Product Details

• Actors: David Thewlis, Marlon Brando, Val Kilmer, Fairuza Balk, Daniel Rigney
• Directors: John Frankenheimer, Richard Stanley
• Writers: Richard Stanley, H.G. Wells, Ron Hutchinson
• Producers: Claire Rudnick Polstein, Edward R. Pressman, Tim Zinnemann
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Letterboxed, Special Edition, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English, Indonesian
• Rated: Unrated
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: New Line Home Video
• VHS Release Date: October 14, 1997
• Run Time: 96 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (97 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 0780619668
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #330,015 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Previously filmed in 1933 (as Island of Lost Souls) and 1977, the classic H.G. Wells story was filmed again for this graphic 1996 version. The film was roasted by critics, but it's an utterly fascinating failure, largely due to the performances of David Thewlis, Val Kilmer, and especially Marlon Brando in the title role as a mad (and in this case outrageously bizarre) scientist whose experiments in crossbreeding humans with animals have gone terribly awry. Thewlis plays the wayward scholar who is rescued at sea by Kilmer and brought to Moreau's island to discover the doctor's unnatural "children." Fairuza Balk plays Moreau's half-cat daughter, but it's Brando and Kilmer (in one scene doing a killer Brando impersonation) who steal the show, along with the astounding makeup effects created by Stan Winston. A guilty pleasure by any measure, this movie has definite cult-favorite potential. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tragically underrated, March 5, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Island of Dr Moreau [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I can't stress enough how important it is for anyone considering seeing this movie to ignore the heaps of negative reviews here. Most justify their opinions by calling this film strange, grotesque, or both. Both are fitting, but there's alot more to this film than that, and those two things in themselves are not necessarily reason to dislike a film. Quite the contrary, when Hollywood is so overrun with unchallenging, unoriginal fodder.

I could praise the movie on any number of levels. Every actor here carries his or her eccentric role with a perfectly tasteful care not to go over the top or become too cartoonish. The dialogue is free of fluff and carries quite an element of eloquence, which is fitting when considering the overall dramatic intent. On a more basic level, the creature effects used on the half human, half animal hybrid creations inhabiting Moreau's Island are handled by none other than Stan Winston and done very well, and the soundtrack is appropriately eerie, with tribal drumming used in parts to enhance the mood. And, of course, the themes explored here, despite their familiarity (the power of instnct, and the danger of playing God), are driven home with potent efficiency, probably thanks to the extreme and sometimes bizzare nature in which they're handled.

The fact that this movie carries such a human element with it is what I really like about it. It's easy to feel for the man-beasts, tragic abominations intelligent enough to know they're nothing but the waste products of a madman's search for genetic perfection. The protagonist, as well, benefits from the fact that he is very much an introvert and probably speaks less than Val Kilmer, who is less vital to the plot. His quiet observation helps add to the realism and mold a film which could have easily been a silly mess into a moving, artfully crafted piece of work.

If you choose to judge this movie as harshly as most have, then go ahead, but at least see it first with an open mind. I for one feel a movie this bold deserves every bit of respect.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A modern masterpiece, March 4, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Island of Dr Moreau [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Here are 4 reasons why this is the best film ever: 1. It has more depth and intrigue than Citizen Kane 2. It has more excitement than Star Wars 3. It has better dialogue and humor than Pulp Fiction 4. It has Brando's monkey sidekick. I have to go now, the men in white uniforms are coming for me. They want me to take my medicine. Help! Help!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Col. Kurtz IF he had survived "Apocalypse Now", June 2, 2005

By 

Soaring Eagle (Ohio/PA border USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Island of Dr. Moreau (Unrated Director's Cut) (DVD)

Ever wonder where Col. Kurtz would've ended up if he had survived the end of "Apocalypse Now"? Well, now we know: He exiled himself to a deserted island to create humanimals -- the horror, the horror.

In light of all the bad press one would really think this is a lousy movie. And I can see WHY some people don't like it, the main portion of the flick is really INSANE. However, if you're a sucker for lost-on-an-island type yarns and appreciate the heavy mood & insanity of "Apocalypse Now," you'll probably like it. I'm not saying it's anywhere near as great as "Apocalypse Now" but Marlon Brando and the jungle insanity make the comparison inevitable.

WHAT WORKS: The title sequence is great, perhaps one of the best in all of cinema (another Amazon reviewer noted this, so I'm not alone); the soundtrack is phenomenal ('nuff said); the plot is intriguing; the humanimal make-up is fine ('Hyena' looks especially horrific); the film possesses an undeniable creative pizzazz (i.e. it's moody, atmospheric and insane); and Marlon Brando's 35 minute stint in the film is as captivating as always (you can probably tell I'm a huge Brando fan -- in particular, "One-Eyed Jacks," "Mutiny on the Bounty" (1962), "The Young Lions," "Superman" and "Apocalypse Now" [not "Redux"]).

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: The third act of the film is almost total insanity, except for the final ten minutes or so; as a result the story will lose the interest of those who have no appreciation for such artistic flair.

CLOSING THOUGHTS: I really enjoyed seeing Brando in his old age in this flick; it proves he had his magnetic charm until the end. If you enjoyed Brando as 'Kurtz' in "Apocalypse Now" you'll appeciate him in "Island;" in fact, as already noted, Dr. Moreau is a variation of Kurtz in his old age (i.e. nutjob in the jungle).

If you're predisposed for such a flick, "Dr. Moreau" is weird, but certainly worthwhile.