Popeye famously says, “I yam what I yam.” Don’t worry – he says it in Popeye the Slayer Man, too. For those who just hate the idea of this film, it is what it is. And what it is? A surprisingly seamless shift from cantankerous seaman to hulking 80s movie-style slasher.
Except he doesn’t really slash. Most of the time, Popeye’s signature move involves squeezing, whether can of spinach or human head. Credit director Robert Michael Ryan and cinematographer Kory Rowe for not overplaying that. Of course they used a gallon of blood for each kill, but that’s for each kill that happens onscreen. Believe it or not, sometimes they go subtle.
For the most part, the script by John Doolan hovers subtle-adjacent. Working from a story idea by Ryan and producers Cuyle Carvin and Jeff Miller, Doolan lays out the pieces of the film’s mystery in reasonably organic ways. One of the hapless protagonists even compares themselves to Scooby Doo, and yes, 40 years from now a Popeye the Slayer Man/Mystery, Inc. crossover would probably work.
Also, Popeye the Slayer Man does not hide what it is. Before the opening titles, the menace gets established. It might not provide the clearest view of Popeye’s (Jason Stephens) motivations, but Ryan puts the impressive make-up job in the spotlight.
Thus going in we know the urban legend of the Anchor Bay Cannery is real. But it still makes me laugh each time sozzled dock worker Bernie (Doug Decker) grumbles, “it’s true!” And that’s another thing going for Popeye the Slayer Man – it’s genuinely funny without sacrificing tension.
Most of that relies on the main leads, a quintet of college students who break into the cannery to film a documentary. Though there’s the required frisson of sexual tension, things don’t go as expected on that front. Mostly our attention goes to Dexter (Sean Michael Conway) and Olivia (Elena Juliano), he a realistically awkward young adult and she a mysterious new transfer student. If you’re a step ahead of Dexter in figuring out what’s going on, it’s no fault of his.
Corporate shenanigans drive the mystery, too. An easy target, perhaps, and one that sadly never goes out of style. The scenes involving property owner Lex (Richard Lounello) and realtor Margot (Angela Relucio) carry the clunkiest exposition; Relucio fares better when she returns because she (say it with me) forgot something. Well, maybe not fares better, but definitely gets to prove her chops as a scream queen.
It may not be your cup of tea or can of spinach, but Popeye the Slayer Man works pretty well and doesn’t crap on anyone’s childhood memories. It’s clear there’s a lot of love for the character and his lore, including that which isn’t yet in public domain. Catch it if you can, before the Sea Hag gets you. (I cannot wait for her to become a proper antagonist — thank you, E.C. Segar, for such a rich and weird cast.)
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