The Giant Behemoth (1959)

"The Giant Behemoth" covers much the same ground as 1953's "The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms" but with considerably less success. There are a few good moments of stop-action monster rampage, reflecting Willis O'Brien's participation but most of the movie is stock footage or shots of people yelling and pointing (but few good shots of what they are yelling about or pointing at). In addition to being some kind of pointy-toothed apatosaur, the titular beast seems to be able to radiate lethal radioactivity at will (perhaps a sign of contemporary atomic paranoia). At one point this pulsing death ray incinerates a group of soldiers in a clumsily done transition from live actors to what appears to be a charcoal drawing of corpses. The radiation also seems to be able to buffet a submarine, which makes even less sense. The movie plods along the usual trajectory from disbelief to realization to determining the obligatory Achilles heel (like "Reptilicus", the Behemoth is protected from simply being bombed to hell and back by a convenient plot device (the aforementioned 'radiation')). Watchable by the monster-movie fraternity but far from one of the better examples of the canon.

Yes, yes, yes, it's a pallid remake of Beast From 20,000 Fathoms with a mixed bag of effects, but the commentary by special effects masters Dennis Murren and Phil Tippett is condescending in the extreme. Granted their focus was on the special effects - which in many cases are poor due to a low budget - but their absolute ignorance about some of the cast members was shocking. Most particularly they were sarcastically dismissive of the great Jack McGowan who's credits include "The Quiet Man" and "Lord Jim" to name just a few. They didn't even realize that he was in "The Exorcist" and in fact died while making that film. In future, Warner Brothers might be better served by including commentaries by film makers (or even fans) who are not so narrowly focused and who might contribute to one's enjoyment of the film rather than detract from it.

An American biologist (Gene Evans) warns stuffy Brits about the dangers of dumping radioactive waste in the ocean. At first, they don't take him seriously. But soon radioactive fish, people suffering radiation burns, and sightings of a giant sea monster have them singing a different tune.Despite some changes (such as the country it's set in), this is essentially a rehash of The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms. Both films were directed by Eugene Lourie, who also co-wrote the screenplay for this. While the earlier movie is certainly better, this is an enjoyable atomic monster movie from the heyday of classic sci-fi. The cast is solid, made up of mostly fine British actors including the great Andre Morell. As was often the case with science fiction movies from the period that were filmed in the UK, an American actor is shoehorned into things. That would be Gene Evans here, a character actor best suited for playing tough guy roles in war movies and westerns. Despite being miscast as a scientist, he acquits himself well. This is one of the final films stop-motion special effects wizard Willis O'Brien worked on. It's not his best work but still charming in its way. This is far from one of my favorites but I do like it. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys classic sci-fi movies, particularly those movies about giant radioactive dinosaurs.

Eugene Lourie directed this largely redundant film about radiated blobs that kill some seacoast villagers being the harbingers of doom, as atomic tests have resulted in the revival of a large radiated aquatic dinosaur that attacks London. Can a group of scientists(led by Gene Evans and Andre Morrell) stop this creature before it is too late? Good acting and reasonably effective F/X can't save this highly derivative yarn that doesn't have any originality at all; even the director had done this before(and much better) in "The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms". Not terrible at all, just been done better before. About an hour in, look for an iconic British Public Call Box to make an appearance...