Movie Talk - Universal Studio's Creature from the Black Lagoon Movies

"Man, these folk coming up and interrupting my fun time with myself!"

Next up for the spooky month is a look at one of the final Universal Studio Monster: The Creature from the Black Lagoon or “The Gill-Man.” The Creature (“Gill-Man” sounds lame) came about in the 1950’s when horror was trying to branch out from the supernatural. Now, you had mad scientists doing bad science, nuclear tests gone wrong, beasts from eons ago inflicting havoc, aliens coming from the sky, and all sorts of mad hysteria. Universal Studios wanted to get in on that action, so the Creature was born. The Creature movies were the last few movies that Universal Studios did in this branch of horror. It’s a monster whose influences can be felt today. Just look at Abe Sapien from Hellboy and the beast from The Shape of Water for examples.

The Creature was featured in three movies: Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954), Revenge of the Creature (1955), and The Creature Walks Among Us (1956). Now, I saw the 1954 film a long time ago. It was one of the only Universal Monster movies they had at Movie Gallery. When my sister got the collection, I watched it as well the second movie. I didn’t even get around to watch the last movie until a couple of days ago when I marathoned them all. So, how did Universal’s last Monster fare out in his movies?

The Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)

The movie starts out in the Amazon.  An archeologist finds the fossil  from the Devoian Age that can link sea and land animals. He takes this to Dr. David Reed, a former student, and he gets his boss, Mark Williams, to finance the expedition. They, Kay (David’s girlfriend and another employer of Mark’s), and another scientist board the Rita captained by a cool man named Lucas. They make it to the Amazon and head to a place the locals call “The Black Lagoon.” The locals talk about a beast that lives there. The team finds out that for themselves as the legend proves to be true. It turns out that the Creature (a gill-man) from that age still lives and it stalks the group. It also takes a liking to Kay.

I liked Captain Lucas.

This was a pretty good movie. It’s pretty much the basis for most monster horror movies. A group finds evidence of a creature living in a unknown place, and said creature starts to kill them off. While that might make it feel derivative these days, it’s still a good one to see. Of all the three movies, I liked this cast the best. I liked David, I thought Kay was cool (and kinda hot), Mark was fine in his “Captain Ahab” impression, and Lucas was a cool, funny captain.

I can see what David, Mark (he kinda liked her), and the Creature saw in Kay (Julie Adams).

Of course, the main feature is the Gill-Man and that look is pretty cool. Who ever designed that suit did a great job. The swimming sequences are pretty cool and they can get exciting at times. I especially like the bombastic music. There aren’t too many things I don’t like. I did think some of the swimming sequences could be a little dull. While I did like the cast, they could’ve been a little more lively. Other than those things and small nitpicks, this is a good one.

"Hey now! This is my hidden cove! Ain't nobody getting down and dirty except me! Get out and leave those pics!"

Revenge of the Creature (1955)

This movie takes place about a year later. Another group heads to the Amazon with a mission to capture the Creature for study. They succeed and bring the monster back to Florida. There, two doctors, Clete Ferguson and Helen Dobson), study the Creature to see how it operates. Like he does with other ladies, the Creature takes a liking to Helen. Eventually, he escapes from the zoo he’s being kept at and starts to stalk Clete and Helen who have started a relationship. The Creature ends up kidnapping Helen, and this leaves Clete and the authorities to find them both.

"Ugh... here we go again. SHe may not be Kay, but dang it, I'll take her for a dance!"

I thought this was good for the most part. I can’t say I liked it as much as the first one, but it has it’s good things. It feels like a proper sequel. Captain Lucas even comes back for that bit the beginning. I also thought Clete and Helen were okay. Helen’s Dog, Chris, was hilarious, but dog lovers will hate what happens to him. Also, the climax wasn’t too bad. We also get an early appearance for Clint Eastwood. He’s one of the lab assistants. Who knew he’d go on to do even cooler things?

You know, it's hard to imagine Clint Eastwood as a guy in a lab coat.

Once again, the Creature is the main feature. We get to see how the Creature looks in a more civilized environment. It was cool to see him break out and cause mayhem. That car flip was awesome. I didn’t like too many things about the movie. I did run into some dull places here and there. Also, the story did get a little derivative towards the end. You’d think the Creature would stop kidnapping ladies after the last time! Other than those things and the okay leads, this was an entertaining movie.

"Dang Chevy Nova... I think!"

The Creature Walks Among Us (1956)

The last movie in the series takes place a year later as well. Dr. Barton leads a team of scientists to the Everglades where the Creature has taken residence. They too want to study him and see how he’s the missing link to sea and land animals. Barton’s wife, Marcia, also accompanies them and it’s clear that they got some huge problems. The scientists do capture the Creature, but he gets 3rd degree burns and has to be operated on. The team removes the Creature’s damaged gills and webbed features and they are able to get his lungs (yeah, he has them) working permanently. While he starts to become more human-like, the Creature is obviously unhappy about the whole thing. They take him back to their zoo and try to domesticate him. Unfortunately, the Bartons’ marriage woes cause trouble especially when another one on the team keeps making advances at Marcia.

I gotta say that the mask they had for the non-Gill Man was okay at times. 

This one is definitely the weakest of the bunch. While it tries to do new things, it feels somewhat derivative and a little weaker. I thought having the Creature not be the bad guy was a good thing, but what we got was a little flat. Instead, we got a cold scientist who’s a crappy and possibly abusive husband. Also, Jeb, the team member who was making unwanted advances at Marcia, was an ass too. Other than Barton, his wife, and maybe Tom Morgan, the other characters were “meh.”

Of course, the Creature is the main feature of this one and what we get is derivative and somewhat new. We see the Gill-Man go through a big transformation, and it unfortunately takes place in the last half of the movie. He loses the gills and the webbed stuff. Seeing him walk around in clothes was weird, and he even doesn't fall for the lady this time. I kinda also felt for the Creature especially when he almost drowned from his first escape. While we don’t get him flipping cars, he does get to throw some jackasses around. I also kinda like the open-endedness of the Creature’s status. Did it try to go back to the sea, or did stay on land? We will never know…

"Hey now, no means no, fool! I learned that lesson well in the last two movies!"

As for my dislikes, I thought this cast was somewhat bland. While you had the Bartons’ marital stress on display, that was pretty much it. I also thought too much was put into capturing the Creature. The last movie didn’t even take that long to get the thing. Here, it takes up most of the runtime to do so. We end up getting the new stuff (the Creature’s transformation) in the second half and I wish we got more of that. That was actually kind of interesting to see. Also, the climax could’ve been much better, but I will say I got some satisfaction from the Creature slinging jackasses around. Even though this was the weakest of the bunch, it’s still entertaining enough.

"Well... I guess I can go start that hot dog stand business. I might as well see what 'ole Kay is up to..."

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In the end, the Creature movies are an entertaining bunch. They may not be all great, but they have their moments. At least check the first one out and you’ll be good. Well, I may be done with the Universal Monsters (sort of…), but I’m not done with Halloween yet. I don’t know what’ll come next, but it’ll be something scary related. Until then, Peace, God Bless, and keep your girlfriends away from aquariums especially if they have fish men in them. Y’all have seen The Shape of Water, right?

 By the way, I still haven’t seen this movie… I need to change that soon.