The Manster

U.S.A. - Japan / 1960 Directors: George P. Breakston, Kenneth G. Crane Starring Peter Dyneley Satoshi (Tetsu) Nakamura Jane Hylton B&W / 72 Minutes / Not Rated Format: DVD (R0 - NTSC) Retromedia

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		Review by Brian Lindsey

5     5   10 = Highest Rating

Presaging by 25 years David Cronenberg's explorations of the 'Human Body as Horror' and a decade before The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant and The Thing with Two Heads, 1960's The Manster is a surprisingly lurid little B-movie that was somewhat ahead of its time. The sex and horror quotient is pretty high for a film of its day, doubtless providing quite a shock to the kiddies who first saw it in theaters or at the drive-in. I certainly remember seeing it on TV as a youngster because it was one of the scariest flicks (to an 8 year old, anyway) ever run on my local creature feature TV show. The film's signature sequences — the protagonist's discovery of a huge eye growing on his shoulder and his painful splitting into two separate beings — obviously made an impression on more than a few Monster Kids of my generation, among them director Sam Raimi. (If you've seen Army of Darkness then you know what I mean.) The flick opens with a bang as, even before the title card, a bevy of bathing Japanese beauties are attacked and slaughtered by an ape-like monster glimpsed only in silhouette. (I recall that when I first saw the film on TV my impressionable young mind was startled by the spray of blood splashed on one of those sliding partition walls. Having just absorbed a number of the much tamer Universal horrors of the '30s courtesy of Memphis creature feature host Sivad, I knew I was in for something radically cool!) After the killings we learn that the creature has instinctively made its way back to its home, the remote mountainside laboratory of Dr. Suzuki (Tetsu Nakamura), Japan's answer to Baron Frankenstein. Suzuki's been working on a weird series of experiments with distinctly Jekyll and Hyde overtones. The creature is in fact his own brother, Kinji, who we're told volunteered as a test subject. The same fate has already befallen Suzuki's wife, Emiko (Toyoko Takechi), whom the doc keeps locked up in a cell in his cave-like lab. In his monstrous form Kinji escaped and went on his little killing spree only to return to the bosom of his family. So Dr. Suzuki shoots him dead and throws the body into a lava pit.     No sooner has the creature's corpse been disposed of that an American newspaper reporter, Larry Stanford (Peter Dyneley), shows up at the lab, seeking an interview with the renowned Dr. Suzuki. After making a little time with the doc's sexy assistant Tara (Terri Zimmern) he's greeted by the friendly scientist, who slips him a knockout drug in a glass of booze. (Larry really has an affinity for the sauce, you see, but more about that later.) Suzuki's already selected the newsman as the next 'volunteer' for his experiment. While Larry slumbers under the influence of the Mickey Finn, he injects him with a supposedly improved batch of the serum that turned his wife and brother into monsters. He ingratiates himself with Larry so that he can chart the course of his guinea pig's reaction. Later they meet up in Tokyo, where Suzuki plies him with free liquor and geisha girls. Pretty soon Larry and the mad doctor are the best of party pals. Suzuki even offers him the 'services' of his assistant Tara, who's aware (and disapproving) of what her boss is up to but goes along with the scheme because he's blackmailing her. (Or something to that effect. It's strongly hinted that at one time Tara was a prostitute.)     The article on Suzuki was to be Larry's last assignment before returning to New York. But the story never gets written and he decides to stay in Japan, where he can drink himself into a stupor on the good doctor's yen and get it on with the shapely Tara. This doesn't sit well with Larry's wife, Linda (Jane Hylton), who's been alerted to his odd behavior by a mutual friend. Linda flies to Japan to confront her wayward spouse. While waiting for him in his hotel room Larry shows up drunk with Tara on his arm. Linda gives him an ultimatum: it's either her or the mistress. In a scene that could serve as the very definition of the slang phrase "What a burn!", Larry basically tells his wife to piss up a rope. (Larry is such a loudmouthed boor and Linda such a complete doormat that it's actually pretty funny.) Scorned, betrayed Linda vows to remain in Tokyo and fight for him and their marriage. This soon becomes the least of her worries as a series of savage murders rocks the city and increasingly, Larry looks like the prime suspect. Suzuki's serum has started to kick in. Larry's right hand gets rather hairy and sprouts claws. He's driven by animalistic urges to kill which he can't control. When a third eye appears on his shoulder one would think he'd seek medical treatment. (Well, there's always booze.) By the time the ghastly eye develops into a second head, it's much too late....     The Manster is pretty silly but it delivers enough unintentional humor and genuine shocks to be entertaining. With Larry and Doc Suzuki's carousing and its depiction of marital infidelity the film delves into more adult-themed fare than contemporary monster flicks, then veers straight into the Cheese Zone with scenes of the titular creature being chased by the Tokyo police, the new head looking like a coconut glued to the actor's shoulder. (In the few close-up shots we get of Larry in Two-Headed Mode it still looks like a coconut, only with eyes and teeth.) If you found The Thing with Two Heads amusing in this regard then you'll certainly appreciate The Manster. But unlike that campy 1972 exploitation pic, its forerunner serves up a couple of genuinely creepy moments — notably Larry's discovery of the third eye and the bestial, pathetic Emiko whimpering in her cell. I still remembered these scenes over 30 years later! Adding to the fun, Larry has to be one of the most unappealing protagonists ever. He isn't particularly likable before he gets the fateful injection, and once he falls under the sway of Doc Suzuki he becomes the kind of loud, obnoxious drunk whom most folks would be content to leave lying in a pool of his own vomit much less bend over backwards to help. This guy drinks like a fish all during the movie. (I was planning on keeping track of how many glasses of booze he knocks back during the course of the film but I lost count.) Incredibly, we're supposed to believe that hard-case Tara starts falling in love with him. And why Linda would want to fight for this louse, after being insulted and humiliated by him, is as big a mystery as how Larry's pants stay on when he splits into two separate life forms.

This colorfully packaged Retromedia release is a decent deal given the low price. It can be found in stores for about $10 (a bit higher online). The print used for the disc is far from pristine, exhibiting some grain and occasional damage, but is generally quite serviceable. Audio quality is okay. While it'd be great to see the film's theatrical trailer you won't get the opportunity here — for all I know it may no longer exist. In lieu of the trailer a small photo gallery is included. Alas, Retromedia continues its annoying habit of encoding the disc with only 6 chapter stops. 3/03/03

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