Customer Reviews

Man-Thing

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(20)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

Of all the Marvel Comics characters to get their own film adaptation, Man-Thing is probably the one I least expected, but then again, they did make that Howard the Duck movie...just a bit of history from my geek side before I review the film...some think Man-Thing was Marvel's answer to the popular Swamp Thing character, but Man-Thing actually appeared first in the pages of Astonishing Tales #12 (aka Savage Tales #1) in May of 1971 (Swamp Thing first appeared in the comic House of Secrets #92 sometime in June/July 1971). In terms of getting their own series, Swamp Thing came first beginning in 1972, while Man-Thing got his due sometime in 1974 (the Man-Thing series was short lived, lasting all of about 22 issues while the Swamp Thing series continues to thrive in one form or another). Directed by Brett Leonard (The Lawnmower Man), who is currently working on a new Highlander movie, the film stars the relatively unknown Matthew Le Nevez (Peaches), along with newcomer Rachel Taylor and Jack Thompson (Original Sin). Also appearing is Rawiri Paratene (Whale Rider), Patrick Thompson (The Seventh Floor), Steve Bastoni (The Matrix Reloaded), and Alex O'Lachlan (Oyster Farmer). Also, look for the director himself who appears in the film as the smokes-a-lot county coroner.

As the story begins we learn through narration of an area in the swamps called `the dark water', a place that basically contains the spirit of the swamp and is also the `nexus of all realities' (I think I got one of these in the basement, next to the furnace). We also learn that this place, held sacred by native locals, is being violated by greedy men in search of oil, subsequently causing much damage, as industrialist are wont to do (or so the movies tell us)...but apparently the swamp isn't one to take this defilement lying down, so it strikes back, our first victims being a young couple canoodling in a boat, giving us a great bit of breastage within the first five minutes of the movie...enjoy it boyos, because that's all there is...I bet they didn't show that on the Sci-Fi Channel...anyhoo, next we meet our hero (of sorts) in Kyle Williams (Le Nevez) as he's recently relocated to the town of Bywater, assuming the position of sheriff and learns that a large number of people have since gone missing, including the last sheriff...he also meets the local bigwig oilman Frederic Schist (Thompson) and his idiot son, while dealing with some local protesters, one of them being 3rd grade teacher Teri Richards (Taylor), whom later on develops into a love interest for Kyle, but never gets nekkid, although she does show off her midriff quite a bit more than I would have expected from a school teacher...anyway, Schist claims a mysterious swamp dweller named LaRoque (Bastoni) is responsible for the missing people, and also for the recent spate of sabotage to his equipment, so Kyle begins his, ahem, `investigation', discovering Schist may have not gotten the rights to the land on the up and up, and his eco-destructive was may have awakened a guardian creature, one bent on retribution...let the soggy, boggy, slimy, bloodletting fun begin!

Alright, Man-Thing wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be, but it wasn't as good as it could have been, if that makes sense...the element that annoyed me the most was the how some aspects of the comic book character were preserved (like the `protector of the nexus of all realities' thing), while other, more important one, in my opinion, were deliberately left out (the whole `use what you see fit, and discard the rest' tactic). In the comic, scientist Ted Sallis was working on some super formula, eventually taking it himself and running off into the swamp, where science and magic combined to create Man-Thing (there's a lot more to it than that, but that's the gist)...now this next part is important, as it creates a clear distinction between the Man-Thing and Swamp Thing...the Man-Thing `feels' emotions of other beings, and is often drawn to them out of curiosity. Emotions like fear, hatred, and anger cause him pain, to which he produces a `fuming sulfuric acid' and attack that which causes him pain...thus his touch burns...this was completely left out of the story...and in the movie the creature kills indiscriminately...the film starts out pretty strong, but then drops off severely up until about the last twenty minutes or so. Heck, we don't even get a good view of the Man-Thing until about an hour in...I did think the CGI creature effects looked pretty cool, but, as I already mentioned, without the burning touch element, this might as well have been a Swamp Thing movie. The story itself hardly stands on its own as various lame duck characters parade across the screen (the pointless Mike Ploog character, who, by the way, was named after an artist on the comic book series) and the whole love subplot between Kyle (he's hot for teacher) and Teri was forced together for no other reason that they had to have a romantic aspect (by the way, did it seem like Teri's accent would come and go?) There's a few decent kills featuring some greasy, racist, redneck, grit sucking, swamp rat locals, but these scenes were far and few between. Thompson, who played the greedy industrialist Schist, made a pretty good villain (didn't his corporate logo look kinda like a swastika?) Or at least I thought so until the scene where he and his son are sitting in their Hummer talking about the sheriff and how he's getting close to their secrets...Schist Jr. `He keeps on digging', to which Schist Sr. replies `We'll let him dig...it's his own grave he's digging!' followed by maniacal laughter from both...oh bruther...and I have to say Le Nevez's (who looks like a transvestite...nice job make-up department) character hardly seemed like much of a hero as his role consisted of him fumbling around witnessing things but having little effect on the outcome of the story...I got the impression it would have ended they way it did with or without him. There were some pretty cool and interesting visuals, and the swamp sets looked suitably foreboding, although they seemed completely devoid of animal life like snakes, frogs, newts and other such denizens one would expect to see in the green, spongy morass.

This Lion's Gate Entertainment DVD release features a widescreen (1.85:1) picture that looks very sharp and clean. The audio, available in both 2.0 and 5.0 Dolby Digital comes though clear. There are no special features, but included is some trailers for other Lion's Gate releases like Alone in the Dark (2005), Undead (2003), The Slaughterhouse Massacre (2005), The Punisher (2004), and the really awful looking film Zombiez (2005).

Cookieman108

Some reviewers out there will claim this movie is horrible. Um, what do you expect exactly from a movie called "Man-Thing"? I'm familiar with the comic and sure, they've changed things like they did for the Blade character in his movies. Honestly I don't know what else they could have done without making this a goofy teen comedy about someone's "man thing" (ok now that d*ck joke is out of my system!!)

This is a B movie, pure and simple. Its a slasher/monster flick and when you view it as just that, not some "Citizen Kane" masterpiece, then you'll enjoy it. It has some good cheap scares and a monster tree (yes, I said *tree*) that goes around butchering people. Did I mention that there is a lot of gore and plenty of violent deaths to make a typical "Friday the 13th" fan happy? Graphic Tree tentacle/root impalings are the order of the day.

The special effects are fine, the story does the job for this sort of movie, and its probably the bloodiest Marvel movie yet (I kid you not.) The only thing that got to me was some of the casting. Now I know a lot of no-name Australian Actors were cast for this movie and well... Aussies cant pull a Southern accent off for crap. It's not a major problem; 15 minutes into it and you don't really notice (in between all the tree branch impalings). But I have to say that Jack Thompson and the female lead are the worst offenders in this regard. The rest of the cast do a decent job.

Oh, and I've read some reviews on certain sites that the Man-Thing monster is hardly shown. That's BS. The director takes the "Jaws" route at the start of the movie, showing very little of the monster but by the last half hour you get to see plenty of him. And for a low budget flick, the monster effects are pretty cool ... better than say, the effects in StarShip Troopers 2, another low-budget direct-to-DVD flick.

Overall for a DVD rental or previously-viewed purchase, "Man-Thing" will do the job. It would have been a misfire to release this theatrically, but for a Sci-Fi channel/direct-to-DVD movie, this one is much much better than other similar releases.

Worth a watch if you're into B movies or slasher/monster flicks with lots of gore. 3 out of 5 stars.

Okay, so it's more like three-and-a-half stars, but I was quite surprised at how good "Man-Thing" actually is. There aren't any major stars in this direct-to-DVD film, but it garnered enough attention to be produced by Avi Arad and executive produced by Stan Lee. That alone should show the viewer that this film is at least worthy of one viewing.

Since I'm only remotely familiar with the "Man-Thing" comics, I have to go on what I've seen on the screen alone. Matthew Le Nevez plays the newly appointed sheriff of a swampy Florida county who is literally dropped into a peculiar case involving multiple missing persons and a little construction site sabotage. Ever since bigwig Schist has placed his oilrig in the middle of the sacred "darkwater," people have gone missing. When the new sheriff gets to the sleepy town of Bywater, the bodies start popping up in the swamp. Le Nevez has a few leads to go on, but nothing for sure. He is assisted by the local third grade teacher, played by the attractive Rachael Taylor, who believes that what she's been told by the local indian tribe is true. She believes that a guardian spirit has been awakened due to the intrusion of the Schist oil company and is exacting his revenge on the locals.

The film rolls along at a nice pace and actually has a few jittery moments in it that caught me off guard. I really enjoyed watching the action in the dark swamp. The action sequences are rather violent at points, and the "leftovers" from each death are pretty grisly.

The acting is pretty good. The story is just good enough that the actors don't have to stretch themselves too hard to fit into their roles. The redneck characters are stereotypical of folks in the South, but they are tolerable enough. Being a Southerner myself, I wasn't offended by the idiots on the screen that Man-Thing makes quick work of.

As for the actual Man-Thing, he looks really good on the screen. The CGI creation holds up rather well considering that this flick's budget was nothing like other recent Marvel flicks like "Hulk" and "Fantastic Four." In fact, "Man-Thing" is much better than "Hulk" as far as the story is concerned. It recognizes its limits and isn't bloated into a two-plus hour film.

My only gripe with this film is that the new sheriff adapted to his swampy surroundings way too quick. Anyone with half a brain knows that people just don't haul off into a foreign swamp on their own and expect to get back in one piece. There are people here in Louisiana who've spent their entire lives in the Atchafalaya swamp and they still don't know every inch of it. Other than this small detail, this flick is well worth watching.

I will personally buy this DVD. I rented it since I missed its original airing on SciFi channel some time ago. It's worth a purchase if you love comic flicks, and it's a great rental for fans of horror or action films.

With surprise painted all over my face, I have to give "Man-Thing" a solid recommendation.

"Man-Thing" is a Marvel character. This 2005 film is loosely based on the story "Cry of the Native" from the 1973 comic Adventure Into Fear #16 (featuring Man-Thing) by writer Steve Gerber and Howland, Ohio's own Val Mayerik (artist). [I live in Howland, by the way].

WHAT WORKS: The plot's great: The Seminoles and environmentalists are upset over a developer taking over their precious swamp. A new police chief in town has to deal with this situation, as well as investigate an increasing number of horrifying deaths in the swamp and reports of a "man-thing" creature living there.

The swamp sets, cinematography, music, locations (Sydney, Australia -- of all places) and cast are all top-notch. Don't think this is a Grade-Z movie as in, say, "Sasquatch;" it was originally intended for theatrical release, as a matter of fact.

The film has a good mysterious feel to it, in particular the first 30 minutes and final 20 minutes. The material is respected and generally taken seriously, successfully avoiding the rut of camp.

What works best is the "Man-Thing" itself; imagine Val Mayerik's rendition of the creature with a bunch of creepy branches & roots sticking out of its back & head and you'll have a pretty good idea of what ol' Manny looks like in this film -- he's an 8-foot tall, hulking, and utterly horrifying piece of man-like swamp mass.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Although the Man-Thing looks great, which is a huge cinematic triumph in and of itself, the problem is he doesn't appear fully until the last 15-20 minutes of the flick. This would be fine if the story were captivating (as in, say, "Jaws"), but it's not. Like I said, the plot's great, but the story itself barely holds your attention after the first half hour or so and is unnecessarily convoluted with pointless characters. Because the pacing of this middle-hour is less than captivating the viewer is left waiting around for the Man-Thing to appear.

Another problem is that they veered too far from Man-Thing's original concept. Some new ideas introduced are great -- like the way the creature looks and horrifically attacks people -- but where's Manny's empathic nature, where's the "whatever knows fear burns at the Man-Thing's touch" concept? And why does Manny kill people indistinguishably? (The comic Man-Thing never did this even though he was a mindless creature).

Also, the Man-thing in the film is not Ted Salis (although Salis fits into the storyline another way); in the film the swamp monster is the spirit-guardian of the "Dark Water" area of the swamp, which is a nexus to another dimension, apparently birthed because of Salis' murder. At least the nexus aspect is faithful to the comic.

COMPARISON: Let's compare "Man-Thing" with the similar "Swamp-Thing" from 1982. To be expected, the creature from "Man-Thing" absolutely blows away the guy-in-a-rubber-suit in "Swamp-Thing." The sets, atmosphere and cinematography of "Man-Thing" are also better than "Swamp-Thing," not to mention it's not as goofy. As for the story, I would say that they're both about equal.

I suggest watching "Swamp-Thing" and "Man-Thing" back-to-back, like I just did. Then, if you really want to get wild & crazy, catch "Frogs" and "Pumpkinhead." You'll be swamped out after this.

FINAL ANALYSIS: This is not a perfect film; it's midsection is too lethargic and meandering, filled with way too many pointless characters, but its attributes noted above make it worth picking up if you're into creature-on-the-loose flicks, and particularly swamp monster films. On that level it's a solid 3.5/5 Star movie. The greatest attribute is the creature itself, which is nothing less than a cinematic triumph. If you're a Man-Thing fan you'll be disappointed because it's not a strict interpretation, but it's definitely a pleasure IF you can accept the deviations.

Very, very loosely based on the Marvel comic of the same name, MAN-THING is about a shambling tree monster killing peope in a swamp because it's swamp home is being corrupted by corporate scumbags. The creatures just wanders around the swamp killing random people with tentecles that come out of it's back. There's one good kill at the end where the creature pumps oil into the human villian, causing him to puke black stuff. The other deaths are equally brutal, but that's the only one we really see.

The acting? Bad. The writing? Bad. Most of the direction? Bad. The film starts with some genuinely creepy shots of the swamp the Man-Thing resides in, and there are some neat shots later on, but other then that, the direction is bland and disorienting. The effects are good, and the monster looks very cool and real, but we never see it until the final ten minutes.

If you want to see Treebeard from LOTR go on a mad killing spree, making branches grow out of people's mouths, then watch MAN-THING. If not, avoid.

When it was announced that the long delayed Man-Thing film from Marvel and Lion's Gate would be going direct to DVD and premiering on the Sci-Fi Channel, many assumed the worst of this comic to film adaptation. However, it's not as utterly horrible as some perceived it to be, and while it's not a good movie one bit, it still manages to supply enough B-horror movie thrills. Fans of the old Marvel Comics stories will be disappointed in finding that Hans Rodionoff's screenplay pretty much discards the comic history of the character, and instead focuses on new sherrif Kyle Williams (Matthew Le Nevez) and his encounters with an evil drilling company, and the beast which kills anything and everything that crosses into it's swamps. The CGI and gore effects are what you would expect from a low budget horror film, though the Man-Thing itself is surprisingly nicely designed. What kills Man-Thing however, is that the acting from the mostly unknown Austrailian cast is horrid, and directing by Brett Leonard (Lawnmower Man) is uninspired. All in all, it's easy to see why Man-Thing was shelved for as long as it was, but it's not nearly as horrible as one would expect it to be.

I actually enjoyed this movie more than I expected. I think it's a case where the filmmakers had a very limited budget to work with, and rather than use a lot of cheap CGI shots and cram the movie with horrible-looking action (like many made-for-SciFi Channel movies), they instead opted for the old tried and true Hollywood low-budget monster movie formula: try to create a lot of suspense and atmosphere and don't show the monster until the end. I am a fan of the Man-Thing comics, and I will say that the movie did capture a pretty good comic-book vibe, with the characters, eerie greenish swamp scene lighting, and the sets, art design and editing---unfortunately, it doesn't really feel like the Man-Thing comic. I wish they would have kept the "burning touch" power of Man-Thing, and featured a little more action and monster scenes. But, the creature did look pretty good when he finally appeared, and in general the acting, the score, and especially the cinematography were fairly solid. I also appreciated the fact that they went for a very serious vibe, instead of the camp approach of the 80's Swamp Thing movies.

If you're looking for an action-packed, big budget version of the Man-Thing comic, you'll be disappointed in this one. If you're looking for a good looking, slow-paced comic book movie about a swamp monster (that does touch on some of the environmental themes of the comics) then you might enjoy this one like I did.

I first saw this on scifi and I have to say, this is one awesome movie. The acting was great, the CG was good, and it had a pretty good story. Although, I was unhappy when all I recieved out of the special features on the DVD was a few low-budget movie previews. I really hope to see a sequal.

sure the film was of a less budget and press-release than other marvel films like spider-man and x-men but man-thing stayed the truist to its origins and has an excellent look and feel taken right from the comics.

This movie is based on the Marvel comic "Man-Thing" from the early 1970's. I remember reading it when I was a kid and sharing it with my friends. I was thrilled when Brett Leonard decided to create a movie about it. For those unfamiliar with the story of "Man-Thing," an obnoxious oilman drills wells in a sacred Seminole swamp called "Dark Water" and awakens a supernatural creature. The creature, which is the swamp's spirit protector, seeks revenge for the violation of the sanctity of "Dark Water" and a string of unusual deaths follow.

The new Sheriff has his hands full when he is faced with this investigation on his first day on the job. He and the other characters in the film seem to be superficial stereotypes of the parts they are playing: dishonest oil man, streetwise sheriff, smart and beautiful school teacher, good American Indian, renegade American Indian and an assortment of oddball bayou folks. The stereotypes are a disservice to the film because a little more depth of character would make the film more interesting. However, the photography and special effects are very good. I really like how the greens, reds and yellows bleed into the edges of the screen when transitioning from scene to scene - just like in the comic. Although most panned this flick, I found it entertaining despite the lack of character development. When "Man-Thing" makes his appearance, its hard not to watch.

Anyway, I wouldn't describe this movie as an adult horror film. It's targeted more at a teen audience. There is plenty of gore, graphic scenes of dead bodies and profanity (which gives it an R rating), but no nudity. This is a good DVD to buy for your teenage horror movie fan.