This is a Roger Corman movie. It was made at the same time as NOT OF THIS EARTH and both were shown as a double feature in 1957. Both had a producing time of ten days each and the budget for both films together was some 150,000 dollars. How do I know all this? Well, both movies are on a DVD box available nowadays and as a bonus the DVD contains an interview with Roger Corman himself. And these are facts he states in the interview.
I have always had a soft spot for Corman. Most of his movies are just awful B-films, usually horror or something like that. But this actually is one of his best movies. It is by no means a good movie. But bearing in mind the short production time, the low budget and the fact that this is, after all, a 1950's movie: it is rather good. The acting, the editing and the direction are good, the special effects however are mediocre at best, even though they are better than those in the early GODZILLA movies, for instance.
The story is about a group of scientists going to an isolated island. They soon discover weird things are taking place on the island. Soon it turns out they are being threatened by gigantic crabs, the result of atomic experiments on the island. The crabs apparently are even capable of incorporating humans into their bodies and minds.
Of course it is all utter nonsense. But in this case the nonsense is brought to us in a satisfactory way. There are some enormous black holes in the script. And what is that luxurious villa doing on this isolated island? A pleasant film to watch, a good Corman movie and now available in beautiful black and white on a DVD. If you like cheesy 1950's horror and SF give this one a try.
For me a 6 out of 10.
I have always had a soft spot for Corman. Most of his movies are just awful B-films, usually horror or something like that. But this actually is one of his best movies. It is by no means a good movie. But bearing in mind the short production time, the low budget and the fact that this is, after all, a 1950's movie: it is rather good. The acting, the editing and the direction are good, the special effects however are mediocre at best, even though they are better than those in the early GODZILLA movies, for instance.
The story is about a group of scientists going to an isolated island. They soon discover weird things are taking place on the island. Soon it turns out they are being threatened by gigantic crabs, the result of atomic experiments on the island. The crabs apparently are even capable of incorporating humans into their bodies and minds.
Of course it is all utter nonsense. But in this case the nonsense is brought to us in a satisfactory way. There are some enormous black holes in the script. And what is that luxurious villa doing on this isolated island? A pleasant film to watch, a good Corman movie and now available in beautiful black and white on a DVD. If you like cheesy 1950's horror and SF give this one a try.
For me a 6 out of 10.