Superhero Media: Man-Thing (2005)

If you want deep cuts, I hope you know to come here, as today we'll be covering the 2005 Man-Thing film adaptation by Marvel Studios and Lions Gate Films. Filmed in Australia, for tax reasons, the two biggest names in the piece are Jack Thompson, Aussie screen legend, and Rachael Taylor, Patsy Walker from Jessica Jones, but Steve Gerber, creator of Man-Thing and Howard the Duck, has a decent role as a racist security guard. When Kyle Williams, the new Sheriff, is transferred to a small bayou town, he is confronted by a corrupt Oil Baron, a well-meaning schoolteacher, enigmatic natives and the Man-Thing. Rather than drawing too much on the esoteric underground comics that made Gerber and Man-Thing popular in the first place, Man-Thing uses the titular monster as a generic antagonist for a by-the-numbers horror outing set in the Dirty South. Honestly, that was probably a sound decision, as much as I love classic "Man-Thing" comics, they're fucking weird and would not make a good film. 

For what it is, Man-Thing is reasonable, if cliched, with many of the actors, Thompson especially, giving the script the best they have and the practical effects are nice. Being, partially, a Film Australia joint, I found a wealth of material on Man-Thing in the Australian Film Archive, and it's shocking just how much effort went into a film this poor. Way back in my review of Constantine, I spoke about the brilliant work that went into the props for the film, and much the same happened in Man-Thing, with the cadavers being especially well-made, but Man-Thing himself is disappointingly too often cheap CGI. It feels like the art department understood that Man-Thing was a living creature of swamp debris, but only had issues of "Swamp Thing", as Ted Slais' iconic face roots are nowhere to be seen. Although the words, "All those who fear burn at the Man-Thing's touch" are used a couple of times in the film, the titular character is not really a major feature of what's going on, more just turning up to murder people when needed. 

I had to get a friend who runs a rare DVD import business to track down my copy of Man-Thing, though a quick look online tells me that it's not all that hard to find, especially if you don't mind getting a French copy. It's interesting to watch this film, even if it isn't great and really isn't a true adaptation of any "Man-Thing" comics. Again, I think a Man-Thing film that adheres closely to the comics would be difficult to realise, though adding the character to something like a Howard the Duck film, or perhaps Doctor Strange could work, much how he ended up in Werewolf By Night. One of the best Man-Thing related things I have read was in a Hulk comic, where Salis's empathy powers bond him to a serial killer and Professor Hulk has to chase both down across the Delta. There's something to this concept, and whilst a misstep, Man-Thing is at least an attempt to get a more obscure character onto the big screen.