Reptilicus

Being a Dane and being born in the 1970s, then I would eventually get acquainted with "Reptilicus", especially since it is a cult movie here in Denmark. But I will try to keep a neutral viewpoint on my review here.

Taking into consideration that the movie is from 1961, then of course the effects were bound to be limited and also to be nothing compared to the effects of modern day movies. With that in mind, then lets just put it out in the clear; the movie had horrible effects. No doubt about it.

The creature, Reptilicus, might have worked in thought and concept idea, but brought to the big screen in 1961 it was an eyesore to look at. It was so obviously fake that it fooled no one. And it is fun to witness how there are no scenes with actual people interacting with Reptilicus. Sure there were some scenes where Reptilicus was in the backdrop of scenes with people, but even then it looked painfully fake. And in my lifelong track record of watching movies, then I have never seen anything as fake and laughable than the scene where Reptilicus eats a farmer that decides to bolt and leave his wife and children to fend for themselves in a crumbling farmhouse. It was awful to witness, and I keep laughing every time I watch the movie.

Should you decide to sit down and watch "Reptilicus", then make sure that you don't get a fully dubbed English language version, because it it just insulting to the movie. "Reptilicus" should be watched in its original Danish language (albeit there still is some English in the original Danish version as well). And to further add insult to injury then the English dubbed version is left with the spontaneous song by actor Dirch Passer cut out. I was outraged by that editing, because that song is great. Yeah, I have watched the original Danish language version and the English dubbed version of course.

Aside from a very questionable reptilian creature which moves about by pulled strings and spewing some equally fake green slime, then the scenes with Reptilicus was also sporting very fake buildings, toy cars and train model trees.

"Reptilicus" is one of those types of movies that are so bad that they are fun to watch, and that is the reason why I have watched the movie three times by now. It is fun to return to watch it every now and then with years in between, because it never stops to amuse me.

This movie might certainly have put Denmark on the monster creature features map of the world, but sadly it is not because the movie was a great movie. But hey, even crappy movies can make a lasting impression.

And even though I am rating "Reptilicus" a mere four out of ten stars, then it is still a movie that is entertaining and one that it well-worth to be able to say "yes, I have seen that one!".

I think that there should be a different grading chart for low budget films. To automatically make fun of the production value is unfair. The makers of such films are well aware of the limitations of their vision due to budgetary constraints. While a movie like Reptilicus may not be a ten it is a hell of a lot better than Anaconda. Ib says he substituted imagination for dollars.

And this is how it should be viewed. A great task of suspending belief is what the audience is required to do. Set the sophistication of our current media consumption aside and enjoy a campy horror/sci-fi/adveture/whatever film that was probably meant to be a fun time at the drive-in that worked double duty at putting the kids to sleep before the picture everyone went to actually see begins.

Reptilicus is certainly more watchable for this reason alone than many simliar in the genere that had a much larger budget.

That being said, Reptilicus, still, is not a classic.

Check out Ib's other movies. Deathrace 2000 you might actually fall in love with.

A movie that has a line like " You'll have to shoot it at point blank range from very close up".

Truly mind numbing and entertaining at the same time. The monster looks like a cousin of the the bird in the Giant Claw. It's so obviously a marionette I kept looking to see if the strings were showing. I could swear I saw them in a couple of scenes. Actually I've see more realistic puppets in shops in Prague.

I'm still trying to figure out why the bridgekeeper raised the bridge when the crowds were running over it. I guess Syd wanted the scenes of the cyclists going over the edge. Probably the best part.

Not the worst, very far from the best but still a lot of fun to watch. MGM Midnight Movies has been putting these gems out on DVD this summer. I hope they keep it up, I'm getting addicted to them.

Without a doubt the best BAD movie ever made. From beginning to end, "Reptilicus" has it all:

1) Weird Location: Copenhagen 2) Bad Dubbing: Phonetic English over Danish 3) Cheesiest Monster: Rubber snake hand puppet thingy 4) Worst acting: Carl Ottosen as Gen. Mark Grayson, plus the whole cast! 5) Worst stock footage: Obviously unrelated to the movie 6) Worst special effects: Acid vomit + cut-out farmer entree' 7) Worst crowd control: Copenhagenagers running amok!

I know there are CHEAPER monster flicks out there, but "Reptilicus" gets the honorary "OsKar" for totally bad in all major respects. I dare you to watch it and not laugh... a lot.

An original title may be the only saving grace of "Reptilicus", but somehow it works subliminally on one's head... I can't forget the beast's expressions, there are at least two shots in which it has a strange sad grimace, although the origin of this creature is so weird that one can hardly develop sympathy or any other kind of emotion for it, as it often happens with film monsters. The character of the American general is not a very pleasant fellow, but the filmmakers put the weight of 70% of their movie on his shoulder, since the engineer does not do much and the professor is not only too old but also a cardiac patient... Then there is a bit of comic relief, two daughters that add nothing to the plot, a little travelogue of Copenhagen, a musical number, two different scores, and beautiful Miss Germany 1958 playing the leading lady in the American version. No more choices. Strange bad film, but somehow unforgettable. Maybe it has to do with poor Reptilicus. When I see things like this, that needed more than its two-cent budget I wonder why they made it.