Attack of the Crab Monsters

1957 "From the depths of the sea... A TIDAL WAVE OF TERROR!"
4.9| 1h3m| en| More Info
Released: 10 February 1957 Released
Producted By: Allied Artists Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

A group of scientists travel to a remote island to study the effects of nuclear weapons tests, only to get stranded when their airplane mysteriously explodes. The team soon discovers that the tests have given rise to crabs mutated into intelligent, impervious, telepathic giants intent on increasing their numbers by breeding, then travelling to populated areas to feed, and which do not intend to be stopped by their discoverers.

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Reviews

BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See
FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.
Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.
Roy Hart If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.
azathothpwiggins After a team of scientists, investigating the effects of atomic bombs, disappears from a remote island outpost, a second team of scientists replaces them. Tragedy strikes almost immediately, and hideous death occurs. Undeterred, the research goes on. Oh no! A series of explosions rocks the island! Soon, the scientists and their Navy escorts begin to wonder just what force they're up against. They have no idea that doom by humongous, clicking claws awaits! ATTACK OF THE CRAB MONSTERS is Roger Corman's best rubber monster movie. The behemoth crustaceans are effectively menacing, in spite of being made entirely of cheeeze! The cast is adequate, including Russell Johnson (IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE, THIS ISLAND EARTH) and the lovely Pamela Duncan. Absolutely absurd in every way, yet loads of fun to watch!...
rdoyle29 A group of scientists travel to an island to study the effects of nuclear tests. A previous team has disappeared without a trace. They soon discover that the island is populated by giant crabs mutated by radiation. This is a really short, cheap horror film directed by Roger Corman for Allied Artists. The brilliant hook here is that the crabs eat and absorb the brains of their victims, increasing their intelligence and allowing them to talk in their voices! Giant crabs mocking their victims in the voices of erudite scientists is one of the best ideas ever committed to film. This is a super enjoyable little quickie written by Charles B. Griffith, who scripted most of the best early Corman work. Russell Johnson from "Gilligan's Island" has a prominent role ... ironically as one of the only non-scientists.
gavin6942 People are trapped on a shrinking island by intelligent, brain-eating giant crabs...The film was written by Charles B. Griffith and produced and directed by Roger Corman. Not unlike other Corman productions, he gave Griffith the title before any writing even started. Like other films of the 1950s, the problem is traced to radiation, this time from the Bikini Atoll nuclear tests. But then we stray a bit -- there are not just mutated giant crabs, but ones who have gained intelligence by absorbing the minds of their victims.Interestingly, because the film is set on an island, one of the stars is Russell Johnson, best known for his role as the Professor on "Gilligan's Island". He had already made his mark in science fiction thanks to "It Came from Outer Space" (1953) and "This Island Earth" (1955).The film also stars Mel Welles before he became "known" (and I use that loosely) for his role in Corman and Griffith's "Little Shop of Horrors" and the much later Corman-financed cult classic "Chopping Mall". (He also wrote, directed and produced the 1971 Italian film "Lady Frankenstein".)This was Corman's most profitable film to date, and it is easy to see why. With a small cast and crew, but a unique plot and an inventive villain, this film is all about ideas and not about budget. For a perfect example of how Roger Corman became the king of low budget film, you need not look any further than this one.
BA_Harrison Roger Corman's Attack of the Crab Monsters is just one of many cheapo monster movies from the 50s to blame nuclear fallout for messing up nature, and features lots of the elements one might quite rightly expect from the genre—a team of brave US scientists (including the obligatory pretty female doctor), wooden acting, unconvincing locations, and crummy effects. However, it also manages to present a few unique ideas that elevate it above many of the standard 'mutated monster on the loose' creature features of the era.The critters that grow to massive proportions in this film are land crabs that have been exposed to radiation from A-bomb tests, but rather than simply being scaled-up versions of regular crustaceans, these guys possess an atomic structure consisting of liquid in a permanent form, making them extremely hard to destroy; they also have the ability to assimilate their victims, absorb their knowledge, and lure further victims to their death by talking to them telepathically. Pretty far-fetched I know, but very creepy, the crabs eerie, echoey, disembodied voices being surprisingly effective.Of course, given the movie's low low budget, the monsters themselves are pretty rubbish—awkwardly moving lumps of papier-mâché with gangly legs dangling uncontrollably, coat-hanger antennae, and massive human-like eyes that look really daft—but I wouldn't have it any other way: a badly designed, poorly constructed monster is half the charm of a B-movie like this.6.5 out of 10, rounded up to 7 for a couple of surprisingly nasty moments (a decapitated body and a severed hand—in black and white, but still pretty gruesome) and the somewhat unnecessary but enjoyable underwater swim by Pamela Duncan.