Coventry Review of Multiple Maniacs

Multiple Maniacs (1970)

Okay, *I think* giant lobster rape is where I draw the line

[5/10 · 19 December 2014]

I'd like to consider myself a very tolerant, broad-minded and versatile film fanatic. I've seen and reviewed more than 3.000 titles in the horror, cult and exploitation genre and I'm constantly looking for obscure films that push my boundaries in terms of bad taste, gruesomeness and extremity. With my recent discovery of John Waters' "Multiple Maniacs", I think I found my personal limit. Even though I really liked the director's most notorious accomplishment – "Pink Flamingoes" – I seriously had to struggle myself through this one. I presume it's the combination of amateurish direction, total absence of structure and the non-stop irritating voice-over monologues that didn't work for me. You can tell straight from the opening credits that "Multiple Maniacs" will become an exercise in perseverance. The nearly endless cast list – presumably all of Waters' Dreamland studios pals – simply appears on a white board, without any sort of animation of musical guidance. This definitely sets the tone for the rest of the film: cheap, filthy and largely improvised on the spot. And yet, in spite of being unendurable, "Multiple Maniacs" is also strangely and inexplicable fascinating. I remained glued to the screen although half of the script didn't make any sense to me. If it weren't for the detailed plot summary available here on the website, I confess I might not have been able to follow. Divine and some other cast members (like Cookie Mueller and Edith Massey) are unique performers, that's for sure, and a handful of scenes are insanely perverted, like the rosary job and – of course – the giant lobster rape. The numerous references towards the Manson family and Sharon Tate's grisly murder are excessive and quite shameless, since the news item was still a very hot & shocking topic around the time of release. I honestly can't recommend this, but simultaneously I don't want to discourage potential viewers from "discovering" this semi-legendary trash monument. Whatever you do, proceed with caution