page_title: List of films considered the worst
section_title: Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966)
hierarchical_section_title: List of films considered the worst / 1960s / Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966)
caption_attribution_description: English: Film poster for "Manos" The Hands of Fate - Copyright 1966, Emerson Film Enterprises
context_page_description: The films listed below have been cited by a variety of notable critics in varying media sources as being among the worst films ever made. Examples of such sources include Metacritic, Roger Ebert's list of most-hated films, The Golden Turkey Awards, Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide, Rotten Tomatoes, the Stinkers Bad Movie Awards, the cult TV series Mystery Science Theater 3000, the cult webseries The Cinema Snob and the Golden Raspberry Awards. Films on these lists are generally feature-length films that are commercial/artistic in nature, professionally or independently produced, and released in theaters, then on television, or more recently through on-demand streaming services.
context_section_description: The low-budget horror film Manos: The Hands of Fate, made by El Paso insurance and fertilizer salesman Hal P. Warren, concerns a vacationing family kidnapped by a polygamous cult of pagans. The film was conceived after Warren bet Academy Award-winning screenwriter Stirling Silliphant that anyone could make a horror movie. Warren was convinced by the film's cinematographer and stunt coordinator that most of its glaring mistakes could be fixed in a Dallas post-production studio, when in reality the two wanted to quickly wrap the production because they were not being paid. Several technical gaffes made it into the film, including scenes filmed out of focus, a marking slate being seen in one shot, the scarf on the female lead's head disappearing and reappearing, and an insect bumping the camera lens. The film was shot with a camera that could not record sound and had a 32-second maximum shot length. All dialogue was later dubbed by Warren and four others, including a grown woman who dubbed the voice for a seven-year-old girl. It opens with a nine-minute driving scene that the filmmakers intended to use for cast and crew credits, but failed to do so. The movie includes dialogue spoken while all characters are facing away from the camera, a character complaining about it getting dark while the sun is brightly shining, and the character Torgo, a satyr with overly large thighs, that three women attempt to massage to death. The film gained notoriety and cult popularity by being featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000, and was the show's most popular episode. The film has a 7% on Rotten Tomatoes, and Entertainment Weekly says the movie is "widely regarded as, quite simply, the worst movie ever made". Even Warren himself would later admit his film was one of the worst ever, suggesting it might make a passable comedy if redubbed. The film was later restored and released on Blu-ray in 2015.
caption: Manos: The Hands of Fate was Mystery Science Theater 3000's most popular episode.
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