104 reviews
The Monster That Challenged the World (1957) ***
This rates up there as one of the better "giant monsters wreak havoc on mankind" movies that came out of the 1950s. The predators this time are overgrown snails/mollusks/caterpillar-like creatures that awaken from the pits of the Salton Sea after an earthquake shakes things up and charges them full of radiation. These monsters may appear of the dime store variety to those who aren't used to these "big bug" pictures, but actually they're pretty believable for a movie like this. Some of the assets setting this feature apart from its relatives would be the serious treatment of the story, some good acting and characters (it's fun watching Hans Conried as the knowledgeable scientist), and a few impressive pre-JAWS ocean scenes (one of the female victims meets a fateful watery demise, for example). Also adding to the effectiveness are some creepy ravaged corpses, the likes of which weren't usually this prominent back in the day. *** out of ****
- JoeKarlosi
- Jan 8, 2005
- Permalink
A monster with delusions of grandeur
This tidy little "B" thriller features all the usual elements common to genre films of the fifties; a lantern jawed hero determined to get to the bottom of all the trouble, the stern scientist who provides the rationale for the beastliness and the comely love interest who provides the distaff side of the equation. That "The monster that challenged the world" succeeds in delivering an at times genuinely frightening experience is due, I think,to a great script and film makers who treat the material with respect. To do any less is a betrayal of the audience,in my view. The film is peopled with understated performances, especially those of Hans Conreid in a rare dramatic role and Tim Holt,a stalwart of "B" westerns, as the no nonsense Commander Twillinger. The monster of the title may not be as menacing as, say, Alien, but it provides enough creepy moments to satisfy all but the most jaded film goers. Nice photography and crisp editing add to the overall effect. "The monster that challenged the world" made almost fifty years ago, remains a fresh and satisfying example of the genre. Recommended.
- graduatedan
- Aug 2, 2005
- Permalink
Scary looking monster
- rosscinema
- Apr 20, 2004
- Permalink
Giant molluscs threaten the world
- chris_gaskin123
- Jun 29, 2004
- Permalink
A quality little film
Fairly standard atomic monster fare bolstered considerably by a cool looking monster and a pretty good cast. Also, the script is a bit funnier than usual, without in any way being a parody or farce. It includes more characterization and human interest (in a genuine sort of way) than most such films. In this case, the military must hunt giant mollusks that supposedly can walk on land or swim in water, but we only see it in the water and sticking its head out of the water. Amusing, but dry, fun. Holt holds up well in the lead role, although the years were not kind to his midsection.
Enjoyable old sci-fi film
First of all, the title suggest one single monster, but there's several of them in the film, pretty good looking monsters for a low budget indeed, and they did not challenge the world, just a few people in the Salton Sea area actually, but that's OK, it's part of the 50's charm. In fact, "The Monster..." is far better than others "big bugs" films of the era, maybe slow paced, but with a clear plot, tension and good performances by the cast. Believe me when I tell you: this movie deserves a remake! Is not difficult to imagine a version today, with best production and far advanced special effects... even more if you consider that the other feature in this "Midnite Movies" DVD is "It!", a direct source of inspiration for "Alien". Good old sci-fi stuff!
- psychoren2002
- Jun 9, 2006
- Permalink
A Swan Song for Tim Holt
The Monster That Challenged the World is about some prehistoric molluscs who were in some dormant eggs that got themselves hatched. They are spreading death and destruction through their abilities to come out on land and feed, usually on unsuspecting humans.
The special effects are a might better than some of the science fiction cult classics from the Fifties. The story does bog down a bit in the personal part. Tim Holt's character is introduced to us as a by the book navy commander who softens with no real reason why.
When he did this film Tim Holt had been off the screen for five years after the B picture western disappeared from the big screen and on to television. Why Holt didn't go the way of television in his career is a mystery.
Tim Holt had one of the strangest careers in Hollywood history. He was a very good actor, gave good performances in both western and non-western films like The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Stella Dallas, Stagecoach, My Darling Clementine, and The Magnificent Ambersons. Yet he consistently went back to doing B westerns for RKO. His westerns were above average in the B film market, but they did nothing to advance his career. Another guy who replaced Holt in B westerns at RKO went on to a mega career, that being Robert Mitchum.
So in 1957 while Mitchum is doing critically acclaimed stuff like Heaven Knows Mr. Allison, Tim's doing The Monster That Challenged the World. Insisting on being a B picture cowboy finished him for anything else. So sad.
Holt did do two subsequent films that I've not seen, but the description makes them sound worse than this one.
You can watch The Monster That Challenged the World and still enjoy it. But if you liked Tim Holt and his screen performances and persona you will have a twinge of regret.
The special effects are a might better than some of the science fiction cult classics from the Fifties. The story does bog down a bit in the personal part. Tim Holt's character is introduced to us as a by the book navy commander who softens with no real reason why.
When he did this film Tim Holt had been off the screen for five years after the B picture western disappeared from the big screen and on to television. Why Holt didn't go the way of television in his career is a mystery.
Tim Holt had one of the strangest careers in Hollywood history. He was a very good actor, gave good performances in both western and non-western films like The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Stella Dallas, Stagecoach, My Darling Clementine, and The Magnificent Ambersons. Yet he consistently went back to doing B westerns for RKO. His westerns were above average in the B film market, but they did nothing to advance his career. Another guy who replaced Holt in B westerns at RKO went on to a mega career, that being Robert Mitchum.
So in 1957 while Mitchum is doing critically acclaimed stuff like Heaven Knows Mr. Allison, Tim's doing The Monster That Challenged the World. Insisting on being a B picture cowboy finished him for anything else. So sad.
Holt did do two subsequent films that I've not seen, but the description makes them sound worse than this one.
You can watch The Monster That Challenged the World and still enjoy it. But if you liked Tim Holt and his screen performances and persona you will have a twinge of regret.
- bkoganbing
- Apr 16, 2006
- Permalink
Fun-filled creature feature! Slightly underrated
'Science fact & science fiction are not the same.' Reasonable 50's monster film about slimy sea Snail's.
- poolandrews
- Mar 2, 2012
- Permalink
Keep kids out of the lab
When an earthquake awakens century-old giant mollusks with tusk-like mandibles and an appetite to match the long-hibernation, naval Captain Twill (former cowboy star of the forties Tim Holt) applies his no-nonsense, practical man skills to solve the problem. But not before some of his friends, subordinates and bystanders are inhaled. Single mother (Dalton) woos the affections of the married-to-the-uniform Twill, while her child (prolific child actress Gibson) causes untold grief while unattended in the laboratory. Oops! Did I bump the humidicrib regulator and accidentally breed a parasitic behemoth that could destroy the base? Evidence of why children should never be taken to the workplace, even if for the purpose of procuring cheap labour.
What distinguishes this picture, however, from the litany of inferiority that contaminate most of the fifties monster sub-genre is its acting. Holt is uber-professional in his timing, expression, delivery and especially interplay with the less experienced cast around him. Dalton, a former theatre actress, is also robust and there's excellent support in veterans Conried and Jones. The monster mollusks, which look like super-magnified maggots make horrendous shrieking yowls and are mostly concealed from view (the 'what lies beneath' imaginings do the job for the most part). Their inspired creation are among the more memorable movie monsters, not entirely absurd nor without some shock value considering the production scale.
Reasonably fast-paced, although the time taken to discover the presence of the monsters is longer that most audiences might expect. The narrative build-up is consistent with the mystery theme most often used in these types of movies, and serves the purpose reasonably well; the early conjecture about the aquatic assailant being a large shark was not an original alibi in terms of plot development, but nevertheless maintains engagement until the true monster is revealed. Certainly one of the key creature-features of its halcyon era and recommended viewing for even the casual admirer.
What distinguishes this picture, however, from the litany of inferiority that contaminate most of the fifties monster sub-genre is its acting. Holt is uber-professional in his timing, expression, delivery and especially interplay with the less experienced cast around him. Dalton, a former theatre actress, is also robust and there's excellent support in veterans Conried and Jones. The monster mollusks, which look like super-magnified maggots make horrendous shrieking yowls and are mostly concealed from view (the 'what lies beneath' imaginings do the job for the most part). Their inspired creation are among the more memorable movie monsters, not entirely absurd nor without some shock value considering the production scale.
Reasonably fast-paced, although the time taken to discover the presence of the monsters is longer that most audiences might expect. The narrative build-up is consistent with the mystery theme most often used in these types of movies, and serves the purpose reasonably well; the early conjecture about the aquatic assailant being a large shark was not an original alibi in terms of plot development, but nevertheless maintains engagement until the true monster is revealed. Certainly one of the key creature-features of its halcyon era and recommended viewing for even the casual admirer.
- Chase_Witherspoon
- May 1, 2011
- Permalink
Cowboy Tim Holt meets the Killer Katerpillars!
Even though this is a low-budget programmer, it does offer some interesting non-animated monsters. As in "Them", the monsters are full-sized, mobile mock-ups. The story describes them as prehistoric sea slugs, but they look more like caterpillars, complete with huge insect eyes, pincher-mandibles, and a double row of caterpillar-like legs.
Navy frogmen encounter the creatures on the floor of California's Salton Sea after an earthquake releases several trapped eggs which hatch in the warm water. The monsters migrate inland via waterways and underground springs, and the Navy must stop them before they overrun the planet.
Tim Holt is the stalwart Naval officer who spearheads the investigation into th mysterious deaths of several fluid-drained victims. Mr. Holt was well-known in the 1940s as the star of a series of low-budget but highly enjoyable Westerns. Typically his character was intelligent and good-natured, working undercover to solve a crime that had been committed.
Audrey Dalton is the pretty widow he romances. Hans Conried ("The Twonky") is the scientist who studies a batch of unhatched eggs in a temperature-controlled tank of water. A laboratory mishap causes one of the eggs to hatch, and the creature corners Dalton and her daughter in the lab.
The main problem with "The Monster that Challenged the World" is that the plot moves like the creatures -- at a snail's pace. Director Arnold Laven created a bland monster movie, sadly lacking in traditional elements such as theremin music, skeptical sheriffs, and Morris Ankrum as an army general.
Navy frogmen encounter the creatures on the floor of California's Salton Sea after an earthquake releases several trapped eggs which hatch in the warm water. The monsters migrate inland via waterways and underground springs, and the Navy must stop them before they overrun the planet.
Tim Holt is the stalwart Naval officer who spearheads the investigation into th mysterious deaths of several fluid-drained victims. Mr. Holt was well-known in the 1940s as the star of a series of low-budget but highly enjoyable Westerns. Typically his character was intelligent and good-natured, working undercover to solve a crime that had been committed.
Audrey Dalton is the pretty widow he romances. Hans Conried ("The Twonky") is the scientist who studies a batch of unhatched eggs in a temperature-controlled tank of water. A laboratory mishap causes one of the eggs to hatch, and the creature corners Dalton and her daughter in the lab.
The main problem with "The Monster that Challenged the World" is that the plot moves like the creatures -- at a snail's pace. Director Arnold Laven created a bland monster movie, sadly lacking in traditional elements such as theremin music, skeptical sheriffs, and Morris Ankrum as an army general.
- Bruce_Cook
- Feb 25, 2004
- Permalink
On the A-list of B pictures
Of course The Monster That Challenged the World is slowly paced. With a budget of about twenty dollars there's a lot of filler. But what little budget there is, is well used in creating a great animatronic monster.
The story is basic but well-structured and it works. I can watch this one over and over without wanting to throw things at the screen or yell at the characters for doing stupid things. My intelligence is more seriously insulted by modern horror films and their idiot protagonists than it ever is by The Monster That Challenged the World.
Among low-budget sci-fi flicks of the 1950s, The Monster That Challenged the World ranks near the top!
Jan Strnad (aka J. Knight)
The story is basic but well-structured and it works. I can watch this one over and over without wanting to throw things at the screen or yell at the characters for doing stupid things. My intelligence is more seriously insulted by modern horror films and their idiot protagonists than it ever is by The Monster That Challenged the World.
Among low-budget sci-fi flicks of the 1950s, The Monster That Challenged the World ranks near the top!
Jan Strnad (aka J. Knight)
Another Mutant Monster From the Deep!
"The Monster That Challenged the World", in spite of its long winded title, is not a bad movie of its kind. The film was one of a series of "giant creature" movies popular in the fifties.
The monster of the title is a giant mollusk/snail type creature (that actually looks more like a caterpillar) that is awakened by an earthquake. It then sets about attacking people and laying eggs. Commander Tim Holt of the U.S. Naval Intelligence Service then sets about to destroy it. Assisting him are scientists Hans Conried (playing it straight for a change) and Casey Adams (aka Max Showalter) and sheriff Gordon Jones. Audrey Dalton is Holt's love interest. Veteran character actor Ralph Moody (a true what's his name?) plays one of the monster's victims.
Director Arthur Laven gives us a believable monster(s) for the 50s and builds the suspense by not showing it until well into the film. Some of the victims look like papier mache but all in all it makes for a pretty good monsters film with high production values on a modest budget.
Holt, who had left films when his excellent "B" western series ended in 1952, came out of retirement for this film, apparently as a favor to director Laven. After this, he made only one more film before forsaking Hollywood for good.
The monster of the title is a giant mollusk/snail type creature (that actually looks more like a caterpillar) that is awakened by an earthquake. It then sets about attacking people and laying eggs. Commander Tim Holt of the U.S. Naval Intelligence Service then sets about to destroy it. Assisting him are scientists Hans Conried (playing it straight for a change) and Casey Adams (aka Max Showalter) and sheriff Gordon Jones. Audrey Dalton is Holt's love interest. Veteran character actor Ralph Moody (a true what's his name?) plays one of the monster's victims.
Director Arthur Laven gives us a believable monster(s) for the 50s and builds the suspense by not showing it until well into the film. Some of the victims look like papier mache but all in all it makes for a pretty good monsters film with high production values on a modest budget.
Holt, who had left films when his excellent "B" western series ended in 1952, came out of retirement for this film, apparently as a favor to director Laven. After this, he made only one more film before forsaking Hollywood for good.
- bsmith5552
- Jan 13, 2002
- Permalink
Good old sci fi flick
I love the old 50's scifi movies where every creature on earth has been exposed to radiation and threatens humanity. Such is "The Monster that challenged the world." The basic story is that a naval base in California starts losing military personnel in the ocean and then locals start disappearing as well. Tim Holt plays the deadpan, serious naval officer trying to find out what is causing the deaths. Audrey Dalton is a naval widow/secretary to the scientist on the base ably portrayed by Hans Conreid. The widow and the officer fall in love while fighting off the giant sea creature that looks like a caterpillar on steroids. It is actually above average in the storyline, effects and acting, one of the better movies of it's genre made in the 1950's. Fun to watch.
Above par monster on the loose programmer.
I found this film about giant snails on the loose in the Salton sea area slightly better than most programmer monster films of the late 1950's. The giant snails are a believable menace in that they are presented as no more dangerous than any other large aquatic predator such a shark or crocodile. They put a fight but can be killed with several well aimed shots from a pistol or a heavy axe. The real danger as pointed in the film, is that snails are extremely fecund, and if they were to enter the ocean , they could reproduce in enormous numbers thus creating ecological havoc. Anyone who has ever had a fish tank knows once you introduce one tiny snail, in a matter of couple of weeks you have hundreds. One odd aspect everyone seems to comment on is that snails look like caterpillars in snail shells. There is a type of aquatic insect larva that uses a discarded snail shell as armour, much like a hermit crab does. Perhaps someone involved with the film had seen these insect larvae and mistook them for snails.
- youroldpaljim
- Feb 16, 2001
- Permalink
Very very well made monster film
A classic of its genre, this well-paced and tightly-scripted movie actually gave me a few shocks, which is not common with 50s monster cinema when viewed nowadays. It has good production values and above-average acting. Recommended for any fan of the genre. 7/10
Instant TERROR......just add water!
An earthquake out in the Salton Sea awakens the creeping dread, gigantic vampire water snails are on the loose and they are hungry for human fluid!.
Just about the right side of good, The Monster Who Challenge The World holds up well because of it's well constructed creatures and a bit of care and attention to the boffin discussions. Far too many 50s creature features just used a basic premise of creatures obliterating mankind because they were in an odd mood, but much like The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms, this picture at least takes time to give us a bit of a nature heartbeat to help us understand the methods of a mollusc, and that alone should be applauded, learn while we have fun so to speak. The cast ooze B-movie standards, and that is in no way a bad thing here, whilst the Catalina Island locale sequences are pretty nifty to help salt the beef as it were!
Good honest fun that isn't short on creepiness, and top marks to the makers for introducing a very ingenious creature to a truly wonderful genre. 6/10
Just about the right side of good, The Monster Who Challenge The World holds up well because of it's well constructed creatures and a bit of care and attention to the boffin discussions. Far too many 50s creature features just used a basic premise of creatures obliterating mankind because they were in an odd mood, but much like The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms, this picture at least takes time to give us a bit of a nature heartbeat to help us understand the methods of a mollusc, and that alone should be applauded, learn while we have fun so to speak. The cast ooze B-movie standards, and that is in no way a bad thing here, whilst the Catalina Island locale sequences are pretty nifty to help salt the beef as it were!
Good honest fun that isn't short on creepiness, and top marks to the makers for introducing a very ingenious creature to a truly wonderful genre. 6/10
- hitchcockthelegend
- Apr 30, 2008
- Permalink
When things get sticky, it's time for a nice, long dinner.
In this dreadfully tedious and incredibly over-rated film, a handful of giant mollusks somehow manage to emerge from the Salton Sea to terrorize a naval base and the meager civilian population living nearby.
Pudgy Tim Holt, as Cdr. Twillinger, waddles around scowling at everyone if there not doing things "by the book", then spends five minutes crawling on the floor looking for a little girl's ladybug. The little girl's mommy is gorgeous Gail Mackenzie, so we'll let this minor lapse in character consistency go.
What we can't excuse is a film that is terribly paced, by being constantly plagued by lengthy and dull sequences involving meetings and leisurely dinners at a time when the action and suspense should be picking up and driving the film toward a powerful conclusion. There are some fairly good attack sequences involving the mollusks (which really look like giant caterpillars) "absorbing" a few swimmers and divers, but these scenes are always followed by interminable interludes in which Han Conreid, as the chief scientist, explains at GREAT length why they're all in extreme danger.
Then there's that sticky stuff that's always found on or near the bodies. Sometimes it's pasty white, sometimes it looks like bubble-bath, and sometimes it looks like something else again. Whatever. Aside from being a bore, there's never any real sense that the Mollusks are going to amount to a serious threat, AND THEY DON'T!
"It Conquered The World", made a year earlier, and with a similar title, is a far superior film in terms of plot, script, character development and pacing! I suggest you compare for yourself.
Pudgy Tim Holt, as Cdr. Twillinger, waddles around scowling at everyone if there not doing things "by the book", then spends five minutes crawling on the floor looking for a little girl's ladybug. The little girl's mommy is gorgeous Gail Mackenzie, so we'll let this minor lapse in character consistency go.
What we can't excuse is a film that is terribly paced, by being constantly plagued by lengthy and dull sequences involving meetings and leisurely dinners at a time when the action and suspense should be picking up and driving the film toward a powerful conclusion. There are some fairly good attack sequences involving the mollusks (which really look like giant caterpillars) "absorbing" a few swimmers and divers, but these scenes are always followed by interminable interludes in which Han Conreid, as the chief scientist, explains at GREAT length why they're all in extreme danger.
Then there's that sticky stuff that's always found on or near the bodies. Sometimes it's pasty white, sometimes it looks like bubble-bath, and sometimes it looks like something else again. Whatever. Aside from being a bore, there's never any real sense that the Mollusks are going to amount to a serious threat, AND THEY DON'T!
"It Conquered The World", made a year earlier, and with a similar title, is a far superior film in terms of plot, script, character development and pacing! I suggest you compare for yourself.
"From the instant they're born, they're hungry"
One of those monster movies where there's supposed to be several creatures but you only ever see the one. Can it be just coincidence that less than five years after Hans Conreid played the diabolical Dr Terwilliger in 'The 5,000 Fingers of Dr' his boss Tim Holt is called 'Twillinger'? Whatever. Conreid's the actor you're always watching whenever he's on the screen.
- richardchatten
- Jun 3, 2022
- Permalink
Another bad movie with a title that doesn't make sense.
For some reason,scientists,military guys and police standing around a room making up lies about a monster is a science fiction staple.I will never understand or accept that. This movie does just that and sprinkles in all the other clichés and tops it off with terrible acting. And of course the title isn't even close to accurate.There's several monsters and they barely challenge one town. At one point the authorities decide the monsters will move from the ocean into the canal,based on absolutely nothing.The police complain,saying "There's 700 miles of canal bank in this county". Really?700 miles in one county? At least they provided some chuckles by constantly having the military and police end radio talk with things like "I'll call you later" and "OK,Bye". You'd have a tough time finding a worse movie.
We'll check every pool in the valley for a sign of their secretion
They're snails, not caterpillars!
THE MONSTER THAT CHALLENGED THE WORLD is one of your typical 1950's Cold War monster movies which involve giant radioactive mutant something-or-others. What THEM did for giant ants, THE BEGINNING OF THE END did for giant grasshoppers, TARANTULA! did for, well, you know..., THE MONSTER THAT etc. etc. does for snails. Yes, you heard correctly. The fearsome monster in this little "chiller" are giant radioactive man eating snails, who come to the surface after an earthquake opens up a fissure in the bottom of the Salten Sea in southern California. Which is best known for its close proximity to Hollywood and easy availability of cheap movie sets. How these snails became radioactive is never explained fully. But, since this is the 1950's, that apparently is not necessary.
Now, you may be thinking to yourself, "But aren't snails rather.... slow?" Yes, that is very true. However, these are not your ordinary garden-variety snails which tend to eat all your strawberries before they get ripe. These are very *sneaky* snails. They are continually sneaking up behind some poor unsuspecting sap who has been standing in the same place without moving for the better part of fifteen minutes. The snail then would then suck all the life juices out of its victim, who are most likely deaf as a fencepost since they obviously could not hear the very wet and mucus-ie sound of a 12 foot snail racing up behind them at the frightening speed of 20 feet per minute.
The film stars no one you have ever heard of. Well, I am wrong about that. It has Hans Conried as some local biologist who becomes the world's first expert on huge snails, and Max Sowalter, who may be best known for his role as the preacher in "10" and some part which I cannot remember from "Sixteen Candles". He was also in "The Indestructible Man", which starred Lon Chaney, Jr. Which is the subject of another review for another day.
The monsters are finally destroyed by a crack team of about 7 men driving around the southern California canal system and seeing where people who look like dried up twigs are randomly scattered. Divers then go underwater and find all the snails and their eggs. They then blow them up with dynamite (but not without the cliffhanger of "will the fuse light or won't it?"). End of story. Boy gets girl (which I did not go into, as the "hero" of the story is a very unfortunate looking side of beef which would embarrass the begeezuz out of any girl who happened to be seen in his company unless they were terribly hard up to begin with, which our heroine unfortunately is, so I guess it works out in the end). MY first solution would have been, of course, a couple of dumptruck loads of table salt.
Maybe the French would have considered a washtub full of drawn butter. 470 pounds of escargot.... Mmmmm....
Now, you may be thinking to yourself, "But aren't snails rather.... slow?" Yes, that is very true. However, these are not your ordinary garden-variety snails which tend to eat all your strawberries before they get ripe. These are very *sneaky* snails. They are continually sneaking up behind some poor unsuspecting sap who has been standing in the same place without moving for the better part of fifteen minutes. The snail then would then suck all the life juices out of its victim, who are most likely deaf as a fencepost since they obviously could not hear the very wet and mucus-ie sound of a 12 foot snail racing up behind them at the frightening speed of 20 feet per minute.
The film stars no one you have ever heard of. Well, I am wrong about that. It has Hans Conried as some local biologist who becomes the world's first expert on huge snails, and Max Sowalter, who may be best known for his role as the preacher in "10" and some part which I cannot remember from "Sixteen Candles". He was also in "The Indestructible Man", which starred Lon Chaney, Jr. Which is the subject of another review for another day.
The monsters are finally destroyed by a crack team of about 7 men driving around the southern California canal system and seeing where people who look like dried up twigs are randomly scattered. Divers then go underwater and find all the snails and their eggs. They then blow them up with dynamite (but not without the cliffhanger of "will the fuse light or won't it?"). End of story. Boy gets girl (which I did not go into, as the "hero" of the story is a very unfortunate looking side of beef which would embarrass the begeezuz out of any girl who happened to be seen in his company unless they were terribly hard up to begin with, which our heroine unfortunately is, so I guess it works out in the end). MY first solution would have been, of course, a couple of dumptruck loads of table salt.
Maybe the French would have considered a washtub full of drawn butter. 470 pounds of escargot.... Mmmmm....
- greggbartley
- Feb 8, 2003
- Permalink
Prehistoric Mollusks Are Creepy!
Following an earthquake under the Salton Sea, killer mollusks make their way to the surface and make the locals part of their diet. This film is much better than what most fans of 'creature features' might suspect. The mutated mollusks really do have that creepy look to them and the cast seems to take their roles rather serious. Tim Holt, who was better known as a 'cowboy' from the early days of film is Commander John Twillinger and while rather short and stout, he hardly fits the bill of a lead, but does a nice job with this role. Audrey Dalton plays his love interest and Hans Conried is the scientist attempting to help the Navy destroy these beasties. This really is a fun film and trust me, there are far worse things you could watch and this film is really enjoyable.
This film was actually based on a true story!
This film was actually based on a true story!
- ClassixFan
- Apr 21, 2004
- Permalink
This is the movie Ed Wood Jr would have made if he'd had the money (SPOILERS AHEAD!)
- trouserpress
- Aug 17, 2003
- Permalink
The movie doesn't live up to the title.
The Monster That Challenged the World. Well, maybe not the world, but a couple dozen people were pretty well shaken up. The movie doesn't live up to the title and the monster isn't big or fierce enough to be a real threat to mankind. The movie does have some weak spots and it isn't near the top of the list for 1950s monster movies. It is however still entertaining and has some scenes that will perk up the monster movie fan. I don't think it can be called a bad movie. Considering it is a 1957 movie of the Sci-Fi, horror genre, I would say it is about average, or perhaps very slightly below average. It still has enough going for it to be interesting but there are plenty of other movies in this genre that I would choose before I got to this one. Don't expect it to match it's title, or expect too much horror and excitement. For me it was still an enjoyable movie although it will not be very memorable one.
- ChuckStraub
- Mar 25, 2004
- Permalink