Search - Monster Man on DVD

Keith A. (Keefer522)
Reviewed on 10/15/2013...

Here's a rarity: a horror/comedy that was actually FUNNY. Two friends (and a hot hitchhiker they pick up along the way) on a cross country drive to a friend's wedding inadvertently piss off a hulking, deformed psycho killer who pursues them down a stretch of deserted highway in a gigantic monster truck. Imagine "Jeepers Creepers" if it had been written by Kevin Smith. I laughed out loud several times and when the nasty parts finally kick in this one didn't skimp on the gore. Recommended low budget fun!!!

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"I'm a corpse burrito!"

Jeffrey Leach | Omaha, NE USA | 07/01/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If I had to make a list of extraordinarily influential horror films of the last forty years, titles like "Friday the 13th," "Night of the Living Dead," "Halloween," and Tobe Hooper's seminal screamfest "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" would stand at the top. These three films have, and continue to have, a massive influence on filmmakers. In fact, I'm willing to bet that most beginners hoping to break into the world of horror movie making lens a variation of one of these four films as their first feature. Oftentimes, such efforts lead to disaster. The market can only withstand so many cheap 'n cheesy flicks before collapsing under the sheer weight of banality. But once in a while a diamond in the rough appears, a magical effort that manages to take a tired formula and infuse it with something approaching brilliance or, if not brilliance, at least a modicum of originality. Enter the low budget gorefest "Monster Man," a ripoff of Hooper's masterpiece if there ever was one. Sure, it's derivative, but it's also a fabulously fun film for horror fans everywhere. I compliment Michael Davis for crafting this extremely sick piece of celluloid.

"Monster Man" introduces us to two losers by the name of Adam (Eric Jungmann) and his abrasive buddy Harley (Justin Urich) tooling down the highway in a car. The purpose of this road trip revolves around Adam's hope that he can intercede in the coming nuptials of a long sought after love. Harley apparently came along for the ride in order to torture his pal with a running string of bad jokes, childish insults, and general pronouncements berating his pal for pursuing a woman who has never had an interest in Adam. This back and forth banter runs on and on for what feels like forever, which left this viewer with a decidedly negative impression of the film. I need not have worried, however, as "Monster Man" soon kicks into high gear with the introduction of two interesting elements. One, some cretin in a monster truck that makes the semi from "Duel" look like a moped arrives on the scene to torment our unfortunate travelers. Predictably, Harley manages to anger this road rager in the waiting--witness what he does to the truck at the gas station--which leads to several frightening encounters on the highway. Two, Harley and Adam pick up a gorgeous hitchhiker named Sarah (Aimee Brooks), whose voluptuous presence and seeming interest in the lovelorn Adam lead to several humorous situations.

From this point, when Sarah and the frightening truck enter the picture, "Monster Man" turns into a nail biting turn towards gruesome horror. Our boys start running into a number of local citizens, most of whom are missing either arms or legs or both. Hmmm. The truck reemerges from time to time, becoming more threatening with each appearance. Well, one thing leads to another, and it isn't too long before Harley and Adam are in the fight of their lives with a close-knit clan that looks like a cross between the wackos from "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and the loopy denizens from the television show "The Munsters." When we finally get to meet Mister Monster Man (Michael Bailey Smith), the driver of the aforementioned truck, it's no wonder that Adam and Harley express more than a wee bit of fear. Then there's the atrocity that goes by the name Brother Fred (Joe Goodrich), a mouthy lad sporting an injury that no insurance provider in the world would touch with a ten-foot pole. The third member of this lunatic family, a person with the habit of impersonating Yoda at the most inappropriate times, will remain anonymous here to avoid spoiling the movie. It's quite a trio Adam and his pal must overcome if they are to survive. You'll need to watch the movie if you want to see whether or not they make it through this nightmare.

"Monster Man" is a representative of that ultra-rare specimen in the horror film zoo: the gore/comedy picture. Few films attempt to bridge the gap between giggles and grue, and even fewer make the leap. Director Davis goes for both types of yucks here, and he largely succeeds in pulling it off. Witness Adam's experience with "Yoda," or Harley's penchant for the most outrageous lines, or--heaven help us--the most unfortunate union between a tongue and road kill ever captured on film as proof of this assertion. Repeatedly, Davis coaxes guffaws out of his audience even as he soaks the screen down with sauce. Trucks pound limbs into taffy, eyeballs dangle out of sockets, vehicles mulch bodies, sharp objects slice and dice, and a throat or two cracks a wickedly red grin in this truly disgusting movie. Oh yeah! If you love the red stuff, "Monster Man" is your cup of tea. Heck, if you love movies that look like a million bucks, you'll want to give this one a spin. "Monster Man" looks stylish in a way that belies its miniscule budget, and the pacing really picks up after the first twenty minutes or so. Nearly every element of the movie clicks in just the right way, to the point that the viewer really won't mind that they are watching a "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" ripoff.

Extras abound on the DVD. Trailers for "Ju-On," "Death Watch," "Open Water," "Stage Beauty" are here to convince you to spend more money on horror DVDs. Supplements specific to the film include a gory animated trailer; a full film commentary with Davis, Jungmann, and Urich; a gag reel; and a nifty behind the scenes feature that shows us Michael Davis is a way over the top personality. Fun. I'm hearing a lot of noise about two "Monster Man" sequels, both directed by Davis, which might find space in our DVD players in the future. I'm looking forward to seeing more from this director. I'm also expecting more gore and more laughs.


"

Awesome road trip horror

Matthew King | Toronto, Canada | 11/28/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I'm not sure why I choose to watch so many of these direct to video slasher films. Most of the time these films will make me question my existence (90 mns spent doing what?) other times my financial wisdom. Well, the reason I waft through piles of cinematic junk is that out of every 5 or 10 or so of these movies I will unearth a gem. Yes folks, "Monster Man" qualifies as such. I wouldn't be surprised if 5 years from now this film becomes a cult classic of sorts and if not well, it deserves to be.

2 college buddies named Harley and Adam go on a road trip through the desert in order to attend a wedding. Everything goes well until they get run off the road by a Monster Truck (or big-wheeler, whatever they call these things). While getting their car tended to in the small redneck town where every hick has either a stump arm or stump leg, they end up picking up a hot hitchhiker babe. As they head back on the road, they will discover to their horror that the Monster Truck is still hot on their chase and wants them to be the next ones to join the land of stumpies...

While I loved this film, I wouldn't go so far as to say that it's very original. It abides by many of the routine staples of Road-Trip suspense; a sultry hitchhiker, car troubles, roach motels, road diners&gas stations populated by mindless (or so it seems) hicks. What elevates this picture is the chemistry of the two lead characters and the synergy that manages to protrude from them regardless of the fact they are two completely different individuals. You have shy wimpy Adam, a 25-year old virgin who would be scared of his own shadow, contrasted with Harley, a testosterone-fuelled practical joker. Harley annoyed me at first but I warmed up to him real fast. His endless fratboy jokes about the ins and outs of the female anatomy were very amusing. And best of all would be sexy and mysterious hitchhiker Sarah, a quasi-goth who will not divulge anything from her past. The acting was excellent in this film.

What "Monster Man" does so well is combining two genres, those of horror and comedy. It manages to excite and entertain even in between scenes of carnage due to solid acting and humour from the 3 leads. What is also neat is that unlike most horror/comedy hybrids the horror is not watered down instead this film is very gory and very gruesome with scenes that will appease the hardcore blood n' guts fan. The fact that this film is distributed by Lions Gate probably explains why it's such high-quality for a slasher film. So yes, although this film is trashy and does rip off TCM in several respects I wholeheartedly recommend you watch this now! Bloody good fun."

I LOVED it

Rock God | USA | 04/17/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As another reviewer said, I randomly picked it up at blockbuster looking for something different and ended up watching this several times. Now I own it. Sure there's a few moments where the gross-out humor is toooooooo much but if you can bare with it the rest is GREAT. Good enough production value (Lions Gate) and two great characters (one of which you might recognize from SEVERAL movies including Not Another Teen Movie). I'd compare it to Idle Hands or something of the sort in the fact that the humor scenes are hilarious and and the scary scenes are really creepy. Oh yeah, GREAT ugly monster on this one, he's a scary lookin' thing. Not for the older audiences probably, but younger viewers might be able to get into this hopefully new cult classic."