Manticore is not perfect by all means, it does suffer from trying to incorporate too many character back stories(but that's also kind of an improvement as SyFy's characters are often annoying and underdeveloped), the dialogue doesn't flow very naturally, the monster is very poorly-designed(though there have been worse in SyFy movies) and the shaking camera effect in some scenes was distracting and I think unnecessary, then again I may be biased as I don't like and never have liked the use of that technique. However, the story, while not the most original one on the planet is a lot less formulaic and predictable than I have known it to be, there is some tension and suspense with some good gore and the Iraq setting makes it also relevant topically in a way. There is also some good acting from Robert Beltran and Jeff Fahey, the scenery always tries to be authentic, the characters are not as annoying, underdeveloped or stereotypical as any of the SyFy movies since Manticore and the music is less generic and more driven. So overall, not bad, in fact quite tolerable if imperfect. 6/10 Bethany Cox

I think it was one of the best monster movies that i've seen in a while. Setting the story in Iraq was a stroke of genius, it all looked genuine. The special effects were great! All the research i have been able to uncover about manticores were present in the movie- AND I sense incredible potential for a sequel. Originally there were TWO manticore- but they are unclear as to what happened to one of them. In the sequel- Halliburton could have captured it- and have it in the states for genetic experimentation. Of course it gets loose somewhere and starts killing everyone. Only Sgt Baxter knows what to do ( and this could be horror franchise for this character) and he is called up by the Army to take it on. The opportunity to bring other Mesopotamian monsters to life is also tempting. The ancient Babylonians had monsters galore dating back to the earliest days of recorded history. Manticore Two could feature a few also.

Manticore is woeful from the beginning to the end. There is so much wrong with it, that it belies belief.A 'terrorist' brings back to life a 2000 yr old mythical creature in the middle of the Iraqi war! And the virtually indestructible Manticore goes on a rampage.Horrendously poor acting; Robert Beltran is as woody and ineffectual, equalling his very worst performance on Star Trek: Voyager. Chase Masterson is sooo incredibly annoying I actually cheered when the monster presumably had its way with her! In fact only the occasional Jeff Fahey appearance was the acting saving grace.The monster itself was a joke. The CGI looked like it was handled by pubescent first time computer users. I can fully understand why this production skipped the big screen and video/DVD sales and straight onto TV. It is that bad, However I can say it has a twin in cheesy deplorable monster/horror genre; check out Bugs(2003) and yours truly's comments ;) They could release Bugs and Manticore as a 'Dastardly D-grade Duo'

I thought the plot had potential, but the special effects were very poorly done. It would have been better if we had never seen the "manticore" -- just shadows or a claw here and there. And I won't even comment on the helicopter crash.The acting, though, was a pleasant surprise. Robert Beltran and Jeff Fahey (whose performance in "Silverado" is one of my all-time favorites) turned in good, solid performances. The real surprises came from A.J. Buckley, Faran Tahir and even some of the more minor roles, like Jeff M. Lewis and Richard Gnolfo. I'm looking forward to seeing them again.