This is a series on old dinosaur movies. Specifically, I am looking at anything released before 1990; before Jurassic Park revolutionized cinema with its CGI animation. I will not be covering anything "dinosaur-adjacent", such as kaiju monsters like Godzilla or the creature from The Giant Behemoth, which are perhaps inspired by dinosaurs, but clearly not meant to represent any real world genus. I will also be skipping over films that are heavily dependent on "borrowed" footage from other films, such as the Valley of the Dragons / Prehistoric Valley.
Also known as: Planet of the Dinosaurs
Runtime: 1 hr 24 min
Background:
Planet of Dinosaurs
is a 1977 American film produced by Deathbeast Productions - their only
movie. Filming took place in the California desert in an area called
Vasquez Rocks, where two episodes of the original Star Trek had
previously been shot. Most of the movie's budget was put towards the
stop motion dinosaurs, which were impressive enough to earn the film the
1980 Saturn Award for "Best Film Produced for Under $1,000,000".
In order to fund the movie, the actors had to sign partial deferments
for repayment once the film was released, and at least one actress,
Derna Wylde (Derna Lee), never received what she was owed. Attempts to
receive payment were unsuccessful because the offices had been closed
and the phones disconnected.
According to Jim Aupperle (writer) in an interview,
the armatures to the dinosaurs were eventually sold off to a company for use in
commercials, although they might have never been used. All of the model
casts are rumored to have been destroyed by Czerkas in a pique of
frustration over the movie's poor performance, although Jim has a few of
the large heads used for close-up shots in his possession. Footage of
the spaceship and dinosaurs was sold for $500 sometime around 1990 to be
used in another movie called Galaxy of the Dinosaurs.
Plot Summary:
A
spacecraft called the Odyssey is forced to make an emergency landing on an Earth-like
planet after suffering a mechanical failure. The landing is softened by a
lake and all the crew members aboard manage to swim safely to shore. An SOS
signal had been sent out prior to the crash but no one received it, so
communications officer Cindy decides to try again, only to realize their
radio has been left on the sinking spaceship. When she and fellow
crew-member Chuck swim out to retrieve the radio, Cindy is devoured by a
tylosaurus, forcing Chuck to swim back. The
remaining eight crew members decide to move away from the water to find
shelter and while passing through a swamp, Derna Lee slips, dropping a
laser gun that Mike had given her. The weapon is rendered useless,
leaving the group with just 3 guns remaining.
After a night's rest the group stumbles upon large tracks and a half eaten carcass. A living brontosaurus and a herd of stegosaurus leads the group to speculate that the planet they've landed on is following an evolutionary line similar to Earths. An encounter with a tyrannosaurus then prompts Captain Lee Norsythe to take the group further up a mountain where he believes the tyrant lizard will be unable to follow them. During the ascent, Nyla trips, spilling their entire supply of food down the rocky ledge.
Vice-President of Spaceways Incorporated Harvey Baylor is nominated to
scout the area because he is the most well rested individual in the group on account
of using his position to avoid carrying supplies. Harvey finds eggs in
what he believes to be a bird's nest and is surprised when a centrosaurus arrives to defend it, goring him to death. Lee calls a halt
to the expedition in what he considers a defensible position until rescue
arrives. Ship engineer Jim however, believes they are now trapped on the
planet forever.
The team sets up a permanent base with a ramshackle stockade and survive by hunting struthiomimus. After a close call with an allosaurus, everyone agrees to pair up before leaving the base in the future. During the night, a tyrannosaurus carries Nyla off, prompting the group to go with Jim's previously rejected idea of killing the predator. Medic Charlotte suggests leaving a poisoned polacanthus in front of the beast's lair, but the plan backfires when the tyrannosaurus sneaks up on the group, killing Mike. Next they setup wooden stakes and lure the tyrannosaurus into them. Now safe, years pass as the survivors build a home and farm for themselves. Chuck and Charlotte have a son, and the survivors all quietly accept the idea of calling the planet home.
Thoughts:
I kinda
like this movie. There is a good variety of dinosaurs that each get a
decent amount of screen-time, and unlike some other dino movies of the
era, the prehistoric animals are actually part of the plot and
impact the character's lives and the actions they take. Nearly all of the crew members
are unlikable 70s stereotypes that are played by nobody of any note, which has produced the best kind of bad acting. By that I mean the passable dialogue is
being poorly acted out by people who are genuinely trying. It's a
cheesy, yet enjoyable B-Movie. The kind of thing you don't see much of
anymore. There is also just something about the sound and music design that has
embedded itself in my mind.
Related Articles:
- Journey to the Beginning of Time (1955)
- One Million B.C. (1940) / One Million Years B.C. (1966)
- Dinosaurus! (1960)
- Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet (1965)
- The Last Dinosaur (1977)
- Legend of Dinosaurs & Monster Birds (1977)
Planet of Dinosaurs (1977)- Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend (1985)
No comments:
Post a Comment