Caltiki, the Immortal Monster (1959)

A team of archaeologists in Mexico encounter an amorphous, blob-like monster that appears to be connected with the collapse of the Mayan civilization.

Directors:

Riccardo Freda (as Robert Hamton), Mario Bava (uncredited)

Writer:

Filippo Sanjust (screenplay) (as Philip Just)

Stars:

John Merivale, Didi Sullivan, Gérard Herter

2 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
John Merivale	...	Prof. John Fielding
Didi Sullivan	...	Ellen Fielding
Gérard Herter	...	Max Gunther (as Gerard Haerter)
Giacomo Rossi Stuart	...	Prof. Rodríguez's Assistant (as G.R. Stuart)
Vittorio André	...	Prof. Rodríguez (as Victor Andrée)
Daniele Vargas	...	Bob (as Daniel Vargas)
Arturo Dominici	...	Nieto (as Arthur Dominick)
Nerio Bernardi	...	Police Inspector (as Black Bernard)
Rex Wood
Gail Pearl	...	Indian Dancer (as Gay Pearl)
Daniela Rocca	...	Linda

Storyline

Archaeologists investigating some Mayan ruins come across a blob-like monster. They manage to destroy it with fire, but keep a sample. Meanwhile, a comet is due to pass close to the Earth - the same comet passed near the Earth at the time the Mayan civilization mysteriously collapsed. Coincidence?

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Plot Keywords:

kaiju | psychotronic film | comet | mayan ruin | fire | 

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Taglines:

Towering over Jungle and City... Creeping, Multiplying, Devouring!

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Genres:

Adventure | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

Body count: 8

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Goofs

When the radio antennas and the radio operator are shown you can see a Norway flag in the background.

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Quotes

Policeman: [Caltiki has spread inside and outside the house. Monstruous dark blobs are everywhere. Rescuers arrive and shoot them] The garden is filled with monsters!

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Alternate Versions

Some prints use the English language dubbing but have the title and credits in their original Italian.

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Connections

Referenced in La cabeza viviente (1963)

User Reviews

CALTIKI, THE IMMORTAL MONSTER (Riccardo Freda and, uncredited, Mario Bava, 1959) ***

This Italian sci-fi/horror film has been mentioned so often ever since I've been browsing the Internet (and prior to that on the occasional reference book) that it had practically acquired legendary status! Now that I've watched it myself, I can say that it's an effective blend of THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT (1955) and Mexi-Horror – though it's not as intellectual as the former, nor as campy as the latter (on the accompanying Audio Commentary, Luigi Cozzi also mentions the Japanese sci-fi THE H-MAN [1958] as a possible influence); the climax, then, seems to have been inspired by QUATERMASS II (1957) – while the archaeologists' discovery of footage shot by their missing/deranged companions actually looks forward to CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST (1979).

For its miniscule budget (which shows in the distinct lack of extras during a conference held to announce to the world the historic find!), the film's look (Rome standing in for Mexico!) and make-up effects (quite repulsive for the time, with the monster scenes themselves being perhaps more extensive than contemporary genre efforts) are very convincing; the attack by the blob-like monster on lead John Merivale's house (with his wife and daughter trapped inside) is especially well done – and reasonably scary. The cast – also featuring Gerard Herter (an unsympathetic variant on THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT's Richard Wordsworth), Daniela Rocca and Arturo Dominici – is interesting as well and there's a fine, suitably rousing score by Roberto Nicolosi.

The DVD supplements are superb (I'm lucky to be fluent in Italian) and include two separate interviews featuring genre exponent Luigi Cozzi – who attempts, firstly, to restore to its proper place screenwriter/designer Filippo Sanjust's undervalued contribution to the film and, then, outlines Bava's exact function behind-the-scenes (he didn't actually direct any of it but, following Freda's departure, took charge during the editing stage) – and critic/historian Steve Della Casa – who talks about Freda's place in the history of Italian cinema and mentions an especially amusing anecdote involving Freda and another cult film-maker, Vittorio Cottafavi, on meeting one another in their old age at a Film Festival (each thought the other would look down on his work only to discover that they were secret admirers of one another!). It's a pity, therefore, that film buffs unfamiliar with the language can't enjoy the Audio Commentary either, as it's a truly fascinating discussion: among other things, critic Giona A. Nazzaro voices his regret over the lost art of Italy's genre cinema; there's also an interesting sideline into the unusually creative contribution of editors to Italian films during this era, among whom Mario Serandrei (responsible for CALTIKI itself) was one of the undisputed masters; Cozzi, however, mistakenly refers to John Merivale as having played Sherlock Holmes in A STUDY IN TERROR (1965), when it was actually John Neville (Merivale didn't in fact appear in that film!).

Finally, since Image's DVD of an earlier Freda/Bava collaboration – I VAMPIRI (1957) – hasn't gone out-of-print and, so, will probably not be part of Anchor Bay's upcoming Mario Bava releases, I may well spring for it in the near future along with THE GHOST (1963), an unwatched classic Freda that's been coupled with a German Krimi – DEAD EYES OF London (1961) – on the Retromedia DVD

Details

Country:

Italy USA

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

20 September 1960 (USA)

Also Known As:

Caltiki, the Immortal Monster

Company Credits

Production Co:

Galatea Film, Climax Pictures, Lux Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

77 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1