TheMovieSearch R
Mandrake is one of those films that leaves you more confused than intrigued, trying to figure out if what you just watched was meant to be a horror film, a thriller, or some kind of misplaced woodland fantasy. The problem isn’t just the story—it’s that the film feels completely disoriented from beginning to end. There’s no cohesion, no rhythm, and absolutely no sense of direction. It’s as if the filmmakers threw together a collection of eerie visuals and half-written dialogue and hoped it would somehow come across as atmospheric. Instead, it’s just frustratingly incoherent.
The screenplay, frankly, is where everything falls apart. A movie can survive weak effects, low budgets, even mediocre acting—but when the script is a mess, there’s no saving it. Mandrake never establishes a clear sense of who the characters are, what they’re doing, or why the audience should care. Every moment that should feel suspenseful ends up feeling random. It jumps between tones so wildly that you’re not sure if you’re supposed to be scared, intrigued, or just waiting for it to end.
It’s hard not to compare it to Jaws—because Jaws knew exactly how to use atmosphere, tension, and pacing. Spielberg understood how to build suspense without showing everything, allowing the imagination to fill the gaps. Mandrake, on the other hand, throws everything at you but somehow still manages to say nothing. The directing feels unfocused, like the camera itself is wandering through the woods trying to find the story.
Character development? Practically nonexistent. You don’t know who these people are, you don’t care what happens to them, and the film doesn’t give you any reason to invest in their journey. There are glimpses—tiny moments—where you can see what the movie wanted to be: a moody psychological folk horror that gets under your skin. But those moments vanish as quickly as they appear, replaced by confusion and a total lack of narrative payoff.
By the halfway mark, the film already feels like it’s going nowhere fast, and by the end, you realize it never really started anywhere, either. It’s disorganized, disjointed, and painfully slow for something that’s supposed to keep you on edge.
To put it bluntly, Mandrake is a cinematic train wreck. It tries to be haunting but ends up being hollow. It tries to be mysterious but comes off as muddled. If you value your time—or your sanity—skip this one. There’s no reward waiting at the end of this film, just confusion and regret.
Rated 0.5/5 Stars •
Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars
10/16/25
Full Review
Audience Member
If you like SyFy Original movies, wherein the special effects are men in latex and rubber and production values are nearly nonexistent, you'll love this movie. Or, at least, be able to sit through it without rolling your eyes at the bad acting, visuals and plot.
But, if you enjoy actual movies, steer clear of this one.
It's basically "white people desecrate a sacred site / burial ground and the creature(s) guarding/trapped there kill everyone" complete with the locals/natives telling said white people the area is cursed.
The characters hate each other, and are marvelously categorized as:
The scientist who doesn't believe in "this mystic mumbo-jumbo"
The doctor (of anthropology) who won't shut up, but it's okay because it just proves she's headstrong and lovable, and who is basically useless but ultimately is the only one to escape. (Guessing she escapes, really, because I couldn't make it that far)
The hard military man who doesn't look like he knows what the word "placate" means, but uses it and doesn't know how to use hand signals without shouting.
The businessman that's either in it for money, power or both and doesn't know whether or not he's supposed to be a jackass.
The paranoid gun-for-hire native who has the only braincell of the lot but gets killed.
They tried for comedy in some parts, but it was so bad I nearly turned it off after the scientist guy says "I'm armed" and waves his arms around. I DID turn it off after the one guy says "you can't do this. I'm American" while getting carted off on a spit.
Two stars just for the awkward eye contact two unnamed characters (business man and base lady) give each other that made me laugh at how uncomfortable it felt.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
02/08/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Great performance by Saw star Betsy Russell
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
07/17/19
Full Review
Audience Member
I got this movie thinking that is about one of my favourite comic characters - Mandrake the Magician... but it wasn't. It was about a plant Mandrake! Well, everything will be OK if writers knew one fact about setting this story in a fictitious Latin American country: Mandrake is native to Eurasia and did not grow in the Americas until transplanted well after the era of the Conquistadors! And the plot of the story is involving a conquistador and this plant! We have a soldier of fortune Sgt. McCall leading an expedition sponsored by the powerful Harry Vargas and formed by the anthropologist Dr. Felicia and archaeologist Lin, the local Santiago Zavala and a baggage carrier through the jungle. In the base, Carla Manning gives support to McCall's team and is the liaison with Harry, who is obsessed with the dagger. They find the secret place of the dagger but soon they discover that nature and the Yamballi tribe are not happy with that!
[img]http://www.coverdude.com/covers/mandrake-2010-ws-r2-front-cover-79947.jpg[/img]
This movie should be rated as a B grade but the acting by Max Martini, Betsy Russell, Benito Martinez, Jon Mack and Nick Gomez wasn't as bad as I expected. The story by David Ray could be classified as ridiculous but everything else was just below average. Very predictable with no suspense - too simple to enjoy watching it. I stayed the full 89 minutes, expecting that the director Tripp Reed would surprise me, but nothing happened. Avoid, if possible!
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
02/18/23
Full Review
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