Metamorphosis (1990/I)

Director:

George Eastman

Writer:

George Eastman (writer)

Release Date:

7 August 1990 (Italy)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Witness the Change!

Plot:

Dr. Peter Houseman is a brilliant geneticist who is working on a serum which will stop human aging, but his colleagues don't believe in his work...

Plot Keywords:

Metamorphosis | Doctor | University | Psychology | Prostitution

Cast

Gene LeBrock	...	Dr. Peter Houseman (as Gene Le Brock)
Catherine Baranov	...	Sally Donnelly
Harry Cason	...	Dr. Mike Lester
David Wicker	...	Willy Carson
Jason Arnold	...	Tommy
Stephen Brown	...	Professor Lloyd
Tom Story	...	Professor Huston
Anna Colona	...	Patricia Kelly
Wally Doyle	...	Inspector
Laura Gemser	...	Prostitute
Serina Steinberg	...	Patricia's friend
Wayne Potrafka	...	Old professor
Tim Wright	...	Hopkins
Allison Stokes	...	Alice
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gary Wade Morton	...	Doctor Owen

Also Known As:

DNA formula letale (Italy)
Regenerator (UK) (video title)

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

Italy | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Norfolk, Virginia, USA

Company:

Filmirage

Movie Connections:

References The Shining (1980)

Extreme Monster-Makeover.

"Metamorphosis" hold a tiny bit of cult-value, simply because it was written and directed by George Eastman. This Italian bloke is more or less the personification of male sleaze and starred in pretty much every rancid Joe D'Amato production during the late 70's/early 80's. Wouldn't it be interesting for avid Euro-cult purchasers to own the only movie directed by the guy who walked around bare-butted in "Erotic Nights of the Living Dead" all the time? I thought so! Now, unlike the movies he starred in, Eastman's own "Metamorphosis" is kind of disappointing in the gore & sleaze departments. There are a handful of nasty murders, cheesy monster effects and naked female bodies (a guest appearance by sleaze-queen Laura Gemser!) on display, but it's mainly a talkative movie. The handsome & eloquent Dr. Houseman is on the verge of a scientific breakthrough with his research on human DNA codes when suddenly the university he works for threatens to cancel his funds. He developed a theory to decode genes and block the human ageing process, but if he doesn't come up with detailed reports any time soon, his research will be stopped. So Dr. Houseman does what any intelligent scientist would do and injects the untested serum into his own veins. Needless to say (and like the title implies), he slowly turns into murderous monster that actually ages much quicker! In other words, his research sucked! Like the other reviewers already mentioned, this movie "borrows" a lot of ideas from David Cronenberg's "The Fly" – the dramatic romance sub plot included - but doesn't add any originality from its own. The big difference is that you constantly feel connected with Jeff Goldblum's character in "The Fly", whereas Dr. Houseman becomes just another monster that needs to be destroyed as fast as possible. The rapid-ageing-syndrome aspect also reminded me of Ruggero Deodato's sadly underrated giallo "Phantom of Death", only the protagonist in that film inherited the disease and didn't inflict it on himself. The physical deterioration of the carriers is very similar in both films, though. Few scares or excitement to discover here, instead the movie features loads of bad acting, poor lighting, lousy editing and a completely retarded climax to boot. Feel free to skip this one.