Ogosmith Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Robert Joyner The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Delight Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

unbrokenmetal For 1948, "Unknown Island" is pretty good: shot in colour which was not going to be possible for most monster movies of the next decade, the only problem is the men in monster suits. They move slowly and clumsily and never seem more dangerous than the Muppet Show critters, but then again, also stop-motion and especially "enlarged" lizards have their disadvantages and nothing else was possible at the time.The story goes like this: a photographer wants to visit an island full of dinosaurs he spotted from a plane. His fiancé agrees to charter a ship. The only man who ever returned alive from the dinosaurs encourages them with the words: "I'll blow my brains out first before I go back to that island!" However, not the creatures become the biggest danger, but the conflicts between the crew, the captain, the photographer, his fiancé and the above mentioned adventurer. Shall they just take pictures, capture one of the monsters - or just run for their lives? "Unknown Island" does wisely not just to rely on the dinosaurs, but also create serious reasons (love, greed, superstition) for arguments and fights between the human beings. Thus it becomes an adventure still worth watching 60 years later even if the effects don't impress anyone anymore. Today we have many movies whose effects do impress - but nothing else does, and that's hardly better.

ferbs54 "Unknown Island" (1948) is just the kind of movie that I would imagine thrilled the kids at Saturday afternoon matinees way back when; kind of like a 1940s "Jurassic Park." In this one, scientist Philip Reed wants to explore a seemingly prehistoric Pacific island that he'd once seen from the air, so he and his fiancée, yummy redhead Virginia Grey, hire a tramp steamer captain (Barton MacLane) and his crew of mutinous lascars to take them there. Shanghaied into coming along for the ride is Richard Denning, hunkyman favorite of '50s sci-fi fans, who had washed up on this same island years before and is now an alcoholic wreck as a result. The film, to its credit, wastes little time in getting us to the island and treating us to brontos, herds of T. Rex, spiny-backed lizards AND a giant upright sloth that looks more like a death's-head gorilla. The dino FX, it must be admitted, are so-so at best, but honestly...were you really expecting Spielbergian ILM effects from a 1940s B picture? (I've actually seen worse in Japanese monster movies made 20 years later.) The film is as pulpy as can be--that's its paramount charm--and all the characters in it follow the '40s formula and get precisely what they deserve; no surprises there. MacLane is his usual growling self, and is actually very fine as a villain when alcohol, jungle fever and Virginia lust make him go a tad whacko. "Unknown Island" is a perfect movie to watch with the kiddies or with your 8-year-old nephew, and would make a perfect double feature paired with 1954's "Target Earth," also starring Denning and Grey. The Maltin book calls it boring, but they're wrong again; it never is. And the fine-looking DVD from Image Entertainment that I just watched shows off the 1940s Cinecolor extremely well. Thanks, guys, for rescuing this fun and little-seen flick from comparative oblivion and giving it a nice treatment.

lordzedd-2 Bad. Really bad!! But it's not one thing wrong with it; it's many, many little things that turn this into garbage. The acting in this film was very good. But if the Captain had a disease like malaria then he should have been in a hospital and not on this trip. The goofy effects and dinosaur costumes were just lame. Now I know what the people who like this movie are saying to themselves. It's 1948, give them some slack, the technology was around. But take a look at King Kong of 1933 and tell me they could have done better if they tried.

Chris Gaskin Unknown Island is a significant dinosaur movie because it was the first one to be made in colour, despite the very low budget. It was a treat to watch though.An expedition travels to an uncharted island in the South Seas where strange creatures were sited during the Second World War. Once they arrive, they discover T-Rexes (men in suits), Brontosauruses pulled by wires, a plastic Dimetrodon and a giant Sloth played by Ray Corrigan (It! The Terror From Beyond Space). These monsters don't look too bad though. Several members of the party are killed by the beasts, including the captain. One of the best parts of the movie is the fight between the Sloth and a T-Rex. The movie also stars sci-fi movie regular Richard Denning (The Creature From the Black Lagoon). This movie was enjoyable despite the cheap looking monsters. A treat.Rating: 4 stars out of 5.