Mandrake and Sitting on the Fence: A Movie Review

Director: Tripp Reed.

Writer: David Ray.

From the creators of the upcoming Ice Quake and Mega Cyclone comes the human-eating Mandrake. This SyFy Original premiered in early April, with a future showing in May and this production follows a research team into the jungles of Central America. Here, actors Nick Gomez, Max Martini, and Wayne Pere play anthropologists in search of an ancient, yet cursed, dagger. Soon, the mandrake, normally a poisonous plant, is released and viewers might be searching for something unique in this SyFy Original; this reviewer had to dig deep (get it) to find its uniqueness. A killing bush, the inclusion of two, possibly three villains, and the talk of Conquistador curses creates some of the thrills in this relatively action packed film adventure.

The real mandrake root is actually very poisonous and according to ancient legend, those who unearth the mandrake are soon to hear its cry and later die. Much of the cast in Mandrake find this myth to be true, with more than 3/4 of the characters wiped out by a thirty foot plant - who has a temper. The CGI effects of the root are saved for the end, while its many limbs seek out local jungle dwellers during much of the film. Few production companies will take on plant warfare, but this is no Little Shop of Horrors and Mandrake just does not bear much fruit.

However, Benito Martinez (Saw) as Varga competes with this plant, which really looks like a tree, for best villain. Local Yamballi Tribesmen also fight for screen time, as they sacrifice local archealogists to the great god of the jungle. After awhile, you realize that there might be a little too much going on in Tripp Reed's (Rapid Exchange) latest production. But SyFy Originals tend to be on the ambitious side of film productions, in order to keep the pacing moving in some kind of direction. In Mandrake, almost any direction leads into the maw of a towering jungle plant.

The final element that stands out in Mandrake is all the talk of invading conquerors and ancient curses. The supernatural features lead to great lines like: "the jungle feeds on the blood of the invaders." It must be hard to say lines like these with a straight face as an actor, but the cast gets the believable tension just right. The aforementioned dagger also holds the key to de-branching the mandrake, and the knife's appearance causes conflict, as some seek answers to their ancestry in its glint, or others simply want it for its re-sale value. In the end, few characters manage to survive a sacrificing tribe, nor a jungle teeming with killer roots, or the mandrake, itself. Hopefully, viewers make it all the way to the end for the heart-stopping finale (you have to have seen it, to get this joke).

Mandrake will show again on the SyFy Network May 21st and this film is not as good as Attack of the Killer Tomatoes (1978), but the film is almost constantly action packed. The acting is believable and Mandrake can be ingested without too much strain on the frontal lobes. Maybe see this one as a build-up to another attacking vine movie from Carter Smith, called The Ruins (2008), as this film is light on horror and overall, a little hard to digest (haha, get it? mandrakes are poisonous - groan)!

Overall: 6 out of 10 (no problems in production, acting is good, no stand out actors though, action focused, with little horror, the film needed some sort of a darker edge).

Future showings of Mandrake on the SyFy Network:

Mandrake at SyFy

An excellent review of Mandrake at Dread Central, by Foy Wonder:

Mandrake Reviewed at Dread Central

This title was formerly called Unearthed and the film has been available on DVD since April 12th:



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Posted in: 2011,action adventure,action adventure movie preview,environment,fantasy,hostile planet,killer god,sacrifice,sci-fi,syfy,syfy network