Mesa of Lost Women (1953)

Directors:

Ron Ormond
Herbert Tevos

Writer:

Herbert Tevos (writer)

Release Date:

17 June 1953 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi

Tagline:

A race of deadly spider-women luring men to their death!

Plot:

A mad scientist named Arana is creating giant spiders and dwarves in his lab on Zarpa Mesa in Mexico...

Plot Keywords:

Spider | Giant Spider | Mad Scientist | Secret Laboratory | Narration

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Jackie Coogan	...	Dr. Aranya
Allan Nixon	...	Dr. Tucker, camp physician
Richard Travis	...	Dan Mulcahey, foreman
Lyle Talbot	...	Narrator
Paula Hill	...	Doreen Culbertson (as Mary Hill)
Robert Knapp	...	Grant Phillips
Tandra Quinn	...	Tarantella
Chris-Pin Martin	...	Pepe, the jeep driver
Harmon Stevens	...	Dr. Leland J. Masterson
Nico Lek	...	Jan van Croft
Kelly Drake	...	Lost Woman
John Martin	...	Frank, the surveyor
George Barrows	...	George, the male nurse
Candy Collins	...	Lost Woman
Dolores Fuller	...	Blonde 'Watcher in the Woods'

Also Known As:

Attack of the Spider Women (USA) (video title)
Lost Women
Lost Women of Zarpa (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

70 min | France:67 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Unrated (2005 DVD release) | UK:PG (1995) | UK:X (1954) (cut) | USA:Approved (PCA #15557)

Company:

A.J. Frances White-Joy Houck

Trivia:

Hoyt Curtin's original music score - consisting solely of guitar and piano - was recycled by director Edward D. Wood Jr. for his film Jail Bait (1954).

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): At several points in the dialogue, Dr. Aranya is said to be doing experiments involving "hexapods" - meaning six-legged insects. But he is actually working with tarantulas, which are spiders (not insects) and therefore have eight legs.

Quotes:

Doreen Culbertson: [surveying cantina] What a dump.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Horror Incorporated: Mesa of Lost Women (1953) (#2.10)" (2003)

What a Mess!

This mess is one of the worst science fiction movies of the 1950's. It makes Ed Wood's films look good. It does have its moments though.

The acting is terrible and too daft to laugh at. The guitar/piano music score, which hardly stops throughout the movie, is utter rubbish and drove me mad. The only good points about The Mesa of Lost Women are the giant spider scenes. Even the spider looks terrible.

This is grade Z rubbish. A real golden turkey.

Rating: 1 and a half stars out of 5.