My boyfriend always used to tell me his favourite film was 'Howard the Duck'. "I wish you could see it," he said. "I saw it back in the 80s, and it's brilliant." So when I noticed that 'Howard the Duck' had come out on DVD, I jumped at the chance to buy it for my boyfriend for his birthday. He could hardly wait to see it. His excitement was full-on. So I popped the movie in the DVD player and we sat down to watch it...

Soon after that, even before the film was halfway over, his apologies began. "I'm sorry," he said. "I'm really very sorry. I remember it being better than this. I'm so sorry."

In the storyline of the movie, Howard got sucked into our world from a parallel universe. Simultaneously, I got sucked into watching a very bad movie and losing two hours of my life which I'll never get back.

Every character in this movie was an idiotic, clumsy jerk, except maybe for the heroine of the piece, who was gorgeous yet inanely stupid. How the heck is anyone supposed to like a movie when all the characters are just so unlikeable? And the alleged plot defied my sensibilities, too. I just couldn't suspend disbelief and logic enough to believe that the events in the movie could ever have happened. Actually, I also couldn't suspend logic and disbelief enough to believe someone even made this movie, or that everyone involved in the making of it didn't change their name in the credits to 'Allan Smithee' or something, so they wouldn't have to take the blame for their work being so awful.

This movie was a total waste of a talented cast and crew, and I think that was the biggest shame of all. I blame the writer, who in a featurette on the DVD showed she was clearly still in denial about the complete trashiness of the movie when she talked about how she believed the movie only failed at the box office because it was ahead of its time, or the timing was wrong, or some such rot. I don't think she realised just how awful this film was, or that the reason why maybe some people are watching it now is for the same reason they watch old Ed Wood movies, because anything that infamously bad is going to arouse interest. Though I have to say, I would MUCH rather have been watching an Ed Wood movie than Howard the Duck. Actually, I would rather have been watching my own spleen being removed. It would have been less nauseating and painful.

I wish I had a time machine so I could go back in time and tell myself not to buy or watch this movie. Then again, perhaps I should have realised sooner how awful it would be after my boyfriend did the same thing in recommending the abysmal movie 'Young Doctors In Love' as being a brilliant movie, another faux pas he's still apologising profusely for. But I've learnt my lesson now -- he also recommended 'Joe Vs The Volcano', and I fully intend never to watch that one!
My boyfriend always used to tell me his favourite film was 'Howard the Duck'. "I wish you could see it," he said. "I saw it back in the 80s, and it's brilliant. " So when I noticed that 'Howard the Duck' had come out on DVD, I jumped at the chance to buy it for my boyfriend for his birthday. He could hardly wait to see it. His excitement was full-on. So I popped the movie in the DVD player and we sat down to watch it... Soon after that, even before the film was halfway over, his apologies began. "I'm sorry," he said. "I'm really very sorry. I remember it being better than this. I'm so sorry. "

In the storyline of the movie, Howard got sucked into our world from a parallel universe. Simultaneously, I got sucked into watching a very bad movie and losing two hours of my life which I'll never get back. Every character in this movie was an idiotic, clumsy jerk, except maybe for the heroine of the piece, who was gorgeous yet inanely stupid. How the heck is anyone supposed to like a movie when all the characters are just so unlikeable? And the alleged plot defied my sensibilities, too. I just couldn't suspend disbelief and logic enough to believe that the events in the movie could ever have happened. Actually, I also couldn't suspend logic and disbelief enough to believe someone even made this movie, or that everyone involved in the making of it didn't change their name in the credits to 'Allan Smithee' or something, so they wouldn't have to take the blame for their work being so awful. This movie was a total waste of a talented cast and crew, and I think that was the biggest shame of all. I blame the writer, who in a featurette on the DVD showed she was clearly still in denial about the complete trashiness of the movie when she talked about how she believed the movie only failed at the box office because it was ahead of its time, or the timing was wrong, or some such rot. I don't think she realised just how awful this film was, or that the reason why maybe some people are watching it now is for the same reason they watch old Ed Wood movies, because anything that infamously bad is going to arouse interest. Though I have to say, I would MUCH rather have been watching an Ed Wood movie than Howard the Duck. Actually, I would rather have been watching my own spleen being removed. It would have been less nauseating and painful. I wish I had a time machine so I could go back in time and tell myself not to buy or watch this movie. Then again, perhaps I should have realised sooner how awful it would be after my boyfriend did the same thing in recommending the abysmal movie 'Young Doctors In Love' as being a brilliant movie, another faux pas he's still apologising profusely for. But I've learnt my lesson now -- he also recommended 'Joe Vs The Volcano', and I fully intend never to watch that one!