Beyond Atlantis

Other than the babe giving the massage and numerous butt shots of the pearl girl swimming under water, there is not much here to enjoy. The big bulging eyes of the Atlantans was a bit much, especially considering this was made in the 70's not the 50's . I mean even if you are here for campy fun that's just a weird idea someone had to give them huge eyes wtf. The movie gets off track early, going in a different direction than what you'd expect and a sort of sleazy tone prevails . Not really what I was hoping for. There's not much mystery and sci-fi intrigue, well maybe a little but I was disappointed. Perhaps worth watching to see Ashley, Wayne, and Haig together.

Three guys and a gal head off to a remote Island to harvest the peals of the local tribe who all wear swimming googles even while on shore. The first half of the movies is OK but then bogs down with too many underwater scenes.

Sid Haig is perfectly creepy and Big John's kid is adequate. John Ashley gets to play a part that is not the all American boy for a change and does a nice job. George Nader gets to Ham it up a bit and there is a lot of action with Leigh Christian looking quite beautiful while swimming underwater. With all of that said, the movie just dosn't work.

To say that you've seen an Eddie Romero film that's actually enjoyable for its merits than its inconsistencies is a lot like saying you've seen an Andy Milligan film that's just okay. Anyway, BEYOND ATLANTIS is a fond memory from the good old days of late night television viewing... before the tube was taken over by relentless ads for salad spinners.

From MAD DOCTOR OF BLOOD ISLAND to BLACK MAMA WHITE MAMA, Romero's films are sweaty hybrids of 1940's RKO B-adventure programmers, tinny melodrama and 1970's exploitation elements. Regardless of how bad his films get (and you can't get much worse than BRIDES OF BLOOD), they are still curiously affecting.

This entertaining, well-shot adventure-fantasy concerns some cut-throats looking for undersea treasure being protected by amphibian-like humanoids (featuring the lovely Leigh Christian). The movie is genuinely well-made, with a surprisingly energetic shootout finale, and some interestingly surreal moments, like when the troublesome brood is suddenly surrounded by the amphibian people (who wear these interesting crustacean-like things on their heads). Plus, there's a few unintentional giggles when one of the men mates with the mermaid girl underwater. In all, a totally engaging movie. I'm glad it has resurfaced in the DVD world-- it will be fun to see this again after so many years.

I recently watched Beyond Atlantis (1973) on Tubi. The storyline follows a diver who discovers a rare pearl and knows where to find more. He assembles a group to retrieve the treasure, but the seemingly hospitable locals have other plans for them.

This picture is directed by Eddie Romero (Savage Sisters) and stars Sid Haig (House of 1000 Corpses), Patrick Wayne (Big Jake), Leigh Christian (The Doll Squad), and John Ashley (The A-Team).

It's quite a unique and oddly assembled cast. The storyline is pure grindhouse of the era-a mix of ancient legend, treasure-hunting, and beautiful women. Sid Haig brings his usual playful, aloof energy that keeps things entertaining, while Leigh Christian is absolutely stunning. Unfortunately, the special effects are very dated-the "eye" sequence in particular had me laughing out loud. There's little to no nudity, and the film doesn't take itself too seriously, which works in its favor. I also enjoyed the ending.

In conclusion, Beyond Atlantis feels very much like a Roger Corman-style production of its time. It's nothing groundbreaking, but fans of grindhouse will find something to enjoy. I'd score it a 4.5/10 and only recommend it with the right expectations.

A group of fortune hunters - diver Logan (John Ashley), pimp East Eddie (Sid Haig), and boat owner Vic (Patrick Wayne) - travel by boat to a remote island where they hope to gather a fortune in rare pearls from the seabed. Also along for the trip: sexy redhead boffin Kathy (Lenore Stevens) who is looking to make an important scientific discovery. However, with the island inhabited by strange mutants who don't take kindly to strangers, will the adventurers and the lady scientist succeed in their missions or die trying?

Beyond Atlantis opens with chubby Filipino Manuel (played by chubby Filipino cult actor Vic Diaz) arriving on a tropical island with beautiful blonde Syrene (played by beautiful blonde Leigh Christian), where the lovely lady hands over a handful of pearls in exchange for supplies. Syrene then strips to a skimpy bikini, and heads for her village, arriving just in time to witness an intruder getting a spear in his back while bug-eyed natives look on.

It's a promising start to what looks set to be an entertaining piece of trashy exploitation; however, it has been my experience that the presence of Vic Diaz is seldom the sign of a great film. Or even a so-bad-it's-good film. More often than not, he appears in virtually unwatchable junk. While Beyond Atlantis isn't the worst film he's appeared in, it definitely goes downhill after the opening sequence, with way too much in the way of boring underwater scenes, and not nearly enough in the way of a decent plot or exciting action.

After much swimming - so much swimming - things do eventually pick up for a rousing final act, in which a native is eaten by piranhas, Haig blows up the islanders' temple, and Syrene and Kathy have a catfight (made all the more entertaining by being set to a piece of library music called The Awakening, best known to UK viewers as the theme to The News at Ten). A dumb final scene sees Manuel and his men trying to make off with the treasure, the box of pearls falling into the ocean during a scuffle (like the ending of The Italian Job, Logan can be heard coming up with a plan to retrieve the loot).

5/10. Haig is always fun to watch, but it was thanks to curvaceous beauties Christian and Stevens that I managed to make it to the end without wanting to hit the off button. And no, it's never explained why Syrene and her father don't have bug-eyes like everyone else in their tribe.