Gripping story with well-crafted characters

A Masterpiece!

it is the rare 'crazy' movie that actually has something to say.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

"Hotel Torgo" is sort of a making-of to "Manos: The Hands Of Fate", one of the most fascinatingly awful movies ever made. The makers meet up with Bernie Rosenblum, the last surviving member of the cast/crew. Together they go visit some of the filming locations, meanwhile Rosenblum tells various anecdotes about the filming process. We also get some background about what happened to the rest of the cast.And there you have the problem: pretty much every fact they give about the other actors is wrong. Rosenblum was NOT the last survivor, Jackey Neyman (Debbie), Diane Mahree (Margaret) and Tom Neyman (The Master) are still alive and kicking in 2016. The history of "Manos" is murky and difficult to research, but Jackey Neyman stated that she actually called up the makers while they were filming this. Apparently, other surviving cast members didn't fit their narrative, so they just ignored them. I guess this was done to add to the mystique, but you can interview every single cast member of this movie and you probably still don't know what's going on. Claiming Diane Mahree died in a car crash with no evidence whatsoever seems very unprofessional.With that said: I enjoy the bits with Bernie Rosenblum, who passed away last year. Rosenblum played a very minor part in the movie, but he's a decent storyteller and genuinely seems like a nice guy. He certainly saves this 'documentary'. Particularly the part where he goes back to the Valley Lodge and shows us what's left of it is worth your time. It's pretty much the only thing that keeps "Hotel Torgo" from being totally useless, because the research (or lack thereof) is downright horrendous.

Manos The Hands Of Fate Is A Classic Amongst Fans Of Truly Terrible Movies, The Movie Despite It Having A Theatrical Release In 1966 Didn't Even See The Light Of Day After A Few Premieres.All I Can Say Is Bernie Rosenblum Has Some Great Stories About This Movie ANd He Shed More Background Information On This Movie Than I Ever Knew. In My Opinion Hotel Torgo Is A Great Documentary And To Be Honest I'd Rather See This Than A Documentary About Any Other Movie Any Day. The Reason Is That I Find It Interesting To Talk About The Holy Grail Of Crappy Movies Than The Best Movies Ever Made Because You Don't Know What To Think At Manos Whereas Something Like Die Hard You Know Its A Good Movie.The Funniest Part Was When Rosenblum Told The Story Of The Premiere Night. I Have Heard So Many Stories About That Because Of People Who Have Claimed It To Be A Comedy And They Loved It. Its Also Interesting To Hear Some Backstories On This Film.Overall If You Are Ever Interested In "The Worst Movie Of All Time" Then I Say Please Get This (I Have It As An Extra On The Manos DVD (With The MST3K Episode!))

This is a documentary regarding the infamous "Manos". It does a fine job of both telling the viewer what it is, in case they haven't seen it(I have the feeling it's something you don't forget once you have, though I suppose it's a little early for me to say), and examining why it was and got to be the way it was. I'm not sure I'd claim that this left me with a lot of answers, but the process wasn't bad, and it never lost my interest. It's nicely paced, moves at basically the speed it should. This consists of clips of the flick itself, it even holds a brief spoof of it(some of which relate to the subject or such, and all of them aiding in informing those in doubt of the sheer awfulness of the quality of it) and a few interviews, including one with the person that worked on the piece that they could find, and another with what appears to be a historian on it, both of whom are well worth listening to, and have good things to say. Bernie's got a mouth on him, though, which is really the only language in this, but in spite of the amount being fairly low, it gets pretty rough(apart from strong words, there are a few detailing... male anatomy). He reveals a great many things about the production as well as the crew and cast. This also has footage of the filming locations, and comparisons between how they look, now and then. I recommend this to anyone wondering how the thing got made, and those that are curious about it, in general. 7/10

Being a fan of MST3K I have had the misfortune of actually viewing Manos the Hands of Fate. After watching Hotel Torgo (I do love the title) I found the documentary a bit lacking. Then again how can you create a robust documentary on a film like Manos (Isn't that Spanish for hand?)? I think the biggest problem with Hotel Torgo is that it is completely inaccessible to anyone that has not at least seen or is familiar with Manos. That said I did find the doc enjoyable. Bernie Rosenblam was insightful if not tedious (in that listening to an old burn out talk about the best thing he ever did kind of way... how's that for irony). it's a shame the directors couldn't find more people involved in the film to interview. I would have liked to have watched a broader spectrum of opinions from people involved in the film. I am impressed that the crew actually traveled to the locations where the film was shot. I thought the shot of, I think it was Colbert Coldwell, sitting on the remnants of the set that cut to a scene of the set actually being used in the film was good. In fact much of the camera work and direction of Hotel Torgo is good. Although it is short, it approaches the subject with far more respect than it deserves. I recommend this documentary to anyone that is a fan of Manos the (hand) of Hands of Fate.