Vulcan Productions [1964] 87′
country: United States
director: JACK CURTIS
cast: MARTIN KOSLECK, BYRON SANDERS,
cast: BARBARA WILKIN, RITA MORLEY
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Here’s an under-seen and under-appreciated little independent gem from the heyday of 60′s science fiction horrors. By the middle fifties Sci-fi and horror themed exploitationers were thrilling young audiences with their increasing levels of on-screen violence. While imports like X THE UNKNOWN [1956, US release 1957] featured a few brief effects shocks, it was Mario Bava’s CALTIKI THE IMMORTAL MONSTER [1959, released State-side in September of 1960] introduced Americans to their first real taste of modern gore by showing the gruesome physical effects of people devoured alive by its titular menace. Other films, domestic and otherwise, would soon be following suit, with H. G. Lewis’ BLOOD FEAST setting the high watermark for early 60′s carnogarphy in 1963.
THE FLESH EATERS never approaches the delirious excesses of Lewis’ creation, but it’s a fine example of truth in advertising. Produced in 1962 and released theatrically in 1964 [the ad campaigns famously promised that audiences would be "sterilized" with fear], the film is rather extreme given the time in which it was produced and has no shortage of effects payoffs relating to its namesake.
The story by comic book author Arnold Drake [Doom Patrol, It Rhymes With Lust] is pure pulpy B-movie goodness that reminds of Roger Corman’s a-thrill-a-minute model. It follows pilot Grant [Sanders], contracted to fly washed up alcoholic actress Laura Winters [Morley] and her publicist Jan [Wilkin] to their latest job. On the way they encounter engine trouble, forcing them to land on what is supposed to be an uninhabited island. They are surprised to find marine biologist Bartell [Kolseck] working there – and even more surprised to discover the beach littered with the skeletons of fish and, more disturbingly, people. Bartell dismisses them as shark attacks and the like, but Grant is suspicious of the explanations.
Rightly so – as it turns out, the island is surrounded by countless droves of luminescent flesh eating micro organisms. Worse still, Bartell reveals himself to be an ex-patriot Nazi scientist – the flesh eaters are the end result of his continuation of Nazi research into biological warfare. Various characters come and go, a beatnik who becomes a guinea pig for Bartell’s experiments and a captain of a supply ship who is dissolved before he even reaches the shore. Grant and his company begin to understandably fear for their lives, but have no choice but to assist the gun-toting Bartell when he concocts a scheme to stun the flesh eaters around the island so that he might collect samples. Unfortunately for all involved, the electrical shock forces the microbes to coalesce into one massive organism – leaving a handful of people to face off with a gargantuan flesh eating monster.
The violence in THE FLESH EATERS, arguably its biggest draw, has serious bite for an early 60′s production. A pre-credits sequence in which two lovers jump into the ocean [with the expected dreadful consequences] is low key and entirely effective. Some later moments are still shocking – the beatnik being eaten from the inside out and Grant having a few of the flesh eaters removed from his leg with a knife in particular. The special effects headed by Roy Benson incorporate simple animation, traditional make-up, and even a few miniatures along the way, and all [save for one pretty lame process shot] fare remarkably well. The giant flesh eater that rises from the sea recalls the ending of the earlier CALTIKI and, while a little silly, is never any less accomplished than the Paul Blaisdell beasts that were running about in other productions of the time.
The involvement of Arnold Drake lends the production considerable aesthetic prowess that elevates it well above the then norm for indie science fictions. His taut script works very well, moving the frequent action along at a swift tempo and keeping the dialogue between the creature moments lively. Drake also made storyboards for the film, which goes a long way towards explaining the fantastic deep focus cinematography [by director Jack Curtis, replacing the credited Carson Davidson] and creative blocking in evidence throughout. I’d go so far as to say that it’s one of the best-photographed indie efforts of its day.
Filling the relatively small cast list are a motley assortment of professionals and unknowns. Martin Kosleck is certainly the best known of the bunch, and made a career of playing villainous Nazi’s [Goebbel's at least five times] as poetic retribution for being forced out of his native Germany by the party. His portrayal of Bartell is cool and understated, with a definite tinge of evil palpable just below the surface. The rest of the cast does reasonably well, and Rita Morley has a number of memorable lines [upon discovering her liquor-filled suitcase she exclaims, "It's magic - pure distilled magic!"] as alcoholic has-been Laura Winters. Much of the cast was comprised of stage actors who had very little film or television work outside of THE FLESH EATERS, like Ray Tudor as doomed beatnik Omar. Tudor gets what may be the best line of the picture, screaming “There’s something inside me – it’s eating its way out!” during his gruesome death scene [the line was featured prominently in the trailer for the film].
There are two distinct versions of THE FLESH EATERS, the most popular of which is still the theatrical cut that played in cinemas in 1964. When distributor Mike Ripps [of Cinema Distributors of America] got a hold of the film, he incorporated a terribly filmed [not done by the original crew] flashback scene in which Nazi scientists feed a handful of nude women to a pool of flesh eaters, and added a very brief [one shot] splash of color to the conclusion as a gimmick. Retromedia had intended to release this version on disc [along with a commentary with Fred Olen Ray, Tom Weaver, and Arnold Drake] in 2005, but was forced to withdraw it when Dark Sky Films claimed ownership of the property.
The second version of the film, the un-altered cut originally sent to Ripps for distribution, appears on the Dark Sky disc from October of 2005. This cut is missing both the flash of color and the Nazi experimentation scene, though the latter is included on the disc as an extra [along with some excised footage from it], and has a few additional lines of dialogue. Transferred from the original elements, Dark Sky’s widescreen and anamorphic presentation of THE FLESH EATERS is practically flawless and a step up in quality from the transfer on the Retromedia disc [the images that accompany this review are sourced from the latter, a few copies of which were in circulation before the release was halted]. Also included are a pair of theatrical trailers for the film.
I was amused by the number of movie references to be found in THE FLESH EATERS – the raft beatnik Omar sales in on is christened ‘Rosebud’ [after CITIZEN KANE], and Winters refers to her co-characters as Gunga Din and Doctor Cyclops. This is a fun film that’s honestly better than most of the rest of what was being produced in the indie science fiction market of the day and well worth seeking out for fans of the genre. The high-camp performances and admittedly silly conclusion [not divulged here, as I'd hate to spoil the fun] only add to the appeal as far as I’m concerned. Recommended.
