A showman introduces a small coastal town to a unique movie experience and capitalizes on the Cuban Missile crisis hysteria with a kitschy horror extravaganza combining film effects, stage props and actors in rubber suits in this salute to the B-movie.
Direction
Dante's love letter to schlock cinema, every frame a in-joke.
Production
MANT! — the fake B-movie within — deserves its own franchise.
Acting
Goodman plays Woolsey like a carny P.T. Barnum with a heart.
Director
Joe Dante
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The 'MANT!' footage was shot in four days with Dante's regular crew, and the William Castle-style gimmicks (Buzz! Rumble!) were real 1950s theater tech.
Dante made this as a direct response to studio notes on Gremlins 2, essentially saying 'fine, I'll do MY movie about movies' — it's his most personal film.
US
