Two Thousand Maniacs

It’s 1965 and the stars and bars of the confederate flag are waving proudly in Augusta, GA. It is the 100th Anniversary of the Civil War and the South is going to celebrate in grand style! A couple of goofy looking bums that look like rejects from the Hee Haw show are setting up detours to lour Northerners into Augusta and to their doom! When people who have been detoured arrive in the town, they are greeted by the Mayor and hundreds of citizens of Pleasant Valley and invited to to take part in the celebration.

A BBQ is being arranged for the guests on their first night in the town. One of the not so southern gentlemen invites one of the pretty gals from up north to take a walk down by the lake. The Mayor is having a BBQ for everyone and this little gal does not want to miss it. What she does not know is she is the main course! While down by the lake, the southern boy begins to cut her hand and then takes her back to the Mayor and his two goons where they take and axe and chop her arm off! I guess she won't miss the BBQ after all. At the BBQ we see the pretty little gal’s arm being cooked while a bluegrass band sings “Roll In My Sweet Baby’s Arms”--Great scene!After the BBQ, one of the northern boys who has had a little too much moonshine is dragged into the middle of four horses and is told that he is going to be in a horse race. Each one of the boys arms and legs is tied to a horse and is drawn and quartered like a worn out rag doll. This is followed by the crowed singing “Look Away Dixieland”. This movie just gets better.

The next scene is splatertastic!! One of the boys from the North are invited to a barrel roll as a part of the celebration. He is forced into the barrel and then nails are hammered in! Before he could fight back, the barrel is pushed down the hill and the boys is a bloody mess! Now that was original!

After watching this movie the North has more reason to hate the South and the South has more reason to hate the North for the Southern Stereotypes this movie portrays. The bluegrass music is catchy and enjoyable to listen to. This is the second movie I have enjoyed from H.G. Wells. The first movie was “She Devils on Wheels” and I have to admit, I thoroughly enjoyed this little blood feast also. The standards that are typical for an exploitation film are exceeded in "Two Thousand Maniacs". The use of cut-away shots and reaction shots add to the darkness and the humor.