One of my favorite episdoes

Like I said this is one of my favorite MST3K episodes. One things I like is when they make a funny comment but at a low volume. Like when Mike repeats "She'll my baby she'll understand", and one of the robots says: "Didn't he just say that."

A movie that deserves its reputation!
Of course, this could be said of both the original, un-riffed version of "Manos: The Hands of Fate" and the version that remained once Best Brains was done with it. Make no mistake, "Manos" is a bad, bad movie, with an asinine title ("manos" is Spanish for "hands," meaning that the title is literally "Hands: The Hands of Fate") and production values that actually make "Plan 9 From Outer Space" look semi-professional, which I say without the slightest hint of exaggeration. It's that bad. But it takes a singular genius to take a movie this tragic and make it entertaining, and that's exactly the kind of genius that Best Brains possessed. (Best Brains is the production company that produced Mystery Science Theater 3000. Of course, chances are good that if you're reading this, you know that already, but just in case, there ya go.)

The plot of the movie, such as it is, sees a man and his family traveling across the countryside; great, wide expanses of countryside, in fact, which the film presents in painful, excruciating detail. They stop to spend the night at a... motel? Bed-and-breakfast? Halfway house? The movie's not very clear on this point. Nor is it very clear on what the problem is with Torgo, the house-boy with the unimaginably hideous knees and stutter that will make your skin crawl. (The story goes that the actor who played Torgo was provided with leg prosthetics that, if worn correctly, would have given him the appearance of a satyr or minor devil, but he insisted on wearing them backwards for some unfathomable reason; and the director, apparently a little fuzzy on his job description, didn't object. The fact that he--the actor, not the director--was apparently on an unspecified number of drugs at the time probably goes a long way toward explaining it, though.) There's more, but really, what's the point? All you need to know is that, as low as the movie has sunk thus far, it somehow manages to sink even lower before the end. I won't spoil it, but I will drop another bit of trivia: The only actors who were paid for their participation were the young girl (a new bike) and the dog (a bag of kibble), a fact that will probably not surprise you once you've seen this film.

The plot of the show is even simpler: Guy and two robots watch howlingly bad movies and make fun of them.

Unfortunately, as far as the Mystery Science Theater treatment is concerned, some of the humor in this episode is a little dated; it was produced in 1993, after all, before we were given such rich comedic gold mines as OJ Simpson and the infamous blue dress. (Another episode, I think it's the one featuring "Catalina Caper," features a character who looks EXACTLY like Drew Carey, but of course since he was unknown at the time the episode was made, the resemblance is painfully ignored.) But truthfully, if you're new to the concept of Mystery Science Theater 3000, there's no better place to begin. The jokes are so non-stop that a second (and third and fourth and fifth) viewing are more or less required just to catch them all, although they do lose some of their potency toward the end--evidently, even the writers at Best Brains felt the sting of this hideous movie. I will warn you, though, that you probably don't want to let the kids watch this episode; the weird bacchanalia with the scarcely-robed dancers that erupts near the end is disturbing enough for adult viewers, let alone children.

I've babbled long enough. Buy this film. Watch the Best Brains version, then watch the uncut version (helpfully included) and see what they put themselves through for you.

"Been hitting the Thighmaster, Torgo? " . . .
This movie makes "Plan 9 From Outer Space" look like "Gone With The Wind". Gloriously bad. And the MST3K team was peaking on this one. The zingers were flying at such a pace that I had to occasionally back up and re-watch as my laughing was drowning out the action.

This incredible project was written and directed by the starring lead man, Hal Williams. It's about a family of three that takes a wrong turn and ends up at some kind of mutation of the Bates Motel set in remote desert (Hal Williams real life house??). It is ran by this quirky version of "Igor" named Torgo. Instead of a hump on his back, Torgo appears to have it on his knees. And it looks absurd. My Review title quotes Crow's initial reaction, followed by, "It's like having Joe Cocker for your bellhop". Crow was in especially rare form. I sometimes laughed to the point of discomfort.

So much material for MST to work with . . . a pair of recurring dorky cops ("Boy this is a long shift"), an equally recurring couple making out, Torgo's boss ("The Master") that keeps a harem of babes (in a 1960's sense) that get into a contrived endless wrestle-fest (maybe Hal considered this part "steamy"?), Hal outside inspecting his engine with a flashlight interminably while Torgo is inside pawing his wife, little girl inexplicably brings home a Hound of Hell (cameo for Hal's Dog?) and stands next to it while Hal opens fire with his revolver (he seems to favor 2 shot bursts and has an endless supply of ammo in it). By the way, the pistol shots, along w/ the ridiculous simulation of Hal's engine cranking, are the ONLY evidences of foley work in the film. I understand that this film was actually filmed silently (no pesky sound booms in the frame) and talked over later.

Servo , and especially Crow, were on such a roll that they were leaving Joel behind on this one. With an opening short training film produced by Chevrolet on "sales leadership", this video is a Roman feast of comedy. This film belongs on the short list of Mystery Science Theater's best.

COULD BE THE WORST MOVIE OF ALL TIME! THIS IS WHY WE NEED JOEL & THE BOTS
This is a horrible movie on every level. Forget Robot Monster,Bride of the Monster or any other film with a reputation for being really bad! None of them hold a candle to "Manos the hands of fate"! This movie moves at a glacier pace with the most inane dialogue I have ever heard! Joel and the robots can't catch their breath trying to keep the zingers flying at every opportunity. This has been re-released in the essentials two disc set with Santa Claus conquers the Martians. If you don't own this one buy the essentials as it has all the goodies included on this released and you get the Santa episode too!

Any movie that has Dr. F and TVs Frank apologizing has to be bad.
Manos: The Hands of Fate is by far the worst movie ever made and at the same time one of the funniest MST3K episodes. I am curious how this movie ever saw the light of day. It is that bad. The movie had a premiere in November of 1966 in El Paso, and actually aired in the cinemas. I know for a fact that without the Robots and Joel, I would never have made it through this movie.

The Satellite of Love does a tremendous job with this movie, with Mike dressing up as his rendition of Torgo, the half man/ half goat. I know the purpose of Mystery Science Theater is to take bad films and make something positive out of them. This truly has to be their masterpiece, because they've taken the most horrible piece of film to ever come into existance and make it into a watchable show that makes you laugh until you have tears in your eyes.

This is a true demonstration of how amazing Mystery Science Theater is. It is the ultimate demonstration of how the most horrific film can be made into something entertaining. If you are planning on losing your MST3K virginity, I don't recommend this as your first. It's a bit intense for that. I'd recommend one of the Gamera episodes or purhaps Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. Manos is a bit intense for your first MST3K experience, but a must for all who love the show.