'The Return of Swamp Thing'—Review of the Sequel Film

1989 was a big year in the history of DC films. It saw the release of Tim Burton's Batman movie starring Michael Keaton in the titular role. That film was a cultural phenomenon that pleased many Batman fans. But a month prior to that film's premiere, there was another DC film, one that was not as big as Batman 89 turned out to be. It was a sequel to 1982s Wes Craven-directed Swamp Thing film. Titled The Return of Swamp Thing, this Jim Wynorski-directed sequel is seldom brought up during discussions of DC movies, which is understandable. One could argue that it is in some ways better than the first film, but it still was not enough for it to make a huge splash.

Tone

The Swamp Thing comics are known for their horror aesthetic, as well as more fantastical and sci-fi adventures. The seven year gap between film releases was filled with such stories, including the groundbreaking Alan Moore run that redefined who Swamp Thing is. Rather than incorporate this retcon, the film keeps to the Alec Holland transformation origin depicted in the first film. And like the first film, it is more grounded and very campy. The film opens with a montage of art from the 1980s comics, but the film does not resemble the overall tone of them. Compared to the first film, the campiness feels more consistent. A little bit of the horror aesthetic creeps in through some places, such as the chilling organ music that plays at one point. But for the most part, it's a campy movie.

Characters

Dick Durock plays Swamp Thing here once again, but the voice is different and does not really match the character. The Swamp Thing suit is an improvement, though, resembling the comic book illustrations more closely. Louis Jordan also returns as Anton Arcane. One thing that the film does well is depict his horrific experiments, including a cockroach man. His niece Abby Arcane (Heather Locklear) is very fond of plants, even to the point of talking to the ones she owns. She deals with cringeworthy sexism, but it's empowering to see how she fights back. As in the comics, she becomes romantically involved with Swamp Thing. She bites into a fruit that he produces from his body, and it makes her hallucinate that she is with the human Alec Holland. While the effects of the fruit is not as psychedelic as depicted in the comics, one can appreciate that the creative team was willing to incorporate a similar moment in some way. Still, there is the question of whether audiences would have embraced some of the weirder experiences of Swamp Thing stories. There are also a couple of boys who follow Swamp Thing as the conflict between him and Anton Arcane takes place, and they feel out of place.

Verdict

While this sequel may be more palatable than the first Swamp Thing film, it still does not come close to reaching its potential. It's an easier watch, but still forgettable in some places. Apparently, the 1990 TV series might be closer to the tone of the comics, so that might be worth checking out. The current Swamp Thing TV series that is on DC Universe is definitely more worth checking out than either of the films (even if it is just going to be one season). For a film that acknowledges the existence of the comics, The Return of Swamp Thing does not quite do as much justice to the source material as it could have. Thus, it gets the score below.

5.5/10—A mediocre effort that should have gone extra distance when the Swamp Thing character was given a second shot at the big screen.