WhileThe Mangleris not remotely scary, theStephen Kingadaptation is one of the most enjoyable guilty pleasures in star Robert Englund’s long screen CV. Numerous short stories have been adapted to the screen from legendary horror authorStephen King’s debut short story collectionNight Shift. Some of these adaptations, like 1984’sChildren of the Cornand 1991’sSometimes They Come Back, went on to spawn franchises of their own. Others became podcasts, like “Strawberry Spring,” or in-name-only adaptations like 1992’sThe Lawnmower Man.
However, few have a reputation as ignominious as 1995’sThe Mangler.The Manglerhad a lot going for it. Directed byThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre’s Tobe Hooper, the movie adaptation was based on King’s story and starredA Nightmare On Elm Street’s Robert Englundas its villain andThe Silence of The Lambs’ breakout star Ted Levine as its antihero. However, the story of a possessed laundry press was already faintly ridiculous when it was limited to King’s brief, blackly comic horror story. Its movie adaptation did not help matters.
The Mangler Is A Great Guilty Pleasure For Horror Movie Fans
1995’s Stephen King Adaptation Isn’t Scary But It Is Hilarious
The Mangleris a genuinely hilarious viewing experience for horror fans, even if it isn’t remotely scary. The original story has the grain of an interesting idea at its core, although it is tough to make a killer laundry press seem scary. The most compelling idea in “The Mangler” is that, although the employees of Blue Ribbon Laundry may know the mangler is a murderous, cursed object, they are trapped by their low wages and forced to continue working for their tyrannical employer regardless.
Unfortunately, Hooper’s movie mangles this modicum of social commentary. His take onThe Manglerturns the short story into an unintentionally funny whodunit starring Levine’s dazed detective and his hammy brother-in-law Mark, who just happens to be a demonologist and an expert in the occult. AlthoughThe Manglerdoesn’t workas a horror movie, it does excel as a guilty pleasure. It is impossible not to laugh at the sight of the laundry press breaking free from its moorings and following the heroes into the sewers beneath the factory in the wild finale.
The Mangler’s Sequels Aren’t As Much Fun As The First Movie
Meanwhile, the sight of Levine constantly gulping down antacids while England provides a performance that makes the most overblownNightmare On Elm Streetsequels seem subtle makesThe Manglera genuinely fun watch. As a horror fan’s guilty pleasure, the adaptation balances laughably self-serious moments with a winking sense of black humor that makes Hooper’s adaptation almost feel like a straight-faced self-parody. Unfortunately, its sequels failed to strike the same balance.
The Mangler 2 is about a killer computer virus, while 2005’s The Mangler Reborn brings back the original machine but fails to do anything fun with it.
AlthoughThe Mangler’s sequelsshare the movie’s title, viewers shouldn’t expect too much in the way of continuity.The Mangler 2is about a killer computer virus, while 2005’sThe Mangler Rebornbrings back the original machine but fails to do anything fun with it. As such, the sequels to Robert Englund’s critically pannedStephen Kingadaptation are just as bad asThe Mangler, but nowhere near as unintentionally fun.
