On this day, 21 May, in 1954, Lippert Pictures released Monster From the Ocean Floor. It is most known for being the first film that Roger Corman produced.
It tells the story of Julie (Anne Kimbell) — a young artist vacationing in Mexico. She hears the story of a sea monster. Then, a dead diver is discovered. So she decides to search for it rather than act like a regular human.
Corman apparently got the idea for the film when he learned about the one-person submarine that is featured in the film. It’s also its worst aspect. Maybe it wasn’t at the time. But now, it just seems like a weird technology. And it is ridiculous!
There’s a subplot about the local people’s belief that if “the fairest” is sacrificed, they will all be safe. And an old woman forces a young man to do what must be done. But when it comes to it, he can’t.
The Monsters
The actual monster in the film is unimpressive — even compared to It Conquered the World. And we don’t see much of it. That’s true. Both because the underwater scenes just don’t look as clear as the scenes in Creature from the Black Lagoon (which I assume was shot in a tank). But also: it just doesn’t get much screen time.
What’s really impressive is the sequence with the shark. Kimbell is in the water with a shark that is about six-feet long. And it clearly swims past her a couple of times — once in quite a menacing way.
I have no idea how they did this. For one thing, the shark makes several passes. These scenes were shot in the ocean. How did they get the shark back? More important, how did they get Kimbell to do these scenes?!
Well, they didn’t! See my article, The Shark in Monster From the Ocean Floor. It’s wild!
The shark is doubtless not one known to attack humans. But I don’t care! It could be a vegetarian for all I care. There is no way I would get in the ocean with that shark! My hat is off to whoever did the scene!
Other 21 May Anniversaries
Filmmakers:
- Sam Jaffe (1891-1984): Actor known for Lost Horizon and Gunga Din.
- Raymond Burr (1917-1993): Actor best known for Godzilla, King of the Monsters!
- Ross Hagen (1938-2011): Actor known for The Hellcats and other low-budget delights.
- Richard Hatch (1945-2017): Star of the original Battlestar Galactica TV show.
- Judge Reinhold (1957-): Actor known for Fast Times at Ridgemont High and the Beverly Hills Cop films.
- Fairuza Balk (1974-): Actor known for The Craft and The Waterboy.
Films:
- The Vampire’s Ghost (1945): A vampire bar owner is tired of the life.
- Gorath (1962): A planet is on a collision course with the Earth.
- The Green Slime (1969): Astronauts bring back a monster from space.
- Escape From the Planet of the Apes (1971): The apes go back in time to modern Earth.
- Embryo (1976): A scientist accelerates pregnancy with dire consequences.
- Grizzly (1976): An enormous grizzly bear kills people in a national park. One of the better monster movies. Starring Christopher George.
- The Milpitas Monster (1976): The film made by a high school! You should definitely watch it!
- Crawlspace (1986): A landlord is a serial killer.
- Carnosaur (1993): A genetically created dinosaur escapes.
- Terminator Salvation (2009): John Connor at war.
- Bite (2015): A spider bites a woman who becomes an insect. This is one of the best body horror films ever. Absolute must see!
- Aquarium of the Dead (2021): Fish become zombies at an aquarium.
- Army of the Dead (2021): Mercenaries go to an area with a bunch of zombies.
Drive-in advertisement from 1954 for Monster from the Ocean Floor and The Queen of Sheba via Wikimedia. It is in the public domain.
