Have you seen this movie?

[bryantburnette]

The Tobe Hooper movie is ... well, let's just put it this way: one of my favorite King novels is From a Buick 8, and I dearly hope Tobe Hooper's adaptation of it never happens. He made some good movies early in his career, but by the time The Mangler rolled around, those days were over.

I will admit to enjoying Ted Levine in The Mangler, marble-mouthed though he may be. I also thought Robert Englund gave a couple of good performances in it ... although the characters he played were so poorly written and badly directed that all his labors were for nothing in the end.

As for the "sequels," well, they're about as bad as movies get.

"The Mangler 2" has Lance Henriksen, slumming it in a small role; he's always fun to watch, but it makes me sad that an actor as talented as him is so poorly considered by Hollywood that he has to take roles like this one. Other than Henriksen, there is little reason to ever watch "The Mangler 2," which is so unrelated to the original King story that it makes The Lawnmower Man look like a word-for-word translation.

Ditto "The Mangler Reborn," which is one of the worst movies I've ever seen. Literally no redeeming qualities at all.

[Trademarc]

This flick was so bad, a judge sentenced Tobe Hooper to 500 hours of community service.

[Mobe1969]

I didn't know it was made. I'm finding out about a few adaptations here I wasn't aware of. Very helpful

[Property of the Overlook]

I didnt think it was that bad of a movie. It could have been better but it was not the worst movie I have seen. The sequels on the other hand were pretty bad. I liked Reborn more than I did Mangler 2.

[Mr. Palmer]

After dropping the ball on GRAVEYARD SHIFT, I decided to give THE MANGLER a try. And I'm sorry that I did. The film (term used loosely) is downright awful.

[M2H]

Of course, I loved the King version, but the movie version, well..i didn't love it! Tobe Hooper's only good, well directed film was Poltergeist (although rumors have long proliferated that an unsatisfied Speilberg took over the wheel)..Texas Chainsaw Massacre (the original) was "alright"...Hooper, however, directed the original Salem's Lot which was decent though. But the Mangler, ouch!!

[Mr. Palmer]

TCM only "alright"? Heathen blasphemy!

[bryantburnette]

To the best of my understanding, based on books and articles I can't recall specifically enough to cite without doing some research, that rumor about Spielberg being the "real" director of Poltergeist is just that: a rumor. Hooper directed it.

However, it's as much a Spielberg film as it is a Hooper film; probably moreso, in fact, despite Hooper being behind the camera. After all, Spielberg wrote the story, did an uncredited final draft on the screenplay, was heavily involved in pre-production at every step, and supervised both the editing and the scoring sessions.

In other words, while Hooper may have directed it, he was by no means the only -- or even the primary -- creative force on the film. Personally, I count it as a Spielberg movie any time I'm tallying them up.

It's a good movie, too; still creeps me out after all these years.

[M2H]

TCM is like the Hostel and Saw films...all gore, no talent. Anyone can make a gross movie but it takes talent to scare an audience, make them afraid of the dark, etc. It's like a love story vs. a pornographic film..which one takes more talent?

[Gavvo1976]

After dropping the ball on GRAVEYARD SHIFT, I decided to give THE MANGLER a try. And I'm sorry that I did. The film (term used loosely) is downright awful.

Im ny opinion, Graveyard Shift and The Mangler are the 2 worst adaptions of a King story.