Frank Zito is the villain protagonist of Maniac. He was played by Joe Spinell.
Biography[]
Frank was a middle-aged, overweight Italian-American landlord that lived in a New York City apartment. As a child, he was often abused by his prostitue mother Carmen, who eventully died in a car crash, leaving him orphaned. Due to his childhood trauma, Frank became a serial killer who would spend his night stalking, murdering and sclaping young women, before brining their scalps and clothes home with him to decorate his steadily growing supply of mannequins. Despite knowing that his actions were deplorable, he found himself unable to control his urge to kill and kill again.
One day, whilst in Central Park, Frank notices a photographer in the distance taking a picture of him. After she leaves, Frank finds out her name, Anna D'Antoni, and her address from her purse that she accidentally leaves behind. A few days later, he heads to Anna's apartment and gives her her purse. The two have a liking for each other, and so they decide to go on a date. Later, while visiting Anna on the set of her latest photo shoot, he takes an affinity to Rita, one of Anna's models. He steals a piece of Rita's jewelry, using it as a pretext to come to her apartment later that night so that he can kidnap her. Frank takes Rita home and ties her to the bed, where he addresses her as his mother, declaring his undying love for her before stabbing her in the heart, killing her. He then mutilates her body and disposes of it, later attending the funeral with Anna.
Later, Frank invites Anna on a supposed date. On the way there, they stop by a cemetery to visit his mother's grave. While laying some flowers beside the headstone, Frank begins to mourn over his mother as well as Rita, before he suddenly snaps and attacks Anna. He chases her around the cemetery, but she hits him in the arm with a shovel before fleeing.
Death(?)[]
Frank's body
Having gone completely insane, Frank hallucinates his decomposing mother's corpse rising from the grave and attacking him. He runs back to his apartment, where he suffers more hallucinations of his mannequins suddenly coming to life and tearing him to pieces. The next morning, the police show up at Frank's apartment and find Frank lying on his bed, having seemingly committed suicide by stabbing himself in the stomach with a bayonet. After the police leave, however, Frank's eyes suddenly open.
Victims[]
- Woman on Beach - Throat slit with a razor blade
- Man on Beach - Garroted with a wire
- Sex Worker - Strangled to death
- "Disco Boy" - Head blown off with a shotgun
- "Disco Girl" - Shot with a shotgun
- Nurse - Stabbed through the back with a bayonet
- Rita - Stabbed in chest with switchblade