Puppet Master: Axis of Evil (2010 Video) User Reviews

Not good but could've been worse

[quridley · 5/10 · 4 June 2017]

David DeCoteau is a talented microbudget horror director and he's directed some of the better, more artful Puppet Master films. Parts 3, 6 and 7 are some of the most competently directed, serious and beautifully shot Full Moon films. "Axis of Evil" fits in with them, but its the weakest of his efforts through no fault of his own.

The problem with Pt 9 (since Charles Band disgustingly counts a "Best of" tape as Pt 8) is that its a much, much cheaper rehash of 7 which was a rehash of 3. The plot follows a young man fighting the Nazis in a dark urban setting, losing his loved ones and then getting revenge. Pt 3 is a good film but remaking it twice is twice too many. Worst of all is that the puppets have less to do with the story and they look shabbier in each film. Lets face it: the puppets are the stars.

Its gorgeously shot, directed as well as a fast and cheap horror film can be and you have to admire the craftsmanship of a movie filmed for peanuts, but its not entertaining or original enough. This is the 1st of a trilogy and so you don't receive any closure but you do feel a rage at the cynical money-grubbing quality of Full Moon's lesser films. What a waste of DeCoteau and a modest Puppet Master premise.

History lesson fail!

[udar55 · 3/10 · 30 July 2010]

The tenth (!) entry in Charles Band's long running series is really rough and cheap stuff, but actually better than the last few sequels (which says a lot). The film opens by incorporating the original's 1939 prologue where the puppet master Andre Toulon (William Hickey) kills himself at the Bodega Bay Inn. New footage has limping Danny Coogan (Levi Fiehler) stumbling onto the scene just as the two Nazis who ransacked Toulon's room are leaving. Danny was apparently friends with Toulon and knows where the hidden puppets are and takes them. He returns home to Chinatown in LA and is upset that he can't join the war effort to take on the "Japs and Krauts" (heh, heh...more on that in a bit). But he soon finds he can do his part stateside when he discovers one of the Nazis working undercover at a local munitions factory.

This series has been running for 20+ years and I think it pretty much sum up producer Band's career during that time period. The first three are decent little movies with the proper exploitation elements. Then Band opted to do them on the cheap and each successive film got more and more cut-rate until you finally had the obligatory clip show with 15 new minutes of footage entry (PUPPET MASTER: LEGACY). This one tries to bring it back to the level of the first three by continuing the storyline set up in part III's Germany set sequel. Unfortunately, Band is still cutting corners and has found some new money mark in China where the film was shot for pennies, er, yuan. You get some of the worst sets you'll ever seen (where the camera actually exposes the tops on several occasions) and you can see the same extras over and over in the exterior shots. Director David DeCoteau did three previous entries and really seems to be trying but the film is just sort of there. He fails to bring the exploitation factor as there is no stop motion (actually there hasn't been since part V, I believe), no nudity and very little gore. He did find some good leads with the exception of the girl who plays the Japanese spy, who turns in one of the worst performances I've seen in a while.

And now for the biggie! I'll admit I admire them taking it back to 1939 and using that as a launching point but - MY GOD - do you really have a lead character spend the whole film talking about how he wishes he could enlist into the service to go overseas and fight the "Japs and Krauts" IN 1939!?! There are constant references to America kids fighting overseas. HISTORY LESSON FAIL! Even worse, later a character makes a reference to Pearl Harbor! I'm amazed that no one who read the script said, "Uh, we might have a continuity problem here." The funny thing is there is a "making of" video on the disc and DeCoteau says the film is set in 1941 (even though characters reference Danny's work at the hotel and discovery of Toulon's body being "a few weeks ago").

"Puppet Master: Axis of Evil" is a surprising and very watchable direct-to-DVD sequel, and should not be missed by fans A bad movie, but a fun one as well

[TedStixonAKAMaximumMadness · 4/10 · 6 March 2012]

Director David Decoteau's ("Puppet Master III", "Curse of the Puppet Master" and "Retro Puppet Master") 2010 direct-to-DVD prequel "Puppet Master: Axis of Evil" is quite a surprise. It's not a good movie by any means, don't get me wrong. It's really bad at times, but it's also highly enjoyable as a cheap horror film and has some good fun moments, and it is a definite step up after the abysmal, cheap clip-show of a film the prior entry ("Legacy") was.

The films starts off with an extremely well-done retcon of the original "Puppet Master" film's prologue, almost seamlessly mixing old archival footage and new footage- Danny Coogan (Levi Fletcher), a young man whom wants to fight in World War II but can't due to a bad limp, stumbles into the room of the puppet master Andre Toulon (William Hickey in archival footage) just moments after he killed himself. Danny had been shown Toulon's puppets before, and is able to recover them from their hiding place in the wall, vowing to take care of them and keep them safe from the Nazis Max and Klaus who had been sent to retrieve them for Hitler. (Max and Klaus are played by Tom Sandoval and Aaron Riber) Danny returns home to Los Angeles China-Town district where his mother and older brother (about to depart for the war) live, and where his girlfriend Beth (Jenna Gallaher) works. However, Max and Klaus track down Danny's address and begrudgingly unite with a Japanese spy and her associates to retrieve the puppets for the Axis, and to blow up the factory where Beth works, which may or may not be home to a new secret Allied weapon.

I will give credit where credit is due- there are a lot of good, fun moments in this direct-to-DVD film. Some of the ret-con work in the beginning is highly impressive (it matches perfectly except for slight differences in the lighting), the characters though underdeveloped and poorly acted are likable, and there's even some good unintentional social commentary. (Including a good jab at American ignorance in that our Japanese villainess is able to hide out in plain sight in China-Town because Americans are too ignorant to be able to tell Chinese and Japanese apart.) It's also just good to see the puppets in action again as a fan of earlier installments in the series.

However, when this film falls apart and times, it really falls apart. For one, it's 81 minutes long, but nearly ten minutes of that footage includes the opening and closing credits, and a large portion of archival footage from the original film, so the film is really only about 71 minutes of new footage. And it just isn't enough time to develop the sort-of story the director and writer are going for. You can tell that a lot of scenes must have been cut for budget and time reasons (too much is implied through dialog when it should have been shown on screen, and the film takes place in the same few locations from scene to scene), and it hurts the film. What makes this even stranger is that it's not a fast film, per say, it's actually a slower-moving film editing-wise, which makes it seem even shorter than it already is. It really could have benefited from another 10 minutes of footage.

Two, this is not really a well-made movie. It feels far too low-budget. The puppet effects are all very bland and basic and look arguably worse than they did in earlier films. The production design is very cheap. The acting isn't the greatest (the actors are charming, but just can't act). It just reeks of "low budget direct-to-DVD."

Those complains being said, this is still a watchable film. It's one of the weaker entries in the series (to be honest, the series has gotten a lot worse since the third film), but is still mildly entertaining. I'd give it a just under-average 4 out of 10. If you're a fan of the earlier films, pick up the box set of all nine official entries and give this one a watch. It's worth seeing for the fans.

The Puppets return to tackle the Nazis in Axis of Evil

[rgblakey · 24 October 2012]

The Puppet Master series has been running strong since 1989. Throughout the series it has taken the storyline in all sorts of directions creating a chronological history that can be confusing. While Puppet Master: Axis of Evil is the ninth official film in the series, it actually is third in chronological order for the series itself. With varying stories and evolution to the characters, can Axis of Evil bring something new to the story and continue to evolve these beloved horror icons and a deliver another stepping stone for the future of these characters?

Puppet Master: Axis Rising follows Toulon as he takes shelter at the Bodega Bay Inn in California. When two soldiers are sent to kill him for his secrets, he hides the puppets away and commits suicide in hopes to have his secrets die with him. When an employee discovers his body and the puppets he begins to take care of them eventually discovering their secrets as well as that of the Gestapo's plans to bomb the United States. With the help of puppets he sets out to stop them before they can set their plan in motion. Featuring Blade, Pinhead, Jester, Tunneler, Six Shooter's arms, Shredder Khan, Gengie, and Ninja this latest entry expands on the opening sequence in the original Puppet Master, even using the same footage. There have been some various inconstancies throughout the series, but still always managed to bring it all together fairly well. This connection to the original seems to bring it back on track as though Band is trying to reconnect all those missing pieces in a more cohesive manner. This one takes a little bit longer to get to the fun, but the clear attempt to tell more of an origin story makes it work. This is an entertaining entry into the series, while the acting is not all that great. Over the years, the acting side of it has seemed to go down a bit, but is overshadowed by the sheer fun of the puppets in action.

If you're a true horror fan or just love anything Full Moon puts out, this is a must have version of Puppet Master: Axis of Evil. In addition to the film it includes additional features The Making of Evil, 13 Vidcasts from China, "No Strings Attached" the original making of from the first Puppet Master and includes the trailers from all 9 original Puppet Master films. Don't miss out on Puppet Master: Axis of Evil on Blu-ray available now! For more information or to get a copy, head over to www.fullmoondirect.com

This was AWFUL

[zsbiw · 2/10 · 6 October 2021]

The Puppet Master series was tolerable... until this movie. Even Curse of the Puppet Master, bad as it was, was sort of entertaining to watch.

But this movie... no. The storyline, acting, appearence of the puppets themselves, etc, were truly awful. There is nothing I can think of positive to say about this movie.

I realize the Nazi Germany story is part of the Puppet Master series, but still. The plot here was atrocious.

This is definitely a Puppet Master film I never want to see again. Retro Puppet Master was the last decent Puppet Master film. Everything after Retro Puppet Master isn't worth watching at all.

I would say it's worth it to watch the first 7 Puppet Master movies, but stop there. Just don't watch anything after Retro. Retro and Curse are GREAT compared to this.

A Disappointing Installation

[Grojniar · 2/10 · 4 July 2022]

I don't understand some people's obsession with joining armed forces or going to war, especially the way Danny does. It's something I've always considered annoying so I had a hard time liking his character. I do however like that this continues from the original Puppet Master. Due to the main story of the first movie being about the "magicians", I didn't really think too much about what happened after Toulon's suicide. I found the dialogue between Danny and his brother very cringey but perhaps that's writing americans find charming. Honestly I don't think I liked a single character in this movie and maybe that's why I found it hard to enjoy. This was the hardest to take seriously by far. I understand that Full Moon is known for their movies being bad in a good way, but this was just bad. The atmosphere did fit every scene very well and the transitions were smooth, but it didn't help in the end.

Puppet Master Axis of Evil: Flogging a dead horse

[Platypuschow · 3/10 · 16 April 2019]

Axis of Evil is the 10th Puppet Master movie and the first in the Axis trilogy.

It demonstrates yet another franchise that Fullmoon is milking into dust, and it's a shame to see a franchise that's been going since the 80's deteriorate to this level.

Telling yet another story of a keeper of the puppets who uses them to combat the German forces during world war II it's...............there really is no point in me describing it any further as it's the same as the majority of the movies that came before it.

Sadly there hasn't been a decent Puppet Master movie for years, the quality has dipped to a crippling degree. The more they try to add to the Puppet Master lore the more ridiculous it gets and we're at the stage now where the whole thing is hokey and the Puppets take a backseat.

Yes that's right the puppets aren't the stars of the movie at all, they're barely supporting players and our leads/antagonists are unforgivably dull. So if you're expecting more exciting doll vs man encounters/death scenes then you'll be sorely let down by this 10th outing.

There are three more Puppet Master movies after this, and that's assuming it doesn't continue further. Truth be told, it shouldn't.

Stick this one with a fork, it's done.

The Good:

Has a degree of Full Moon charm left

The Bad:

Stock scream

Ropey acting

Oddly boring

Brings nothing new to the table

"I think you've been reading to many of those pulps"

[hwg1957-102-265704 · 4/10 · 9 September 2023]

A reboot of the Puppetmaster franchise, starting from the suicide of Andre Toulon the original puppetmaster in 1939 and passing the puppetmastery onto a young furniture maker Danny Coogan. Danny is peeved he has been rejected by the draft board but as his part in the war effort tangles with some German and Japanese spies, using the puppets to kill them. It's a boring film. The actors are inadequate. Levi Fiehler as whining Danny is unsympathetic and the spies are generic and one-dimensional. Ada Chau as villainous geisha Ozu is hilarious but not in a good way. The puppets hardly appear and are not stop motion characters any more, as they haven't for previous movies in this long and increasingly dull series.. The new ninja one is painfully realised with no animation. The film is witless about history which makes it more silly. The film reminded me of a 1940's film serial minus action, excitement and interesting characters.

Quite poor

[weemonk · 3/10 · 11 August 2010]

I remember watching the first Puppet Master film in my teens and thinking it was a pretty good. I remember watching the second and thinking it was pretty poor. I remember watching the third and thinking that, whilst low budget, it was a good film.

I say remember as I'm 31 now and it was quite a while a go. But being the film fanatic that I am, I still remember the puppets and their names.

Even though more Puppet Master films were made, I didn't follow the series after the third one....until I noticed that a new film had been released and that the story would take place early Toulon days - like the third film, which worked - so I thought I'd jump back in and see where the series was up to.

Unfortunately, by the 10th instalment filming is on a micro budget and it shows! I liked the story and thought it was engaging enough. I looked past some of the shoddy acting and poor performances.....but the thing I just couldn't forgive was the lack of budget given towards the puppets! It was poor and disgraceful. At no point did you feel that Blade (my favourite since the first) and co. were alive. There wasn't the slightest effort made at all. If you were to make a home movie about puppets that are alive, the best you'd be able to do to make it look convincing is move the puppet with your hand so the camera can not see - this is exactly what happened in this film. No attempt at animatronics or stop motion capture.

The original Puppet Master was made in 1989 - all these years later, it still outclasses this instalment in every department.

The good thing that did come out of this film is that my interest is rekindled and I've obtained Puppet Master 1-9 which I'm going to watch!

EDIT - Just watch 1-4 as the series goes down hill from 5 onwards :)

Puppet Master: Axis of Evil : A flawed installment, a setup for something more...

[jrtedrick · 6/10 · 11 October 2012]

Let me start off by saying that I find the Puppet Master mythology to be one of the more intriguing of the horror genre. The idea behind it, the concept and the "lore" supporting it, is far more interesting to me than the concepts of other, better-known horror films, such as Halloween or especially Friday the 13th. There is a mysticism, an aura of magic, around watching the puppets do what they do,that keeps me interested in them, even while other elements of the films sink into the abyss of Z-rated schlock. Sadly, the charm of these puppets is not enough to support their films, especially with the absence of the late David Allen's stellar special effects. Primarily, it seems like the weakest element to these films is the writing, which generally seems rote or amateur. If it's not the writing, then it's the acting, or the production values. In one way or another, something seems off. Axis of Evil is no exception. A direct sequel to the prologue of the 1989 Puppet Master, Axis of Evil branches off into a sort of "side story" about a young man's discovery of the puppets of Andre Toulon,a German puppeteer who killed himself to protect his reanimation serum from the clutches of the Nazis. It then tells the story of his struggle against two Nazi assassins, named Max and Klaus, who are trying to secure the serum and the puppets for Hitler. Also involved is a Japanese saboteur named Ozu, who has her own plans for the elixir, which rhyme with "give serum to the emperor! Much reward! Yay!". The story, while fairly mundane, does have a bit of weight behind it. However, while the story had the potential to make Axis of Evil more than what it is, the execution floored this possibility. The puppet effects, created by Gage Munster, aren't anywhere near as strong or graceful as they ought to be, considering the focus of the film is on the puppets. I understand that these aren't supposed to be Jurassic Park-quality special effects; they're living puppets, after all. But there's still something wrong about their inorganic clumsiness. It veers out of context and into being cheap. Out of special effects, the production design is actually fairly strong, with visible effort put into the sets and costumes. The human element of the film, the acting, isn't terribly shabby in itself; the trouble in this respect comes from the casting. All of the characters who feel off in the film aren't acted out poorly, they're just acted out by people who are too young for the roles. The best example of this can be found in the antagonists. The actors who play the Nazis cannot be far beyond their 20s, while they should be in their late-30s or 40s for the roles of Max and Klaus. Their youth makes them both hard to take very seriously. Also, Jenna Gallaher's character seems to demand "dame", while she gives it "valley girl". On another note, the revised score by Richard Band is refreshing. I really wish I could say better of Axis of Evil, I really do. I want to like the new Puppet Master films like I liked the first wave. But ever since Full Moon Features left Paramount, the studio has been stuck in a rut that is still evident in Axis of Evil. So is not to say that the film is bad; it is improved over the past few installments. I just wish it was better. Axis of Evil does end with a cliffhanger, a setup for the inevitable and imminent sequel, Axis Rising. Here's hoping it's an improvement over this film. Here's hoping it's the 21st-century sequel that the puppets, the fans, and the license deserve.

Quite nice at some moments but not really interesting

[alexfromhorn · 4/10 · 17 July 2010]

It's a B Movie, probably even less. It has some funny moments, but it is boring. Music was OK. About the sound effects, I realized that some were from the Computer game Gothic 1 or 2, especially that one scream sound was just stolen from the game - which somehow speaks for itself. The story was incredibly lame. The villains were strange and incapable of anything. The acting was so bad that it hurt my ears, especially the Japanese woman was capable of doing this... I had trouble taking the Nazis seriously - it was all in all more of a comedy. I liked the puppets, nice and mysterious but even those couldn't help this movie out of the horrible script. Most of the situations and almost the whole plot didn't make that much sense. I'm sorry to tell you this but it is not a movie to appreciate. It was simply ridiculous at all. After watching it I had a big question mark standing on my head: Why Nazis? They didn't do anything Nazi-like, besides hailing each other about 2 times in the whole movie - that's all and they still name it "Axis of Evil" ... At least it had some kind of atmosphere that let me watch it until the end.

It's good to see the puppets again

[mattjudge · 9/10 · 4 August 2010]

First let me say I enjoyed the movie. Its a good story and kept me entertained through out. I liked how they combined the old footage with the new and it was great to see william H again as andre toulon. The recreation of the bodaga bay inn was good, I couldn't tell the difference from the original. I liked the humor, the family scenes and the emotion of the lead character. All he wanted was to serve his country, and like all good stories he got his chance. It was great to see the puppets in action again doing what they do best. The new puppet was also entertaining. The special features were also good. Thank you Fullmoon Entertainment for this installment to the puppet master series.

An Awesome entry in the Puppet Master series

[gabedrumminggamer · 7/10 · 17 April 2013]

Let me start by saying that I am a HUGE Puppet Master fan. I like every movie, some I love. And when I watched this, I was very satisfied. The puppets were awesome for the screen time they were given and did what they do best. The acting was average, the gore was good, and the storyline was pretty good. The only errors (which I hate to point out) are the dialogue, amount of gore, and not as much screen time for the puppets as in other films, which was fine due to the budget. However, I only recommend this movie to Puppet Master fans or fans of Charles Band and Full Moon. If you are just a horror film watcher, you will be too judgmental of this film. Go Blade!

Not Good, But Not the Worst Actually

[gavin6942 · 5/10 · 19 May 2011]

In a Stateside hotel during the height of World War II, young Danny Coogan (Levi Fiehler) dreams of joining the war effort.

This film, coming in at barely 80 minutes, reused footage from previous films. So that makes this a total of 60 minutes, maybe? I cannot blame them. They needed to use a dead actor, so the footage had to be old, and it ties the story together more fluidly.

What is up with the young Nazis? Is it just me, or does the idea of two young (under 30) Nazis being the only force to infiltrate the American war effort seem silly? Jenna Gallagher was decent as Beth, and fairly attractive. The real mystery is why Full Moon regular Robin Sydney did not get the part (or any part) in this movie. She never fails to entertain and it would be nice to see her in this series.

But the real issue with this film is the anachronisms: the movie takes place in 1939, but the U.S. did not enter WWII until the Japanese attack on December 7th, 1941. So why are we fighting in France and Japan already? The concentration camp Auschwitz is mentioned, but the camp was build two years after the events depicted in this movie. The female Japanese agent mentions Kamikaze attacks, but no Kamikaze units existed until 1944.

The USA flag hanging on the wall in Danny's room has 50 stars on it, but the USA only had 48 states so there would only have been 48 stars on it (1 for each state). It was not until August 21, 1959 when Hawaii became the 50th state that 50 stars appeared on the flag.

This film needs work!

"Maybe you'd pay more attention to me, if I was made of wood. Like Pinocchio, huh"?

[lost-in-limbo · 2/10 · 24 February 2019]

I seem to be taking my time watching these PUPPET MASTER sequels. After my friend awhile back lent me LEGACY, it hit rock bottom. Somewhat improved with RETRO, but it didn't have much to beat. Anyway, after sitting through AXIS OF EVIL, ending on a cliffhanger. I'm in no rush to move onto the next one. So it looks like I'll stick with my PUPPET MASTER viewing trend.

At least for this outing, leech woman gets to live up to her name (after bit of a hiatus being a passenger), vomiting up a leech (a budget thing I guess being only one) to inflict a brutal death. Actually there was too little puppet action, possibly contributed to its lack of effects. Just looking at the raggedy ninja puppet, yeah, tells the story. Everything bare minimum. Everything. Made in China. What David DeCoteau presented for the majority of the film is a boringly wooden, and overly stagey tale of espionage involving a crippled young American man doing his best to serve his country by trying to prevent Nazi/and Japanese spies planning to bomb an American manufacturing plant in a Chinese town during WW2. In doing so, this story element saps the puppet fun right out of it.

I quit

[Jangobadass · 1/10 · 26 September 2010]

I have been a fan of the PUPPET MASTER movies since I was kid watching them on the Sci-Fi Channel, have watched all of them, and have put up with a lot of crap from the more recent entries. After Full Moon Pictures broke off from Paramount, the quality of their movies became noticeably poorer and poorer and they started running out of good ideas. But I stood by the PM series, hoping for a return to the quality of the low budgeted but determined films I grew up watching. But after this entry, I quit. This has to be the worst PM movie ever...and that's saying something!

For starters, the Puppets are absent for a large part of the story as the plot often plays like a WWII era drama about a cripple who wants to be a soldier but can't and then stumbles onto an Axis plot to blow up a weapons factory. When the Puppets are around their movements are stiff and lifeless like someone playing with dolls.

There is also awful acting, a character who looks older than the actress playing his mother, painfully cheap production values (if the other PM movies Had small budgets, the one for this entry is just microscopic), and even an insult to our intelligence by having WWII be central to the plot while having the setting be 1939...TWO YEARS BEFORE America ENTERED THE WAR!!

And to top it all off, the early scenes feature footage from the original PUPPET MASTER that are superior to the rest of the movie and the DVD features trailers for all the other PM movies, which shows how better the older movies were and the unfortunate decline in quality as the series went along.

I am now done with the PUPPET MASTER movies. If there is another one I won't watch it, but I doubt there will another one. I imagine this may be the final nail in the coffin to kill the series for good.

Not the best or the worst in the series

[atinder · 5/10 · 31 March 2018]

Finally saw this last night , after Avoiding it for so long.

I thought it was a lot better then I thought it was going to be.

I didn't find it boring at all, the movie had a decent flow, I liked how they connected to the frist movie.

I enjoyed all the Puppet scence, some nice kills.

5 out of 10 I think this one better sequel since the curse!

By Far One of the WORST Overdue Sequels Ever!

[shootyhoops · 11 August 2010]

I'm a huge fan of the Puppet Master series and have been praying for a sequel worthy of making me forget about crappy sequels such as Curse of the Puppet Master and Puppet Master: Legacy.

UNFORTUNATELY, my prayers were NOT answered and was presented the antithesis of what I wanted.

Why this movie SUCKED?

1. God Awful acting. Yes, I know it's a B-movie and not to expect Oscar worthy performances, but this was VERY sub-par for a B-movie or a Full Moon production in general. The actress who played Ozu did one of the WORST Asian accents ever. She sounded like a constipated Bernadette Peters. The Nazi's kept falling out of a German accent into a VERY American sounding accent. Actually, I don't think they were ever speaking in a German accent. The actor who played Don was VERY annoying and I was kind of glad when the character died and became a silent puppet.

2. NO Respect to History and NO Effort in Writing. The writers clearly did NOT pick up a history book. This movie is set in 1939 and yet Pearl Harbor, Nazi Death Camps, and Kamikaze pilots have already existed. These things did NOT happen until after 1941. This movie was just an excuse to spew out every anti-Japanese/German sentiment said during WWII. In addition to the poor attention to details, the movie sounded like it was written by an elementary school student.

Bottom Line: Watch it online for free!

What Just Happened?

[jamesbourke59 · 1/10 · 2 October 2010]

Oh for the glory days to return! Alas notions of such high calibre and more importantly high concept ideas forever emerging from within out with the doors of full moon seem but a distant memory.

The gradual decay with their output over the last few years has been seriously evident with the likes of Gingerdead Man and such like. Ofocurse many with disagree, but as I have been a slave to the Ryhthm of the works of Charles Band, I believe I have seen the best of what the legendary man has produced and it's safe to say that Puppetmaster - Axis Of Evil most certainly is not high calibre nor is it a startling concept.

Longtime cohort David Decouteau has never been one to be adventurous when calling the shots as a director, just look at his Rapid Heart movies, just get the camera in focus and let the pretty things do their thing, and once again he shows a distinct lack of flair, but that being said, we do get a few visual set pieces, but these are primarily establishing shots.

As for the acting, aside from the main players, Levi Fiehler essaying the role of Danny Coogan our on screen protagonist and his on screen love interest Beth, played by the very fetching Jenna Gallacher, the minor parts afforded screen time do not acquit themselves with any glory, the presence of Ada Chao as Ozu really is a curious one, now as to whether or not the actress in question could actually speak English doesn't bother me one bit, however the delivery of her lines and facial movements really made me question her actual acting ability.

Of course the major crime committed on screen, or should that be off screen, was the lack of necessary puppets, if you take away the opening prologue, which was comprised of both new and old footage, which I'll be honest did click together really quite well, but I won't get too carried away with anymore plaudits, because none exist.

As for that ending, I don't really feel like I want another helping of the same old thing, if you get to the ending and feel like I did, What just happened. If the rumour's are to be believed, and Full Moon will now be shifting their brand of band over to China, and as cheaply as these movies can be made, should we be shocked if Charles Band delivers another Puppetmaster movie, I will not be surprised, maybe he should take them into outer space, it worked for Leprechaun.

Let's hear it for Puppetmaster in the Year 3000, then again let's not.

A major dud, without hesitation - 1/10

The puppets are lifeless and the film riddled with plot flaws.

[paulclaassen · 2/10 · 16 June 2018]

Back to 1939 we go, with starts off with footage from the beginning of 1989's original film, where Andre Toulin committed suicide. The film follows what happens immediately thereafter, with a young man, Danny, finding the puppets and taking them under his wing. There's nothing great about the dialogue or acting, or story for that matter, but it was an interesting enough continuation of the story. We have two Nazi spies posing as Americans (but they don't even have German accents, so they're not credible Germans either) who work together with a Japanese woman, who is also after the serum that brings the puppets to life. There's a lot of back stabbing and double crossing here, but there are just way too many conveniences and plot flaws. Also, why did Danny trust the puppets so easily into helping him, and how did he know they would or even could, as he knew nothing about them? And why did the puppets trust him in return? The puppets look rather lifeless.

Enjoyable enough franchise entry

[kannibalcorpsegrinder · 6/10 · 21 October 2018]

Stuck in the looming shadow of WWII, a young man who can't serve in the Army finds that his ability to reanimate a set of puppets found in a nearby hotel works wonders with a small collection and allows him to fight the Nazi group trailing him for the secret to the dolls to help save his country.

This was a fun if overall problematic entry. When this one works, it manages to feature some really nice work here setting up this newfound storyline that manages to work through the events of the original. Taking the events from that film and continuing on with the discovery of the dolls from inside the room to the need for carrying on the war effort that he was engaging in which sets the rest of the film in motion. Giving the way it follows through with the discovery of his plans to cripple the Allies, this one brings in plenty of fun to be had with the espionage-filled first half that has the gradual reveal of his mission and how it's all going to play out with the different sides trying to keep their operation clandestine as the back-and-forth makes for the fun to happen in the final half where the puppets can get into the action and really show themselves off. There's a lot to like here as they manage to interfere with the initial planning session that alerts everyone and leading into the big battle later on as they get the rescue mission underway which really ups the action considerably. From letting each puppet have a centerpiece sequence to knock out somebody on the opposing side, having some solid action scenes here to really let this one generate a sense of fun and ending this on a solid note overall. Given that these here are what hold it up, it does manage to feature a few minor flaws to hold it back somewhat. The main issue to be had here is the decidedly one-section work done with the puppets, who are featured here solely for the final half where they launch their rescue attempt on the hideout, leaving the first half to focus exclusively on the espionage angle that doesn't feature the puppets at all. Though this is well-developed in terms of storyline issues, its focus on their relationship woes and where the whole plan is going to go down does hinder the action for a long portion of time letting this one get filled with these elements rather than generating any kind of activity for them to do which is somewhat strange. Likewise, the other big issue here is the overall cheap and flimsy look of the film, from the cramped sets to the lack of atmosphere and a generally overall tone that doesn't really let this one engage in the type of scope its storyline is trying to get out. That is what really lowers this one overall.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence and Language.

Terrible ninth Puppet Master film, as expected.

[poolandrews · 1/10 · 8 November 2011]

Puppet Master: Axis of Evil starts at Bodega Bay hotel during 1939 as two Nazi's Max (Tom Sandoval) & Klaus (Aaron Riber) search for puppeteer Andre Toulon who has developed a serum to bring his inanimate wooden puppets to life, before Max & Klaus can find Toulon he kills himself & his secrets are seemingly lost forever. However a young craftsman named Danny Coogan (Levi Fiehler) discovers Toulon's puppets & magical serum & takes them back home with him. Frustrated at not being able to fight on the World War II front line Danny recognises one of the Nazi's while visiting his girlfriend & is determined to prove that he is right, Danny learns of the Nazi's teaming up with the Japanese in an attempt to sabotage the American war effort & Danny, along with his killer puppets, decides he has to stop them...

Directed by David DeCoteau this is, believe it or not, the ninth entry in the Puppet Master series of killer toy films that really should have ended after part three although parts four & five are alright but everything after that sucks with this Puppet Master: Axis of Evil being the worst of the lot. The Puppet Master films have long since gone past the point where the makers no longer number them & just try to give them cool sounding subtitles but that doesn't fool anybody, does it? This is total crap if I am being honest, the plot is silly with the killer puppets having less & less to do with each film, here they barely feature & just tend to stand around while the script manages to make an entire spin-off film out of the five minute pre-credits sequence from the original Puppetmaster (1989) which is as bad as it sounds & the puppets get to fight the Nazi's & Japs who are planning to blow up some sort of factory somewhere in the US, hey none of it is explained so don't expect anything more revelatory than that because you will be disappointed. The script takes a stab at bring up moralistic issues about going to war, staying behind, the impact on friends & family & other such points but it's all pretty boring & is badly written sub soap opera melodrama of the worst kind. Is there anything positive I can say about Puppet Master: Axis of Evil? Well, actually no.

There are not enough kills or gore here with the puppets underused yet again, OK I understand special effects are expensive but what else are we even watching this crap for if not for the cool killer puppets? A guy eats a Leech when he mistakes it for some of his dinner (I am not joking either), a guy gets the top of his head drilled & thats about it. The kills, settings, special effects & build-up are very lame & forgettable. The new puppet Ninja is awful & is far to bland & ordinary looking. Set in late 30's America there are a few decent costumes but the majority of the film takes place in one of four locations. In fact the best looking parts of the film are those edited in from the original Puppetmaster.

Filmed in China this is set entirely in the US, I assume it was cheaper to film over there than in the US as penny pinching Charles Band doesn't like to spend money if he doesn't have to. The acting is bad from all involved, it's not just the puppets that look lifeless & wooden here.

Puppet Master: Axis of Evil is terrible, the end leaves things wide open for a further sequel which I can only hope I will never see but know that I will still be dumb enough to watch it. Watch the original again instead or one of the two first sequels when the makers were still trying to make good films.

Puppet master axis of evil axis of evil 😈

[jeffreyc-32567 · 8/10 · 11 August 2019]

Puppet master axis of evil 😈 watched last night. I found it to be a very good film and quite enjoyed the action. The puppets work well in the film i have all the puppet master films in my collection. I have another one to watch tonight should be interesting.

Is the movie exceptional? Nah. But the puppets are as fun as ever.

[kevin_robbins · 6/10 · 18 May 2021]

The Puppet Master Axis of Evil is available on Amazon Prime for $3.99 and is the first of the Axis of Evil Trilogy when Full Moon relaunched the series in 2010. The storyline focuses on a family during World War 1 where two brothers want to go war but one cannot due to issues with his leg. He is an artist of sorts and as he sees his brother off to war he and his girlfriend uncover a German plan in a local factory right under their noses. They'll need some help from some unexpected Nazi hating puppets. The storyline for this is fairly in-line with the middle movies (3-5) in the original Puppet Master series. The characters are worth following but the best parts of the film is use of the original puppets brought back to life with their devious ways and kill scenes you still cheer for every time. Is the movie exceptional? Nah. But the puppets are as fun as ever. I'd give this a 5.5/10.

Leech woman gives it 2 stars

[Rodriigo · 1/10 · 21 June 2012]

First of all, this movie was an extreme lazy attempt by Full moon. Many fans were so excited but let down extremely. The plot is boring, and the acting is so poor it makes you cringe. Worst of all, the puppets looks have been changed which is a major no no. For instance, Tunneler's face looks awful and leech woman is now a midget who looks like a cheap Barbie doll.

The puppets don't even move nor interact as much, unlike Puppet Master 3. It looks like the film crew just grabbed the puppets and bobbed them up and down.

Above all, the 2 stars is for bringing back leech woman (fan favorite) and actually making her fight for once. However, it would be nice to see more of her interacting with the other puppets and Danni.