Radioactive, mutated giant crabs are on the loose! Not only do they eat people, but they also absorb their minds and now plan to reproduce like crazy! (Any crabby sex scenes did not make it past the censors, though.)
It's enough to make you avoid Long John Silver's and Red Lobster permanently.
Produced and directed by Roger Corman (who else?}, this one stars Richard Garland (fresh from his stint as Clay Horton on television's Lassie) and Pamela Duncan (she went on to play Velda, Mike Hammer's secretary in My Gun Is Quick later that year). Also in the cast were Russell Johnson (the Professor from Island) and Ed Nelson (who later played Dr. Michael Rossi on television's Peyton Place and in two follow-up television movies). The unsung hero of this flick must be David Arvedon, who provided the voice of Hoola the Giant Crab and did not even get an IMDb page of his own.
Scripted by Charles B. Griffin, who said "Roger came to me and said, 'I want to make a picture called Attack of the Giant Crabs and I asked does it have to be atomic radiation?' He responded, 'Yes.' " Griffin also directed some underwater scenes and appeared in a small role in the film as Seaman Tate.
Was the film worth its $70.000 budget? Does it deserve its hallowed place in the pantheon of crustacean-infused cinema?
You decide.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtAvllsJRPw
Russell Johnson mostly remembered for playing the least-stupid character on GILLIGAN'S ISLAND; I thought for a moment of a film, or sitcom, based on Huxley's ISLAND...I've been aware of this one for decades, but still never have seen more than a clip...thanks!
ReplyDelete