Maidstone is a fairly poor art movie from the seventies thats best remembered for one scene; where the two lead actors get into a vicious, bloody fight that looks like theyre trying to kill each other. Thats because they got into a vicious, bloody fight and they actually were trying to kill each other. And thankfully, the camera was rolling while it happened. The scene starts when actor Rip Torn who is well-known for being a bit eccentric in real life strikes star and director Norman Mailer on the head with a hammer. Hes not trying to hurt Mailer, but he wants to kill his character. Mailer defends himself against the hammer blows and the two of them get into it, with Torn finally trying to strangle the director before theyre separated. Its a disturbing scene thats made worse by the fact Mailers wife and children see it happening, and they scream for Torn to stop it throughout. Mailer decided to keep the fight in the film even though they refer to each other by their real names because it made for such powerful footage.
