Creature from the Haunted Sea
1961Dir. Roger Corman
Renzo Capetto (Antony Carbone) seizes the opportunity to get his hands on some dosh when civil unrest breaks out in Cuba. He agrees to help General Tostada and a group of exiled Cuban nationals escape on his boat with a sizeable portion of the Cuban treasury. He then plots to kill the men and blame their deaths on a legendary sea monster. So far, so good. Capetto is joined by his faithful, if rather dim-witted motley crew. What Capetto doesn’t count on is an actual sea monster turning up to throw a major spanner in the works. The stage is set for shenanigans on the high seas, quirky beatnik characters, shoestring budgets, ludicrous acting and one of the best bargain-basement monsters ever committed to celluloid. Dear reader, I give you Roger Corman’s sublime Creature from the Haunted Sea!
Creature from the Haunted Sea belongs to a group of Corman films collectively referred to as the ‘Puerto Rico Trilogy.’ The other two are The Last Woman on Earth and Battle of Blood Island. Corman went to Puerto Rico to film two movies, but those familiar with the highly prolific filmmaker may not be surprised to hear that he made time to write and direct a third film during his stay on the island. Creature from the Haunted Sea was shot with left over cast members from The Last Woman on Earth and completed in a matter of days. And the fact that it shows, is not necessarily a bad thing. Corman was never one to allow the inconvenience of a low budget or limiting time constraints to cripple his creativity or motivation.
Creature from the Haunted Sea begins with a bang and hits the ground running, opening with a bravura chase sequence, infectious jazz score and beatnik sensibility. Humorous animated titles explain the situation with Cuba and how a revolution has established a new government. Underground groups meet to plan smuggling trips off the island. Corman ensures the story saunters along at a rather brisk pace – there is no room for frills or filler in what initially starts off as a strong and snappy, if a little obvious, plot. The acting is typically and wildly uneven and some of the cast simply give the bare minimum of effort, if even that. Not that this has ever hindered Corman before!
As soon as we are introduced to the characters as they gather on the boat to set off on their misadventure, the film takes a slight detour and decides to have fun with the oddball mismatched smugglers and show that despite the fact the script was obviously thrown together, Corman still has the ability to create interesting quirky characters and audacious situations. The cast are clearly enjoying themselves and their enthusiasm proves quite infectious. For now. It isn’t long before we are treated to our first glimpse of the sea monster. Looking like a large cucumber with tennis balls for eyes, this fabulous creature instantly steals the show. Unfortunately in-between its appearances we are left with the increasingly irritating characters as they stumble around from one predicament to another. It does seem glaringly obvious that at times Corman drops his no filler approach to the early part of the story and shamelessly starts padding out the running time. Clocking in at just over an hour long, this epic still feels far too sprawling.
Eventually the smugglers get rid of enough of the Cuban nationals to throw the treasure over board and plan to go back for it later. They deliberately strand their vessel on the beach of a nearby tropical island. At this stage events have already begun a freefall into jaw-droppingly absurdist comedy. There is much larking about on the island as some of the crew pair up with locals and bizarre love triangles ensue. Luckily the sea monster seems to sense our impatience and as soon as the crew go diving to retrieve their loot, it strikes. While not a patch on some of Corman’s other early low budgeters such as Bucket of Blood or Little Shop of Horrors, Creature from the Haunted Sea benefits from a knowing and tongue in cheek script. Much of the dialogue, which in itself is utterly priceless, is delivered in a supremely dry and sardonic manner. When Sparks declares ‘And so we sailed off into the greatest adventure ever inflicted on man’, his resignation is palpable.
An outrageous and campy romp that should manage to raise a wry smile. Enjoy with strong alcohol and tongue wedged firmly in cheek. Hard to believe though that shortly after this was released, Corman seemingly shifted gears and began work on his opulent, darkly elegant Poe adaptations with Vincent Price.
Eventually the smugglers get rid of enough of the Cuban nationals to throw the treasure over board and plan to go back for it later. They deliberately strand their vessel on the beach of a nearby tropical island. At this stage events have already begun a freefall into jaw-droppingly absurdist comedy. There is much larking about on the island as some of the crew pair up with locals and bizarre love triangles ensue. Luckily the sea monster seems to sense our impatience and as soon as the crew go diving to retrieve their loot, it strikes. While not a patch on some of Corman’s other early low budgeters such as Bucket of Blood or Little Shop of Horrors, Creature from the Haunted Sea benefits from a knowing and tongue in cheek script. Much of the dialogue, which in itself is utterly priceless, is delivered in a supremely dry and sardonic manner. When Sparks declares ‘And so we sailed off into the greatest adventure ever inflicted on man’, his resignation is palpable.
An outrageous and campy romp that should manage to raise a wry smile. Enjoy with strong alcohol and tongue wedged firmly in cheek. Hard to believe though that shortly after this was released, Corman seemingly shifted gears and began work on his opulent, darkly elegant Poe adaptations with Vincent Price.
