2.08.2008

Man-Thing (2005) mini review

based on a comic
[6/10]



In the swamps of Bywater, Lousiana, someone is killing anyone who wanders in after dark. Is it the crooked owners of the new oil rig, the troublemaker that wandered into the swamp and hasn't been seen for months, or is it the Man-Thing?

Man-Thing burst onto the Marvel scene at nearly the same time as Swamp Thing did at DC in the early 70's. From what I've read, it's chalked up to one of those coincidences (like having 2 meteor movies come out at the same time). Anyway, although they have similar etiologies, Man-Thing seems to be a bit less human (at least functionally).

Man-Thing was released straight-to-DVD. Well, it first appeared on the Sci Fi Channel, which made me think it was produced by them specifically for release on cable, but the television version is rather cut up. Make no mistake, this is no made-for-TV-movie. It's rated R and is intended to be much more of a horror film than the campy 1982 Swamp Thing.

The movie is fairly good for a going straight to cable, and ending up on Blockbuster's shelf a couple months later. It doesn't stand out as one of the better comic book movies, but it's worth a watch. There are a few corny moments, but for the most part, the film is pretty solid and keeps you interested.


See it if you want to see the rare horror-film-based-on-a-comic-book.

Don't see it if you want to stick to good wholesome superhero-beats-up-the-bad-guys comic-book-based films.

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