Review of Howard the Duck (1986) by Arturo R — 28 Feb 2012

"Lemme just pay the check and I'm outa here".

Synopsis: A cigar-chomping extraterrestrial duck named Howard is accidentally beamed to Earth and finds love with a pretty punk-rock singer. But their happiness is threatened when government officials come looking for Howard.

George Lucas has a nasty reputation among many these days of being a greedy filmmaker whom milks his most profitable franchises, I myself have thought such unkind things about the man myself. Disgruntled Star Wars fans disappointed with the result of years of waiting for a modern space adventure direct their frustration at a man they once considered a saint. But really, it's not uncommon for an artist to lose his prominence once he leaves his golden years, it's only natural. Howard The Duck may have been George Lucas' genesis of such a decline.

Unsurprisingly, the film scores low in all filmmaking categories, but what is more interesting is unlike The Star Wars trilogy which is essentially kids films, and unlike Spielberg's Raiders pictures which are generally wholesome, Howard The Duck is actually a film for adults. It's not cute, nor overly fuzzy, Howard is a cigar smoking caricature ripped straight from a early 40's film noir. And the film itself is sleazy, Howard reads playboy (eer PlayDuck) and has the hots for a Lea Thomson when she relaxes and slips into nothing but her undergarments. It's not meant for children, or at least not PROPERLY DESIGNED for children. Which leads to the ultimate question, what adult wants to watch a movie with typical genre tropes about a little person in a duck outfit. According to the box office, not many.

That being said the film does have occasional moments where it works, despite it's oddness on paper, a sensual scene between the titular avian and super cute Lea Thompson works surprisingly well, probably mostly thanks to the scene's comic angle and Lea's charisma, it's still not anything to write home about though. Also the appearance of a couple other recognizable (young) faces makes this one at least bearable, if only barely.

Filled with far too much unfunny duck-related gags, poor writing, poor direction, poor special effects, poor makeup, overlong by 35 minutes and numerous other problems, Howard The Duck may miss being a disasterpiece thanks to it's B-movie schlock, but you should still avoid it at all costs.