Twin Geeks and More (As Aired)
This two-hour 1990 broadcast features Julee Cruise’s performance for David Lynch's “Industrial Symphony No. 1,” a Night Flight original Twin Peaks parody called "Twin Geeks" and an in...Read More
Barbara Rubin And The Exploding NY Underground
Made when she was just 18 years old, Barbara Rubin's art-porn masterpiece Christmas On Earth (1963-65) shocked NYC's experimental film scene and inspired NYC's thriving underground. F...Read More
Who Killed Nancy?
October 12th, 1978 – New York Police discover the lifeless body of 20 year-old Nancy Spungen. Ex-prostitute, sometime stripper, heroin addict and infamous girlfriend of Sex Pistols’ 2...Read More
The Uncle No Rules Show
The tranquility of Uncle No Rules’s home is disturbed when a mysterious variety-show equipped with a studio audience and charismatic host (Marky Ramone) descends upon the household. U...Read More
Kate Bush - Under Review
This 90-minute film reviews the music and career of one of the world's most influential performers, singers and songwriters; arguably the most unique female artist ever. It includes r...Read More
Rude Boy
Merging documentary and fiction, Jack Hazan and David Mingay’s Rude Boy follows roughneck Ray Gange as he drops his Soho sex-shop job to roadie for The Clash—the most fiery, revolutio...Read More
Night Flight - Marianne Faithfull Video Profile
Welcome to a very special Night Flight Video Profile! In 1966, a seventeen year old sweet-voiced blonde schoolgirl became British rock's first authentic pop princess, only to lose tha...Read More
New York Dolls - Lookin' Fine On Television
The legendary and infamous New York Dolls at their best! Amazing rare live clips and interviews filmed by Bob Gruen and Nadya Beck in the 70s. Footage from early shows in NYC all the ...Read More
The Decline of Western Civilization
The first entry in the Decline series sheds a light on Los Angeles’ punk scene of the late 1970s. Featuring interviews and performances by some of the most seminal acts of the era lik...Read More
We Were Famous, You Don't Remember: The Embarrassment
Ignited by punk’s invasion of the Great Plains, America’s gawkiest and greatest lost rock band battles conformity in Reagan-era Kansas. The Embarrassment played Chicago, D.C., and New...Read More
The Upsetter: The Life and Music of Lee Scratch Perry
The Upsetter tells the wild, weed-fueled story of Lee “Scratch” Perry — a visionary Jamaican musician, artist and all around madman — who burst upon the Kingston scene in the ‘50s wit...Read More
The Colossus Of Destiny: A Melvins Tale
This documentary follows the band's history, with rare behind-the-scenes both past and present. The Colossus Of Destiny - A Melvins Tale" is a film about a band who have defied all...Read More
Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten
As the lead singer of The Clash from 1977 onward, Joe Strummer changed people's lives forever. Years after his death, his influence reaches out around the world, more strongly now tha...Read More