The Beast of Yucca Flats (1961)

A defecting Soviet scientist is hit by a nuclear explosion near Yucca Flats and roams around as a beast.

Director:

Coleman Francis

Writer:

Coleman Francis

Stars:

Douglas Mellor, Barbara Francis, Bing Stafford

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Douglas Mellor	...	Hank Radcliffe
Barbara Francis	...	Lois Radcliffe
Bing Stafford	...	Jim Archer
Larry Aten	...	Joe Dobson
Linda Bielema	...	Wife on Vacation
Ronald Francis	...	Randy Radcliffe
Alan Francis	...	Art Radcliffe
Anthony Cardoza	...	KGB Driver / Helpful Neighbor (as Tony Cardoza)
Bob Labansat	...	Javorsky's Bodyguard
Jim Oliphant	...	Husband on Vacation
John Morrison	...	KGB Passenger
Eric Tomlin	...	Driver Run off Road
Jim Miles	...	Javorsky's Driver
George Prince	...	Man Who Reports Murder (as George Principe)
Conrad Brooks	...	Man at Airfield

Storyline

A defecting Russian scientist is transformed by an atomic test into a hulking monster (Tor Johnson, of course). Not much else except some people are killed, boys get lost, and a rabbit sniffs Tor's corpse. This film was used for Mystery Science Theater 3000.

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Plot Keywords:

flag on the moon | nudity | mutant | z movie | psychotronic | 

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Taglines:

Commies made him an atomic mutant!

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 May 1961 (USA)

Also Known As:

Girl Madness

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$34,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cardoza-Francis Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

54 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Coleman Francis: [props] Light aircraft used to transport main characters

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Goofs

When the aerial rifleman takes his first shots, the rifle scope cover is still on the rifle.

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Quotes

Narrator: Flag on the moon. How did it get there?

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Alternate Versions

Some prints contain a pre-title sequence which shows a large man, dressed like Tor Johnson in the film, attacking a topless woman inside a house. The technical quality of this footage is far superior to the rest of the movie which seems to indicate that it was not part of the original production. The topless nudity would not have been permitted on U.S. screens at the time this movie was originally shot.

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Connections

Featured in The Crown Jewels: America's Oldest Indie Film Company (2016)

User Reviews

A Simply Incredible Mind Melting Mess!

A confusing and mind melting mess of a film. They don't make them like this anymore! Tor Johnson's chance to star! Tor, as you may know, was a professional wrestler who went on to fame in Ed Wood, Jr. films like Bride of the Monster and Plan Nine from Outer Space. His huge build, like a human wall, and his bald head became famous. They still sell Halloween masks with his image!

In this film atrocity, he plays an atomic scientist on the run! Watch how government agents empty their guns shooting at him at close range, but can't hit his huge 400 pound body! If fact people are repeatedly shot in this film without any effect whatsoever. The film is most famous for its near total lack of dialogue, as an off screen narrator tells the audience what is going on and endlessly babbles cryptic philosophical insights on the modern world. Out of nowhere the narrator says things like "Flag on the Moon, how did get there?" "Young boys feed soda to the thirsty pigs."

The "plot" has Tor accidently stumbling into an atomic bomb test (funny how that happens), getting his clothes ripped up in the process, and then becoming a sort of hermit like desert cave dweller with a big stick. He likes to grab women, carry them around, and lick their hair. There are some other plot elements, but they don't make much sense. In fact, nothing in this movie makes much sense. Perhaps its all meant to be "art" and if so, its a lot more fun than any Andy Warhol film ever was. I would love to make serious film students watch and study Beast of Yucca Flats to learn its cinematic techniques and digest its social commentary.

The long version of the movie contains a nude scene at the beginning. Yes, the film drags in places, but its a unique and unforgettable work.