Man-Thing (2005)

20% of critics liked it
(5 reviews)
18% of users liked it
(6,248 ratings)

Directed by Brett Leonard, Man-Thing is based on a comic book series of the same name from Marvel Comics. When one of real-estate tycoon F.A. Schist's crewmen is killed while developing a drilling station, it's the local Seminole Indian tribe who are blamed, though they know that the real culprit is… More Directed by Brett Leonard, Man-Thing is based on a comic book series of the same name from Marvel Comics. When one of real-estate tycoon F.A. Schist's crewmen is killed while developing a drilling station, it's the local Seminole Indian tribe who are blamed, though they know that the real culprit is the Man-Thing, a vengeful Spirit inhabiting the body of fallen radical shaman, Ted Sallis. The monster resembles a towering mound of algae and plant life, with powers that can command plant life to take out the infringing human greed on its Louisiana swampland (with Australia sitting in for the Southern Bayou). Man-Thing features performances from Rawiri Paratene, Alex O'Lachlan, Rachel Taylor, Jack Thompson, and William Zappa. Long-delayed, the film bounced from home video to theatrical then over to cable as Lionsgate and Marvel debated the format that it'd be most successful. Eventually the film premiered on the Sci Fi Channel, and featured little resemblance to the comic character beside its use of names and basic creature design. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 46 min.
Directed By: Brett Leonard
Genres: Action & Adventure, Horror, Mystery & Suspense, Science Fiction & Fantasy

On DVD: Jun 14, 2005
Studio: Artisan Entertainment

Critic Reviews

Anton Bitel, Film4
the creature, a rather underwhelming specimen of plant life with glowing red CGI eyes, is only a little more wooden than the film's human characters.
David Cornelius, eFilmCritic.com
Too lame to be genuinely entertaining, not stupid enough throughout to be laughable.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
This is easily the worst comic book movie ever made, and no, I haven't forgotten about the original Punisher adaptation.
Brian Thomas, Now Playing Magazine
One comics adaptation that comes with a few key panels missing.
Clint Morris, Moviehole
As by-the-numbers as Bingo... A far bigger blow than anything Linda Lovelace could've bought to the table

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Featured Audience Ratings

Phil H

On the plus side this film looks great truth be told, despite the low budget and little faith from Marvel the film does look the business. The swamp looks pretty much like a grotty, smelly, marsh-like festering pit with gnarled trees and lots of creeping vines, I was actually… More
On the plus side this film looks great truth be told, despite the low budget and little faith from Marvel the film does look the business. The swamp looks pretty much like a grotty, smelly, marsh-like festering pit with gnarled trees and lots of creeping vines, I was actually impressed as I really was expecting a cheap looking B-movie. Again I must throw kudos on the creature effects too, a mix of cgi and rubber suit (I think), a great set of buzzing red eyes, nice creature sound effects and good use of the swamp for assisting in the stealth approach all add for a decent looking creature not too far from how 'Spawn' looked in his film debut (cgi version). On the down side, a major downer really, is the fact the original comicbook story has been completely ejected and replaced with a simple horror based yarn. Now the title creature is simply a monster that kills anyone with no remorse or mercy, its basically a total badguy. If your gonna make a film about a Marvel character then you really should stick to the original story, BUT to be honest the horror plot they have used does work even though its predictable and cliched. The makers really should have decided what they wanted to do here. So as said the plot is dumb and unoriginal but it does work as a fairly decent adult horror slasher type with plenty of gruesome moments, plenty of blood, plenty of body parts and absolutely no hang ups on not going down the kiddie route, well done. Other issues abound also such as major plot holes and some major explanation's needed simply because they haven't followed the comicbook so no one watching will know what on earth is actually happening. And on a final note despite the creature actually looking pretty darn good it also looks nothing like the original 'Man-Thing' should look like thus you wonder why they even called it 'Man-Thing' when really this film, even though its quite fun, isn't really anything to do with the Marvel character.
Jacob P

An interesting, yet somehwat funny, horror flick...which could have done a little better.
The S

The real star of this film is the swamp set they created which has plenty of eerie atmosphere. Performances aren't bad despite a weak script. The plot is functional enough but is a large departure from the original comic book in several ways - the most disappointing being… More
The real star of this film is the swamp set they created which has plenty of eerie atmosphere. Performances aren't bad despite a weak script. The plot is functional enough but is a large departure from the original comic book in several ways - the most disappointing being Man-Thing himself who has become nothing more than a vengeful swamp spirit - his only similarities with the source character being that he's big, tough, ugly and lives in a swamp. A lost opportunity but not without entertainment value. PS. Parents beware - adult content.