Movie Review: Reptilicus (1961)
Synopsis: Danish miners dig up a frozen section of a prehistoric reptile's tale and transport it to an aquarium in Copenhagen. When the freezer door is accidentally left ajar, the tale thaws out and begins to regenerate. Soon after, Denmark is terrorized by the giant lizard, which is able to spew a toxic green slime.
Who's in it? The movie stars Bent Mejding, Asbjørn Andersen, Ann Smyrner, Mimi Heinrich and Carl Ottosen.
Review: My wife wasn't feeling well last night and went to bed early so I wound up scrolling through my movie library in search of a film I would enjoy but knew she wouldn't. After some decision making, I settled on Reptilicus and, while I had some doubts about this Danish monster movie, it ended up pleasantly surprising me.
I'll start out by saying, as far as the special effects go, they were about what you would expect to see from a film from 1961. Reptilicus looks fake and it was easy to tell when some of the actors were standing in front of a movie screen featuring the creature. Plus, the monster's green toxic slime/saliva had a cartoon appearance to it.
All that said, there was still a lot to like about this film. One thing, in particular, I was a fan of was how the movie didn't drag things out until the very end, as so many monster movies do. Reptilicus' regeneration was relatively quick, allowing the creature to have enough screen time to establish itself before the final battle.
I also liked how seemingly impossible it was to defeat the giant reptile. Every time the heroes seemed to be gaining an upper hand, all it had to do was slip into the water and remain submerged. On top of it, its ability to regenerate also meant it could heal itself and blowing it up could theoretically result in more than one monster to fight.
If I had any complaints about the movie, it would be the toxic spit part. As I mentioned, it looked super fake but, on top of that, it really wasn't necessary. It was a giant lizard. All it really needed to do was knock down buildings and eat people. Adding the extra ability, frankly, made it seem like even more of a Godzilla rip-off than it already did.
Final Opinion: It's a basic movie with limited special effects but decent execution. I enjoyed watching it and think it's worth giving a chance on a rainy day.
My Grade: B
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Movie Review: The Giant Behemoth (1959)
Movie Review: Frankenstein's Daughter (1958)
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