Humanoids from the Deep (1996 TV Movie) User Reviews

Humanoids from the Deep: Wow, so how did that happen?

[Platypuschow · 3/10 · 19 March 2019]

Humanoids from the Deep (1980) was an incredible movie, so 16yrs later how did a remake turn out so outstandingly disastrous?

Starring Robert "Revenge of the Nerds" Carradine and career villain Mark Rolston I'm quite frankly blown away by what I just watched.

The visual effects for the movie are dire! That's right, 16yrs later and the special effects are worse!? How did they pull off such a feat? Back in the original movie they only had one functional creature suit and several incomplete which could only be used from certain angles. What is the excuse here? The whole thing is ugly, the creatures are barely on screen and when they are they're obscured and generally not seen very well. How did they take such a huge step backwards?

The cast are not on point at all, almost as if they know what kind of garbage fire they're involved in and just can't be bothered to make much of an effort.

And then there is the most unforgivable thing (Yes even worse than the special effects reversal in quality). They have spliced scenes from the original movie into this! I don't mean in a functional way, I mean out of sheer laziness they have actually taken scenes from the original movie and some carnival b roll and stuck it into this. I'm astonished at the lack of professionalism here.

As for the movie itself its a twist on the original and not in a good way. The racial division plot from the original has been dropped in place of eco-warriors vs cooperate USA.

Ignore this altogether, it's an embarrassment. Want a decent dose of creature feature? Watch the far superior original film.

The Good:

Decent cast

The Bad:

Recycled footage from the original movie

SFX are really poor

Just a shoddy rehash of a superior film

''I'm gonna date your daughter, I didn't kill loads of monsters for nothing''.......** out of *****

[Welshfilmfan · 4/10 · 26 January 2009]

This 1996 B-Movie legend Roger Corman TV Movie was a remake to his earlier movie of the same name 16 years earlier,

It's absolutely ridiculous of course the plot goes something like this..... A bunch of death row prisoners are injected with a special gene by the military which turn them into Half-Man Half-Salmon Monsters in rubber suits I last saw on a 50's Monster movie, who terrorise a small town because some shady locals are dumping some nasty stuff into the sea, which these monsters feed on.

They kill the men.. but have sex with the woman and stick them in some sort of slimy cocoon. There is one hilarious scene in which a woman gives birth to a baby monster a-la Alien chestbuster and the locals try to batter it with baseball bats as it runs through a bar....Classic!!! The acting & FX are what you would expect from a movie called 'Humanoids from the deep'

** out of *****

Humanoids Of The Not So Deep!

[Movie-Misfit · 5/10 · 26 November 2014]

From the careful hands of Roger Corman, comes a remake of his 1980's produced film of the same name, slightly updated, slightly better, but just as cheap.

Suffering from that awful nineties glare of bad jeans and over acting, this remake offers quite a few decent moments, hilarious monsters, and unintentional dialogue that actually helps to get you through it.

In a nutshell - Scripting and story is so messed up you can't help feel like you've been thrown in at the deep end from the very beginning. Hilarious acting and dialogue make sure you enjoy this low budget cheese-fest that entertains for all the wrong reasons!

In my opinion - Certain movies should never be remade. This is one of them! With a storyline that is more classic 60's sci-fi than anything, the reasoning behind it all seems to be lost in its nineties setting. That said, this is small town America, where strange stuff happens all the time and the locals all dress alike...

To be fair, its leading man, Robert Carridine is quite a likable guy and comes across quite well for the most of it. Everyone else though, not so much, and you can't help not caring for them in the long run. The film hints at action with some scenes as it tries to do with horror, but most of the scary scenes are done with such amateurish direction, it comes across more comical in a sense which makes it less horrific.

The remake of Humanoids From The Deep is fun, in a strange sort of way. Just don't take it too seriously!

Poor Remake

[Michael_Elliott · 12 March 2008]

Humanoids From the Deep (1996)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

Remake of the 1980 film pretty much has the same story as chemicals turn regular salmon into walking killers. The 80's film was a lot of fun due to the violence, gore, nudity, sex and outrageous politically incorrect humor but pretty much all of that is missing here. The director throws out all sorts of gore but he forgets to make the film very fun. Watching both films back to back would just make this one seem even worse than it is. David Carradine is horrid in the lead but Clint Howard has a pretty funny role. Stick with the original.

See the Original

[bensonmum2 · 2/10 · 4 February 2005]

Humanoids from the Deep (1996) is a remake of a 1980 film of the same name. The original was not the greatest, but the remake is horrible. The basic story: Through some crazy experimentation, death-row inmates have been mutated into killer (for lack of a better word) fishmen. They kidnap women with whom they mate. The father and boyfriend of one of the victims must save her before it's too late.

The movie stars Robert Carradine and Emma Samms. For the most part, both act as if they would rather be anywhere than making this movie. Carradine actually sounds as if he's reading many of his lines. His lines are delivered with no emotion whatsoever. And what lines they are. Some of the silliest dialogue imaginable.

The people populating this movie are especially dumb. Once it's established that fishmen are killing and abducting the citizens, do you think the townspeople cancel their water festival? No! They go right ahead. They seem genuinely surprised when the festival is invaded by the fishmen. What dolts! The special effects are also weak. The fishmen are never seen in any one shot for very long. This is probably because their plastic heads are more unrealistic than the cheesiest of the 50s monster films. The birth sequence is a direct rip-off of Alien, but nowhere near as effective.

If you really want to see a monster film, find another. This one is terrible.

A watered down remake

[Mindwarp · 3/10 · 19 November 1999]

In the mid 90's producer Roger Corman did a series of re-makes of his previous movies for the Showtime cable network. Corman is a great low budget producer, but it does not really show here. They have cut back on all of the extreme gore and sex that made the first one a drive-in classic.

All in all, worth a watch for only a true horror, or Roger Corman, fan.

This remake was pretty much what I expected.

[capkronos · 4/10 · 25 February 2004]

Animal rights protesters picket a fishing company because they're dumping the growth hormone "Synestin" into the ocean to bulk up product. Five giant, gilled monsters live on the chemical, kill people and knock-up kidnapped young women. Star Robert Carradine, playing the type of stubborn, embarrassing, single-father type whose character drives a beat-up old truck and drinks Pepto straight out of the bottle (so much for character development, eh?), teams up with an investigating scientist (Emma Samms) and others after his daughter is kidnapped.

Much of the sleazy audacity from the wonderfully trashy 1980 original is dropped here, but some of the make-up FX are good and it still features two stomach-burster scenes, an eyeball that squirts blood, skinny dipping and naked, bloody women crawling out of a cocoon and swimming to safety. The carnival finale employs most of its scenes from the original feature (I recommend sticking with it).

This was part of the ROGER CORMAN PRESENTS... cable TV series from Concorde/New Horizons (all of which were exec. produced by Corman). The end credits remind us that "No animal or humanoid was harmed or mistreated in the making of this motion picture."

Despicable fish sticks!

[Coventry · 4/10 · 2 February 2004]

Why anyone would want to remake a gory and filthy exploitation gem from the early 80's is a mystery to me. The original Humanoids was a nice viewing and a good change to observe, but it hasn't really got the potential to be re-told in a 90's sort of atmosphere. Yet, they did and I don't really have a problem with that…but it really drives me mad that the local shop sold me a copy of this ‘straight to video' version instead of the original! Damn, the DVD has the same cover and credits-list as the original but the DVD itself is the remake starring Carradine! Pay attention to this if you'd ever plan to buy it. The less interesting remake could be disguised as the original gore stuff! That said, I have to admit that even this version is more or less satisfying and certainly worth sitting through. Same story is told, only less explicit and more mainstream…Meaning that the violence and nudity is severely cut. An aspect that'll most likely lower the interest of fans of the original. Still, there are more than enough bloody and nasty sequences to sicken the inexperienced horror population. A guy's head is blown off, for example, and there's a woman giving birth to an ugly fish creature on a filthy bar-table. The costumes of the fish-people on the other hand are laughable and idiotic looking. They could have paid a little more attention to that, because it sorts of ruins the whole idea of the `horrible' mutations that they are supposed to be. The acting is overall decent and some familiar faces are included in the cast. Robert Carradine is a very decent B-actor who still is overlooked often…. The same could be said about Mark Rolston, by the way. Danielle Weeks just looks adorable while she's on-screen and Clint Howard walks around in this movie for no particular reason…as he does in most of the films he stars in. In general…you'll be better off when watching the original this thing is based on, but it's not an entire waste of time. Humanoids is easy to watch and overall entertaining with some good gory stuff and funny sequences. If you've seen the original, you'll also have quite some fun with discovering the references and the spoofs towards it.

I lasted fifteen minutes

[klynnm · 1/10 · 22 May 2005]

You are in dire straits when you remake a Corman movie and make it worse than the original. The original HUMANOIDS was fascinating, but this one feels like a Sci-Fi Channel TV movie - those are pretty terrible.

I love Robert Carradine and it was nice to see that Justin Walker from CLUELESS is still around, but this was just boring!!! I couldn't even stay with it long enough to get to the Humanoids! Sure, I could have forced myself through it, but, at a certain point, you just have to ask if you want to spend 90 minutes of your life this way.

I've seen the BUCKET OF BLOOD remake, which seems to be from the same "Roger Corman" presents series and it was far more interesting - better cast, better cinematography. Actually, though, come to think of it, I turned that one off too. Stick to the originals.

Inferior remake to a exploitation classic! Disappointment all round!

[poolandrews · 5/10 · 7 April 2006]

Humanoids from the Deep is set in the small American coastal town of 'Harbor Shores' where 'Canco Industries' cannery plant is located, lately they have been suffering from protests by environmentalist's who believe that the manager Bill Taylor (Mark Rolston) has been dumping chemicals into the sea. Bill's friend Wade Parker (Robert Carradine) confronts him about it & is given assurances that no dumping of chemicals is taking place which is a lie as Bill has been dumping a growth hormone called 'Synestin' into the sea to accelerate the growth of the fish. An attack on a group of activists leaves four missing, including Wade's daughter Kim (Danielle Weeks), & one guy named Matt (Justin Walker) talking about sea monsters which no one believes, at first that is anyway. Genetic scientist Dr. Drake (Emma Samms) shows up & tells Wade that an army experiment to create amphibious soldiers went wrong & the mutated results are now loose in Harbor Shores...

Written & directed by Jeff Yonis this was a made-for-cable TV remake of Humanoids from the Deep (1980), both were executive produced by Roger Corman. The script changes a few things & not for the better, for a start it brings in the obligatory teen cast, it cuts out all the gore, rape & exploitation from the original & introduces the clichéd army involvement & secret Government experiments as an explanation for the origins of the sea monsters, what I want to know is how Emma Samms kept a straight face as her character explained to Wade that these sea monsters are in fact death-row prisoners whose DNA had been mixed with that of a fish to try & create an amphibious soldier! This short passage of dialogue has to be heard to be believed, extremely silly & funny sounding stuff. It's a much smaller scale film, in the original it really felt like the whole town was under attack but in this there are only a few basic character's, the introduction of the army doesn't help & I just thought it was a step down from the original on every level. Having said that it moves along at a fair pace, the basic story of raping sea monsters is still the same & if you don't expect too much it provides a fair amount of fun & entertainment.

Director Yonis does a pretty decent job & it looks slightly better than the average TV film, there isn't much in the way of scares, tension, shocks or atmosphere. To save money this uses footage from the 1980 original particularly during the scene set in the funfair, it comes as no surprise that our heroes are nowhere to be seen when all the carnage is taking place as they are seemingly stuck in a funhouse as the sea monsters attack outside, this footage is badly edited into the main feature & looks out of place. The gore is severely toned down, a ripped off arm, an Alien (1979) rip-off monster birth sequence & a guy with one leg missing is about as nasty as it gets. No nudity this time either.

Technically Humanoids from the Deep is alright, it was obviously made on a low budget. The monsters themselves look like men in rubber suits because that's what they are although they don't look too bad. The acting was pretty bad.

Humanoids from the Deep the remake is not as good as the original in any way but when all said & done I thought it was OK, it certainly passed the time harmlessly enough. Probably just about worth a watch but nothing overly special.

Watchable

[Paulldavidson · 5/10 · 31 July 2020]

I have the original with Doug McClure i got the remake due to emma samms being in it

Awesome remake of original!

[singingbabies · 10/10 · 10 July 2001]

This film rocked! One of Corman's best. If you are a diehard fan of the original for its cheesy moments and gratuitous nudity, then don't watch the remake. The remake tries to put a more consistent, realistic and mature spin on the tale a la "Alien" or "Jaws"...but keeping a sense of humor about it...as evidenced by the "Rogeman Chemical Company" reference to Roger Corman himself. Well-crafted picture with Robert Carradine and Emma Samms in fine form. Mark Ralston plays a great bad guy. Move over Vic Morrow. Definitely a flick worth taking a look at.

Even evil fish-men need love, too

[bowmanblue · 6/10 · 8 June 2014]

The title kind of explains everything you need to know about this film anyway. If you can't work out what the film is about and the quality of the movie, then you need to watch more films! A small town gets more than they bargained for when someone does something or other (it doesn't really matter) that makes giant fish men come up from the depths and start trying to 'get to know' the local female population. But don't worry... a plucky band of fish-fighting men are on hand to sort out these aquatic Casanovas.

The film has a real eighties feel about it - which is odd as it was made in 1996 - the same year as sci-fi blockbuster, Independence Day. It's hard to believe that two so radically different looking films can be made at the same time (although, Humanoids From the Deep is a little more believable when it comes to plot - no fish men were killed with the help of an Apple computer).

The first half of the film is played straight, however in the second half, the mood starts to change to something a bit more tongue-in-cheek (definitely how this movie should be taken, in my opinion). Yes, it's cheesy, yes, it's daft and yes, this film will never be up there with The Godfather and Shawshank Redemption. However, it is rather silly fun and if you're a fan of eighties horror movies with men in big rubber suits trying their hand at dating human females, then you might enjoy this - definitely one of those 'guilty pleasure' films.

NB. Was it just me, or did anyone else think there were a few 'Aliens' references in this film? I won't go on about them. It might just be my imagination.

http://thewrongtreemoviereviews.blogspot.co.uk/

Emma Samms Rules!

[elaineretner · 24 January 2004]

I must say that Emma Samms shines in this film. I thought the film was tense and suspenseful, even though I typically do not like horror movies. The storyline is on the one hand silly, yet frightening at the same time. Robert Carradine and Danielle Weeks play father and daughter and have good screen chemistry. I have not seen the original picture that I see people commenting on, but found this one to be well done. Recommend.

Better Than Expected!

[filmwatcher4fun · 10/10 · 25 April 2003]

I recently watched this film, with only a vague memory of the original. I remember the original being very distasteful. However, this remake seemed far more professional in terms of its actors and the actual production. The opening scene reminded me of "Jurassic Park." Without giving anything away, creatures that are half fish and half man are loose in the waters of this small fishing town. Emma Samms plays the scientist who is there to stop the apparent killings. What ensues is a wonderful quest, where Robert Carradine, a father whose daughter goes missing, must work with the daughter's boyfriend, played by Justin Walker from "Clueless," to defeat the creatures and uncover the mystery as to why the creatures are taking all the women. Clint Howard plays a good police interrogator, and the best bad guy ever, Mark Ralston, who once raped Tim Robbins in "Shawshank Redemption," plays a great villain here, who by the end, you actually like and feel sorry for. I just saw Mark Ralston on CBS' "Hunter" movie, where he was also quite good. The direction of the actors in this "Humanoids" remake stands out too. Mainly, in terms of the quality acting and the big film feel, which on a Roger Corman picture I would think would be nearly impossible. In short, the better acting, cinematography, plot, and humor elevates this film above the first one. I recommend that those who like a good horror film check this one out.

GREAT FUN B-MOVIE & A GREAT REMAKE

[lukem-52760 · 7/10 · 30 March 2020]

First off i loved the 1980 original low-budget Horror Gem & i also totally enjoyed this 90's t.v movie remake.

There's a few good & probably better changes to the story here & this version feels cleaned-up & polished with the script, Dialogue & acting. This was made by the same Roger Corman production company that made the excellent remake of Piranha & again the quality is abit better than it's original. Now there is some footage used from the old movie just like they did with Piranha but again it's fine & doesn't look out of place or anything. The performances are good here too with a rugged turn from Robert Carradine as our main hero lead Wade Parker, a father who loses his daughter to some water mutant creatures. There's also Emma Samms as Dr.Drake who comes to the little fishing town to investigate & we have Justin Walker as Matt, a young guy who was dating Wades Daughter & is also trying to uncover a local conspiracy of Toxic waste dumping in the ocean & then there's the sort-of Bad guy Mark Rolston as Bill, (Best known as Drake from Aliens) so it's a good solid little cast in a great little creature feature. The mutant creatures look Awesome, great practical Effects & some very bloody & gory attack scenes. The music is good too & i loved the pure 90's look & cinematography & the film definitely doesn't look cheap or tacky. The events are nearly the same as the 1980 original but with just enough bits & bobs changed to better the story for the 90's & to give a bit more back story to the Monsters & some more depth to the characters just like they did with Piranhas. Makes a great Double Creature Feature with Piranhas for a fun B-movie monster night.

Not sure if it's Better than the Cult Classic original? Probably, but it's definitely a great remake & good film on it's own, thinking about it yeah it's better, especially the performances. I did like the Piranhas remake more than the Joe Dante Directed original. I loved the music score more in the 1980 original but the acting, although sometimes Cheesy as it's a 90's t.v flick, is mostly better here & the drama is upped to more serious level & this Remake feels more violent & has a fantastic "Alien" inspired chest burst scene in a local bar. This flick is so much fun. A great B-movie flick & is a better quality film than the original in it's nice 90's time Capsule way!!! Loved it.

Blows away the original!

[davidwall03 · 10/10 · 14 February 2003]

After watching the 1980 schlock version, this picture looks like a masterpiece. The updated version has a terrific sense of humor about itself. The filmmaker gets the fact that man mating with fish is inherently silly and, while delivering some genuine scares, never forgets this. "Mimic" could have learned from this picture that humor in these horror flicks is essential. This film recently aired on the CBS late movie, which is how I saw it. I'm glad I did.

"Now that we know it's monsters, case closed."

[Backlash007 · 13 August 2006]

~Spoiler~

Humanoids From the Deep is a remake of a film from 1980 that I haven't seen (yet). I can only imagine that it's better than this version. Here's the lowdown: The government (who else) has created fish men that escape and are able to survive in the ocean because of chemical dumping. Naturally, like fish men do, they like to eat people and mate with women. The only thing separating this from a Sci-fi Channel Original is the gore effects. They are nicely done and the only real stand-out of the picture. I want to say the acting caliber is better, but Robert Carradine was just in one of their crappy Sabretooth movies. Don't get me wrong, I like Robert Carradine, he's just been in some stinkers. Also showing up and slumming it are Mark Rolston (the guy was in Aliens for crying out loud) and Clint Howard (and to say this guy is slumming it should tell you something). Basically the government comes in and makes the situation worse so our band of heroes has to stop the fish men themselves. You've seen it before.

Humanoids From The Deep Is Good Fun

[lightstormermd · 10/10 · 13 August 2007]

What I like most about this remake of the schlocky, exploitative original is that this film offers an explanation for why these mutant creatures exist. Granted, the explanation is pure sci-fi, but you buy it in the context of the film. Teenagers protesting the local fishery and the father-daughter relationship are added here with nice results. It feels contemporary. The creature effects are good, and the director does a good job of keeping them in the dark, something the original did not. Robert Carradine sports a beard and actually looks like a gruff fisherman, the antithesis of his "Revenge of the Nerds" character. All in all, this picture had good drama, good dialogue, tense attack scenes, and very good comic relief. Give this one a chance. It does not disappoint. Lastly, I watched the original film recently. To all those on this site that like the original "Humanoids," stop romanticizing a bad movie. You need to watch it again. It does not hold up. The remake is definitely better all around.