Michael Scott

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The Mangler


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Movie: :3stars:
Video: :4.5stars:
Audio: :4stars:
Extras: :2.5stars:
Final Score: :3.5stars:



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Movie

As with Dracula: Prince of Darkness, this was another December title that is a bit late to the game due to a snafu that Shout Factory was really kind to remedy by sending out the discs to us after release date (which is why this one is a bit later than my normal reviews). I remember seeing this YEARS ago on an old Warner Brothers VHS tape as a teenager and remembering it to be a bizarre Stephen King story (directed and written by the creator of Texas Chainsaw Massacre), but I was unprepared for the amount of bizarre hilarity that would ensue. Stephen King movies can be hit or miss with their audience reception, and while things like Dreamcatchers are slighted for being strange, The Mangler EASILY takes the cake as the most bizarre movie adaptation of King’s works. While the film is insane beyond belief, Scream Factory has gone the distance and was provided a 2K remastered scan of the Uncut negative (more gore!) by Warner Brothers, and given us a nice new audio mix AND some brand new extras to enjoy (despite this not being a labeled collector’s edition). So hold onto your hats, grab a beer (you’ll need at least a full six pack for this one) and strap in for a mindbending ride of epic horror cheese!

The Mangler is considered one of the biggest horror flops of all time (from well known directors and actors that is). It had one of the biggest horror directors of the time (Tobe Hooper) and one of the biggest horror actors of all time (Robert Englund), but barely made $1.7 million at the box office. The reasons are multiple fold. For one, Robert Englund was only available for like 10 days (he had to have his scenes shot separately from all the other actors just to get them in on time), and secondly, New Line Cinemas was only able to get the movie into a handful of theaters. It had been shot on a shoe string budget in South Africa (something Tobe Hooper is famous for) and New Line marketed the snot out of the movie, but for some reason theaters were reticent to give it a wide release. Then add in the fact that the theatrical cut release was met with some of the harshest criticism known to horror fans. Critics LAMBASTED The Mangler for being a bizarre film with a weak payoff.

In my humble opinion, The Mangler isn’t a train wreck of epic proportions because it didn’t try hard enough. It’s a film that just aimed a little TOO high and missed the mark. The film seems pretty simple at first, but then soon spirals into a deeper and deeper conspiracy with the “ancient powers’ and then suddenly is forced to end before fully fleshing out those details. The third act of the movie is beyond hilarious, but it teases us with some deeper stories with hidden agendas that really should have been fleshed out more. As it stands, The Mangler tries so very hard to be a complex and supernatural horror movie, but ends up being a cheesefest that sputters out in the final act with too many loose ends to effectively tied up before the 106 minute film wraps up.
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The Mangler is set in an 1800s style laundry factory that has been the main stay of the local economy in Rikers Valley, Maine. The conditions are deplorable for the female workers (it looks like it’s straight out of 19th Century England Charles Dickens), who are forced to work long hours in front of massive steam pressing machinery with little pay and mustache twirling foremen. The insanity starts when an old worker gets trapped in the giant pressing machine (called a Mangle), which ends up crushing the poor woman in a horrible manner. Detective John Hunton (Ted Levine, just after his infamous role as Wild Bill in Silence of the Lambs) is called in to investigate, but the only thing that seems wrong is that the machine’s safety measures weren’t activated. He’s suspicious of something more, but his suspicions get drowned out by the corrupt sheriff who is under the thumb of the laundry company’s owner, Bill Gartley (Robert Englund made up to look infinitely older than he was with rubber prosthetics). His next door neighbor Mark (Daniel Matmore) believes it’s supernatural in nature, but the cynical detective is ready to throw in the towel until a run in with a murderous ice box (yes, you read that right. A murderous ice box. This is only the start).

Going back to the scene of the crime and digging deeper, Detective Hunton finds out much more than he ever expected to find. A hidden secret of ancient power. A machine that hungers for the blood of the innocents, and an array of deaths that go back almost a hundred years into the past. Yes, The Mangler is that crazy. Demon possessed inanimate objects is part of Stephen King’s list of story tropes, with cars, trucks, and other possessed items coming to life, but The Mangler takes the cake. We have a LITERALLY demon possessed LAUNDRY MACHINE on the loose. The film is so hilariously over acted and cheesy that it just fits perfectly with the insanity of the subject material. I mean, who doesn’t love a good laundry pressing machine that can munch on human flesh (and the end battle with the machine is beyond epic. Not to spoil anything, but an evil transformer with demonic possession vs. an exorcism. Nuff said), let alone Robert Englund parading about with a full lower extremity brace on his legs. In fact, his character is the highlight of the movie as he chews the scenery in ways that would make Peter Stormare jealous.

As I said earlier, the downfall of the movie is that it’s TOO ambitious. The idea of a demonic laundry machine is enough to fill out a basic cheesy story, but the final act starts unveiling sub plots and historical evil that really should have been fleshed out more. It was almost like they wanted to add in a second hour of material, but only had 20 minutes to wrap things up, so the film feels a bit loosey goosey at the end with a lot of the tie ins just vanishing. Honestly, if you’ve never seen The Mangler before you’re in for a real treat. This is one of the single most bizarre Stephen King adaptations I’ve ever seen, and even though I remember it being bizarre as a teenager, my movie watching buddy and I had our jaws hanging down to our knees literally the entire movie (we stared at each other and said “what in the literal blue blazes?!” more than a few times during the hour and 46 minute film) in sheer horrific awe at the cheese displayed on screen.




Rating:

Rated R for gory horror violence and language / (Unrated)




Video: :4.5stars:
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While the original press release stated that The Mangler was getting a 4K remaster of the uncut version of the film, what we got is a new 2K remaster (which I won’t complain on, it looks fantastic). Either way, the movie looks GREAT on Blu-ray, and one of the better looking 90s horror films that I’ve seen from them. The film is grainy and detailed, showing off all of that dark and murkiness that King was known for as The Mangler takes place mostly at night, or in the middle of a 19th century style laundry warehouse. Details are crisp and clean, as you can see every bit of gore, every intimate detail on clothing, and of course the low budget rubber prosthetics used on Robert Englund and Jeremy Crutchley’s “Cameraman” character. Even though this is a VERY dark film I didn’t notice any crush or digital artifacting, with only a few scenes showing a significant grain spike to keep it from looking great. The colors are dark and eerie, with bright neon blues and deep blood reds taking up a majority of the primary colors. While not 100% perfect (I noticed a few grain spikes and a few crushed blacks), The Mangler looks absolutely fantastic on Blu-ray.





Audio: :4stars:
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Scream Factory has once again provide the obligatory dual audio options for The Mangler, with the original 5.1 mix in DTS-HD MA as well as a 2.0 track (in the same lossless encoding) for night listening. I naturally gravitate towards the 5.1 mix as it’s much richer and fuller than the 2.0 track, and does a great job with the horror ambiance. Dialog is crisp and clean, and the surround channels do a good job with the sounds of thudding machinery and creepy music. The end “fight” scene with the monstrous machine fills out the low end quite well and the entire mix is simply “good” on all levels. It’s still a low budget 90s horror film, but everything is more than acceptable for the genre and filming constraints.








Extras: :2.5stars:
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• BRAND NEW 2K REMASTER STRUCK FROM THE CAMERA NEGATIVE FOR THE UNCUT VERSION
• NEW Audio Commentary with co-writer Stephen David Brooks
• NEW Hell's Bells – an interview with actor Robert Englund
• Rare behind-the-scenes footage
• Theatrical Trailer
• TV Spot







Final Score: :3.5stars:


The Mangler really shouldn’t be taken seriously, although it was meant to be a serious film. The premise is beyond absurd, but what really sells the cheesiness of it all is that everyone was DEADLY serious in their acting. Robert Englund cheesees it up to level 11 with his portrayal of a crippled, evil, Rockefeller type capitalist, and Ted Levine as the tortured detective. You’d think that they would give a wink an nod at the camera, but things play out with a sort of comical seriousness that you can’t help but giggle and chuckle along with the bizarre film. The other saving grace is that the movie is really a gorefest for the 1990s productions. People get mangled, chopped, crushed, and more fake blood squirts around than water in the Potomac. All in all, this is an awful film that is almost awesome simply due to how incredibly over the top it is. Scream Factory has also given the film a nice 2K remaster (that was supposedly sourced from Warner Brothers, who does fantastic restoration work) and tossed in a few extras to make this release hit much higher than it should. Definitely worth it as a fun watch for cult horror fanatics.



Technical Specifications:

Starring: Robert Englund, Ted Levine, Daniel Matmor, Jeremy Crutchley, Vanessa Pike, Demetre Phillips, Lisa Morris, Ashley Hayden, Vera Blacker
Directed by: Tobe Hooper
Written by: Tobe Hooper
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1, English DTS-HD MA 2.0
Subtitles: English SDH
Studio: Scream Factory
Rated: NR
Runtime: 106 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: December 11th, 2018







Recommendation: Hilarious Watch For the Cult Fans

 
Last edited:

Todd Anderson

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That's gross.

I just sat next to a retired special forces officer (on a flight) who told me that a similar human-used machine (I believe it was a tire shredder) was found in a compound in Iraq. Who knows if it's true... :gulp:
 

Michael Scott

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maybe it was one of Stephen King's cast off items? :greengrin:
 

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I think I saw this one many years ago. I may have to revisit.
 
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