Manos: The Hands of Fate is a 1966 American independentfolk horror film written, directed, and produced by Harold P. Warren. It stars Warren, Tom Neyman, John Reynolds, and Diane Mahree. It was released on November 15, 1966. The film follows a family getting lost during their vacation road trip through the Texas desert and becoming stranded at the lodge of a polygynouspagancult led by the Master who decides their fate. Warren was a fertilizer salesman from El Paso, Texas, who made the film as a result of a bet with screenwriter Stirling Silliphant. The theatrical debut was poorly received, playing only at the Capri Theater in El Paso and some drive-ins around West Texas and New Mexico.
Manos: The Hands of Fate remained in obscurity until 1993, when it was featured in an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000, a television series based around mocking B movies, which became the show's most infamous episode. This developed its cult reputation as one of the worst films ever made. The film has been criticized for continuous deficiencies in editing, visuals, plot, pacing, acting, and poor dubbing. Its MST3K appearance resulted in several home video releases of the original film and the episode itself.
The original 16 mmworkprint was discovered in 2011, from which a new remastered version of the film was released on Blu-ray by Synapse Films on October 13, 2015. Manos: The Hands of Fate has also been adapted into other media, including multiple stage productions. Manos: The Search for Valley Lodge was a sequel that ended up getting canceled in 2014. It was followed by a prequel, Manos: The Rise of Torgo (2018), and a sequel, Manos Returns (2018). A video game based on the film for iOS was developed and published in 2012 by FreakZone Games. A television series titled The Manos Chronicles was made in 2023.
Plot
Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966)
While on vacation near El Paso, Texas, Michael, Margaret, their young daughter Debbie, and their dog, Peppy, drive through the desert in search of the Valley Lodge. Margaret insists they are lost, and Michael claims they are not. They are stopped by a local deputy for a broken taillight, and released because Michael asks him for mercy on their "first vacation". After driving through farmland and the desert, the family reaches a house. The satyr-like Torgo is caretaker "while the Master is away". Michael and Margaret ask Torgo for directions to the Valley Lodge, which Torgo denies knowing. Frustrated, Michael asks Torgo to let him and his family stay the night, despite objections from both Torgo and Margaret.
Painting of the Master (Tom Neyman)
Inside the house, Michael and Margaret find a painting of the Master and a dog with glowing eyes. A howl frightens Margaret; Peppy breaks away from Debbie and runs outside. Michael investigates with a flashlight and revolver from his car and finds Peppy lying dead on the ground. Michael buries the dog in the desert and returns to the house. Meanwhile, Torgo reveals his attraction to Margaret and wants to keep her, defying the Master's desire to marry her. Margaret threatens to tell Michael of Torgo's advances. However, Torgo convinces Margaret not to say anything by promising to protect her. Michael cannot start the car. Torgo tells them there is no phone in the house, so the family decides to stay the night.
Torgo secretly watches Margaret changing her clothes. Michael and Margaret find Debbie is gone and start looking for her, going outside and shouting Debbie’s name. Debbie returns, holding the leash of the dog from the painting. Following Debbie, Michael and Margaret stumble upon the Master and his wives, sleeping around a blazing fire. The wives are dressed in nightgowns, the Master in a robe with two red hands on it. Margaret and Debbie run back to the house to get their things and escape. As Michael runs behind them, Torgo uses a stick to knock him out and then ties him to a pole. The Master awakens and summons his wives, announcing that Michael must be sacrificed to the deity Manos, and that Margaret and Debbie will become his new wives. He leaves.
The wives argue with each other about whether Debbie should become one of them or also be sacrificed. This turns into a catfight, where the wives tumble around in the dirt. The Master returns, breaks up the fight and decides to sacrifice Torgo and his first wife instead. Meanwhile, Michael wakes up, unties himself and returns to the house to collect Margaret and Debbie. The family runs off into the desert to escape. The Master summons Torgo and hypnotizes him, ordering the wives to kill him. Two of the wives attack Torgo with their hands, causing him to fall to the ground, seemingly dead. However, he later regains consciousness and stands up.
The Master severs and burns Torgo's left hand. Torgo runs off into the darkness with his stump of a wrist in flames, and the Master sacrifices his first wife. As Michael, Margaret and Debbie run through the desert, Margaret falls and says she cannot go any farther. A rattlesnake appears and Michael shoots it, the noise attracting the attention of the deputies, who assume the noises came from Mexico due to the large desert echoes and leave it at that. Margaret convinces Michael to return to the house, as the cult would never think to look for them there. They go back and find the Master and his dog waiting for them. The Master steps towards them, and Michael fires his gun in shock, to no effect.
Some time later, two women starting their vacation drive through a rainstorm, searching for shelter. When they find the Master's house, the entranced Michael greets them, saying "I am Michael, I take care of the place while The Master is away." Margaret and Debbie have become wives of the Master, and all are asleep.
Cast
John Reynolds as Torgo
Harold P. Warren as Michael
John Reynolds as Torgo
Diane "Mahree" Adelson as Margaret
Jackey Neyman as Debbie
Tom Neyman as The Master
Stephanie Nielson, Sherry Proctor, Robin Redd, Pat Coburn, Bettye Birns, and Pat Sullivan as the Master's wives
Bernie Rosenblum as teenage boy
Joyce Molleur as teenage girl
William Bryan Jennings and George Cavender as police officers
Manos: The Hands of Fate was written, directed, and produced by Harold P. Warren. Warren is a fertilizer salesman from El Paso, Texas. He was very active in the theater scene in El Paso, and he once appeared as a walk-on for the television series Route 66, where he met screenwriter Stirling Silliphant. While chatting with Silliphant in a local coffee shop, Warren claimed that it was not difficult to make a movie, and he bet Silliphant that he could make an entire film on his own. After placing the bet, Warren began the first outline of his script on a napkin, right inside the coffee shop. Warren financed it with a substantial but insufficient amount of cash, US$19,000(equivalent to $189,000 in 2025). He hired a group of actors from a local theater and a modeling agency. Warren promised the cast and crew a share of profit.
In mid-1966, it was filmed with the working title The Lodge of Sins. It was shot mainly on the ranch of Colbert Coldwell, a lawyer who shared an office floor with Warren and who later became a judge in El Paso County. Most equipment was rented, so Warren hurriedly maximized the number of shots before the rental deadline. The 16mmBell & Howell camera is wound by hand with up to 32 seconds of footage. The Filmo camera also had problems with focusing and frame shots at the same time. Later during production, Warren renamed the film Manos: The Hands of Fate. According to an interview with Bob Guidry, the director of cinematography, and Bernie Rosenblum, the stunt coordinator, Warren's crew became so bemused and tempers frayed that they derisively called the film Mangos: Cans of Fruit behind his back.
Torgo is a satyr-like character. This was portrayed by having Reynolds wear metallic rigging under his trousers
To portray Torgo's satyr-like character, actor John Reynolds constructed a metallic rigging worn under his trousers. The effect conveyed by his work was to leave his character with oversized knees. Fake cloven-hoofed feet were also made by Reynolds for his costume. Reynolds was reportedly on drugs throughout the whole production. Warren shot night-for-night scenes, because many of the cast and crew also held day jobs. In the scene in which the police investigate Michael's gunfire, the lights could cover only a few feet forward, so the police stood there to feign a search and leave without any scenery or a panning shot.
During filming, Warren said that presenting Diane Mahree as the Texas Beauty Queen would generate good publicity for his movie. He signed her to a regional West Texas beauty pageant that would lead to Miss Texas and then to the Miss America pageant, but he neglected to tell her about it until she was accepted as an entrant. She complied and appeared onstage as a finalist. Warren contracted with a modeling agency to provide the actresses who would play the Master's wives, including Joyce Molleur. She broke her foot early in production, so Warren retained her by rewriting the script to include a young couple kissing in a car on the side of the road, who are otherwise unconnected to the plot.
Editing failed to remove the clapperboard, which is momentarily visible for a few frames
Post-production efforts were minimal, though Warren promised crew members that any problems in filming would be fixed in later editing. For example, the clapperboard is momentarily visible. Several technical gaffes made it into the film, including scenes filmed out of focus, a marking slate being seen in one shot, the scarf on the female lead's head disappearing and reappearing, and an insect bumping the camera lens. According to NBC News, the entire opening sequence, which consists of the main characters in "endless, dull driving scenes," was supposed to have opening credits but were supposedly forgotten by the crew. Rather than using location sync sound recording, all sound effects and dialogue were overdubbed in post-production by few people, including Warren, his wife, Tom Neyman, and Diane Mahree. A grown woman dubbed the voice for Jackey Neyman-Jones, the seven-year-old girl who played Debbie.
The soundtrack was composted by Russ Huddleston and Robert Smith Jr. Stereogum said that Torgo's theme, "A Strange Gait," is "arguably the most famous part of the Manos soundtrack, if any part of the soundtrack can be called famous." John Reynolds committed suicide by gunshot on October 16, 1966, one month before the premiere. He was 25 years old. Joyce Molleur also committed suicide not long after its completion.
Release
The Capri Theater in El Paso, Texas (pictured in c.1930s)
The film premiered at the Capri Theater in Warren's hometown of El Paso, Texas on November 15, 1966, as a benefit for the local cerebral palsy fund. Warren rented a searchlight, and paid for the cast to be delivered by limousine. The single limousine delivered one group, then drove around the block for another. Jackey Neyman-Jones, wept in disappointment at the premiere, particularly when hearing the woman's dubbed voice instead of her own. Jones said that she was "all excited," when she came on the screen, until she heard the dubbed voice, at which point she "just sat there and cried.'' Mahree laughed throughout the screening at the film's ridiculousness.:00:36
Following the premiere, Warren thought Manos was the worst film ever made, but was proud of it, and he suggested that its audio might be re-dubbed into a passable comedy. The film was briefly distributed by Emerson Film Enterprises, with a brief theatrical run at the Capri Theater, and at various drive-in theaters in West Texas. The only compensation was Jackey Neyman's bicycle and her family dog's 50 pounds of dog food. Although the film received poor reception, Warren won his bet against Stirling Silliphant, proving that he was capable of creating an entire film. Warren pitched another script he had written called Wild Desert Bikers, and then pitched its novelization, but with the failure of Manos, there was no interest. Warren died on December 26, 1985, from lung cancer and heart problems. The majority of the cast and crew never appeared in another film, though Mahree had a successful modeling career as Diane Adelson.
Following few local screenings, Manos was almost entirely forgotten. When Jackey Neyman attended the University of California, Berkeley, her friends could not find a copy of the film. A 1980 magazine article by cinematographer Bob Guidry's ex-wife Pat Ellis Taylor reports the film may have appeared on a local television station and that it was "listed at the bottom of a page in a film catalogue for rent for $20.00".
Reception
The day after the premiere, Betty Pierce, the film reviewer of the El Paso Herald-Post described it as a "brave experiment". She criticized some elements, such as the "hero" Torgo being "massaged to death" by the Master's wives and Margaret's claim of "it's getting dark" with a bright midday sun. In 2005, Dan Neil of the Los Angeles Times explained the film's appeal: "After screening Manos for probably the 10th time, I've concluded it has to do with intimacy. Because it is such a pure slice of Warren's brain– he wrote, directed, produced and starred, and brooked no collaboration– Manos amounts to the man's cinematically transfigured subconscious." In 2008, the founder of IMDb, Col Needham, said that Manos was the "worst he's ever endured." Manos buff Bobby Thompson said, "It's like a train wreck— you just can't take your eyes off it." Gael Fashingbauer Cooper of NBC News said "Even its title is mockable", because "Manos" means "hands" in Spanish, the title translates to "Hands: The Hands of Fate."
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 0% based on 15 reviews, with an average rating of 2.56/10. The film has been criticized for continuous deficiencies in editing, visuals, plot, pacing, acting, and poor dubbing. The book Hollywood's Most Wanted lists Manos as the #2 in the list of "The Worst Movies Ever Made", following Plan 9 from Outer Space. Entertainment Weekly proclaimed Manos "The Worst Movie Ever Made". The scene in which the seven-year-old Debbie becomes a wife of the Master, played by her real father, was included in a list of "The Most Disgusting Things We've Ever Seen" by the Mystery Science Theater 3000 crew. In retrospect, Francis Rizzo III of DVD Talk said that John Reynolds "left behind quite a memorable performance, no matter how awful it was."
Legacy
Mystery Science Theater 3000
Frank Conniff chose Manos to be featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K) is a Minneapolis-based television show about a crew held captive in outer space by two mad scientists, and forced to watch and mock bad movies such as B movies. The writers were going through a box of tapes, which included Manos, that was sent from Comedy Central. On January 30, 1993, the film was featured on the fourth season finale of the series.Joel Hodgson saying that "Every frame of this movie looks like someone's last known photograph," has been used by many sources to summarize the episode. The film was "so gloriously terrible" that the scientists were forced to apologise to the MST3K crew. Michael J. Nelson portrayed Torgo in several other MST3K episodes in the skits shown between the movie sections.
Selection of Manos for the show is credited to writer Frank Conniff, who also plays TV's Frank in the show. Conniff felt the movie "seemed like it was maybe a crime against humanity, but you couldn't be sure" and "has an atmosphere, a vibe" that made it appropriate for the show. The Manos episode has been described as one of the most popular of the MST3K series by Entertainment Weekly, and as the funniest by CraveOnline. Joe Blevins of A.V. Club said it was "one of the most infamous and beloved episodes". The episode is credited with bringing to light the otherwise obscure film. On IMDb, Manos is listed on the "Bottom 100", a list of the 100 worst-rated films on the website.
During a Q&A session at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con, the crew of MST3K said that the only film that was worse than Manos, was the 1938 film Child Bride. It was described by the crew as “appalachian kiddie porn from the ‘30s”. The film never made it onto the show. Manos has also been riffed on by RiffTrax, a later project of MST3K alumni Michael Nelson, Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett, during a live show in August 2012. While Nelson and Murphy were part of the cast when MST3K riffed on Manos, neither did Corbett nor their writers were involved in the original episode. While hesitant to revisit Manos, they decided to do it after being the most requested film by fans. Nelson also said would give "a fresh take" on the film.
Cult following
After the episode of MST3K, Manos was introduced to a bigger audience and developed a cult following, and give it the cult reputation as one of the worst films ever made. The MST3K appearance also resulted in several home video releases of the original film and the MST3K episode. In 2004, a group of Canadians released a documentary about the film titled Hotel Torgo. According to NBC News, Torgo is a fan-favorite character by MST3K fans. In March 2015, the Elementary episode "T-Bone And The Iceman" references the physical features of Torgo to compose a fake facial composite to get the NYPD off their trail.
Restoration
Comparison of the print found in various prior releases (left) and the Solovey workprint found in 2011 (right)
In 2011, the original 16mmworkprint of Manos: The Hands of Fate was discovered by Ben Solovey, a Florida State film school graduate, in a collection of 16mm films. He started the Kickstarter campaign, "Manos: The Restoration," where Solovey announced his intention to preserve and restoreManos for a Blu-ray release. The campaign raised $48,000, nearly five times the initial goal. A 90% finished print was premiered at the El Paso Plaza Theatre, near the original premiere in 1966. When Manos was riffed on by RiffTrax, they used the cleaned-up print for the live show.
Copyright dispute
Manos: The Hands of Fate is in the public domain because director Harold Warren failed to include a copyright notice in the film. When news broke of Solovey's restoration, the son of Harold Warren, Joe Warren, started exploring the possibility that the film was not in the public domain, seeking to prevent others from profiting from his father's work. Warren discovered in 2013 that the script had been copyrighted and registered in the Library of Congress, and he believes that this copyright also applies to the film. No precedent exists for this case so the legal status of the film is uncertain. Solovey applied copyright on his restored version, an action that Warren believes is unenforceable, though has not sought any legal action against Solovey. Warren obtained pending publication of a trademark on the phrase Manos: The Hands of Fate, which could have impacted the various fanworks if the United States Patent and Trademark Office finalized approval. The trademark filing has since been abandoned as of December 6, 2018, for a "failure to respond or late response".
Home media
After its MST3K appearance, Manos: The Hands of Fate was then released in several home video releases. They include releases of the original film and the MST3K episode on DVD. The MST3K episode featuring the film was released on DVD in 2001, and in the Mystery Science Theater 3000 Essentials collection in 2004. The restoration was released on Blu-ray by Synapse Films on October 13, 2015, with an unrestored version ("Grindhouse") as one of the bonus features. Shout Factory released a special edition with both the MST3K and uncut versions called Manos y Manos. A DVD of the original was published by Alpha Video, which also released original versions of other MST3K films such as Teenagers from Outer Space and Eegah.
Other media
Live performances
Four comedy stage adaptations of the film have been made. In early 2006, an abridged stage version was given in Portland, Oregon. In November 2007, a musical titled Manos: Rock Opera of Fate, was launched. A puppet musical titled Manos– The Hands of Felt, was performed by Puppet This in Seattle in April 2011. After raising funds with a Kickstarter campaign in May 2013, Manos– The Hands of Felt was performed again in Seattle by Vox Fabuli Puppets in August 2013 and filmed for DVD release. Another stage version was released in Portland, Oregon in April 2013.
Films
In 2010, writer and director Rupert Talbot Munch, Sr. began work on Manos: The Search for Valley Lodge. Tom Neyman (in a cameo reprising his role as the Master), his daughter Jackey Neyman-Jones (reprising her role as Debbie), Diane Mahree (reprising the role of Margaret), and Bernie Rosenblum (who played a teenage boy in the original film) were involved in initial filming. Others engaged to appear included World Wrestling Entertainment star Gene Snitsky, former WWE diva and Playboy centerfold Maria Kanellis, and UFC fighter Ryan "Big Deal" Jimmo. Munch was to play Torgo. In 2013, Neyman-Jones left the project after disagreements with Munch, and by the end of 2014, the project was reportedly canceled.
In 2013, a project began for a prequel titled Manos: The Rise of Torgo. David Roy (producer of the 2014 film Cheeseballs) was announced as the writer and director, and cast members were to include Neyman-Jones (playing Manos, the evil deity). It was released in 2018.
Jackey Neyman-Jones, who played Debbie in the original film, launched a Kickstarter campaign in February 2016 to make a sequel titled Manos Returns. According to Neyman-Jones, the sequel was not to be a recreation of Manos but instead a "tongue-in-cheek" setting within the Manos storyline; Neyman-Jones described the planned product as being both funny and scary, similar to The Cabin in the Woods or Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.
The Kickstarter goal of $24,000 was reached on February 24, 2016. It stars Neyman-Jones, reprising her role as Debbie; her father Tom Neyman, reprising his role as the Master; and Diane Mahree reprising her role as Margaret. Neyman-Jones and director Tonjia Atomic shot the film in western Oregon in the summer of 2016. The film had its world premiere screening at Crypticon Seattle on May 4, 2018. Manos Returns was published on Amazon Prime in May 2020.
A video game based on the film for iOS was released in 2012 by FreakZone Games. The game is a side-scrolling platform game, with retro graphics and sound inspired by the 8-bit era for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It features Mike, a husband and father who attempts to expunge a man known as "The Master" in order to escape a lodge and rescue his family. Manos: The Hands of Fate has received mixed reviews from critics. It was later ported to Android.
Television
A television series titled The Manos Chronicles has been distributed in 2023 on Amazon Prime. It stars Jackey Neyman reprising her role as Debbie.
1234Brandt, Richard (August 2003). "Growing Up 'Manos'". Mimosa. pp.42–43. Retrieved April 24, 2007.
12Connor, Floyd (2002). Hollywood's Most Wanted: The Top 10 Book of Lucky Breaks, Prima Donnas, Box Office Bombs, and Other Oddities. Dulles, Virginia: Brassey's, Inc. p.221. ISBN9781574884807.
12Adams, Michael (2010). Showgirls, teen wolves, and astro zombies: a film critic's year-long quest to find the worst movie ever made (1sted.). New York: Itbooks. pp.91–2. ISBN978-0-06-180629-2.
↑Taylor, Pat Ellis (December 1980). "[untitled]". NOVA: The University of Texas at El Paso Magazine. Vol.16, no.1. News Service, The University of Texas at El Paso. p.7. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
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