HOWARD THE DUCK
US, 1986, 111 minutes, Colour.
Lea Thompson, Jeffrey Jones, Tim Robbins, voice of Richard Kiley.
Directed by Willard Huyck.
Howard the Duck has one of the worst reputations in film-making. It was an extraordinary failure in 1986. For overseas presentation it was renamed Howard ... A New Breed of Hero.
The screenplay was written by Willard Huyck and his wife Gloria Katz, who had worked on a number of films including Best Defence and Raiders of the Lost Ark. The Marvel Comics character was created by Steve Gerber. Perhaps the mistake was made in making Howard a rather humanised character (played by a series of actors and actresses) instead of some kind of special effects character.
It is also difficult to gauge for whom the film was made. It is too sophisticated and knowing for a young audience; it is too silly for an older audience.
Lea Thompson (Space Camp, Some Kind of Wonderful) does her best as the heroine. Jeffrey Jones (Amadeus, Ferris Bueller's Day Off) does even better as the put upon Dr. Jennings. However, the satire on the duck world compared with the human world, the powers of the universe trying to take over (with the voice of Richard Kiley) and the various laboratory and chase sequences, combined with sex club and sex jokes makes Howard the Duck a most peculiar scrambled film.
1. The impact of the film as entertainment? Its box-office failure around the world? An expensive failure?
2. The American atmosphere? Cleveland city? The nightclub? Apartments? Laboratories? The parallel with Duck World?
3. The focus on Howard T. Duck? The decision to make him a Disney World-sized character with human actors? Credible? Engaging? The new breed of hero?
4. The character of Howard: at home in Duck World, the jokey parallels with the human world (even to the film posters)? His being propelled through space to Earth? His experience in Cleveland, the punk nightclub, his reaction to humans? The thugs and their attack on Beverley? His rescuing her? her taking him home? Meeting Phil? The speculation - about evolution? Howard refusing to be in the experiments? His being cantankerous with Beverley? His decision to go to work, getting a job at the sauna and sex club? His relationships with Ginger Moss, pressurising him to surrender the contract? His own ideal being a songwriter? The encounter with Dr. Jenning, the speculation about evolution? Going to the laboratory? The accident? The Dark Overlord of the universe? Howard and Phil and their pursuit, the plane, the blast? The freeing of Dr Jenning? Howard's finale with the group at the Cherry Bomb?
5. Beverley and her work, singing, being rescued by Howard, taking him home, the sexual innuendo? The clash? Meeting Phil? The plot and Dr Jenning? Participating in the climax and the rescue? The finale at the Cherry Bomb?
6. Dr, Jenning and Phil, science, experiments, laboratories, laboratories, demons taking over Dr. Jenning, the attempts to undo the situation, the pursuits and chases, the blasts? Dr Jenning freed?
7. The parallel to the space adventures and action fantasies of the '70s and '80s? Combined in this film? With the character of Howard?
