Roger Corman provides his own unique take on the ever-popular '50s sci-fi plot whereby nuclear testing upsets the balance of nature and unleashes yet another "nightmare horror" onto the world.
In a refreshing change of pace, however, Corman adds a touch of exotica to the standard scenario by setting his version of the events on a remote Pacific island. Also, in keeping with the new locale, he substitutes the usual line up of over-sized insects with man-eating crustaceans as the villains of the piece. So what's the story? Let me explain.
After a group of scientists fail to return from an expedition to the aforementioned tropic isle, a fresh batch of eggheads is shipped out from California to investigate the disappearance of their colleagues. Needless to say, the replacement team quickly get to the bottom of the mystery and what they find out proves to be downright 'ugly'(sorry, there's no other word for it).
Discovering that the radio equipment on the island has gone "fut", our heroes must reconcile themselves to the fact that they are completely cut off from the outside world. Securely ensconced in their tastefully appointed beach hut, however, the brainy lot (quite wrongly) believe that they are as snug as a bunch of radioactive bugs in a rug. Of course, it's only a matter of time before one them goes outside after dark to investigate a strange noise - enter the "unspeakable terror" that lurks within the shadows.
Trivia buffs will note the prophetic casting of Russell Johnson (later to become famous as "The Professor" on the TV sitcom "Gilligan's Island") as one of the team members.
Shot at Leo Carrillo State Beach in Southern California, "Attack of the Crab Monsters" cost just $70,000 to make and raked in a cool million according to Roger Corman in his autobiography "How I Made a Hundred Movies in Hoillywood and Never Lost a Dime".
Although it lacks much of the zany sense of humor that made "Creature from the Haunted Sea" so appealing, this picture does have its redeeming features. Not one of my personal favorites but solid enough and worth a look if you're a student of Corman's particular style of movie-making.
In a refreshing change of pace, however, Corman adds a touch of exotica to the standard scenario by setting his version of the events on a remote Pacific island. Also, in keeping with the new locale, he substitutes the usual line up of over-sized insects with man-eating crustaceans as the villains of the piece. So what's the story? Let me explain.
After a group of scientists fail to return from an expedition to the aforementioned tropic isle, a fresh batch of eggheads is shipped out from California to investigate the disappearance of their colleagues. Needless to say, the replacement team quickly get to the bottom of the mystery and what they find out proves to be downright 'ugly'(sorry, there's no other word for it).
Discovering that the radio equipment on the island has gone "fut", our heroes must reconcile themselves to the fact that they are completely cut off from the outside world. Securely ensconced in their tastefully appointed beach hut, however, the brainy lot (quite wrongly) believe that they are as snug as a bunch of radioactive bugs in a rug. Of course, it's only a matter of time before one them goes outside after dark to investigate a strange noise - enter the "unspeakable terror" that lurks within the shadows.
Trivia buffs will note the prophetic casting of Russell Johnson (later to become famous as "The Professor" on the TV sitcom "Gilligan's Island") as one of the team members.
Shot at Leo Carrillo State Beach in Southern California, "Attack of the Crab Monsters" cost just $70,000 to make and raked in a cool million according to Roger Corman in his autobiography "How I Made a Hundred Movies in Hoillywood and Never Lost a Dime".
Although it lacks much of the zany sense of humor that made "Creature from the Haunted Sea" so appealing, this picture does have its redeeming features. Not one of my personal favorites but solid enough and worth a look if you're a student of Corman's particular style of movie-making.