Scientists Zimmer (Robert Symonds, SUPERSTITION) and Drago (Curt Lowens, WEREWOLF IN A GIRLS' DORMITORY) have perfected the Mandroid, a remotely controllable robot (operated by the user donning electronically-linked helmet and gloves) with the assistant of Zimmer's daughter Zanna (Jane Caldwell, PREHYSTERIA) and lab assistant Benjamin (Michael Della Femina, BLOODLUST: SUBSPECIES III). Zimmer wants to sell it to the U.S. government to work with deadly and hazardous materials in the lab, but Drago wants to modify it for military use. When M.I.T. scientist Wade Franklin (Brian Cousins, LONGTIME COMPANION) and CIA agent Joe Smith (Patrik Ersgård, RANCID) arrive for a demonstration of Mandroid, Drago attempts to steal the formula that will allow Mandroid to be controlled by thought alone and is horribly disfigured while Ben's injuries have the bewildering side effect of gradually rendering him invisible (see the sequel INVISIBLE: THE CHRONICLES OF BENJAMIN KNIGHT). Recovered, metal-masked Drago makes off with Mandroid and its control unit with the help of a mute derelict (Ion Haiduc, BLOODSTONE: SUBSPECIES II) leaving Zimmer, Zanna, Wade, and Joe to try to recover the Mandroid before Drago can put it to evil use.

Aside for the SUBSPECIES series, MANDROID is one of the few Full Moon productions shot in Romania that is also set in that country - well, in somewhere in Eastern Europe at least (Romania has substituted for New England, the midwest, New York, and the Irish countryside in other Full Moon product). The project was actually initiated in 1986 as "Mindmaster" with former Marvel Comics artist Jack Kirby, and the noirish lighting, wiping transitions, and arch performances do have a sub-Tim Burton's BATMAN quality on the cheap. Because the film was shot back-to-back with its sequel INVISIBLE: THE CHRONICLES OF BENJAMIN KNIGHT with the surviving principals reprising their roles, scenes used to set up the sequel come across here like mere contrivances to take certain characters out of the action temporarily. The characters are likable and the performances okay, and the action is reasonably tense, but everything seems to have been dumbed-down solely for the purpose of keeping the film under seventy-five minutes for no particular reason. The film earns its R-rating from some gore that would rate a PG-13 these days and a flash of nudity in the film's not-so-surprising coda.