Monster Brawl

source: Monster Brawl

Eight classic monsters fight to the death in an explosive wrestling tournament set inside an abandoned and cursed graveyard. This movie is something of a mystery. It seems to be quite bad and has virtually no plot. Yet, being fully aware of that, it never takes itself very seriously and is therefore somewhat enjoyable. It certainly was not as bad as I expected and not nearly as bad as it could have been. The real mystery is how they were able to sign on such a cast. Kevin Nash, Herb Dean and Jimmy Hart give it a sense of authentic wrestling or fighting. I did not even realize Hart was still alive. Then you have Dave Foley, horror veteran Art Hindle, and some voiceovers from Lance Henriksen that are a cross between him playing God and being the narrator from "Mortal Kombat". (The script is no stranger to video games -- a reference to King Hippo from "Punch Out" is thrown in.) Is the movie good? Heck no. But it is bad in a way where it appears almost intentional... and therefore more tolerable than other films being released these days. Certainly better than anything Charles Band has been associated with in a long time.

When i bought this movie on bluray i knew i was buying a bad movie. It is called monster brawl, so that cant be good. What i did expect is entertainment value. It also does not have that. The movie plays like an episode of pro wrestling, with an introduction of each fighter and then followed by the actual fight. The intros are of low entertainment value, but they are better acted than the fights itself. The movie is about the fights, but it is just plain silly. Bad wwf moves performed by zombies, with some use of special effects that are not spectacular or convincing. If you like fights i suggest you watch any ufc tournament. If you like monsters, watch a monster movie. Braindead if you like zombies, blade if you like vampires or the mummy if you like mummies. Just don't be tricked into buying this movie, a waste of time and the plastic the bluray was made of.

First things first, this is not your average horror/gore film. If your settling down to watch 'Monster Brawl' and expect a compelling, free flowing storyline then your going to be very disappointed. However the characters in the film are all very likable and the back-stories before each individuals matches adds fantastic character development (with the exception of Witch Bitch). This film is a must for wrestling and B-movie horror fans, who have a spare 90 minutes. Along with the some very good wrestling action; the first match is pretty poor, but the action gets better and better throughout; the film adds light humour and comedy with the brilliant commentators. "Technically its Frankensteins monster, if you want to be a dick about it." is a perfect example of the dry, sarcastic humour needed to enjoy this film. All in all a great watch, in which you really invest in the characters, and I personally didn't know who was going to win the each match. Without giving the ending away, it definitely leaves itself to at least 1 sequel if not more, which I personally welcome.

How many times have you been primed to see a well-hyped "monster brawl," only to walk away afterward feeling cheated? One of the earliest disappointments for me would have to have been FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN: after a wearying week of school, I was looking forward to Saturday night, around Midnight, when SHOCK THEATER, hosted by "The Bowman Body," promised viewers a slug-fest to end all slug-fests: Frankenstein's Monster would be going toe-to-toe with The Wolf Man. What kid worth his or her FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND collection wouldn't be fighting sleep to see THAT one...? A quarter of the way through, though, with far more talk than action, eyelids were already drooping; halfway through, they were at half mast; three-quarters of the way and the weaker members of the herd had succumbed. Those of us made of sterner stuff, who hung on to the very end... saw a quick back and forth that lasted mere moments before the castle was flooded and both combatants swept away. "The HELL...?" Sure, we lied to those who had slept through the final reel, telling them that the big brawl had been one for the ages, an epic struggle to rival the first Frazier-Ali fight. Opinions differed as to who had actually won the bout, but all were agreed that it was an epic never to be forgotten. Yeah... And then there were the GODZILLA movies, with ten or fifteen really cool minutes of giant monsters stomping Tokyo flat, padded with 90 or 100 minutes of people just sitting around talking about it. Fright filmmakers seemed to have a knack for NOT delivering the goods as promised. When first the title MONSTER BRAWL was whispered in the back alleys and dens of iniquity, interest was rekindled. Seeking out the underground caverns where such spectacles were staged, I took my seat next to a two-headed wrestler who called himself Janus and Anus and settled in for the duration. While MONSTER BRAWL would've been better served by a bit more storyline and a little less straight-laced "wrestling," the makeups are outstanding (and hold up remarkably well during the action) and the look of the movie is gorgeous. When it comes to monsters brawling and people talking about it, I guess it all really boils down to six of one or half-a-dozen of the other.

You know those movies that are so bad it's good. Well this one isn't it. It's a cool idea to have well known monsters fight in a ring. And in this case 8 but the thing is, it looks more fake than wrestling. Which would still have been alright if this movie was so darn dull. The announcers and bikini babes tries to hype the fights up. But they are just so boring to watch. It's like watching a couple of drunks from a Halloween costume party wrestling with one another. And there is almost no trademark monster moves. Or using the monster weaknesses as an advantage in a fight much. It tries to have a story by having back-story for each monsters but that is the weakest part about this movie. It's so darn boring to watch and I personally didn't care. I just wanted to see monsters throw down. If it was crazy and over the top with the fights it would have at least been watchable. The director basically is a fan of monster movies and wrestling and decided to combine the two. Without any experience and far from having enough production value. It may sound cool but this is a pass. 2/10

I loved this movie! Before watching Monster Brawl, I had an idea of what this movie would be. I thought it would be a cheesy B-movie with fun subject matter. I was right! The movie is about 8 monsters who go head-to-head in a fight to the death in a professional wrestling style tournament. It was sure to have its laughs, it's corny-ness, and while being on a $200,000 budget, was sure to have its technical deficiencies. But that is expected. If you can look past these things and just enjoy the movie for what it is, it is a real crowd pleaser! Two of the actors, Kevin Nash and Robert Maillet are both professional wrestlers who have been in the business for a long time. SPOILER! And the ending is a great testament to these 2 guys for a movie like this! Head to Head! Like I said, I love this movie because I never wore rose-colored-glasses, or had high expectations. I accept it for what it is, and I can simply enjoy the movie for the fun of it. Don't spend your time with critique. It will ruin the experience for you. But if you are in the mood for just an awesome bad movie, this is it!

This is really a tough one to review because there isn't really any actual acting in it, it's all about wrestling. So if you are a horror geek and you come across this flick and see all those horror creatures fighting against each other then you expect to have a gory flick. But it's all done ringside which basically turns it back into a real wrestling flick because the monsters are in fact wrestlers. But don't think that you will see some cage fight between Randy Orton or John Cena. There aren't any WWE icons here to see, some old school WWF faces are here to see, Jimmy Hart is just playing himself with his annoying voice and Kevin Nash just plays the rough guy. This isn't Smackdown or Raw. This is just some basic wrestling, guess otherwise they had problems with the make-up. I've heard people who loved this flick but they have seen it at a convention with cheering crowds so there it is at it's place but at home it fails completely. Even as I watch WWE on a weekly basis this here doesn't deliver. Luckily they have added some gore here and there but having no script it looks rather cheap. If you can't watch wrestling then forget this flick. For horror geeks just watch it with your friends and be p*ssed an proud while watching it. A strange flick. Gore 2/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 3/5 Story 1/5 Comedy 0/5

3 1/2 Stars = Very Good It's the Monstermania version of "Wrestlemania!" It's so cheesy, it had to be filmed in Wisconsin, but set in Michigan. I suppose they make cheese too, but I wouldn't want to eat it. It's so stupid, it's hilarious, at least at times. It's so bad, it's good! Yes, it's "Monster Brawl!" The movie you've been waiting all your life to see! The movie that pits "Creature," against "Creature!" "The Undead," against "the Undead!" Even in two weight classes! Middle weight & heavy weight! But wait, there's more! The winners of their weight class & division are pitted against the winners of the other division, so we have get two world championship matches! "Creature" vs. "the Undead!" Heavy weight vs. heavy weight. Middle weight vs. middle weight. Oh the horror, the agony, the ecstasy! The gooey dripping cheese from my flat screen! All jokes aside, this is a fairly clever monster bash. The makers of this film intended it to be so bad, it's good, & their good at doing it! No, this is no classic creature feature, but it's a great idea that I'm surprised has not been done before. It lampoons professional wrestling & movies like, "Godzilla vs. King Kong" & "Frankenstein meets the Wolfman, & current film series, like "Underworld" & "Twilight." Yes, the film makers have an agenda here, & it works a good part of the time, to induce a good belly laugh or two. Their are basically four segments' of this film. You get a little biography on each monster before a match, but unfortunately, more than not, this is pretty weak, only inducing a smile or two. More because of it's total corniness, than any genuine laughs. You have the two wrestling commentators, a big wink at the WWF & WWE, this works better, but not by much, other than when the matches are happening, which works well. In a bigger wink, you get Jimmy Hart, "the Mouth of the South" with two hot vixens in bikinis. This is very corny too, but works in the context of things. Then you get the matches, which are frankly, hilarious! The monster's make up, suitably cheesy for this cheesiest of films. The cheese is running hot! I mean, you got to take this all in context as it was meant to be taken. The matches are down right funny in their lampooning silliness, along with the commentators yakking it up, makes for a lot of fun! Of course, the makers could've went the straight route, but that in it's self could've been a real cheese fest (especially with their low budget), unintended & no fun. So take "Monster Brawl" in the context it is meant to be, pop a beer, eats some potato chips, & have some fun with it! I did!

I am a fan of old school wrestling, horror and splatter films, low rent makeup films and old school monster movies... This movie fails all of these genres. This could have been mildly entertaining as a 30-minute show. It was stretched out to feature length film and we are all the worse for it. How they got Dave Foley is perplexing, he must be hard up for work. I would suggest that anybody who rated this film higher than a 5 worked on the film, and anyone who rated it higher than a 3 is related to someone who worked on this film. so many missed opportunities in this movie. that is the biggest shame. Skip it and watch Bud Abbott Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040068/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1 the effects are better, the fear believable, and the laughs are legit.