5. Two Thousand Maniacs! (1964)
"Robert E Lee broke a musket on his knee!" Most horror movies have one maniac on the loose, but Herschell Gordon Lewis boldly proclaims that his film has 2000 maniacs. In reality, the film merely conjures up about 150 'maniacs' but it is extremely enjoyable despite its numerical deficiencies. In the film, six Yankee tourists are tricked by some yokels to enter the town of Pleasant Valley where they will be the guests of honour in the town's centennial celebrations. Why? The Yankees are to be fodder for the town's celebratory games. These are vicious confederates looking for revenge after Yankee soldiers lay waste to their town 100 years ago during the Civil War. The town has magically reappeared like Brigadoon and the locals want to make some Yankees pay. The tortures inflicted upon the Yankees are sick and gruesome. A woman is squashed by a large boulder. A man is rolled down a hill in a barrel full of spikes. Another man has his arms and legs each attached to a horse and is dismembered. A woman is also dismembered by laughing rednecks and roasted in a barbecue. Two Yankees manage to escape and Pleasant Valley goes away again - ready for 2065. The acting in the film leaves a lot to be desired - especially the horrible little blonde haired boy near the end of the movie. It is however so enthusiastic and OTT you can't help but grin at it. The film has an infectious sense of merriment even though we are watching the hideous demise of four people. The killings are so bizarre and inventive, the viewer feels like they are watching a cartoon. I also enjoy the banjo music in the film - much better than that of Deliverance. Lewis and David Friedman have made the most of a minuscule budget to produce an enjoyable B Movie classic. The South's gonna rise again!