Howard the Duck

Plot synopsis:
27-year-old Howard the Duck lives on Duckworld, a planet similar to Earth, but inhabited by anthropomorphic ducks and orbited by twin moons. As he is reading the latest issue of Playduck magazine, his armchair begins to quake violently and propels him out of his apartment building and into outer space; Howard eventually lands on Earth, in Cleveland, Ohio. Upon arriving, Howard encounters a woman being attacked by thugs. He defeats them using a unique style of martial arts. After the thugs flee, the woman introduces herself as Beverly Switzler, and decides to take Howard to her apartment and let him spend the night. The following day, Beverly takes Howard to Phil Blumbertt, a scientist who Beverly hopes can help Howard return to his world. After Phil is revealed to be only a janitor, Howard resigns himself to life on Earth and rejects Beverly's aid. He soon applies for a job as a janitor at a local romance spa. Howard soon quits and rejoins Beverly, who plays in a band called Cherry Bomb. At the club where Cherry Bomb is performing, Howard comes across their manager, and confronts him when he insults the band. A fight breaks out, in which Howard is victorious.
Howard rejoins Beverly backstage after the band's performance and accompanies her back to her apartment, where Beverly persuades him to be the band's new manager. The two begin to flirt, but they are interrupted by Blumburtt and two of his colleagues, who reveal that a laser spectroscope they were inventing was aimed at Howard's planet and transported him to Earth when it was activated. They theorize that Howard can be sent back to his world through a reversal of this same process. Upon their arrival at the laboratory, the laser spectroscope malfunctions when it is activated, raising the possibility of something else being transported to Earth. At this point, Dr. Walter Jenning is possessed by a life form from a distant region of space. When they visit a diner, the creature introduces itself as a "Dark Overlord of the Universe" and demonstrates its developing mental powers by destroying table utensils and condiments. A fight ensues when a group of truckers in the diner begins to insult Howard. Howard is captured and is almost killed by the diner chef, but the Dark Overlord destroys the diner and escapes with Beverly.
Howard locates Phil, who is arrested for his presence at the laboratory with no security clearance. After they escape, they discover an ultralight aircraft, which they use to search for the Dark Overlord and Beverly. At the laboratory, the Dark Overlord ties Beverly down to a metal bed and plans to transfer another one of his kind into her body with the dimension machine. Howard and Phil arrive and apparently destroy the Dark Overlord with an experimental "neutron disintegrator". However, the creature has only been forced out of Jenning's body. The Dark Overlord reveals its true form at this point. Howard fires the neutron disintegrator at the hideous beast, obliterating it. He then destroys the laser spectroscope, preventing more Dark Overlords from arriving on Earth, but also ruining Howard's only chance of returning to his planet. Howard then becomes Beverly's manager, hires Phil as an employee on her tour, and plays guitar with Beverly on stage.

Tags: cult, alternate reality, action, entertaining

Review:
Considered one of the most notorious box-office flops in history (next to the 'Road to Morocco'-ripoff 'Ishtar' with Dustin Hoffman and Warren Beatty the following year), 'Howard the Duck' became the laughing stock of critics and movie-goers alike when it was released in theaters in 1986.
But it is now that a film of such poor quality can be truly appreciated.Here's how it all goes down: You are dropped onto a planet from a far-away universe, where ducks are human-like and are running the world, only to be pulled out again moments later.
Duck!Although George Lucas got ripped apart for having his hands in this one, I have yet to see a movie that is so awful, so terribly bad that I have been brought to tears crying at simply recalling scenes from this flick.
HOWARD THE DUCK is one of those movies you have to see to believe.A whopping boondoggle of sheer notoriety that replaced HEAVEN'S GATE as The Most Embarrassing Miscalculation In Hollywood History, this flick immediately humanized George Lucas; it proved that even he could make a bomb.
I'm going to attempt to both be fair and to express my opinion of it at the same time, mainly because I know that there *are* some folks out there who enjoy it for various reasons.I'll be honest with you, the moment I heard Lucas was doing this film months in advance (and even then I was convinced the guy telling me was kidding until I saw an article for it in the paper), I rolled my eyes with disgust and didn't see it in the theatres.
So, naturally, I wanted to see this one because I learned of her involvement in it after the fact.Most people loathe this film, but some like it simply because it's *so* weird in its badness while others genuinely love it for whatever reason.
We tried to watch it a second time, though, and were bored by it half the way through.I just now saw it again for the first time since then.One of the most bizarre things about this movie is how cheap it looks.
Howard the Duck is a film that I grew up with, I was only a 1 year old when it was released, but my mom and I would watch it together all the time.
I think people take the movie too seriously, first off look at the title, if you're expecting a duck to deliver an Oscar worth performance, get your head checked, second people make fun of the "flirting" between the duck and Lea Thompson, which was meant to be a joke, not real.
If you wanna know what the movie is about, read on before you see the movie so you can get a good idea and judge for yourself.The film begins late at night in "Duckworld," which is a version of planet Earth, but with talking ducks living there in place of human beings.
Inside the Diner, the Overlord explains his attempts to call forth his fellow aliens from the Nexus of Sominus so that they may take over the world.Honestly, yeah the plot is a bit much to grasp, but cut the movie some slack, it's about a duck for goodness' sake!
At a time when most of Marvel Comics' characters were stuck in low budget TV and straight-to-video productions, Steve Gerber's relatively obscure Howard the Duck got the big budget treatment with none other than George Lucas as producer.
Although other films lost more money and got worse reviews, the name "Howard the Duck" is still synonymous with "expensive turkey".That said, the movie itself isn't as bad as it's reputation suggests.
There he befriends an aspiring rock singer (Leah Thompson) and a kooky lab assistant (Tim Robbins), and comes into conflict with various lowlifes, the police, and an evil demon that has possessed the body of a helpful scientist (Jeffrey Jones), all the while trying to get back home.Gerber's original comic book series and a subsequent adult-oriented magazine weren't kids' stuff.
The "Howard the Duck" movie could have either toned down the more adult situations to create a family-friendly action-comedy, or gone straight for ribald satire and gotten an "R" rating.
The demonic Dark Lords of the Universe at the end of the film are portrayed with stop motion animation that is jerky and unrealistic even for the time (perhaps this was intentional, though, to provide a B-movie feel).
However, while a bad movie all around, "Howard the Duck" at least stands out for its unique premise.
Overall, I consider Howard the Duck perhaps the most unappreciated film of all time, and one the greatest B-movies ever.
But since it was a rather eccentric family comedy (an easy target) and one of the first films to significantly under-perform at the domestic box office (George Lucas expected the returns to be astronomical) it became a scapegoat for bad studio spending and taste.I guess that the world needs something or someone to blame when pop culture goes wrong and the jackass critics I mentioned already seized upon Howard's failings to make a name for themselves.
The comic-book stories are the most surreal, archaic and satirical I have ever read and it's a shame that they had to tone it down for the movie, but that's to be expected.As an ordinary duck working for an advertising company on his home planet of Duckworld, Howard is blasted across the universe right out of his living room by an experimental laser developed by Dr. Jenning (Jeffrey Jones).
What I particularly like about the HTD movie is how most people seem to be completely at ease at talking to a humanoid bird.Some of the fairer critics claimed that the film might have been a bigger hit if they had used CGI or traditional animation to bring Howard to life, but I must disagree.
However, while it is not a very good film, I feel "Howard the Duck" is not nearly as bad as many people seem to believe.How can you dislike a film about a midget duck from another planet who (with the help of Lea Thompson and her gigantic '80s hair) saves Earth from impending doom?
It is by no means classic cinema, but if you are in the right frame of mind, it is very fun to watch.And don't miss the musical number at the end, when Howard and the cast do the "duck waddle"!.
The same thing must have happened when Lucas (or whoever) went to screenwriters Huyck and Katz and asked them to do a treatment of Gerber's "Howard the Duck" strip.
Lots of other movies from this era have better (or worse) special effects and are more worth watching.To be brief, everything you heard about 'Howard the Duck' is true.
Along comes executive producer George Lucas, who strips away every single thing that provided Howard with character, and makes him nice; worse he makes him cute.
If that weren't bad enough, the film has Howard and the Lea Thompson character engaging in post-sex afterglow --- thus advocating human with animal sex and spitting on the Judeo Christian ethic, for the sake of an unfunny site gag.
Sure, "Howard the Duck" can be ridiculous at parts, but not quite as ridiculous as someone who comments that the film was "so terribly bad that I have been brought to tears crying at simply recalling scenes from this flick." Some people need to grow up.Speaking of growing up, I haven't seen this film since I was an adolescent.
Nearly twenty years later, I finally found it again and sat down with great excitement to see this "awesome film" that I remembered having watched countless of times while young.So, did I have the typically disappointing experience that usually accompanies such a visit to the past?
I will skip the plot, since it has been said here so many times already.What struck me the most about the film when watching it as a jaded adult were a few things.First of all, the whole sexual innuendo between Howard and Beverly happens incredibly fast.
In conclusion, then, we have a funny, corny 80s movie about a duck who comes to save us, with the second half's chase scene becoming slightly tedious, and a great ending.
I guess some people are desperate for self-elevation."Howard the Duck" is a great film to watch with family or friends, when you are in the mood for something lighthearted and fun.Recommended!.
He was hot off the original Star Wars trilogy at the time and the studio must have figured anything he touched would turn to gold.This is also one of those movies that make you wonder, "What was the CWRU Film Society (organizers of the Marathon) thinking?"  I guess they showed the film because it is set in Cleveland, Ohio where the annual Marathon takes place.
Those films aren't terrible, but everything Lucas has done since this film has been astronomically worse, and if you thought the new Indiana Jones movie or Episode I were pretty cool, don't watch this.
But it's not cool to like this one just yet.Howard the Duck is one of my favorite films.
(Judging from its famously-meager box office take, I was one of only a few dozen who did the same.) In the 20 years since, HOWARD has gone down in Hollywood history as one of the most expensive movie bombs EVER and it is generally looked down upon by "serious" film fans.
It had everything: a talking duck for a hero, gigantic Dark Overlords from outer space, crashes, explosions, endless duck puns, remarkably decent special effects (most of which still hold up today), bad '80s synth-rock songs, and Lea Thompson at her most gorgeous in the role of Beverly Switzer, punk rocker and Duck-o-philiac.
if you watch her infamous tender love scene with Howard in which she's wearing only her underwear and you DON'T fall immediately in love with her, there's something seriously wrong with you!), nor would I say "Hey, there's Phil Blumburtt!" every time I see Tim Robbins in another movie.
And another thing that disturbs me about this movie, the almost sex scene between Beverly and Howard the Duck.
Anyhow, I'm here to warn you to run (not walk but run) away from this piece of garbage, unless you want to create a low point in your life that you can always look back on so when something terrible happens you can say "Well, at least I'm not watching Howard the Duck!" I'm exaggerating here, but only slightly.Why am I bothering to write this?
She kept insisting the duck character was actually cute and the movie "wasn't that bad." Trust me, she was wrong.
Anyhow, when I saw her the other day for the first time in years, the first thing that popped into my mind was that she was the fool who made me see Howard the Duck.
"Howard the Duck" just might be the worst big budget movie I've ever seen.
You gotta love the big hair then - what I call, the "puff head" look.There was some good laughs in the film, even Howard's interview when he goes to the Cleveland unemployment office was hilarious!
The waitress was perfect!Dr. Jenning's (Jeffrey Jones) was a very memorable part of the film, as he did the transition from human to the Dark Overlord very well, and made me feel a bit scared, especially as his facial expressions and voice reminded me of scenes of the demon-possessed girl in, "The Exorcist", so, the thrown in lines like, "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen", were comedic relief that added more fun to the movie.
The thing that saves this movie, is the fact that if you can set aside your predermined ideas about what films should be, and walk into this film with the idea that it's stupid, silly, and just plan rediculas, then you will be amoung the first to see Howard the Duck for what it was meant to be, Fun and nothing else..
I don't' understand why people pan Howard the Duck.I think I first saw this movie when my Nan recorded it off the TV.
I was instantly intrigued, I mean, a movie with George Lucas's name attached called Howard THE DUCK???
For all you people who hate this movie, you didn't really expect Gone with the wind or The sound of music from a film about a talking alien duck did you?Sure it was cheesy as hell, and some of the jokes were just terrible but the charm it oozes comes at you in bucket loads.
When I checked out the reviews for HOWARD THE DUCK, I was flabbergasted to see that many people actually had the nerve to give this turkey of a film a 10.
You guys are all WAAAY too invested in hating something that is MEANT to be stupid, ridiculous and fun...how sad to be you, you're missing out on a hoot of a film...:)I LOVE this flick.Its the ultimate 'Bad 80's' movie, and its FUN.The acting is hammy, the writing is pure terrible GOLD, the SFX are TOP NOTCH (come ON, man...the Dark Overlord KICKS ASS!) and the score is PERFECT...you guys just don't know how to have fun with a golden turkey...how sad.Im betting the majority of the posters here don't get asked to parties much.K. Transported.
Lea Thompson is sexy (who can forget her panty scene in this film) as a derivative rocker chick, but Tim Robbins is annoying here ( who'd thunk it, he would go on to do Shawshank after this?) and it is rather shallow and coawrdly of George Lucas to stand there proud at all the Star Wars praise but removes his name from the Howard the Duck film.
Of all the movies I've seen in my 23 years, only "Howard the Duck" sticks out like a sore thumb as the absolute worst.
"Howard The Duck" is a film financed by George Lucas, and tells the story of an alien duck from a planet where ducks have advanced in much the same way as humans.
Anyway, one can easily explain why decorations are being less used nowadays - they cost millions and require some talents, while special effects cost nothing, take much less time and require someone who has never left his apartment.Now, let's talk about stupid movie stories - have you watched "Batman Begins" or "The Dark Knight"?
And instead of bashing movies like "Howard the Duck" only because its badness is a popular belief you'd better watch this movie independently of any alien opinion and decide for yourselves if you liked it or not.
And I'm sure, everyone who HAS seen this movie had found something he/she liked in it.All in all, I give "Howard the Duck" 10 stars (by modern standards, for I haven't seen a decent American movie for a few years now) for its originality, humour, acting, music scores, decorations, visuals, and most importantly - for being alive.
Having said that, this tale made me laugh more than a lot of movies have.So silly it is funny and in spite of it's box office failure, I would much rather watch this George Lucas film than the last two Star Wars films.
Humorous plot that made fun of about 100 other movies just like it (creature comes from space, and either tries to destroy the world, or save it)And who in the world could forget the famous (infamous?) bed-room scene where Howard and Beverly (played by a very young and sexy Lea Thompson) nearly took part in a very illegal activity.
It's not just that HOWARD THE DUCK is a bad movie.
and because little people move in a certain way, whenever Howard is on screen you are painfully aware that what you are watching is an effect: A dwarf in a really expensive duck costume.
A funny duck, sexy super thin chick, in-movie jokes and interesting characters you really like or hate.
I can't say anything good about this film, therefore watch GOTG if you want to be charmed, engaged by the action and special effects, laugh at a lot of funny jokes..
and who could forget the theme song apparently not the 100 napster users who have it on their hard drive (101 now).Don't compare it to films made today, and don't compare it to "citizen Cain" Just look at it as a fun 80's romp about a talking duck, and maybe if George Lucas could remove his head from his own butt for and hour and a half he'd see he removed his name from the only decent thing he ever made.9/10P.s Lea Thompson was HOT (and sweet) in this movie; I think she is still the only woman who could turn me on..
George Lucas was the executive producer and the movie cost many millions of dollars to make (and took 7 actors to play the duck, alone!), but it was one of the most poorly critically rated films of 1986 and it brought in about a third of what it cost to make.
One Howard the duck movie is enough.
Howard The Duck (1986) was another in the line of bad Marvel comic books that was badly adapted into a feature film.
But if you stop and actually listen to what the characters are saying, it sounds very much like a typical "Howard the Duck" comic book.
)However, I doubt many people even remember the movie, much less care about a defunct cult comics character.As Howard would say (with a duck accent),   "Waaauuughhh!"Three stars, not that it matters..
And I still love it, it's funny to my warped sense of humour and features great effects especially the Dark Overlord and some great set design for Duck World.Jeffrey Jones and Tim Robbins turn in great comic performances and am I the only one who thought Howard worked great.If you are reading this review and think what is this guy on, is he mad?