knsjstudiomanager Literally if you track down the short documentary "Hotel Torgo" and the sci-fi fanzine "Mimosa" which did two articles of interviews with surviving cast and crew, that stuff is more interesting than the actual film, even the new HD version of the final 16mm Ektachrome workprint (because the movie was blown up to full-screen 35mm for theatrical showings) which is sharp and good looking.In short, this film is a spiritual predecessor of all the '70s horror films where a group of teens go out to a place away from society and get killed by a monster or a cult. In "Manos" it's a family (mother, father, small daughter, her poodle) trying to find a hotel called "The Valley Lodge"; they get lost in their black '65 Ford convertable and instead find a smallish house off a dirt road with a caretaker who might be a Satyr who is named Torgo. He is the servant to an undead magician/cult leader called The Master who worships a god named Manos, and his cult are his undead brides, all dressed in goofy white robes. The Master wears a black robe with the outline of red hands and his facial hair makes him resemble Bill Buckner. The "plot" is the family finding out just how crazy the situation is, and trying to get away. Unlike most horror films of the mid-1960s, it has a downbeat ending.Why I gave the film four stars was that they shot it on 16mm home movie cameras, on their own time, and it took SIX MONTHS to make a 60-plus minute film. That's dedication. "Manos" had a shadowy run on the Southern drive-in circuit, joined the raft of B-movies sold to independent UHF TV stations in the 1970s, and would have been utterly obscure had not Frank Conniff of "Mystery Science Theater" not found it. "Manos" is the perfect example of the self-financed, independent regional film (El Paso, Tx.), and should be shown in film schools for how not to make those sorts of pictures.

Johnny H. Manos: The Hands of Fate. What a f@cking horrible movie this is! The writing is atrocious, the direction goes nowhere and the actors just read the lines like they have no idea what the hell they're actually saying! Oh; and the 16mm-32-second-filming-camera REALLY shows when you watch the movie. The abrupt cuts, the ear-bleedingly-bad music, and the AWFUL white balancing makes this a TRUE pain to watch; unless you've seen the MST3K episode roasting the sh## out of this steaming turd from the past. Now THAT's the way you watch this movie: with deservedly deprecating commentary!There's nothing good about Manos: The Hands of Fate. EVERYTHING about it is horrible. And it's BORING on top of all the pre-determined awfulness! It's 1966's Battlefield Earth!Manos: The Bottom of the Cinematic Barrel! 0/10 (even though I rated it 1 because IMDb).

rivanis I can't agree more with other reviews, just to add I understood "Plan 9 From Outer Space" to be the worst movie ever made but Manos makes it look like an Academy award winner.I'm sorry but I couldn't even make it to the end. What a waste of film! Why was it even made? Even mst3k couldn't help it.

ohmap-977-664810 I must say that I have seen many stupid movies in my life, but Manos the Hands of Fate is by FAR the worst movie I have ever seen. I once thought Invasion of the Neptune Men was the worst, but no...this is IT! About halfway thru the movie most normal people would break out in a cold sweat and laugh uncontrollable at the stupidity they are witnessing. I also give Troll 2 a notable tip of the hat for being downright stupid (but it was so stupid it was somewhat entertaining). However, if you really want the bottom of the barrel, look no further than this movie. This has to be the crown jewels of bad movies! Good luck!