... with the unlikely Wes Craven as director. Brilliant scientist Dr. Alec Holland (Ray Wise) is conducting experiments for the US government deep in the heart of bayou swamp country. The isolation causes a lot of turnover in employees at the lab, so new recruit Alice Cable (Adrienne Barbeau) arrives as a replacement. She's just in time for the lab to be attacked by mercenary goons in the employ of the diabolical Arcane (Louis Jourdan). Holland is doused in an experimental substance and set on fire, left to die in the swamp. However, instead of dying, he is reborn as Swamp Thing, a tall, super strong humanoid made out of green plant material. He uses his new found strength to battle Arcane and his men.
Barbeau makes a good, tough female hero, and Jourdan has fun with his villainous role. Veteran stuntman Dick Durock plays the title green guy, a role he would reprise in the film's sequel seven years later, as well as a TV show spin-off in 1990. Frequent B-movie bad guys David Hess and Nicholas Worth also have a lot of screen time as Arcane's chief thugs. The effects are a bit on the cheap side, but it adds to the film's charm. The whole enterprise has a comic-book vibe, and fits in with the late 70s superhero style; it's not as cheesy as the 60s BATMAN TV show, but keeps some comic touches, like the Christopher Reeves SUPERMAN films or the Tim Burton BATMAN films.
It's also not quite clear who the audience for this was supposed to be. It has the aforementioned comic book style, and the story never gets more complicated than say a middle-school level. But it also features some gruesome violence and some nudity. It managed a PG rating (this was before PG-13), and you can tell there were some awkward edits to tone down the language. Based on the DC Comics characters.
Barbeau makes a good, tough female hero, and Jourdan has fun with his villainous role. Veteran stuntman Dick Durock plays the title green guy, a role he would reprise in the film's sequel seven years later, as well as a TV show spin-off in 1990. Frequent B-movie bad guys David Hess and Nicholas Worth also have a lot of screen time as Arcane's chief thugs. The effects are a bit on the cheap side, but it adds to the film's charm. The whole enterprise has a comic-book vibe, and fits in with the late 70s superhero style; it's not as cheesy as the 60s BATMAN TV show, but keeps some comic touches, like the Christopher Reeves SUPERMAN films or the Tim Burton BATMAN films.
It's also not quite clear who the audience for this was supposed to be. It has the aforementioned comic book style, and the story never gets more complicated than say a middle-school level. But it also features some gruesome violence and some nudity. It managed a PG rating (this was before PG-13), and you can tell there were some awkward edits to tone down the language. Based on the DC Comics characters.