The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms
by Eug?ne Louri?
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Cecil Kellaway, Donald Woods, Kenneth Tobey, Paul Hubschmid, Paula RaymondDirector: Eug?ne Louri?
Brand: Warner Brothers
Writer: Eug?ne Louri?
Producer: Bernard W. Burton
Writer: Daniel James
Writer: Fred Freiberger
Writer: Lou Morheim
Writer: Ray Bradbury
Writer: Robert Smith
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 1.0; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 1.0; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); French (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 1.0
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Dubbed, DVD-Video, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 80 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-10-21
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Warner Home Video
Movie Reviews of The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms
Movie Review: Harryhausen's great Feast of the Beast!
Summary: 4 Stars
This was Ray Harryhausen's first major film work and to me his Rhedosaurus,aka The Beast,is arguably his most finest work.It is a simple and straight forward stop motion presentation that works perfectly,and actually serves to elevate a rather tepid story.
It involves a group of scientists who venture to the North Pole to observe and take measurements of an atomic bomb test.As they check their their device stations post-blast,one of the group hears and spies a huge dinosaur wandering the area.Injured he calls for help and is rescued by a Prof.Nesbit(Paul Hubscmhid/Christian) who also briefly spots the beast.Colonel Evans(Keith Tobey well known from The Thing)does not believe the story as well as Dr Elson(well known character actor Cecil Kellaway),back in New York.
When stories of boat sinkings start popping up along the Atlantic coast Prof.Nesbitts' story finally gets credibility.In fact Dr Elson takes a bathysphere down into the Hudson River Trench off of NYC to see if the creature has returned to that area(skeletons of a dinosaur matching the beasts description were found there).The beast has indeed returned there and Dr.Elson becomes a mid morning snack for the creature.Eventually the beast checks out the environs of the Big Apple spilling its' blood as it meets with stiff resistance from the local police and armed forces.They soon learn the beasts' blood carries a virulent strain of bacteria that along with the beast himself,is dropping people like flies.
When the beast arrives at Coney Island to check out the roller coaster there,the professor gets the idea to shoot a radioactive dart into the creature at the top of the ride,which they do.Amidst an engulfing fire the creature writhes and finally dies in agony.The world is saved.
On paper the story is a good one but in execution(direction and acting) it is generally wooden.The best parts of the film are the creature's appearances throughout,and they are spectacular.Its' various journeys through the city are excellently done and worked in seamlessly with the background.This is due to Harryhausen's great and meticulous work.
I would normally give a B-film like this around a three star rating but what bumps this DVD up is first and foremost,the wonderful print they have used.It is generally crisp and clear and a joy to watch.I have never seen it in better condition;a nod to Warner Brothers for such a great job.Second are the nice extras.Along with the usual trailer are two wonderful vignettes.The first one is a nice retrospective on the making of The Beast.The second is a nice interview with the two Ray's,Harryhausen and Bradbury.As you will learn,if you didn't know before,it was their love of dinosaurs(The Lost World,1925,specifically and Willis O'Brien's groundbreaking work),that brought them together those many,many years ago.The interview is in front of a studio audience and took place in 2003.
In conclusion despite The Beast's definite B-movie status,the titles' object of our affection steals every scene that it is in;a case of the special effects being better than the movie they inhabit.In other words because of the quality of Harryhausen's work the film is more memorable than it has a right to be.The print used here is magnificent and the two nice vignettes included definitely elevate this DVD release from a three star to a four.
For the current price this release is a definite steal and I recommend you get your copy today!
Summary of The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms
Near the Arctic Circle, an atomic bomb is detonated. This fearsome experiment disturbs the sleep of a giant rhedosaurus encased in ice for more than 100-million years and sends it southward on a destructive, deadly rampage. The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms is a film of firsts. It spawned a new era of atomic-age creature features. It was the first screen adaptation of a work by fantasy fiction titan Ray Bradbury. And it marked the first time Ray Harryhausen had control over special effects. He came up with a fantastic creature (constructed at full scale, all 50 tons of it) that swims down from the north to run amok through New York City before being conquered in a spectacular Coney Island roller coaster finale. Take a classic ride. Unleash The Beast. Year: 1953DVD Features:
Documentaries:Two commemorative 50th anniversary documentaries - The Rhedosaurus and the Roller Coaster: Making the Beast; Harryhausen & Bradbury: An Unfathomable Friendship
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer:Giant monsters trailer gallery featurnig this film, The Black Scorpion, Clash of the Titans and The Valley of Gwangi
A matinee programmer with lofty ambitions, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms is best appreciated as a vintage showcase for the stop-motion animation of special-effects legend Ray Harryhausen. The hoary plot follows the cold-war formula that dominated science fiction movies of the 1950s: After an atomic bomb test in the northern polar ice cap, a gigantic dinosaur--the fictional "Rhedosaurus"--is awakened from eons of dormancy, plots an undersea course for the Eastern seaboard, and proceeds to wreak havoc on New York City, culminating in a showdown with military marksmen at the Coney Island amusement park. Stock footage and tissue-thin drama make this a by-the-numbers monster flick, further hampered by Eugene Lourie's lackluster direction and a wooden B-movie cast. And yet, Harryhausen's first independent effort retains its atomic-age fascination: Beast marked yet another technical milestone for Harryhausen's impeccable techniques, and its perpetual status as a sci-fi classic is duly acknowledged in the DVD bonus features, including a retrospective featurette and a latter-day reunion of Harryhausen and longtime friend Ray Bradbury, whose short story "The Fog Horn" served as this film's inspiration. --Jeff Shannon
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