Carnosaur

Carnosaur (1993)

** (out of 4)

Diane Ladd plays a mad scientist who plans on returning the Earth back to the dinosaurs. She's created a special serum that will have women giving birth to the creatures and soon they will take over everything. CARNOSAUR was producer Roger Corman's attempt to cash-in on Steven Spielberg's JURASSIC PARK, which would be released later in the year. It's pretty funny that Corman was able to get this thing a theatrical release but sadly the movie doesn't live up to much because it's just a tad bit too mainstream for its own good. Overall the film does manage to get a good feel of those 1950s monster movies where there's really not much of a story and instead of one we just get a monster running around killing people. This is actually one thing that works with the picture and I think another good thing is that the filmmakers never take the subject or story overly serious. This works for a number of reasons but the biggest is that star Ladd takes the material so serious that you can't help but be entertained by her maniac style performance. I liked the fact that she was so serious in the movie simply because it adds a level of entertainment that you wouldn't have had had the actress simply shown up to cash a check. Obviously the special effects weren't going to be on the level of the Spielberg film but for the most part I thought they were good. Yes, it's obvious these things aren't real but that really doesn't hurt the film as they're at least entertaining for what they are. I think what hurts the film is the fact that it's a tad bit too pretty for its own good. With the Spielberg movie being what it is, usually these rip-offs try to just be exploitation 101 and CARNOSAUR really doesn't reach that level. The usually seen nudity isn't anywhere to be found and the death scenes are pretty lifeless and uninteresting. A film like this really needed to deliver for its lack of effects and story but instead we're just given a watered down version of a horror movie.

A brilliant but deranged geneticist Dr. Jane Tiptree (Diane Ladd) finds a way to bring Dinosaurs back to life by using DNA from Chickens Eggs! Which these Dinosaurs gets bigger by eating flesh's and creating panic in a small town somewhere in the desert. Which slowly several different kinds of Dinosaurs starts to breed like Rats. Which Tiptree is planning to destroy the world by unleashing an lethal virus and letting Dinosaur ruled the world once more.

Directed by Adam Simon (Brain Dead) made an watchable but forgotten horror/sci-fi effort by that was made in the wake of Steven Spielberg's Big Budget "Jurassic Park". Which this movie was out a few weeks earlier before Spielberg's take on Dinosaur. Which oddly enough, Ladd's daughter is the lead actress in "JP". For all it's cheapness, the dinosaur sequences are well done (despite some funny unintentionally moments of the F/X sequences). Which it will recalls films of the special effects era from the 1950's. It is quite gory as well, which it's delivers the good often in a schlock way. Simon's film is surprisingly bleak with some moments of playful black comedy but it is not quite fun as we would expect from a Roger Corman production. A cast of familiar B cast tries to keep it lively. The third act of this thriller is extremely unsatisfying and the quite dark looking cinematography of this film could have better filmed. If u want to see Simon's better work, watch "The American Nightmare". Which it's a documentary on the horror movies of the 1970's. "Carnosaur" is more of a curio movie than someone might actually enjoying. I always find it funny on the VHS Cover of this effort, since the late Gene Siskel enjoyed it very much. If u enjoy this, it's followed by two direct-to-video efforts! Based on a novel by the late Harry Adam Knight (Who's real name is John Brosnan). Simon wrote the adaptation of this depressing movie. (** ½/*****).

Well, what can I say? I'm a huge fan of b movies, so I've seen some great big piles in my life. I was going into this expecting a poorly-shot, bad-humor-filled, crappy-effect-infused, pox-ridden Corman romp of "Night of the Blood Beast" or "Wasp Woman" proportions. I was rather surprised, actually. The effects were nothing to write home about, but they weren't horrible. At least this was before CG was on the open market, so they stuck with practical effects (which, in my opinion, are underrated). The acting was par for the course, but I feel Diane Ladd did a pretty good "mad scientist" with Tiptree. Mainly Raphael Sbarge was a good washed-up drunk with Doc Smith. Some things made the movie a little tedious (the romantic plot between Thrush and Doc, Clint Howard's character, etc.) but I found this an overall enjoyable cheesy gore-ride of fun weirdness.

Watch if you are used to horrifically cheesy movies.

4/10

Reading about Carnosaur, I was expecting a terribly cheap movie and for it to be blatantly derivative of the Steven Spielberg classic Jurassic Park. While far from a good movie, and certainly nowhere near as fun, thrilling or intense as Jurassic Park, I was expecting far worse than what I saw. Diane Ladd relishes her mad scientist, and this is one totally bonkers mad scientist, and the baby carnosaur is genuinely scary. Carnosaur is also gorier and bloodier than JP, and the gore is actually quite good and has moments where it is used inventively to the extent that you may be put off eating for some time after. Carnosaur is a very cheap-looking movie though, the sets lack colour and the camera work and editing lack finesse and cohesion. But I agree about the special effects and the animatronics on the dinosaurs faring worst in this regard, they are truly dreadful and definitely some of the worst dinosaur effects I've seen for any movie in my life. The score is not particularly rousing and has nothing that leaps out as memorable. It doesn't distract from what's going on as such but it just doesn't add anything either, it's just there and fails to make much of an impact. The script doesn't work either, nor does the story. The dialogue is stodgy, cheesy and overly-talky, while the story- not doing much with a decent if rather silly concept- apart from some inventive gory scenes is stripped of suspense, scenes that should scare can be unintentionally funny instead, the romantic plot line is mawkish and slows things down in the middle and the prehistoric rampage antics do get predictable quickly. The characters read of every cliché the writers could find and are poorly developed, no scratch that, the movie certainly knows what it tries to be which is good but while it does strive for some fun and scares(though not really succeeding) the characters are almost completely forgotten in the process. Of the acting only Ladd makes any kind of impression, the rest just sleepwalk through their roles and don't seem to care less about their characters' situations. Overall, could have been worse, especially considering what I'd read, but not a good movie. I recommend it partially for those who want a bit of silly fun without having to think too much, but for those who does know what to expect but still want to see some kind of quality put into it they may want to look elsewhere. 4/10 Bethany Cox

The real tragedy of this film is that the book (by Harry Adam Knight)on which it is based is actually a masterpiece. But this adaptation has absolutely nothing to do with the book. So why in the name of sanity have the producers paid for the license?

The plot of this film involves a crazed scientist who intends to re-populate the world with dinosaurs. Before long her creations are out and about and terrorizing the locals. Unfortunately I'm one of those annoying, awkward people who just refuse to be in the least bit scared or impressed by laughable rubber creatures which look like they'd be more at home on 'The Muppets'. The script is disjointed and often becomes tedious and there are no interesting characters. There is no sense of awe and wonder surrounding the subject of live dinosaurs. They're more like cartoon monsters. A dinosaur even laughs at one point.

Always be careful when selecting films which claim to be better than box-office hits. Everyone involved in this cheap, tacky, wasted license should be ashamed.