Attack of the Crab Monsters

Any movie that passes off a 1950s' home in the Hollywood Hills as a research center located atop a shrinking Pacific atoll, a well-foliaged hillside as a fresh landslide, Griffith Park's Bronson Caves as a passage to the sea, a dyed-blonde Mel Welles as a "French" scientist, and a rolling and flopping papier-mache model with humanesque eyes as a terrifying monster crab is MY kind of movie! Artistically, probably one of Corman's worst, this still is great FUN. Like many other "bad" horror movies of the fifties, I can watch it over again and again! Unfortunately, though, the only print that seems to be available--either on VHS or DVD--is not a very good one. Enjoy! (NOTE: An earlier reviewer indicated that Beverly Garland is in this film; she is not.)

Whether Roger Corman likes it or not this is one of the movies he will always be remembered for. Radiation gets the blame again and spawns mutant crabs who can walk forward (something no real crab can do), talk, and absorb the brains of the people they eat. These ambitious soft shelled terrors want to conquer the world and digest the brains of several scientists to gain the know-how to do that. Believe me, a giant crab with a PHd. is a dangerous thing! Corman's usual stock company does very well here. Mel Welles and Leslie Bradley sport believeable accents, Richard Garland and Pamela Duncan (both of whom would be in THE UNDEAD the same year) are a fine couple, Russell Johnson is great and Beech Dickerson is the comedy relief. If we can believe Ed Nelson, he is the one who was under the giant crab and he also dimly recalled Jack Nicholson hanging around the location pestering Roger for something to do so maybe Jack was helping move the crab around too. Gore is non existant (it was 1957 for cryin' out loud!) except for a decapitation at the start of the film (interestingly (symbolically?) the victim is Charles Griffith who wrote the screenplay). Can I get serious for a moment now? Would someone get in touch with Roger and get him to round up the cast members who are still alive and release this on DVD with an audio commentary track? There IS a market for this movie out there and a 45th anniversary edition would, in my opinion, sell very well. Roger . . .er . . .Mr. Corman, if perchance you should read this, get in touch with me.

I don't know why I am haunted by the movie. I first was it in the late 50's and for some reason it captured me. it is not shown much if at all anymore on TV. I had all but given up ever seeing it again let alone owning a DVD. I looked at all the sites that offered it and finally found it on DVD on Overstock.com. OH JOY! OH JOY!

Of course, I ordered it and found it to be every bit as entertaining as I had remembered. Mel Welles deliciously over-acting as did most of the cast. What a treat!

You don't have to wait long for the Crabs to attack. They hit as soon as the characters land on the beach. They begin dropping like flies.

If you get the chance, watch this forgotten little flick. I think you'll like it.

Having read many of the previous User comments, I'm glad that I am not alone in having enjoyed this interesting little film. FIRST and foremost to remember ... ROGER CORMAN! That's ALL you need to know! MR. CORMAN was the KING of Drive-In "B" Films during the 1950's and absolutely no KUBRICK, CAMERON, or SPIELBERG could compare with his success or impact in film history. His films were FUN, HARMLESS and MEMORABLE! They weren't Box Office bonanzas, blockbusters or star-laden, but he simply gave you the most BANG for your BUCK (which was probably sometimes his budget!) in entertainment. Not one of his films was a standout, true CLASSIC of Cinema Art, but by gum... I'll bet you can remember EVERY damned ONE of his many films, who starred in each one, and each thinly disguised storyline. "ATTACK OF THE CRAB MONSTERS" was a wonderful bit of schlock theater and I enjoyed every innocent minute of it (read the other reviews for details). His great Monster Movie Posters lined the hallways of many a cinema, and not one of them told the truth, but the truth was ... they were fun to watch! Remember - if you can't see the STRINGS on the Flying Saucers, or the ZIPPER on the CREATURES back ... it ain't worth the time.

I last saw this film in 1963 on "Chiller," a locally produced TV show out of Minneapolis which showcased B horror movies every Sunday night. For years my friends and I would toss around the line, "I can grow a new claw--can you grow a new life?" I recently purchased a copy on the Internet and had a chance to watch it again. Except for the conventional bumbling around that characters in this kind of movie do (wandering in the dark in the middle of the night; responding to amplified voices as they lie in their beds in fear; going alone through caves where there is only one exit and the crabs are definitely around) this is pretty entertaining. I'm not sure whether these crabs have world domination in mind (revenge for those little forks and drawn butter) or just want to rid the island of humans. They do a real number on the eco-system. Will they have any beaches left to go to. Will they eventually go back to being "just crabs" or will they take their ventriloquist act on the road? We really don't know.

I think the strength of the movie is the cool, oppressive atmosphere and threat posed by the enterprising crustaceans. A weakness is that there is no explanation of their fine motor skills. They seemingly knock down everything in their paths in their lumbering way, but are still able to destroy just the right parts to dismantle a radio and are able to blow up a plane. If you don't do too much criticizing or thinking, you will enjoy this early Roger Corman gem.