L'attacco delle sanguisughe giganti

Plot-- people go disappearing mysteriously in a backwoods swamp leading the authorities to a guessing game while the missing continue to pile up.

So how did I miss this drive-in special back in '59; maybe I had a back-seat 12-pack that made me forget. Anyhow, I'm glad to catch up with this Corman special. Okay, I'm in a minority, but the flick's on the whole competently made. The monster is the only really cheesy part (surprise, surprise). Still, it's wisely kept in shadow so we never get a really good look. Otherwise, the script, acting, and staging are all credibly done. For a cheap budget, the Cormans got their money's worth, especially with the LA Arboretum. Then too, was there ever a better screen vixen than the great Yvette Vickers. Here she grabs us guys in the first part with her seductive specialty and a lot of leg. No wonder the leeches were saving her for their vampire dinners. And catch the hillbillies. Their backwoods lingo and grimy looks are really colorful and well acted.

Anyway, I can't say the cheapo's a campy laugher like most Corman monster flicks. On the whole, however, it is a quality cut above and held my interest all the way through, Vickers or no.

The local hillbilly population is being sorely depleted, due to the huge invertebrates of the title (aka: grown men in black, plastic trash bags). Due to this onslaught, the swamps just aren't what they used to be. Game Warden, Steve Benton (Ken Clark) tries to get to the bottom of the mysterious deaths.

Meanwhile, rotund retailer, Dave Walker (Bruno VeSota- WAR OF THE SATELLITES) watches as his manhood is incinerated by his wild wife, Liz (Yvette Vickers- ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT WOMAN). Liz just won't stay home with her hulking husband in his tiny grocery store, choosing the allure of the swamps instead.

In all honesty, the real reason to watch this movie is Ms. Vickers. She's hot enough to start a forest fire with her big toe!

WATCH! As she applies her leg lotion like nobody's business!

SEE! Her make brushing her teeth into a sensual experience!

Oh my!

Liz is far too much for either Dave, or her man-on-the-side, Cal (Michael Emmet- NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST) to handle. It's just a good thing that she's in this movie. Without her, we're left with Benton's yeti chest hair, Cal's overblown ego, Dave's blubber, and / or the sheriff's (Gene Roth- SHE DEMONS, THE SPIDER) gargantuan bowl of baked beans to draw our attention! Oh, and those bulbous bloodsuckers!

ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES is among the upper levels of the schlock pantheon.

EXTRA POINTS: For Cal's quick change from macho lover-man to quivering coward! A singular sight to behold!...

Them folks down on the swamp there darn gone and got themselves killed or worsen. Yes giant inflatable swamp critters attack and suck the blood out of their victims. Just joking around there folks. Honestly this was much better than I was expecting although it really doesn't hold any surprises(but may cause you to laugh a time or two). Still for a low budget film, I felt it was well-done and benefits from being only 62 minutes in length. I really enjoyed this one.

Another of the many giant creature movies from the '50's, this one being somewhere in the middle of the bunch. This time, it's swamp hicks who are being menaced by leeches. Not just leeches, but big, mean leeches! I tell you, it's a load of cheese from beginning to end, but this is what one would expect from a genre movie of this era. It's a movie that leaves you asking, "why don't the fools just get a pound of salt and waste 'em?" Anyway, it's an OK effort with some decent acting. But those leeches, oh boy! The monsters are strictly tongue-in-cheek! So, B-movie fans should love this one, it's a wonder it took four years for this movie to make it to Mystery Science Theater 3000. In any event, proceed with caution into the boggy swamps of schlock.

** out of ****

This film is often trashed because of superficial details. I feel the film itself is an artifact of the times and the location. Despite the silly sci-fi subplot, the real story is in the southerners who made and star in the film. The outdated boogie woogie instrumentals that blare constantly in the -background, the steamy heat that leaves the average people sweaty and the fat shopkeeper swimming, work together to show the oppressive effects of heat and isolation on the people who live and make their living from the swamp. When viewed in light of it's intended audience (who could be expected to identify with the cast and expect the "everyday" details of the story to appear normal...) I find it not only enjoyable, but an interesting view of a time and place that no longer exists.