Man-Made Monster
Release date: 1941-03-28
Votes: 38
Genres: Horror, Science Fiction
Mad scientist turns a man into an electrically-controlled monster to do his bidding.
Reviews
John Chard
Dynamo Dan: The Electric Man. Man Made Monster is directed by George Waggner and stars Lionel Atwill, Lon Chaney Jr & Anne Nagel. It's adapted from an original story titled "The Electric Man" which is co-written by H.J. Essex, Sid Schwartz & Len Golos. It is notable for being the first horror venture for Chaney Jr who would make his signature horror movie "The Wolf Man" the same year. Plot sees Chaney as "Big Dan" McCormick, the sole survivor of an electric train wreck. That all the other passengers were killed by electrocution fascinates the sci-fi boffins, particularly diabolic Dr. Paul Rigas (Atwill), who coerces Dan into a series of tests. The outcome of which will spell disaster as Dan absorbs huge levels of electricity and becomes immune to it. Soon Dan will become the unstoppable Electric Man. Universal's "Man Made Monster" has no pretence what so ever, it is what it is, a short sharp shock shocker that plugs itself into the mains and lights up the screen for the 1 hour running time. Which in the case of the excellent Chaney Jr is actually the case, as he is transformed into a hulking, walking light bulb head that garners sympathy in the way that Universal's other man made monster did. The photography (Elwood Bredell) is moody and atmospheric, Hans J. Salter's musical score delightfully oozes familiar Universal values, while Waggner and his team, when one considers the short running time, do very good work on the characterisations - with Atwill given full license to be bonkers - real bonkers... It's all very conventional in the grand scheme of Universal horror. Monster elicits sympathy, a foxy lady in the mix (Nagel), mad scientist, dashing hero type (Frank Albertson) and here we even have the intelligent pet. There's some smarts in the writing as the makers observe capital punishment and note man messing with things he probably shouldn't be. But really just don't go too deep with it and enjoy a solid little chiller that's boosted by John Fulton's first rate special effects. 7/10
Movie Recommendation
Footprints on the Moon1975-02-01Alice, a young translator, finds the real world slowly merging with her recurring nightmares as she tries to solve the puzzle of her recent memory loss. A postcard leads her to the island of Garma where the locals seems to know her. Is she who she thinks she is? And what significance does her dream of an astronaut abandoned on the moon have?More...
Night Key1937-04-18The inventor of a new top-of-the-line burglar alarm system is kidnapped by a gang in order to get him to help them commit robberies.More...
Race to the Summit2023-10-04Fearless alpine climbers Ueli Steck and Dani Arnold enter into a death-defying rivalry to set speed records on the Swiss Alps' great north faces.More...
Husbands1970-12-08A common friend's sudden death brings three men, married with children, to reconsider their lives and ultimately leave the country together. But mindless enthusiasm for regained freedom will be short-lived.More...
Remember2022-10-26Pil-ju, an Alzheimer's patient in his 80s, who lost all his family during the Japanese colonial era, and devotes his lifelong revenge before his memories disappear, and a young man in his 20s who helps him.More...
Space Buddies2009-02-02B-Dawg, Mudbud, Budderball, and all the rest of the Buddies are back, but this time, they're setting their sights even higher -- as in, the moon! With the help of their new pals Spudnick (voiced by Jason Earles) and Gravity, these pooches are go for launch. But to pull off their moon landing and make it home safely, our canine heroes will have to summon all their bravery and imagination...More...
Parasyte: Part 22015-04-25Humanity is under attack by human-mimicking flesh-eating alien parasites. One parasite bonds with his young high school student host, and he convinces the parasite to help him stop the others.More...
Holy Cow2024-12-11After the tragic death of his father, 18-year-old Totone must look after his younger sister and their failing family farm. He assumes even more responsibility when he enters a cash competition for the best Comté cheese made in the western part of the French Alps.More...
Flashback2020-10-08Frederick Fitzell is living his best life—until he starts having horrific visions of Cindy, a girl who vanished in high school. After reaching out to old friends with whom he used to take a mystery drug called Mercury, Fredrick realizes the only way to stop the visions lies deep within his own memories, so he embarks on a terrifying mental odyssey to learn the truth.More...
Hardcore1979-02-09A conservative Midwest businessman ventures into the sordid underworld of pornography in search of his runaway teenage daughter who’s making hardcore films in the pits of Los Angeles.More...
The Stranger2022-10-06Two strangers strike up a conversation on a long journey. One is a suspect in an unsolved missing person’s case and the other an undercover operative on his trail. Their uneasy friendship becomes the core of this tightly wrought thriller, which is based on the true story of one of the largest investigations and undercover operations in Australia.More...
Secrets of Palace coup d'etat. Russia, 18th century. Film №1. Testament Emperor2000-07-01Russia, January 25, 1725. "Give it all...". The emperor's weakening hand was able to write in his will only these two short incomprehensible words that kept Russia in a bloody struggle for the crown for a century.More...
Hunted2021-02-03A woman flees two serial killers who are hot on her heels in a forest.More...
George and A.J.2009-11-10George & A.J. is a short film created by Pixar which uses characters from the film Up to tell what Nurses George and A.J. did after Carl Fredricksen left with his house tied to balloons in the feature film.More...
The Apology2022-12-16Twenty years after the disappearance of her daughter, a recovering alcoholic is preparing to host her family's Christmas celebration when her estranged ex-brother-in-law arrives unannounced, bearing nostalgic gifts and a heavy secret.More...
122010-01-0112, is a comic parody about an office's obsession with the television show 24 as the their obsessions kick into high gear with the shows season finale approaching. Part The Office part 24, the short film mash-up introduces a novel send-up of these pop culture staples.More...
Vincent Must Die2023-11-15Vincent finds himself under attack for no apparent reason overnight. When the phenomenon intensifies, he must run and change his way of life completely.More...
Red Rocket2021-12-10Finding himself down and out in Los Angeles, former porn star Mikey Saber decides to crawl back to his hometown of Texas City, Texas, where his estranged wife and mother-in-law are living. Just as this dysfunctional family seems to be making things work, Mikey meets a young woman named Strawberry working the cash register at a local doughnut shop.More...
Borgo2024-04-17Melissa is an experienced, exemplary prison guard. But a dangerous spiral is set into motion when she transfers to a Corsican jail, where she accepts help and protection from inmate Saveriu to get her bearings. Upon his release, he contacts Melissa expecting to collect.More...
The Taste of Others2000-03-01Unpolished and ultra-pragmatic industrialist Jean-Jacques Castella reluctantly attends Racine's tragedy "Berenice" in order to see his niece play a bit part. He is taken with the play's strangely familiar-looking leading lady Clara Devaux. During the course of the show, Castella soon remembers that he once hired and then promptly fired the actress as an English language tutor. He immediately goes out and signs up for language lessons. Thinking that he is nothing but an ill-tempered philistine with bad taste, Clara rejects him until Castella charms her off her feet.More...
Similar Movies
Nosferatu
1922-02-16The mysterious Count Orlok summons Thomas Hutter to his remote Transylvanian castle in the mountains. The eerie Orlok seeks to buy a house near Hutter and his wife, Ellen. After Orlok reveals his vampire nature, Hutter struggles to escape the castle, knowing that Ellen is in grave danger. Meanwhile Orlok's servant, Knock, prepares for his master to arrive at his new home.Contact
1997-07-11A radio astronomer receives the first extraterrestrial radio signal ever picked up on Earth. As the world powers scramble to decipher the message and decide upon a course of action, she must make some difficult decisions between her beliefs, the truth, and reality.As Above, So Below
2014-08-14When a team of explorers ventures into the uncharted maze of bones that lies beneath the streets of Paris, they embark on a journey into madness and terror.Psycho
1960-06-22When larcenous real estate clerk Marion Crane goes on the lam with a wad of cash and hopes of starting a new life, she ends up at the notorious Bates Motel, where manager Norman Bates cares for his housebound mother.Next Door
2005-03-11After Ingrid leaves John, he allows himself to be pulled into a mystical and scary world where it is impossible to separate truth from lies.Frenzy
1972-05-25London is terrorized by a vicious sex killer known as The Necktie Murderer. Following the brutal slaying of his ex-wife, down-on-his-luck Richard Blaney is suspected by the police of being the killer. He goes on the run, determined to prove his innocence.Angel Heart
1987-03-06A down-and-out Brooklyn detective is hired to track down a singer on an odyssey that will take him through the desperate streets of Harlem, the smoke-filled jazz clubs of New Orleans, and the swamps of Louisiana and its seedy underworld of voodoo.THX 1138
1971-03-11People in the future live in a totalitarian society. A technician named THX 1138 lives a mundane life between work and taking a controlled consumption of drugs that the government uses to make puppets out of people. As THX is without drugs for the first time he has feelings for a woman and they start a secret relationship.Wait Until Dark
1967-10-26After a flight back home, Sam Hendrix returns with a doll he innocently acquired along the way. As it turns out, the doll is actually stuffed with heroin, and a group of criminals led by the ruthless Roat has followed Hendrix back to his place to retrieve it. When Hendrix leaves for business, the crooks make their move -- and find his blind wife, Susy, alone in the apartment. Soon, a life-threatening game begins between Susy and the thugs.Seed of Chucky
2004-11-12This time around, Chucky and his homicidal honey, Tiffany, are brought back to life by their orphan offspring, Glen. Then the horror goes Hollywood as Chucky unleashes his own brand of murderous mayhem!Psycho
1998-12-04A young female embezzler arrives at the Bates Motel, which has terrible secrets of its own.Freddy's Dead: The Fi...
1991-09-05Just when you thought it was safe to sleep, Freddy Krueger returns in this sixth installment of the Nightmare on Elm Street films, as psychologist Maggie Burroughs, tormented by recurring nightmares, meets a patient with the same horrific dreams. Their quest for answers leads to a certain house on Elm Street -- where the nightmares become reality.The Howling
1981-01-21After a bizarre and near fatal encounter with a serial killer, a newswoman is sent to a rehabilitation center whose inhabitants may not be what they seem.Hardware
1990-09-14Mark 13 is a government-built killing machine programmed with artificial intelligence, able to repair and recharge itself from any energy source. Through a series of coincidences, the cyborg's head ends up in the home of a sculptress as a bizarre Christmas present from her boyfriend. Once inside its new home, the cyborg promptly reconstructs the rest of its body using a variety of household utensils and proceeds to go on a murderous rampage.Re-Animator
1985-10-18Conducting clandestine experiments within the morgue at Miskatonic University, scientist Herbert West reveals to a fellow graduate student his groundbreaking work concerning the re-animation of fresh corpses.The Devil's Rejects
2005-07-22The murderous, backwoods Firefly family take to the road to escape the vengeful Sheriff Wydell, who is not afraid of being as ruthless as his target.Inland Empire
2006-12-06As a Hollywood actress begins to adopt the persona of her character in a film, her world becomes nightmarish and surreal.Frankenstein
1973-01-16A scientist obsessed with creating life steals body parts to put together his "creation." Released as a feature on video, this was originally shown in two installments on TV as part of the Wide World of Entertainment series.Bud Abbott and Lou Co...
1948-06-15Baggage handlers Bud and Lou accidentally stumble upon Frankenstein's Monster, Dracula and the Wolf Man.The Ghost of Frankens...
1942-03-13Frankenstein's unscrupulous colleague, Dr. Bohmer, plans to transplant Ygor's brain so he can rule the world using the monster's body, but the plan goes sour when he turns malevolent and goes on a rampage.