The Manitou (1978)

Director:

William Girdler

Writers:

Graham Masterton (novel)
William Girdler (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

24 January 1979 (France)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

Evil does not die... It waits to be re-born!

Plot:

A psychic's girlfriend finds out that a lump on her back is a growing reincarnation of a 400 year-old demonic Native American spirit.

Plot Keywords:

Tumor | Doctor | Fetus | Hospital | Reincarnation

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Tony Curtis	...	Harry Erskine
Michael Ansara	...	John Singing Rock
Susan Strasberg	...	Karen Tandy
Stella Stevens	...	Amelia Crusoe
Jon Cedar	...	Dr. Jack Hughes
Ann Sothern	...	Mrs. Karmann
Burgess Meredith	...	Dr. Snow
Paul Mantee	...	Dr. McEvoy
Jeanette Nolan	...	Mrs. Winconis
Lurene Tuttle	...	Mrs. Herz
Hugh Corcoran	...	MacArthur
Ann Newman-Mantee	...	10th-Floor Nurse
Jan Heininger	...	Wolf, an orderly
Michael Laren	...	Michael, an orderly
Cindy Stanford	...	Neighbor

Runtime:

104 min

Country:

Canada | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

UK:15 (re-rating) (1991) | UK:18 (re-rating) (1987) | UK:X (original rating) | Iceland:16 | USA:PG (re-rating on appeal) | USA:R (original rating) | Argentina:18 (re-rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | Norway:18

Filming Locations:

CBS Studio Center - 4024 Radford Avenue, Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Mid-America Pictures

Trivia:

Last film of director William Girdler. Shortly before the film's release he was killed in a helicopter crash in the Philippines while scouting locations for an upcoming film.

Quotes:

John Singing Rock: Normally I wait three risings of the sun before I take on a job.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Empire of the Censors (1995) (TV)

Admittedly not a "good" film, but still kind of fun.

Based on the novel by Graham Masterton, "The Manitou" gives us a story of a young woman (Susan Strasberg) with an enlarged tumor on her neck that is determined to be a rapidly growing fetus. Furthermore, it's the current incarnation of an Indian medicine man who has lived on for 400 years and counting.

While I usually give so-bad-they're-good films 5 out of 10, this picture is so bizarre, fanciful, and schlocky, it takes on such a you've-gotta-see-it-to-believe-it quality, I felt I would boost the rating. If it's not one thing, it's another - an old lady levitating and careening down some stairs, hospital floors that turn into walk-in freezers, the creepy little Indian spirit Misquamacus (played by little people actors Joe Gieb and Felix Silla) and his striking orbs, a cheesy final act involving a 1970's era light show, and more. The way I see it, what's not to like about a campy, outrageous horror thriller that actually seems to be taking itself seriously? I don't see films like this every day.

The swan song for cult director William Girdler (who tragically died in a helicopter crash while scouting locations for a follow-up film), he sure gave us one heck of a spectacle to sign off with. An amazing troupe of high-profile stars (Tony Curtis, Ann Sothern, Burgess Meredith, Stella Stevens) perform with amazingly straight faces, supported by such folks as Jon Cedar (who acted in Girdlers' "Day of the Animals"), Paul Mantee ("Robinson Crusoe on Mars"), and Lurene Tuttle ("Psycho" 1960). Michael Ansara is Indian medicine man John Singing Rock, in a standout performance. Effects are dodgy, especially a lizard being guaranteed to induce some chuckles. But I have to tell you that that final act just beats it all. It's all punctuated by a nice Lalo Schifrin music score that, again, is incredible for sounding serious, as if you were watching a different kind of film.

I'll say it - I enjoyed this film. As a guilty pleasure, this would have to rank as a new personal favorite.

7/10