This is certainly the least popular of Hammer's prehistoric series, the unloved child from a litter of four. The irony is that Creatures The World Forgot makes more effort than any of the others to be vaguely accurate. After all the criticism levelled at the preceding films for their phony history, their laughable depictions of tribal life, along comes a film which tries to present a truer representation of the past
and what happens? It is showered with derision, ignored at the box office and mercilessly ridiculed for failing to provide any dinosaurs! Studios take note - audiences want the fantastic, the sensational
not the mundane. With Don Chaffey back as director (he also did One Million Years B.C.), and the emphasis shifted onto the daily struggles of a Stone Age tribe, one hopes the film might offer a fascinating look at a subject largely underused in cinema. The titular 'Creatures' are not really creatures at all, merely people: primitive, struggling human beings trying to survive against the elements and each other. Sadly, the film is poorly handled – its characters lack development and presence; the music, a jumble of rattles and thudded drum beats, becomes relentless and annoying; and the narrative is tedious for much of the time.
As already noted, the plot is basically just concerned with the day-to- day existence and struggles of primitive man. The Dark Tribe, led by Mak (Brian O'Shaughnessy), traverse the wilderness in search of a new home and eventually come across a fair-haired tribe. As a peace offering, the fair-heads present Mak with one of their women, Noo (Sue Wilson), to take as his wife. Later, Noo gives birth to twin boys – one dark-haired, the other fair. On the same day, another woman in the tribe gives birth to a mute girl. The tribe contemplate sacrificing the disabled child but change their mind when a lightning strike seems to warn against it. Many years later, the twins – blonde Toomak (Ian Bonner) and dark Rool (Robert John) – have grown up, but thoroughly despise each other. In a battle with marauders, Toomak saves the mute girl (Marcia Fox) who shares his birthday, and takes one of the enemy's women, Nala (Julie Ege), as his wife. His father is mortally wounded in the skirmish and elects Toomak to replace him as leader, but Rool opposes this decision and spends the rest of his life attempting to overthrow his brother.
The only department where Creatures The World Forgot has the edge over the other films is the cinematography. As captured by Vincent Cox, the Namibian and South African backdrops are breathtakingly beautiful, every inch the undisturbed playground of prehistoric man. Even the film's harshest critic would admit it has a very accomplished look about it, especially in the long shots which incorporate these spectacular backgrounds. The problem is that much of the action in front of these lovely backdrops isn't up to scratch. Very little in the film actually works – it's all very plodding, desperately short of excitement. Sure, the costumes have somehow become even skimpier than in earlier entries, yet still the film fails to generate the requisite sex appeal. Even the lovely Julie Ege, formerly a Miss Norway and Miss Universe contestant, looks drab here beneath a mop of scraggly black hair. Her co-stars, both male and female, are similarly painful on the eye. All in all, Creatures The World Forgot marks a dispiriting end to Hammer's prehistoric cycle. Its status as the least loved of the series is, I think, fairly justified.
As already noted, the plot is basically just concerned with the day-to- day existence and struggles of primitive man. The Dark Tribe, led by Mak (Brian O'Shaughnessy), traverse the wilderness in search of a new home and eventually come across a fair-haired tribe. As a peace offering, the fair-heads present Mak with one of their women, Noo (Sue Wilson), to take as his wife. Later, Noo gives birth to twin boys – one dark-haired, the other fair. On the same day, another woman in the tribe gives birth to a mute girl. The tribe contemplate sacrificing the disabled child but change their mind when a lightning strike seems to warn against it. Many years later, the twins – blonde Toomak (Ian Bonner) and dark Rool (Robert John) – have grown up, but thoroughly despise each other. In a battle with marauders, Toomak saves the mute girl (Marcia Fox) who shares his birthday, and takes one of the enemy's women, Nala (Julie Ege), as his wife. His father is mortally wounded in the skirmish and elects Toomak to replace him as leader, but Rool opposes this decision and spends the rest of his life attempting to overthrow his brother.
The only department where Creatures The World Forgot has the edge over the other films is the cinematography. As captured by Vincent Cox, the Namibian and South African backdrops are breathtakingly beautiful, every inch the undisturbed playground of prehistoric man. Even the film's harshest critic would admit it has a very accomplished look about it, especially in the long shots which incorporate these spectacular backgrounds. The problem is that much of the action in front of these lovely backdrops isn't up to scratch. Very little in the film actually works – it's all very plodding, desperately short of excitement. Sure, the costumes have somehow become even skimpier than in earlier entries, yet still the film fails to generate the requisite sex appeal. Even the lovely Julie Ege, formerly a Miss Norway and Miss Universe contestant, looks drab here beneath a mop of scraggly black hair. Her co-stars, both male and female, are similarly painful on the eye. All in all, Creatures The World Forgot marks a dispiriting end to Hammer's prehistoric cycle. Its status as the least loved of the series is, I think, fairly justified.