The lethargy inherent in being in between two of the biggest holidays of the year has made this week kind of a dead zone for movie news, but a couple of studios have still been throwing us bones by delivering extended previews of what they’ve got coming up in the next year. Just yesterday we were treated to the first four minutes of zombie comedy Warm Bodies, and today Warner Bros. is upping the ante by bringing us the first six minutes of their upcoming Maniac remake. Six minutes! That’s two more than yesterday. At this rate, tomorrow we may get to see the first eight minutes of something. And then, eventually, entire movies will get released without us having to pay for them at all. What a world.

About a week ago a teaser trailer leaked to the net for Franck Khalfoun’s remake of the William Lustig horror film, Maniac. It gave us a glimpse of a knife-wielding, psychotic Elijah Wood, but wasn’t quite ready for consumption and got pulled down before everyone could see it. Well now the powers that be have deemed it permissible for the public to take a look at the film, and Twitch has gotten their hands on a new cut of the trailer; which is full-length, very red band, and very not safe for work.

William Lustig’s original 1980 Maniac was of the highest, grainy midnight movie caliber. Perhaps it’s not sacred ground, but it’s a grisly example of an artifact from when terrifying and exploitative slashers were hacking their way onto big screens. It makes sense that there’s so much speculation surrounding Franck Khalfoun‘s remake starring Elijah Wood as a man with mommy issues trying to make the perfect woman. Now thanks to Cannes, there’s a teaser trailer to inform us all on the style. Is it gritty? Sort of. It’s the kind of gritty that you might take to a gallery opening or to an experimental ballet. Those exist right? It’s a little grit with gloss all over it. It will probably make you take a shower afterward, but the POV shots especially make this look like it came out of an NYU Film School grad’s portfolio. Check it out for yourself:

How’d you like to be killed by Elijah Wood? You would have never seen it coming. For one, he’s one of the nicer guys on the planet. For two, we already saw how sneaky a murderer he can be in Sin City. He’ll most likely be a bit louder, ripping blood out of its veiny home in Franck Khalfoun‘s Maniac remake, though. Apparently, he’s also going to be slicing open mannequin heads. Just as everyone hoped he would. And co-star Nora Arnezeder will horrifyingly talk on a cell phone! Check out these first images from the production:

Alexander Aja continues his work with remakes as the producer of a forthcoming remake of William Lustig‘s brilliant Maniac – whose ultra-violence caused Gene Siskel to famously storm out of the theater and rail against it on his show with Roger Ebert. The movie will be directed by Franck Khalfoun – a talent who delivered the parking garage stalker flick P2 and who has an extra C in his first name. News of a remake, especially something as grisly and revered as this movie, needs some sort of sugar to help the medicine go down. The sugar this time is Elijah Wood – a giant spoonful of happy feet who will be stepping well outside his wheelhouse to play the serial killer. Say what you will about his role in Sin City, but that was not the blood-soaked mayhem and confusion that this murdering character demands. They are as different as the black and white Wood was painted with as Kevin, the silent cannibal. Also, in a strange turn of rumored events, Badass Digest is reporting that unnamed sources are claiming the movie (or at least its kills) will be shot POV. It’s an interesting, if unoriginal, idea, and it could very well work beautifully. The only real concern is when the camera will cut away (if it’s just the kills in POV), because so much of Maniac was brought to life by Joe Spinell‘s performance. He killed without mercy or understanding, and him staring on at his own work