The Monster of Phantom Lake

"The Monster of Phantom Lake" is a modern parody of 1950s schlock horror films. Because of this, it's filmed in black & white and features many familiar elements from many of the movies...including the know-it-all professor, a group of dopey teens and a monster that looks about as scary as a taco! So why did I give this one only a 3? Well, because to parody genre which is already like a parody isn't really funny...and this film really could have used an infusion of funny. In fact, I had a hard time even paying attention to it.

The same folks appear for a sequel, "It Came From Another World" (2007). Perhaps with this one they found the right balance and it's more enjoyable. As it is, I would much rather just see a cheesy 50s horror film instead of this.

There is a fine line one must stay behind in order to make a spoof of movie genres. The best ones keep a solid element of the original but wander into the outrageous. This film is so far beyond the fifties horror B movie in its adaptation, that it plays everything for comedy. The dialogue is so stilted and the interactions of the characters so unnatural that we forget the plot as they pose and speak. Of course, the monster is utterly ridiculous, looking like it is made out of scraps from someone's sewing basket. I enjoyed it at first and thought it would develop, but it lost me and I just wanted it to end.

A professor, his grad student/love interest, and a group of partying teens are terrorized by a soldier that was mutated by atomic waste in a local lake. Made for next to nothing, this is done in the style of a 50s B&W B-movie. The acting is intentionally hammy (which wears off its cuteness in, oh, about 3 minutes) and the monster design is intentionally silly. The movie is way overlong--the titular monster doesn't even show up until after an hour! Up until that point, the audience is subjected to endless "Will they/won't they" situations among main characters, goofy scientific speculations, and endless campfire dance sequences. While not a terrible movie, the "old B-movie imitation" thing has been done already (and with significantly more entertaining results) in movies like The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra, Psycho Beach Party, and The Day It Came to Earth. The Monster of Phantom Lake, while obviously a labor of love, brings nothing new to the table and is hardly fun to watch. Definitely skippable.

After some wonderfully plodding, creepy music, THE MONSTER OF PHANTOM LAKE begins.

When drums of "atomic waste" are heedlessly dumped into the titular body of water, there's more than mere pollution to worry about. Far more. The locals have no idea that horror beyond description awaits! Or, something like that.

Oh no!

A crazy hermit tumbles into the sludge, undergoing a terrible transformation! Soon, a hideous creature arises, spelling d-o-o-m!

TMOPL is Christopher R. Mihm's masterwork of intentionally silly, 1950's-style sci-fi cheeeze. The acting and dialogue are suitably clunky, and the characters- scientists, highly suspect "teens", the canoe patrol, etc. are fun. The bucket-headed monster is as absurd as it's supposed to be, paying homage to actual schlock gems like HORROR OF PARTY BEACH. Mihm loves the genre, and the result is a joy to watch.

EXTRA POINTS FOR: The musical interlude, complete with a theme song that just keeps a rockin', a rollin', and a ramblin'!... Oh yeah!...

When you're in the mood for intentionally schlocky "homages" to the 50's monster movies, you may come across this title. I won't say it isn't worth a watch, even though it isn't anywhere near the top of the camp pile. It does contain all the required 'dumb-teenagers-in-the-woods-with-the-monster' elements. As shown by the end credits, this flick was a homemade job. The creators have cast themselves in most of the roles, most of them playing teenagers with varying degrees of success---and that will give you a clue about their acting skills. Some scenes are painfully overlong. To twist the knife a bit more, an original 'song around the campfire' is also thrown in, apparently to showcase some talent. (This has no degree of success whatsoever.) The 'professor' is the hardest to take; his hammy dialogue and monotonous delivery are meant to be a parody, but you kind of get the feeling his thespian talents really ARE that bad. To be fair, he's not alone there. You probably will have fun, though, shaking your head in disbelief as you watch the adults do incredibly stupid things, and the young, nimble people running--full speed, mind you--away from the slow-w-wly moving creature who always, inexplicably, catches up with them. You'll sleep with the lights on for a month, yes siree Bob.