Nerds That Geek Movie Review: 'Swamp Thing'

​Written by John Edward Betancourt

Comic book adaptations that came out well before the current era we are all enjoying are often considered to be hit or miss ventures. We only remember the ones that  pleased audiences and are forever engrained in our minds as outright classics, such as the original Superman movie, or we recall the ones that ended up being a complete and utter disaster and are best remembered as a recommendation to our friends to avoid or enjoy ironically, like say the 1989 iteration of The Punisher.

But there other films on the market that mattered and in many ways, comic films that did an okay job of adapting their respective story have been forgotten over time, overshadowed by the good and the bad, despite the fact that they might have had elements that were actually impressive or a story that engaged and entertained. These were the movies that often times did not feature a big time and big name comic book character, and one such film in this vein recently came up in conversation, in a good way, forcing me to revisit it...1982's Swamp Thing.

Now the plot for this one was actually pretty simple. In this story we were introduced to Alec Holland, a scientist working on a project that could revolutionize the world; creating a plant/animal hybrid that can survive and thrive in just about any condition on the planet. What it could do for food alone would nearly solve the world's hunger problem, but the secret is out on his project and it leads to Holland finding himself under attack from a group led by Dr. Anton Arcane, who wants the formula for his own nefarious purposes. During the attack however, Holland is covered by his own creation and transformed into Swamp Thing, a powerful and strong being that will use its newfound strength to wrest Holland's discovery from Arcane's hands and save the love of his life in the process.

Perhaps the biggest surprise when one watches this film, is the fact that it is written and directed by horror mastermind Wes Craven and well, while one might think that Wes is out of his element, he's not. A good storyteller knows how to tell a story and his venture into the world of Swamp Thing is actually an intriguing one to say the least. For starters, that story works well, there are stakes involved and a reason for our hero to make things right in the world and quite frankly...the movie is absolutely gorgeous to look at. Craven certainly took some creative liberties to make the swamp look other-wordly and at times the movie feels as though you're watching a dream.

Yet while it seems as though I'm letting you know that this is the least Wes Craven movie ever made by Wes Craven, have no fear, there is horror here. The third act delves into the dark places we've come to expect from Wes, filled with monsters and genuinely creepy moments that only a master of horror can pull off. But in the end, this movie is more or less a special gem, one that showcases all of Craven's talents as a director and it's a fun little story about a mostly obscure DC Comics character, and surprisingly enough, this is a character that isn't currently facing a remake or reboot, meaning that one can find this film on Blu Ray or DVD and enjoy a film from a comic book era where millions of dollars weren't available to create their world, meaning that creativity...was king.

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