Swamp Thing (1982)

In the Louisiana bayous, a scientist (Ray Wise, TWIN PEAKS) and his sister (Nanette Brown) are working on the creation of a hybrid plant that incorporates an animal nucleus that will allow plant life to thrive under the harshest of conditions. Meanwhile, an evil scientist (Louis Jourdan) has plans of his own for the formula and in an attempt to steal the formula, a horrible accident occurs that turns Wise into ... Swamp Thing! Based on the DC Comics character of the same name, director Wes Craven (SCREAM) has given us an uneven horror/sci-fi film, part parody and part serious and the two parts never quite come together. The film appears to be an homage of sorts to CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON but instead of Julie Adams in a form fitting white one piece bathing suit, we get a topless Adrienne Barbeau. There's no fright, no real horror in the film though to be fair, I don't think it was ever intended to be. The Swamp Thing monster is obviously a stunt man in a tacky rubber monster suit. But while there was an innocence to the rubber suited monster in BLACK LAGOON that allowed us to buy into the story, the intentionally chintzy rubber monster only serves to remind us how much better that film was.