Review of The Giant Behemoth

Shown extensively, on WOR-TV in NYC in the 1960s, the death scenes by radiation were very disturbing to see as a child. It was also rare for a kid to be killed in a horror movie. The 1st half of the movie is very good and fascinating to watch. Unfortunately, seeing the special effects today as an adult is disappointing due to the film's low budget. The first appearances of the behemoth are laughable--a stiff puppet neck and head tipping over a toy boat and cars. The nighttime scenes are better. You can see wires on the tossed cars and jerky crowd scenes as the live action is mismatched with the stop motion inserts. You can even see marks on the lens or prints when combining the miniature with live action shots. The movie is basically a rework of Harryhausen's Beast from 20,000 Fathoms. That movie had much better effects although made 6 years earlier (the lighthouse scene is a work of art). I was always curious about the pulsating "radioactive"' blob in the beginning of this film that the young guy stupidly touches (more like a pulsating piece of canvas). That scene was left in the picture. It was made at the time when the "behemoth" was written as a blob-like creature and not a dinosaur. All in all, I really like this movie and have for decades.