Movie Review: The Black Scorpion (1957)
Synopsis: While investigating the aftermath of a volcanic eruption in Mexico, geologists Dr. Hank Scott and Dr. Arturo Ramos learn the event has released a giant prehistoric scorpion that eats everything in its path. They, along with the Mexican army need to find a way to stop the creature before it gets to Mexico City.
Who's in it? The movie stars Richard Denning, Carlos Rivas, Mara Corday, Carlos Múzquiz and Mario Navarro.
Review: I wasn't planning on watching a monster movie this morning, but after failing to find an alternative, decided to give The Black Scorpion a try. It ended up being pretty much what I expected, a bunch of humans being terrorized by a big bug. However, it was still an entertaining film.
I think one of the things I liked best about this movie is, unlike so many others in this genre, it didn't make the audience wait to see the creature. There was a little bit of build-up as the main characters were introduced but the scorpion itself became the main part of the movie with plenty of time to establish how dangerous it was and what kind of threat it posed. Considering so many other films wait until the second half or even the last 15-20 minutes to do that, it was refreshing to see.
The choice of a scorpion as the main monster was a nice decision as well. This is both because they look menacing and it was a bug that had so many ways to kill people (or cattle), whether it was using the venom in its tail or its giant claws. Plus, since it was impervious to the volcanic heat and gases, the scorpion had an easy way to escape if it did get into trouble. All it had to do was go somewhere humans couldn't go. Plus, since there was no obvious way to kill the creature, it only added to the suspense at the end.
As far as special effects are concerned, they were about what you would expect from a film made in the 1950s. You do need to ignore some of the obvious stop-motion and various shortcuts the filmmakers used but there's enough action, destruction and death to make overlooking the flaws easier.
That said, I did wish the filmmakers didn't do the close-ups of the creature's face because, while I think it was supposed to be menacing (and maybe it was to moviegoers in the 1950s), it did look a bit too silly by today's standards, especially since I'm pretty sure real scorpions don't drool (Alexa just confirmed they don't).
Final Opinion: It's not a perfect film, even by 1950s standards, but still proved to be entertaining. If you like movies that feature giant killer bugs, this is one you do need to add to your list.
My Grade: B
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Here are some reviews of other movies with giant killer bugs:
Movie Review: Earth vs. the Spider (1958)
Movie Review: Big Ass Spider (2013)
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