DVD...

Skin...

1982
Directed by: Wes Craven
Written by: Wes Craven, Len Wein
Produced by: Benjamin Melniker, Michael Uslan
Studio: Swampfilms

Starring:
Louis Jourdan .... Dr. Anton Arcane
Adrienne Barbeau .... Alice Cable
Ray Wise .... Doctor Alec Holland
David Hess .... Ferret, Arcane's Commando Leader
Nicholas Worth .... Bruno, Ferret's Henchman
Don Knight .... Harry Ritter, Holland's Chief of Security
Al Ruban .... Charlie, Holland's Assistant
Dick Durock .... Swamp Thing
Ben Bates .... Arcane Monster
Nannette Brown .... Dr. Linda Holland, Alec's Sister
Reggie Batts .... Jude

Dr. Alec Holland (Ray Wise) is a scientist/botanist deep in the swamps of Louisiana. He, along with government agent Alice Cable (Adrienne Barbeau), come up with a formula that could end world hunger forever. Little do they know that that the evil genius Arcane (Louis Jordan) is plotting to steal the formula for his own purposes.

After a raid at Dr. Holland's laboratory, he is set on fire and the serum is splashed all over him. He jumps in the swamp and disappears. Agent Cable returns to find the lab a smoldering ruin, and most of the notes for the formula missing. She gets out of there but is caught by Arcane's men (the leader is played by David Hess from "Last House on the Left"). She manages to escape and during the pursuit for her Swamp Thing makes his first appearance. He saves the day and she manages to escape and makes it to a small store run by a small boy named Jude (Reggie Batts). He helps her get out of there but they are pursued and she is caught (again) and taken to Arcane's sumptuous estate in the swamps. They use her for bate and of course Swamp Thing comes to the rescue and, of course, he is captured. Arcane's men manage to lock him up in a dungeon (a dungeon in the swamps?!) and he has an arm cut off during the struggle.

By this time Arcane has found the last notebook for the formula and has managed to duplicate it. He slips some of the formula to one of his men during a victory party and everyone watched as he turns into a midget, pig-like creature. Arcane is upset that the formula did not give the man the powers and size that Swamp Thing has and he questions him under duress. Of course the duress is agent Cable being threatened while in chains. Swamp Thing tells him that the serum amplifies the essence of whatever the person is. Of course Arcane decides to take the serum, and then, of course, turns into a hideous monster.

Swamp Thing and Cable escape from the dungeon out to the swamp and Arcane, in his new monster persona, follows them. The battle of good vs. evil comes to a predictable end Swamp Thing says goodbye to Cable and walks out to where he now belongs, the swamp. Yawn. Okay, there were some okay special effects like when Arcane transforms into the monster he truly was, and watching Adrienne Barbeau bounce around the screen certainly didn't hurt. But the best character in the film, and who certainly had and delivered the best lines, was the character played by Reggie Batts, Jude. His dry, deadpan delivery of them was quite something and almost makes the movie. As far as I can tell this is the only film he was ever in.

The dvd is somewhat infamous in that it was mistakenly released as PG even though it contains a very naked Adrienne Barbeau bathing in the swamp. There is also a party scene in the movie where a couple girls take their tops off. These scenes were in the European theatrical release only, they were not shown in theaters or on video in the U.S. The limited number of copies of the dvd that were sold before the "PG" mistake was discovered and the dvd recalled back to MGM, are now quite collectable and rare. It is a two sided disk in both 1:85.1 and fullscreen formats. The only extra is a single trailer. The sound and video are fine with no complaints.

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