I picked "Monster Man" out of the supermarket bargain bin due to its irresistible DVD cover art (a Leatherface looking dude and a mutant Monster Truck? Sold!) and the cheap price. I was expecting, at best, a "so bad it's good" kind of horror flick, but was pleasantly surprised when I watched it and found "Monster Man" to be fast moving, funny as hell, and totally enjoyable. I don't usually care for "horror comedies" (with a few exceptions) because most of them tend to focus mainly on the "comedy" and forget about the horror, but "Monster Man" caused me to laugh out loud numerous times and didn't skimp on the nasty stuff either, especially during the third act.
Our heroes this time out are the timid, obsessive-compulsive nerd Adam and his loud mouthed friend Harley (think Jack Black hopped up on several gallons of Red Bull) who are in the midst of a cross country road trip to attend the wedding of an old girlfriend. Adam's been carrying a torch for this gal for years and plans to inform her of his love for her when they arrive at their destination. Meanwhile, Harley is a non-stop gross-out machine, taking pretty much every opportunity he can to belittle, insult, and irritate Adam with a near endless stream of scatological and sexual innuendos. (Depending on how sick your sense of humor is, he's either gonna make you laugh your head off or he'll annoy the hell out of you almost immediately.) While stopped at a roadside bar, Harley (an equal opportunity offender) manages to tick off the town's oddly large population of amputee rednecks with his obnoxious commentaries, so it's not much of a surprise when they get back on the road and are nearly killed by a lunatic driving a gigantic, rusted-out Monster Truck that appears to have been constructed in Hell itself. (Harley: "I feel like we just played Drop-the-Soap with Godzilla, man!") Resolving to stay on the road and get the hell out of the area as quickly as possible, Adam and Harley's already strained relationship gets more complicated when they stop and pick up a gorgeous hitchhiker along the way. Even though they're trying to escape with their lives, the two men still begin a hilarious series of juvenile, one-upmanship gags trying to win her over until Mister Monster Truck appears again to finish them all off once and for all, sending the three on a chase up and down a stretch of deserted country roads before a finale straight out of "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" at the lunatic's home base.
"Monster Man" is definitely not be the most original film I've ever seen, but it is still a fun one. The main strength is the witty, never ending banter between the smug Harley and the put-upon Adam (obviously inspired by Kevin Smith's "Clerks"), who are at each other's throats for much of the film, yet the pair put it all aside when the chips are down and things become life or death. The "twist" in the third act involving the hot hitchhiker can be seen coming from a mile away, but wait'll you meet the rest of her family! When you spend as much time diving in the DVD Bargain Bin as I do, you naturally go into movies like these with extremely lowered expectations. Fortunately, you also occasionally find a hidden gem, which is what happened with "Monster Man," an action packed, gory good time. It's a keeper.
Our heroes this time out are the timid, obsessive-compulsive nerd Adam and his loud mouthed friend Harley (think Jack Black hopped up on several gallons of Red Bull) who are in the midst of a cross country road trip to attend the wedding of an old girlfriend. Adam's been carrying a torch for this gal for years and plans to inform her of his love for her when they arrive at their destination. Meanwhile, Harley is a non-stop gross-out machine, taking pretty much every opportunity he can to belittle, insult, and irritate Adam with a near endless stream of scatological and sexual innuendos. (Depending on how sick your sense of humor is, he's either gonna make you laugh your head off or he'll annoy the hell out of you almost immediately.) While stopped at a roadside bar, Harley (an equal opportunity offender) manages to tick off the town's oddly large population of amputee rednecks with his obnoxious commentaries, so it's not much of a surprise when they get back on the road and are nearly killed by a lunatic driving a gigantic, rusted-out Monster Truck that appears to have been constructed in Hell itself. (Harley: "I feel like we just played Drop-the-Soap with Godzilla, man!") Resolving to stay on the road and get the hell out of the area as quickly as possible, Adam and Harley's already strained relationship gets more complicated when they stop and pick up a gorgeous hitchhiker along the way. Even though they're trying to escape with their lives, the two men still begin a hilarious series of juvenile, one-upmanship gags trying to win her over until Mister Monster Truck appears again to finish them all off once and for all, sending the three on a chase up and down a stretch of deserted country roads before a finale straight out of "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" at the lunatic's home base.
"Monster Man" is definitely not be the most original film I've ever seen, but it is still a fun one. The main strength is the witty, never ending banter between the smug Harley and the put-upon Adam (obviously inspired by Kevin Smith's "Clerks"), who are at each other's throats for much of the film, yet the pair put it all aside when the chips are down and things become life or death. The "twist" in the third act involving the hot hitchhiker can be seen coming from a mile away, but wait'll you meet the rest of her family! When you spend as much time diving in the DVD Bargain Bin as I do, you naturally go into movies like these with extremely lowered expectations. Fortunately, you also occasionally find a hidden gem, which is what happened with "Monster Man," an action packed, gory good time. It's a keeper.