Two thousand people live in the town of Pleasant Valley, an out-of- the-way place on a back road, somewhere on the way to Atlanta. All of them are maniacs, which is a decent premise for a film, and which illustrates Hershel G. Lewis's talent for what it takes to make a memorable exploitation film. Rather than being Confederate sympathizers these folks are like the ghosts of the town, which had been the scene of a Union (or Yankee) massacre exactly 100 years to the day on which all the action occurs. It's a film whose premise is a borderline sickening vengeance the maniacs inflict on four northerners (two young couples) who are detoured by two of Pleasant Valley's leading citizens, into its trap to make them the town's special guests for its one-hundred year anniversary of the massacre. Things get increasingly gory, in a kind of gratuitous way, but the storyline is almost substantial enough to hold it all together. Lewis also did the cinematography, which has many Confederate-flag drenched scenes to go along with bright red blood and a pretty blue sky.

This is it, gang. Herschell Gordon Lewis's greatest accomplishment (so far). After the massive success of a little gore-soaked experiment called Blood Feast, H. G. Lewis and Dave Friedman decided to make a new gore-epic, with some real money, and maybe even some ideas for a decent storyline, this time. A real gore epic. They originally wanted to call this movie Ten Thousand Maniacs, but with a cast of no more than 40 or 50, that would just be insulting the viewers intelligence. And so, Two Thousand Maniacs was born. This time around, the name of the game is Civil War vengeance, cleverly disguised as Southern hospitality.Unsuspecting yankees, just passing through "the South", get tricked into stopping by the little town of Pleasant Valley (what state was that, again?). So, now, 2,000... or, let's just say a whole bunch of eager hicks have surrounded the yankee's cars, making it crystal clear that this week, and this week only, their purpose in life is to shower these people with Southern hospitality... or at least a whole bunch of food and alcohol, and Betsy, if she's around. Why all the fuss over a bunch of lost yankees? Well, hell, son, it's the Centennial!! That's right, it's been 100 years since The Civil War ended, and it's high time we all put our differences aside, and make peace with our brothers and sisters from the north, and let some of them in on our shin-dig... Yeah!! That's what we'll tell 'em. They'll sure 'nough never expect to be mutilated in extremely painful, yet, kinda creative, and often humorous ways. We got all sorts of ideas. Such as..."The four horses" "The barrel roll" "Ol' teeterin' rock" "The axe throwin' contest" (if there's time) We got us some good un's. Dogged if we don't!!! And what about that other little sub-plot that never got explored? You know, when everybody was cheering over that guy being dead, and then Rufus busts out with "You know what happens to anybody that backs out. Let's hear us some music". What was that all about? One of the first, if not the first ever feel-good B-Horror cult classic in American history. Definitely the first one to offer gruesome killings that offer gore, so, of course you gotta take it seriously as a Horror movie, but surprisingly, the cheesy humor, questionable acting, often-ridiculous dialog, and all-around ineptness doesn't over-shadow the Horror element at all, not at all... alright, maybe a little, but I love this movie, and I passionately recommend it to anyone who will listen. Two Thousand Maniacs is by far the best piece of B-cinema you're gonna find out of the 60's. I won't lie to ya, there ain't as much gore as there was in Blood Feast, but we're talking about a much, much more fulfilling experience. Guaranteed to keep your attention, and to put you in a good mood. The highlight, for me (besides the barrel roll), is good ol' Jeffery Allen, the guy that plays Mayor Buckman. That big, loud, entertaining hick makes the movie all the more likable. Obviously, Herschell didn't really put a huge amount of thought into this one, then again, maybe he did. I mean, compared to some other Lewis fiasco's I've come across, over the years. For a real wake-up call, as to the difference between a regular B-movie, and an unwatchable B-movie, check out another one of Herschell's flicks, How To Make A Doll, but you gotta go through Dr. Gore to get to it, so, good luck with that. For anyone who might find Two Thousand Maniacs as awesome as I do, I would recommend ignoring the fact that a remake of this movie exists. Seeking out Moonshine Mountain would be in your best interests. That is, unless you require gore. In that case, can't help ya, because Two Thousand Maniacs is truly one of a kind. 10/10

Here at IMDb, there appears to be an interesting difference between the "splatter" film cult and those who admit they watch pornography. Since the 'splatter' film is really a kind of sadistic/violence pornography, I went, on a hunch, after reading through reviews of this film, to the reviews for a known cult porno, "Deep Throat." I thought I would find the same sort of remarks (with obvious necessary variation), but was surprised to discover that those who praise "Deep Throat" seem determined to discuss the merits of its story, an issue that doesn't concern most who praise "2,000 Maniacs." What is both interesting and upsetting about many of the positive reviews of this film is that the writers admit that what brings them to it are what, they also admit, are the "perverse" or "sick" elements - they want to see the mutilation, the blood, the pain of the victim, this gives them enjoyment.This was the first of only about a half-dozen films I've walked out of my entire life. I left after the first major episode of sadism, where a hick thug laughingly cuts off the thumb of a girl with whom he's on a picnic, for no discernible reason whatsoever except that he finds it amusing. It was clear that the audience was not invited to identify with the victim who was merely an object of use for the thug. And I have no idea, to this day, why anyone would identify with the thug. Nor do I understand the only other psychological explanation for watching this scene without any identification at all, that is, as a clinical observation of how good or how poor the special effects are.I like action films, so I recognize the cathartic, even therapeutic, use of violence in cinema. But just cutting off a woman's thumb just for the enjoyment of her pain, or to see how much it might bleed, is beyond any reasonable understanding.This film remains a strong argument for suppression of sado-porn, or at least burying it under an "X" or NC-17 rating. It is confusing why Woo's "The Killer" was originally given an "X" - yet I was able to walk in to see this Lewis film, at the time of a brief re-release, when it was obvious I was only 14. It has left an indelibly bad impression on me all these years, and I will always damn the name of Hershel Gordon Lewis for it. Some have tried to defend this film as "so bad it's funny," but sado-porn is just cruel and can never be funny. My psychic pain is not a subject for your profit or enjoyment.

If you've never seen a film by H.G. Lewis, then by crackies, it's high time you set yourself a spell,pop this evil mother into your DVD (or VHS,depending on what format you own)player,sit back & have your mind screwed with for 90 giddy minutes. H.G. Lewis was the pre cursor of splatter cinema,that would inspire untold generations of horror/exploitation directors to move ahead in this field. Lewis,and his partner in crime, Dave Friedman,crafted 'Blood Feast',',2,000 Maniacs',and others like it for drive in's across the Southern United States back in the 1960's to entertain & gross out audiences. 'Maniacs' concerns two couples that find themselves rail roaded into a Southern back water town that is celebrating a centurary of sorts. What the two couples don't know that the celebration is the 100th birthday of the Civil War. What follows is a nearly non stop blood orgy of graphic dismemberment,and sadism that even by today's standards, is very graphic. The acting is easily grade Z,and most of the special effects are laughable. If you want to scratch a truly perverted itch for a dose of early splatter cinema,then '2,000 Maniacs',or for that matter, any H.G. Lewis film should do the trick for you. Unrated,but contains enough blood,guts & gore to have earned it an 'X' rating (had there been a rating system at the time),but did earn an 'Adults Only' legend on the posters.