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Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)

Suspense! Action! And GIANT telepathic crabs!  What more could you ask for in a B-movie?!?!  Absolutely nothing and that’s why Attack of the Crab Monsters, now on blu-ray with a brand-new 2K transfer thanks to Shout! Factory, continues to rule when it comes to non-stop Z-grade motion picture marvels.

"Suspense! Action! And GIANT telepathic crabs!  What more could you ask for in a B-movie?!?!"


 Produced and directed by Roger Corman, Attack of the Crab Monsters is a cult classic, atomically-mutated 63-minute blast through Z-grade territory and it begins with an edge of seat sequence in which a sailor, thrown overboard from a speeding raft, is decapitated by something HUGE just below the surface.  Oh, snap!

The joke here is that the man who gets decapitated is actually the film’s screenwriter Charles Griffith (who also wrote Death Race 2000 and was a frequent Corman collaborator) and, of course, it is an omen of things to come for this group of scientists who, arriving on an unnamed Pacific Island, have come in search of the first expedition that have gone missing.  They are more alone than they ever dare ask - especially after their seaplane explodes and their attempts to communicate with others is completely rattled by a lightning storm.  Something is separating them from the outside world!

While the team - Dr. Karl Weigand (Leslie Bradley), geologist James Carson (Richard H. Cutting), biologist Jules Deveroux (Mel Welles), Martha Hunter (Pamela Duncan), and Dale Drewer (Richard Garland) - muse about the possibilities of sea serpents and other weird anomalies able to rip someone’s head off, handyman Hank Chapman (Russell Johnson, you know him as "The Professor" on Gilligan’s Island) attempts to find a rationale explanation for all the tremors they are experiencing on the island. Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)

And it all has to do with a giant pair of telepathic crabs; products of the atomic experiments that have been ravishing the islands.  These crabs are on the prowl and it is world dominance that they are after because - once they devour their prey - they absorb their science-founded minds AND their voices (you know, to lure other scientists their way) and it is off the island they want.  

This fifteen-foot Atomic Age puppet - hysterical and haunting at the same time - is operated by Peyton’s Place Ed Nelson and, while the script called for two crabs, there was only one which constantly traversed back and forth across the island, picking off the scientists left and right.  Sure, it looks completely realistic - with a facial expression and everything else that goes along with mutated monsters - but the working of the dead scientist’s voice and their memories as they call out to the survivors works to create some great moments of fear and fun!

Attack of the Crab Monsters is only available through Shout! Factory’s online store.  Supplies are limited to just 1000 units. Act fast and get crabs!

5/5 stars

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[tab title="Blu-ray Review"]

Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)

Blu-ray

Blu-ray Details:

Home Video Distributor: Shout Factory Exclusive
Available on Blu-ray
- August 25, 2020
Screen Formats: 1.78:1
Subtitles
: English
Audio:
DTS-HD Mono Audio
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; single disc
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A

While investigating the disappearance of researchers who had been looking into atomic activity in the Pacific, a group of scientists become marooned on an island. They quickly fall prey to giant, mutant crustaceans that are able to absorb the minds of their prey. Starring Russell Johnson (Gilligan’s Island), Richard Garland (Mutiny In Outer Space) and Mel Welles (The Little Shop Of Horrors).  This Shout Factory Exclusive is limited to 1000 copies.

Video:

The film’s original inter-positive print was used for the digital scrub and the results, being offered in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 looks achingly pristine, much better than previous releases of the movie.  The textures brought out by this transfer are incredible. The fibers in the costumes; every rip and every tear; the beads of sweat; all are clear as day in this transfer.  No specks of debris or dirt were noticeable throughout and skin tones are perfect. No damages of time or age noticeable in the print.

Audio:

An adequate DTS-HD Mono Audio track provides the center-channeled thrills and spills.

Supplements:

Commentary:

  • See Special Features for the details.

Special Features:

Hopefully, the NEW 2K Scan Of A Fine-Grain Print is enough to get you to purchase this cult classic, but if it isn’t here are the contents of this edition!

  • Audio Commentary With Film Historians Tom Weaver, John Brunas And Mike Brunas
  • A Salute To Roger Corman Featuring Interviews With Roger Corman, Joe Dante, Peter Bogdanovich, Peter Fonda And More...
  • Theatrical Trailer

Blu-ray Rating:

  Movie 5/5 stars
  Video  4/5 stars
  Audio 3/5 stars
  Extras 3/5 stars

Overall Blu-ray Experience

3.5/5 stars

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[tab title="Film Details"]

Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)

MPAA Rating: Unrated.
Runtime:
62 mins
Director
: Roger Corman
Writer:
Charles B. Griffith
Cast:
Richard Garland, Pamela Duncan, Russell Johnson
Genre
: Horror | Sci-fi
Tagline:
From the depths of the sea... a tidal wave of terror!
Memorable Movie Quote: "Everybody wonders! They just don't like to talk about it."
Theatrical Distributor:
Allied Artists Pictures
Official Site: https://www.shoutfactory.com/product/attack-of-the-crab-monsters?product_id=7462
Release Date:
February 10, 1957
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date:
August 25, 2020
Synopsis: While investigating the disappearance of researchers who had been looking into atomic activity in the Pacific, a group of scientists become marooned on an island. They quickly fall prey to giant, mutant crustaceans that are able to absorb the minds of their prey. Starring Russell Johnson (Gilligan’s Island), Richard Garland (Mutiny In Outer Space) and Mel Welles (The Little Shop Of Horrors).

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[tab title="Art"]

Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)

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