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

The Beast of Yucca Flats was first released on DVD by Image Entertainment on September 5, 2000, followed by numerous later DVD releases. It was released by Alpha Video on November 18, 2003, and by Image Entertainment on December 30, 2003 as a part of a double feature with Mesa of Lost Women (1953). It was released as a part of a 12-disc "Horror Classics Collection" by Digital 1 Stop on January 20, 2004. Platinum Disc released the film on June 7, 2005, and again on August 23 as a part of several multi-disc collections; Mill Creek Entertainment released the film on July 5, 2005. In 2006, it was released by Digiview Entertainment and ST Clair Vision on May 9 and October 17, respectively. ST Clair Vision re-released it on June 26, 2007. Releases by Direct Source and Mill Creek Entertainment, as part of multi-film collections, also appeared in 2007. ST Clair Vision re-released the film one more time on May 20, 2008. In 2010, The Beast of Yucca Flats was released three separate times by TNT Media Group and Echo Bridge Home Entertainment. On August 20, 2013, Mill Creek released it as part of a 3-disc, 12-filn collection, The Best of the Worst Film Pack. The film was last released by Echo Bridge on September 1, 2015.

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Goofs

When the KGB agents chase Javorski, the scene cuts between day and night repeatedly.

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Quotes

Narrator: Nothing bothers some people, not even flying saucers.

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Connections

Referenced in I Hate Everything: the Search for the Worst: 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain (2014)

User Reviews

Last Laugh

This film is really bad but I would like to point out two things which might redeem it somewhat. First, the many & varied techniques for avoiding lip synched sound are positively breath taking. Just because the production company could not afford a portable recorder doesn't mean they didn't know how to use one (if they could have afforded it). For anyone who has ever been stuck having to save a mis-shot scene the film is a goldmine of clever techniques for avoiding showing people's mouths when they speak a line. Second, this film was made very, very cheap. I would venture to guess that the negative cost was ninety percent or better of the budget with most of the rest for food & motel. Most of the actors were probably paid a token amount. Films like this were made for the second 'feature' on the drive in marquee. The drive in manager was looking for cost effectiveness & he knew his audience well. The couples were into 'heavy petting' by the time the second feature started. The guys in cars were passing around the beer their uncle bought them & loved to laugh & hoot at these films as much as we do today. In short this film was made to fit the rigid economics of it's time & purpose. It is fascinating to watch the film cleverly totter along the edge of coming apart into a melange of unrelated scenes. It never does. It maintains a shaky but believable continuity. This is not an accident. It relates to the core purpose of producing the product at the cheapest possible cost. The first scene is an exception to this. A strange, unrelated shower strangling. Confusing, but it sure does get your attention. I have come to believe that this scene is a cheap ripoff of Psycho which came out a year earlier. Both this scene & the soft porn shots of the sheriff's wife were tailor made for still promos & to slip by the censor. They even get away with a 54 minute run time.

This is where the Last Laugh comes in. This film made money in the most ruthless & cheap part of the film business in it's time frame; & it continues to make money today. Yes, people still buy or rent it to hoot at because it's so bad; Just like we did in the sixty's when it came out (re-named & re-released several times). This classic stinker may not be part of the "Art" of film but it sure is part of the business of film. The producer/director got both your money & the last laugh.