Popular reviews

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  Review by Stephen Gillespie ★★ 21

  There’s just too misogyny, ableism and luring sexualisation to wade through to get to the fun oily action. The fake Jaws theme that hits every time the titular manic appears is a joy, as is his puddle form - leading to some great The Blob territory. The lack of actual gore resulting from this tomfoolery is deeply disappointing, and what you have instead of it - voyeurism, sexual violence and court room drama - ain’t for me.

  Not for me. However, every scene where he oils up is genius.

  Anyway, this was a precursor film to Letterboxd Friend Fest 2021. My next 20 watches are all dedicated to, and inspired by, an LB friend (limited to those I chat to…

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  Review by Todd Gaines ★★★½ 18

  The Oily Maniac is simply a bonkers film. The killer looks like a piece of oily flubber as he moves like an oil spill to kill his victims. They even use a score similar to JAWS when Oily is on the prowl. I could not stop laughing every single time the killer transformed into Oil Man: Killer of Bad People. There’s naked women and lots of perverts. This flick is dope. Plus, it is produced by the Shaw Brothers, and it stars Danny Lee from John Woo’s The Killer as the vigilante with polio, who pours oil on himself, and turns into a maniac killer. Half the time I had no clue what was going on. Strong plot development is not a strength. However, The Oily Maniac is a movie I will never forget.

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  Review by Ian West ★★★★

  Shaw Brothers doing it yet again!!  This time with a masterpiece of the oily variety.

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  Review by MDF ★★★½

  Not to be confused with "Maniac" starring Joe Spinell who is also oily. Oily Maniac doesn't quite live up to what one might hope for given the films title, plot, and poster, but it's still a very fun Shaw Brothers offering. The studio has produced far better films, this one is a little sloppy in every regard, but I'd still recommend it to anyone who would watch a film called Oily Maniac in the first place. My favourite moments in the film involve Oily Maniac essentially parkouring around town. Also this is the best movie I've ever seen that takes place in a coconut oil factory.

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  Review by Cormac 👑 ★★ 17

  Not enough oil and or maniac in this movie about the titular oily maniac. Think JAWS but swap out the famous shark for the threat of the walking, breathing personification of engine diesel. With an aesthetic I will now officially christen ‘melting black jelly bean’ looming over every scene. And forever turning the corner filling station into a place of very real, tangible PTSD.

  Come for BP’s very worst nightmare. Stay for a rubber-monster grease man who pours oil over his body (a way to cure his polio?), finds a home in sticky barrels to leaking taps. And takes the law into his own slippery hands by slithering along pavements like an empty shadow and avenging deaths by way of…

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  Review by Carlo 666 6

  Shaw Bros gone done it again. This time with a rip on masked avengers but also kind of a Wolfman/Jekyll & Hyde situation??? Who knows who cares. I love how the origin here is "Uh yeah look at this tattoo on my back, now dig a hole in the middle of your house and chant these words *BOOM* you're a walking oil spill." Then by the time someone figures out that fire defeats oil, the movie (as it should) just ends.

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  Review by Tao A ★★★★

  Essentially a sleazy superhero exploitation film. And you better fucking believe that was a compliment.

  Extra star for the oily maniac's scream, which is now officially my second favorite sound effect of all time, with the first one being the now iconic flash camera sound from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.

  Worth watching just for that shit alone. Trust me.

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  Review by Slig001 ★★★½

  I don't know much about director Ho Meng-Hua - but I'm assuming that he's a boob man and I guess he's seen Jaws! (or at least heard the soundtrack). The Oily Maniac is a silly, but fun and inventive, Hong Kong horror film. The plot is pretty basic and focuses on a cripple who decides to get revenge on those who have wronged him, by way of a magic spell that turns him into an "Oily Maniac". The monster itself is hilarious and every moment it is on screen is great fun. The way that it makes its entrance is imaginative and he film makes full use of the Oily aspect, as the monster can slide under doors and even…

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  Review by SpaghettiNoir ★★★

  Probably the best superhero origin/courtroom procedural/rape-revenge/breast implant awareness/kung fu/horror movie out there.

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  Review by cherryz ★★★★

  What a beautiful beast! From cripple to super creature and all to the beat of JAWS music.

  Revenge, boobies and fighting galore. Floats like an oil slick and stings like a bee. 👊 Yeaaargh!

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  Review by Corey ★★★½

  spare the courtroom drama farce and the occasional blatant misogyny, and The Oily Maniac succeeds as pure 70s creature-feature pulp, charged with zany zooms, dramatic performances, and a dazzling charm all mashed into the thick, slick, invasive blob that lingers to a knockoff Jaws theme, and putrefies its victims to the beat of something akin to the Friday franchise’s Manfredini trademark. completely bonkers, loaded with amusing effects and enough punch.mp4 sound clips packed within the engaging set pieces to have its fun without compromise.

  1970s

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  Review by Sam ★★

  The maniac certainly knows how to make an entrance, sneaking in in the form of an oil slick to a Jaws-like soundtrack before bursting into life with a roar, but exits by just running away kinda fast.