Watched this film because it had been given good reviews and Ray Harryhausen contributed the special effects. However, this is just a bad movie - and not bad enough to be fun.
Okay, with this genre of film, we can only expect teases of the beast prior to the climax. But the teases bring no drama. There is no excitement, no tension, mainly because the main characters have little interaction with the beast for most of the movie. Who is in danger? Where is the fear? The destruction by the sea beast and the hunt to stop it plays like a newsreel, not a story you get caught up in.
The plot of this lame monster movie is driven by two pathetic techniques - the authoritative voice over, and the old meeting of the minds trick. The voice over may work in a crime drama but it fails for a sci-fi flick; it distances you from the action, hindering your envelopment within the make believe world of the film. The meeting of the minds is a classic tool of the lousy director; gather a bunch of people together and have a plodding discussion about what's happening so the viewer can be informed. Boring!
And don't get me started on the wooden acting and awkward exchanges. Or were all the secondary characters actual members of the military? That would explain the bad acting. Faith Domergue is fine as the female lead but Kenneth Tobey as the macho sub commander on the make? Please, what would Faith see in that dud? But I do blame the director for the numerous ridiculous or poorly executed scenes. There are even a few occasions when actors stumble over lines but the scene was not re-shot.
Okay, with this genre of film, we can only expect teases of the beast prior to the climax. But the teases bring no drama. There is no excitement, no tension, mainly because the main characters have little interaction with the beast for most of the movie. Who is in danger? Where is the fear? The destruction by the sea beast and the hunt to stop it plays like a newsreel, not a story you get caught up in.
The plot of this lame monster movie is driven by two pathetic techniques - the authoritative voice over, and the old meeting of the minds trick. The voice over may work in a crime drama but it fails for a sci-fi flick; it distances you from the action, hindering your envelopment within the make believe world of the film. The meeting of the minds is a classic tool of the lousy director; gather a bunch of people together and have a plodding discussion about what's happening so the viewer can be informed. Boring!
And don't get me started on the wooden acting and awkward exchanges. Or were all the secondary characters actual members of the military? That would explain the bad acting. Faith Domergue is fine as the female lead but Kenneth Tobey as the macho sub commander on the make? Please, what would Faith see in that dud? But I do blame the director for the numerous ridiculous or poorly executed scenes. There are even a few occasions when actors stumble over lines but the scene was not re-shot.