Mania Killer Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		2.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		1.5

Mania Killer Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 22, 2021

One of the kind of slightly amusing subtexts of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code is how is perhaps suggested that there were certain "cultists" running around various French locations, even if those "cultists" turned out to be either protectors of or even supposed relatives of a certain famous bloodline. While this release sports a cover that boasts the title Mania Killer, the film itself bears a credit proclaiming Maniac Killer, though, again perhaps amusingly, there are cultists in rural France once again in evidence. In this particular case, they're not out to protect and/or participate in a venerated family tree, but instead are involved in kidnapping and torturing local women, including some "working girls" which gets the local pimp population concerned. That gives the film some of its sleaziest content, though it's so hilariously ineptly handled most of the time that even the smarm may strike many as more comical than anything. There are an almost insane number of subplots stuffed into this low rent affair which are just are never really well integrated into the story.

Whatever its name, this film's major claim to fame may be its, um, unique casting, which offers erstwhile Rifleman Chuck Connors as an apparently mad scientist named Roger Osborne, whose experiments are never really totally explained, but who might seem to be a modern day stand in for a certain doctor named Frankenstein, at least insofar as both men share a fascination with overcoming death. In the "but, wait, you also get" category, Osborne enlists the aid of a kid named Matthew (François Greze) who in contemporary parlance might be termed as being "on the spectrum", and who is barely verbal. Robert Ginty and Suzanne Andrews are also on hand as two of the cultists who abduct and torture women, and just for good measure Bo Svenson as a local Count who doesn't appreciate the Ginty character, for reasons perhaps more personal than actually having to do with the cult aspect.

Mania Killer Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mania Killer is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Full Moon Features with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.67:1. While Full Moon touts that this is uncut and remastered, it also perhaps hedges its descriptive bets by saying it was culled from the "best available materials found in the Eurocine vaults". The element utilized has some manifest issues, including pretty widely variant color timing, which can often veer over into near jaundiced yellow territory and then back again. Other sections offer lackluster densities, with a really wan looking palette. There's also recurrent if minor damage in the forms of nicks, scratches and the like, and also some other passing distractions like hairs in the gate and some noticeable wobble during the credits. Grain is apparent, but doesn't resolve especially organically. Fine detail can improve in the better lit moments where close-ups are employed.

Mania Killer Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mania Killer features Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono and Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks. The surround track does not really substantially open things up, though there's arguably a bit more space and low end energy in scenes like a shootout at a French villa. The mono track provides decent support for the film's dialogue, score and effects, within a lossy context. No subtitles are available on this release.

Mania Killer Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Euro Cult Trailers includes:

  Barbed Wire Dolls (HD; 00:55)

  
  

  Naked Girl Murdered in a Park (HD; 1:28)

  
  

  Love Letters of a Portuguese Nun (HD; 2:37)

  
  

  Sexy Sisters (HD; 1:02) actually features the title Satanic Sisters in the trailer itself.

  
  

  Voodoo Passion (HD; 00:56)

  
  

  Women in Cellblock 9 (HD; 1:00)

Mania Killer Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This is a pretty sad affair all around, though those with jaded tastes in casting may find some interest. Technical merits are definitely improvable, and this release simply repeats the same "Euro Cult Trailers" that have been included on previous releases from Full Moon Features, for those who may be considering making a purchase.