Customer Reviews

Puppet Master: Axis of Evil [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

What happened to the great acting in the Puppet Master series? This film was a real letdown. I have been an avid fan of this series since the very first film, Puppet Master. This film is not anywhere near how the originals were acted. The actors are horribly amateur. Each puppet was only shown once in the film and they are the main reason I watch these films. I wanted to see more puppet action, not bad acting. The evil madame was the worst campy bad guy (girl) I've ever seen in a movie. No, this is not how I envisioned this movie to be. And then they don't even finish the story, they leave it open ended so they can make another one. Not cool.

Stick to the originals. Buy Puppet Master 3 Toulon's Revenge (the Best), or Retro Puppet Master (second Best),or even Puppet Master 1 or 2,4,5. Any other one is better than this one.

Sure, the originals had some campiness to them, But it was classy campy!

simply put this was a disappointment, dont waste your time with this. I am a big fan of the puppet master series and the puppets were in the movie for about 20 minutes total and basically did nothing. With all of the technology available to update this movie franchise, I implore Charles Band......please stop making movies if you are not willing to put forward the proper financing and effort, congratulations on ruining a classic horror series..............

Ok, so it is the first "Full Moon" Puppet Master film of the past 10 years. We'll disregard the awful Sci-Fi original flick.

Taken from the DVD Jacket - In a stateside hotel during the height of World War II, young Danny Coogan dreams of joining the war effort. Following the murder of hotel guest Mr. Toulon by Nazi assassins, Danny finds the old man's crate of mysterious puppets and is suddenly thrust into a battle all of his own.

Ok, I'll admit, I have waited years for this flick, I've loved the Puppet Master franchise for as long as I can remember, going to "Video World" and grabbing each VHS was every week was an awesome experience! How did this movie hold up? Surprisingly well! The effects are not really that horrible, and there was little to no CGI that I noticed. The story is up front, and actually interested me. I'll admit, it's nothing like Full Moon's features of the early 90s, but it's a fun movie none the less.

Video - I bought the Blu-Ray version, but from what I notice, I think I made a poor mistake. You notice everything in this version, from make up to puppet strings. I also noticed some shimmering, and the black levels weren't that great. Also, I might add that the special features are not 1080i resolution, but 480p.

Sound - I have no sound system installed, so I can't really tell you much on this one, I noticed some hissing, and sometimes I mistook the music as tires squealing.

Bonus Features -

The Making of Evil - 13 video casts from China. These were all done during the making of the film, and they're somewhat enjoyable. They total to over an hour, and something that I actually see myself watching again. Well worth it.

No Strings Attached (Making of the first Puppet Master Movie) - Very informative, but if you've seen the original, you've probably already seen this material.

All 9 trailers for the other Puppet Master flicks.

All in all, this one was worth [...] bucks. It's a fun way to waste 80 minutes, and surely you'll get something out of the experience.

I've been a fan of the Puppet Master series since I first saw Puppet Master 2 on Sci-Fi Channel's Halloween horror movie marathon over a decade ago. I loved seeing these little puppets kill in each of the series' installments. I even enjoyed the rather corny 4th and 5th entries, when they fought against demons. But to be honest, the series lost something after the first few films. It seemed that with each new entry in the series, the films were getting worse and worse. Not only were the plots becoming more ridiculous, but the effects used to make the puppets move were actually becoming less believable. This trend has continued all the way to the most recent film in the series, Puppet Master: Axis of Evil.

The film takes place during the time of World War II, immediately after Andre Toulon kills himself in the original Puppet Master, so as to prevent the Nazis from discovering the secret to making his puppets move without strings. A partially-crippled furniture maker working at the Bodega Bay Inn stumbles upon Toulon's room just as his Nazi pursuers are leaving and takes Toulon's chest of puppets with him when he returns home to Chinatown in LA, where his mother lives. Most of the film revolves around the protagonist trying to disrupt a Nazi-Japanese plan to blow up a US weapons factory with the aid of Toulon's puppets.

The story certainly isn't bad, but far too much time is spent on the interactions between human characters, rather than between the puppets and the people they try to kill. It goes without saying to anyone who's followed the series to this point that this isn't the first Puppet Master film to be without the creepy edge of the first three films. The puppets simply aren't scary anymore, though that seems to be Charles Band's intention, as they're implemented as tools of war by the American "good guys" against the Axis Powers. This may have worked well in the third film, but it's simply cheesy in this one. The special effects used to make the puppets move are perhaps the worst in the series as well. There is no CGI nor any complicated effects used whatsoever. Practically every time you see the puppets moving, it's not a whole body shot, so that they can be cheaply moved using the parts not shown. It's a horribly amateur style, especially considering how much better the effects looked in past movies. When a film of the same series made over 20 years ago has better special effects than the most recent entry, you know something is wrong.

Beyond the poor special effects, the acting is downright atrocious in some cases. Most of the characters are actually pretty believable despite some ridiculous circumstances, but a few of the actors and actresses just aren't up to par. The "Dragon Lady" in particular was simply awful. Not only were she and her henchman clearly not Japanese, but you could tell that all her lines were being read phonetically, as she had no connection to the words she spoke. It was as if she simply guessed on a whim which words might require emphasis, and she usually got it very wrong. I may be nitpicking here too, but if she is Japanese (so much so that her English is poor), then why would she be speaking to her commander over the phone in English? In one scene, when Tunneler is drilling through someone's head, you see blood cover the victim's face, but when the camera switches angles, there is no blood to be seen there. There are just so many inconsistencies like this in the film that it's hard to take it very seriously.

There are a few plot twists that may have you sympathizing with certain characters, but for the most part you'll simply be wishing that the film would end. Unfortunately even the ending is a dire disappointment. It so blatantly leaves itself open to a sequel (which I can't imagine anyone would be looking forward to) that it fails to even close up the story of this film even partially. There are a few slightly redeeming factors, such as the attractive cast, the nicely detailed sets, and the well-replicated early-forties settings (including the well-done Chinatown), but what good are any of those if awful special effects, overrating, and a largely dull script stand in their way? The puppets, which have always been the main draw of this series, are barely featured in Axis of Evil, and when they are, the effects are so poor that the fun of watching them kill is completely gone.

As for the DVD itself: the picture quality is actually rather good, though the archival footage used near the beginning clashes somewhat with the modern filmed scenes. The extras are also pretty decent, though it's unlikely you'll care enough to watch them after viewing this film. It's just unfortunate that none of these qualities matter much when the film itself is such a letdown.

I truly wanted to like this film. My expectations were at the lowest they could be considering how poor the past few installments were, but it somehow failed to meet even those most minimal of expectations. I can say with confidence that I will never watch this film again, and I most certainly won't be anticipating the inevitable direct sequel.

I've been a huge fan of this series for years and I'm happy to say I own the entire collection. I added this one without a second thought, expecting more of the same. Unfortunately, this film is less a continuation of the series and more a `special guest star' reunion. The Puppets are sorely underused. Instead, there's this ridiculous story about a guy who desperately wants to join the war effort (to kill Nazis) but he can't due to a disability. Oh yeah, he has a girlfriend and an irritating brother, and then there's mom. The Puppets have taken on the role of product placement rather than being the stars of this feature. Needless to say, there's a reason this is called Puppet Master.....it involves puppets. These idiot filmmakers obviously thought they could do without THE puppets and placed all their hopes on unknown actors (rank amateurs spouting the most ridiculous drivel ever penned to paper). Not one of these (so-called) actors is a star in the making. What were they thinking!?

I call it a shame, made worse by the abrupt ending to this feature requiring a sequel. I'm still debating whether to add this to the collection or ignore that it even exists (never mind worrying about another rip-off popping up soon!).

Oh well.

First off, let me state that I'm a huge Puppet Master fan. I own all the previous movies, both good and bad, but this one by far is the worst, even "Puppet Master vs Demonic Toys" was better than this disappointment. And to think Charles Band went all the way to China to film "Axis of Evil." He could've saved the airfare and filmed this mediocrity in his back yard with money to spare.

I guess I was taken in by Band's vidcasts where he gave weekly reports on the progress of the film. I really thought this was going to be a winner like the third film in the series, "Puppet Master 3: Toulon's Revenge." But I was so wrong. So very wrong.

Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice . . . .

this was a good one considering there is another one out there somewhere with an ending as good as this movie was i know the japanese didn't get away with all the puppets........ and no juice for power tooooo i'm pleased with this one and can't wait to see the ending........... thanks amazonnnnnnnnnnnn

This movie rocked and it's nice to see all the puppets back after 12 years so if your a fan of the Puppet Master series then this is the movie for you!

I had high expectations for this movie. I didn't expect it to be all that great but this was terrible. I found myself fast forwarding through the movie and after a while I just turned it off. The puppets hardly do anything and they don't even look as good as they did in the first 5 movies. What a train wreck.

Puppet Master Axis Of Evil is a welcome return to the series. After reading some of the other reviews, I must say how much I disagree. I like this entry in the series a lot. I love the first four Puppet Masters in the series and after that I wasn't enjoying them as much but I feel Axis Of Evil was enjoyable, and I loved the sequences when our little friends make an appearance. I'm very happy with the film David DeCoteau made and can't wait for the next one.