Movies

Influential in many ways. Seminal to say the least. This is the first Monster to be unleashed by the awakening awesomeness of the Atomic Bomb. This is Ray Harryhausen's first solo outing (he was Willis O'Brien's (King Kong) assistant on Mighty Joe Young (1949). It has a crisp Black and White look and is a sharply defined matte of Monster and surroundings. From the early sets on the frozen tundra, to the depths of the Ocean, to the New York City Streets, to the Amusement Park finale, this is a beautiful low-budget Film. There are some stiff Performances and some that are lively. It pulls few punches in its depressing display of Radioactive Paranoia. Some unforgettable Highlights include the eerie Lighthouse encounter, the viciously impressive looking Dinosaur wreaking havoc between Skyscrapers, and the Roller Coaster imprisonment and execution.Note: Will all Godzilla and Toho fans please nod, bow, and applaud.

This film is not only a great science fiction film, but it is also one of the most influential as well. Within a few years of its release, giant monster films began to pop up from every major studio. Everything from giant ants, tarantulas, praying mantises and gila monsters began to pop up all over the place. But, perhaps its biggest influence was felt in Japan. This film is often sighted as being the main inspiration for Gojira (Godzilla). This film is defintely a classic.

Ray Harryhausen's first solo effort at stop-motion resulted in one of the best monster movies of the 1950's.This was the first of the many rampage films of the 1950's and was a great success at the box office. Ray's stop-motion Redosaurus is magnificent, considering the low budget.One of the best scenes in this movie is where the Rhedosaurus eats the policeman. The acting is rather good and the cast includes Kenneth Tobey (The Thing From Another World) and an early appearance from Lee Van Cleef before he stared with the 'carrot' in It Conquered the World.I enjoyed this movie and rate it 5 stars out of 5. Great stuff.