William Lustig

Directing

William Lustig

Born 1955-02-01 · The Bronx, New York City, New York, USA

William Lustig (born February 1, 1955) is an American filmmaker and film distributor, known for his work in the horror genre. His best-known films include Maniac (1980), Vigilante (1982), and Maniac Cop (1988) and its sequels. He is also the founder of the boutique home video label Blue Underground. Description above from the Wikipedia article William Lustig, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Acting credits

Army of Darkness poster
7.3

Ash, a handsome, shotgun-toting, chainsaw-armed department store clerk, is time warped backwards into England's Dark Ages, where he romances a beauty and faces legions of the undead.

Army of Darkness

1992

Darkman poster
6.4

Dr. Peyton Westlake is on the verge of realizing a major breakthrough in synthetic skin when his laboratory is destroyed by gangsters. Having been burned beyond recognition and forever altered by an experimental medical procedure, Westlake becomes known as Darkman, assuming alternate identities in his quest for revenge and a new life with a former love.

Darkman

1990

Maniac Cop poster
6.1

A killer dressed in a police uniform begins murdering innocent people on the streets of New York City.

Maniac Cop

1988

Maniac poster
6.4

A psychotic man, troubled by his childhood abuse, kills and mutilates young women and local models on the streets of New York City.

Maniac

1980

Vigilante poster
6.2

New York City factory worker Eddie Marino is a solid citizen and regular guy, until the day a sadistic street gang brutally assaults his wife and murders his child. When a corrupt judge sets the thugs free, he goes berserk and vows revenge.

Vigilante

1983

Relentless poster
5.3

Two Los Angeles police detectives hunt for a serial killer who randomly chooses his victims from a phone directory.

Relentless

1989

Finding Planet Porno: The Wild Journey of American Cinema's First Outlaw poster
NR

Rebel, outlaw, porn pioneer: FINDING PLANET PORNO tells the story of filmmaker Howard Ziehm, whose MONA THE VIRGIN NYMPH was the first explicit feature film to be distributed in the US in 1970 - at a time when the production of pornography was still illegal. He later made the cult science fiction sex parody FLESH GORDON, whose production was plagued by battles against the law, an acute lack of money and other problems. The documentary approaches Howard's story on a personal level, and through his eyes and those of his companions it paints a thrilling portrait of an unusual person - and a time that brought about great social change. But what is left of it all?

Finding Planet Porno: The Wild Journey of American Cinema's First Outlaw

2024

Cameron's Closet poster
4.7

A father who experiments with his son's psychokinetic powers is unaware that these experiments have released a demon from hell which lives in his son's closet, preparing to take over the young boy's soul.

Cameron's Closet

1988

Direct Your Own Damn Movie! poster
5.0

Legendary director Lloyd Kaufman, President of Troma Entertainment and Creator of the Toxic Avenger, reveals 40 years worth of maverick cinematic know-how in Direct Your Own Damn Movie! Lloyd offers you the magic key to operating outside the film studio system as well as providing you with the roadmap to script writing, pre-production, casting, managing your set, post-production and the secrets of selling you movie!

Direct Your Own Damn Movie!

2009

VHS Revolution poster
6.3

Using testimonies by pioneers and witnesses of the times, delve into the feverish visual culture the media generated – with far-fetched examples of canine television games, seduction manuals, aerobics class while holding a baby, among others.

VHS Revolution

2017

Scream and Scream Again: A History of the Slasher Film poster
7.0

Documentary tracing the rise of the 'slasher' movie.

Scream and Scream Again: A History of the Slasher Film

2000

American Grindhouse poster
6.7

This documentary explores the hidden history of the American Exploitation Film. The movie digs deep into this often overlooked category of U.S. cinema and unearths the shameless and occasionally shocking origins of this popular entertainment.

American Grindhouse

2011

The Joe Spinell Story poster
5.3

The Joe Spinell Story is a An outstanding and eye-opening documentary, made in 2001 for the Anchor Bay DVD release of Maniac (1980). His most notable roles were as mafioso Willi Cicci in The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, and as loan shark Tony Gazzo in Rocky and Rocky II. Although primarily known as a character actor, Spinell co-wrote and starred as a serial killer in the 1980 film, Maniac.

The Joe Spinell Story

2001

13 Scarier Movie Moments poster
9.0

Final entry in the Bravo scary movie moments countdowns that aired in 2009.

13 Scarier Movie Moments

2009

Trepanator poster
4.6

Dr. Herbert East is working in his uncle's clinic and experimenting with brain transplants.

Trepanator

1992

Maniac: The Making of Documentary poster
NR

Behind the scenes documentary on the 2012 film MANIAC directed by Franck Khalfoun.

Maniac: The Making of Documentary

2013

42nd Street Memories: The Rise and Fall of America's Most Notorious Street poster
7.8

The story behind the rise and fall of New York's 42nd Street. The cinemas, the films, the people, the crime and the rebirth of the block as "New 42nd Street" - this is the document of the world's most notorious movie strip.

42nd Street Memories: The Rise and Fall of America's Most Notorious Street

2015

Texas Chain Saw Massacre: The Shocking Truth poster
7.0

A documentary primarily focusing on the filming and release of the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

Texas Chain Saw Massacre: The Shocking Truth

2000

In Search of Darkness: Part III poster
7.5

The conclusion to the ‘In Search of Darkness’ '80s trilogy. In this epic final chapter, our focus turns to the straight-to-video horror classics that populated the bottom shelves at the video rental store. Imaginative, gory, experimental—but always entertaining—these hidden gems are ripe for rediscovery.

In Search of Darkness: Part III

2022

The Outsider: The Cinema of Antonio Margheriti poster
6.0

Documentary on the life and films of Antonio Margheriti.

The Outsider: The Cinema of Antonio Margheriti

2013

Hollywood Rated 'R' poster
5.3

A roller-coaster ride through the history of American exploitation films, ranging from Roger Corman's sci-fi and horror monster movies, 1960s beach movies, H.G. Lewis' gore-fests, William Castle's schlocky theatrical gimmicks, to 1970s blaxploitation, pre-"Deep Throat" sex tease films, Russ Meyer's bosom-heavy masterpieces, etc, etc. Over 25 interviews of the greatest purveyors of weird films of all kind from 1940 to 1975. Illustrated with dozens of films clips, trailers, extra footage, etc. This documentary as a shorter companion piece focusing on exploitation king David F. Friedman.

Hollywood Rated 'R'

1997

No artwork available
5.0

The first feature-length documentary that fully explores how the toxic social and political Canadian context after 1968 created some of the most nihilistic and imaginative Canadian cult films of the 1970s and 80s and beyond.

Tax Shelter Terrors

2017

Dario Argento: An Eye for Horror poster
6.8

Documentary that explores Argento's film career.

Dario Argento: An Eye for Horror

2001

Post Traumatic: An American Nightmare poster
NR

This thirty minute documentary features interviews with Giovinazzo's key contemporaries discussing the continued impact and influence of Combat Shock twenty-five years later.

Post Traumatic: An American Nightmare

2009

Behind the camera

Maniac poster
6.0

As he helps a young artist with her upcoming exhibition, the owner of a mannequin shop's deadly, suppressed desires come to the surface.

Maniac

2012

Maniac Cop 2 poster
5.9

Undead cop Matt Cordell rises from the grave, and is after the criminals who murdered him in prison.

Maniac Cop 2

1990

Maniac Cop 3: Badge of Silence poster
5.3

A priest practicing the Voodoo arts resurrects Matt Cordell, who takes his badge and returns from the dead...again...to do his bidding.

Maniac Cop 3: Badge of Silence

1992

Maniac Cop poster
6.1

A killer dressed in a police uniform begins murdering innocent people on the streets of New York City.

Maniac Cop

1988

Maniac poster
6.4

A psychotic man, troubled by his childhood abuse, kills and mutilates young women and local models on the streets of New York City.

Maniac

1980

Maniac poster
6.4

A psychotic man, troubled by his childhood abuse, kills and mutilates young women and local models on the streets of New York City.

Maniac

1980

Vigilante poster
6.2

New York City factory worker Eddie Marino is a solid citizen and regular guy, until the day a sadistic street gang brutally assaults his wife and murders his child. When a corrupt judge sets the thugs free, he goes berserk and vows revenge.

Vigilante

1983

Vigilante poster
6.2

New York City factory worker Eddie Marino is a solid citizen and regular guy, until the day a sadistic street gang brutally assaults his wife and murders his child. When a corrupt judge sets the thugs free, he goes berserk and vows revenge.

Vigilante

1983

Relentless poster
5.3

Two Los Angeles police detectives hunt for a serial killer who randomly chooses his victims from a phone directory.

Relentless

1989

The Expert poster
5.5

It was a brutal murder that sent deranged psychopath Martin Kagan to prison. It was a naive deputy warden that granted him a stay of execution. Now, the police department's tactical defence instructor, John Lomax, wants revenge for his beloved sister's death.

The Expert

1995

Uncle Sam poster
4.9

It's Fourth of July Weekend, and the recently discovered corpse of Sgt. Sam Harper rises from the dead to punish the unpatriotic.

Uncle Sam

1996

Hit List poster
6.2

A family man and a mob witness hunt for a hit-man who has mistakenly kidnapped the family man's son.

Hit List

1989

No artwork available
NR

Interviews with Franco Nero and Vittorio Storaro about the film The Fifth Cord.

Giornata Nera

2006

No artwork available
NR

An interview with Brooke Adams on her first role in the film, Shock waves.

Sole Survivor: Interview with Star Brooke Adams

2014

Conducting Dario Argento's 'Opera' poster
6.8

This documentary is featured on the Limited Edition DVD for Opera, released in 2001.

Conducting Dario Argento's 'Opera'

2001

No artwork available
10.0

Documentary about Who Saw Her Die?

Death in Venice: Interview with Aldo Lado

2002

The Violation of Claudia poster
6.2

A tennis instructor leads a wealthy but neglected housewife into the world of prostitution.

The Violation of Claudia

1977

The Violation of Claudia poster
6.2

A tennis instructor leads a wealthy but neglected housewife into the world of prostitution.

The Violation of Claudia

1977

The Violation of Claudia poster
6.2

A tennis instructor leads a wealthy but neglected housewife into the world of prostitution.

The Violation of Claudia

1977

Hot Honey poster
5.8

Honey refuses her boyfriend’s non-stop advances, preferring to spend her time with her wheelchair-bound brother Michael; through a series of unexpected events, she experiences a sexual awakening, transforming from wallflower to vixen and wickedly seducing men and women alike!

Hot Honey

1978

Hot Honey poster
5.8

Honey refuses her boyfriend’s non-stop advances, preferring to spend her time with her wheelchair-bound brother Michael; through a series of unexpected events, she experiences a sexual awakening, transforming from wallflower to vixen and wickedly seducing men and women alike!

Hot Honey

1978

Hot Honey poster
5.8

Honey refuses her boyfriend’s non-stop advances, preferring to spend her time with her wheelchair-bound brother Michael; through a series of unexpected events, she experiences a sexual awakening, transforming from wallflower to vixen and wickedly seducing men and women alike!

Hot Honey

1978