Multiple Maniacs, the gloriously grotesque second feature directed by John Waters (Hairspray) is replete with all manner of depravity, from robbery to murder to one of cinema’s most memorably blasphemous moments.
Made on a shoestring budget in Waters’ native Baltimore, with the filmmaker taking on nearly every technical task, this gleeful mockery of the peace-and-love ethos of its era features a travelling show mounted by a troupe of misfits whose shocking proclivities are topped only by those of their leader: the larger than-life Divine out for blood after discovering her lover’s affair.
Starring Waters’ beloved regular cast the Dreamlanders, Multiple Maniacs is an anarchic masterwork from an artist who has doggedly tested the limits of good taste for decades and comes to home video for the very first time following an extensive restoration from The Criterion Collection.
THE CRITERION COLLECTION RELEASE • New 4K digital restoration, supervised by director John Waters, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray • Audio commentary featuring Waters (Getting the lowdown on the movie from the horses mouth is truly hilarious and makes getting this release a must). • Interviews with cast and crew members Pat Moran, Vincent Peranio, Mink Stole, Susan Lowe and George Figgs • Plus, an essay by critic Linda Yablonsky
