The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms

Amazon.com

A matinee programmer with lofty ambitions, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms is best appreciated as a vintage showcase for the stop-motion animation of special-effects legend Ray Harryhausen. The hoary plot follows the cold-war formula that dominated science fiction movies of the 1950s: After an atomic bomb test in the northern polar ice cap, a gigantic dinosaur--the fictional "Rhedosaurus"--is awakened from eons of dormancy, plots an undersea course for the Eastern seaboard, and proceeds to wreak havoc on New York City, culminating in a showdown with military marksmen at the Coney Island amusement park. Stock footage and tissue-thin drama make this a by-the-numbers monster flick, further hampered by Eugene Lourie's lackluster direction and a wooden B-movie cast. And yet, Harryhausen's first independent effort retains its atomic-age fascination: Beast marked yet another technical milestone for Harryhausen's impeccable techniques, and its perpetual status as a sci-fi classic is duly acknowledged in the DVD bonus features, including a retrospective featurette and a latter-day reunion of Harryhausen and longtime friend Ray Bradbury, whose short story "The Fog Horn" served as this film's inspiration. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Near the Arctic Circle, an atomic bomb is detonated. This fearsome experiment disturbs the sleep of a giant rhedosaurus encased in ice for more than 100-million years and sends it southward on a destructive, deadly rampage. The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms is a film of firsts. It spawned a new era of atomic-age creature features. It was the first screen adaptation of a work by fantasy fiction titan Ray Bradbury. And it marked the first time Ray Harryhausen had control over special effects. He came up with a fantastic creature (constructed at full scale, all 50 tons of it) that swims down from the north to run amok through New York City before being conquered in a spectacular Coney Island roller coaster finale. Take a classic ride. Unleash The Beast. Year: 1953

DVD Features:
Documentaries:Two commemorative 50th anniversary documentaries - The Rhedosaurus and the Roller Coaster: Making the Beast; Harryhausen & Bradbury: An Unfathomable Friendship
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer:Giant monsters trailer gallery featurnig this film, The Black Scorpion, Clash of the Titans and The Valley of Gwangi

Customer Reviews:

big rhed comes homw.......2007-09-10

I am so glad that this has finally come out on dvd! My vhs copy was wearing out. Ray Harryhausens first solo project, and the one that firmly entrenched him as the all time master of the technique.The slow build up is intentionally reminiscent of King Kong, building expectation in the viewer. Then the action zooms along to the same sad ending. The bonus features are also excellent.

ultimate monster movie.......2007-08-17

This is my favorite monster movie. Good acting . Godzilla is abit of a joke but this is played like it is for real. Pretty good music too.

Adult Popcorn.......2007-07-06

This movie is what I call "Adult Popcorn." That doesn't mean you have to be one, but it helps.

When you are asked what movie you want to rent or buy, try this one.

Corny yes. Not great special affects. This is Jurasic Park 50 years before that movie was released. Old yes and fun to. Don't forget the popcorn.

The very latest models for 1953.......2007-06-28

It's hard to realize why this early stop-motion animation "beast on the loose" film is so warmly remembered until you actually see it, since it doesn't seem from its description like it should be that special. Its plot of a monster released by atomic radiation attacking a city has been repeated again and again, and owes much to both the 1933 KING KONG and the 1925 THE LOST WORLD (as Ray Bradbury and Ray Harryhausen, who respectively wrote its original story and created its effects, cheerfully admit in the accompaying feature). But in many ways this set the standard for the films of this sort that dominated the sci-fi films of the 50s, and the beast itself is really a marvel. Whereas King Kong was childlike, given to charming bits of curiosity and childish tantrums of rage, and the later (much inferior) Godzilla simply incarnated pure chaos, the Beast here has become much beloved over the decades because it is so ornery. It attacks fishing trawlers, lighthouses, diving bells and the docks of Manhattan for no good reason other than that it's particularly grumpy and ill-tempered, which makes it all the more adorable. (It even looks like a cross between a pit bull and a gila monster.)

As with most 1950s monster films, the stuff that comes in-between the Beast's rampages is pretty forgettable, although the Swiss Paul Hubschmid (here called Paul Christian) is a pretty unusual choice as the hero, and Paula Raymond, as the fretful assistant to a paleontology professor, is for some reason given a hilarious array of the very latest in New Look fashions in every scene she's in. Probably the film's producers figured if they couldn't give us the animated Harryhausen model of the rhedosaurus they'd have to give us something, so there she is sporting others sorts of the very latest models.

Great 50s Classic.......2007-03-10

I remember watching this as a kid on MONA LISA Monster Theatre.Still a great 50s SCI-FI Flick. Harry Harryhausen is the best at his creature animations. This movie ia a must for all SCI-FI fans.

Average customer rating:

Beware of Them
Old sci-fi movies
classic fifties monsters
Wow, great deal.
The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms/Them

The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms/Them!
Starring: James Whitmore , Edmund Gwenn , Joan Weldon , James Arness , and Onslow Stevens
Director: Gordon Douglas , and Eugène Lourié
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000FOPPEC
Release Date: 2006-08-22

Description

Humanity has split the atom, unleashing a new era of science - an era that would also unleash monstrous celluloid rampages. An A-bomb test in the Arctic awakens The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, and it makes New York City its stomping ground in the movie (based on a story by Ray Bradbury) that launched a string of Atomic Age creature features. One of the best of those cautionary yarns is Them! Radiation-mutated ants - 12 feet long and capable of lifting tons - become giant problems for James Whitmore, Edmund Gwenn, James Arness and all of Los Angeles. They're big. They're bad. They've got a serious attitude problem. You won't find a can of bug spray big enough to stop 'em!

Customer Reviews:

Beware of Them.......2007-07-28

I love these old sci-fi movies! Them is (in-case you didn't already know) about giant mutated ants that like to chew on the flesh of unsuspecting humans. Some scenes are pretty graphic for the 50's, and the effects are way ahead of their time. Back in the good old days when computers didn't do all the hard work for you. The other cool thing about this movie is the research they do on ants, that they can lift 20x there weight, breed like nobody's business ect., and it just makes it that much more scary. I also like the noise the ants make, it's like this high pitch sqealing noise, and is pretty creepy.
I bought this primarily for Them, but ended up really liking The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms a lot! Probably just as much as Them. The story is very good and gets you hooked right away. I think it's because nobody believes the main character when he tells them that he seen a giant pre-historic monster, and automaticaly label him as insane. So for the rest of the movie your just waiting for this thing to attack New York so that they believe him, and it does. This movie is FILLED with stop-motion animation, and TONS of miniatures, which I love.
This print is very impressive, the picture quality is great, the sound is very good for a movie from the 50's. For $12.99, you can't beat it.
Highly recommended.

Old sci-fi movies.......2007-07-12

I injoy the beast and them very much. They brought back fond memories of when I went to the movie theater to see them as a boy.

classic fifties monsters.......2007-05-26

Two great monster movies for the price of one! Sounds familiar, but in this case, you get what they offer.
Them! is the original "big bug" movie. Atomic fallout causes ants to grow large enough to snack on humans and their nest has to be destroyed. But, here comes the McGuffin. Two of the Queens escape and a world wide hunt is on for Them! before they multiply and destroy the human race. The ants are really huge puppets ten years before Jim Henson.
Of course, we have the obligatory (poorly) hidden warning against nuclear testing. Remember, this was the McCarthey era and open protest against the bomb could get you blacklisted.
Again the bomb gets the blame in The Beast from 20,000 fathoms. (great title, but the beast never actually swims that deep) In this case, nuclear testing in the arctic thaws a dinosaur frozen under the ice. The ice at that time was just stuffed with all sorts of critters. First it froze in time to catch a Deadly Mantis, then it thawed enough to entrap a dinosaur without unfreezing the bug, then, in modern times, a starship crash thawed it enough to trap one of its crewmen, The Thing from Outer Space, then it froze the Blob, but allowed enough of it to thaw to menace the world again in the seventies. God knows what global warming will release in the twenty-teens.
getting back to the Beast, rather than freezing back to a Dino-sicle, this one jumps into the ocean and heads south. In Massachusets, it falls in love with a lighthouse, but when its new love proves frigid, it destroys her. Then it heads for New York city where it it is wounded, but its blood turns out to be contaminated by a mysterious disease, so a way has to be found to kill it without spreading the disease, The finale is really exciting. I missed the theatre showing of this film because I was too young, but when I saw this disk, I thought, "Oh that's Godzilla.". Sure enough, in the commentaries on Gojira, I learned that the writer openly credited the Beast as part of the inspiration for the Japanese movie. However, the two movies are different enough that I am glad to have both in my collection. I also have Gorgo, so now all I need is "the giant Behemoth", "Reptilicus",and "The Valley Of Gwangi" to complete my set.

Wow, great deal........2007-03-25

I recently saw "Them!" for the first time and fell in love with it. So naturally I soon went to the store to find a copy. I looked and I looked, but my store din't have it. Suddenly I saw in the double feature section thiscombination. There it was the movie I was looking for. I was hesitant when I saw the name of the other film. "The Beast fom 20,000 Fathoms" sounded like your stereotypical corny sci-fi movie. I sat there thinking it over and suddenly realized it was cheaper to buy the double feature then buying "Them!" individualy. I quickly payed $10 (that's how much it was at my store) and went home. It's a double sided disk and the DVD's are the same as buying them individualy. Same special feature etc. I decided to watch "the Beast from 20,000 Fathoms to see if I liked it, or not. It was wonderful, not on the same level as "Them!', but still good lots of semilarities to Godzilla. This is a really good deal if you want to save over $10 (The price of buying both individualy is $25).

RAtings:

Them! 5/5 stars: A true clasic that really holds up to today's standards.
The Best from 20,000 Fathoms 4/5 stars: Quite entertaining

The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms/Them.......2007-02-20

For anyone who loves the 50's "atomic monster" movies, these two are must-haves. Both still stand up well over the test of time. "The Beast..." features stop-motion animation by legendary special effects man Ray Harryhausen, featuring what I personally think is one of his best looking creations. The movie features plenty of monster-stomping action and a pretty intelligent script for what was pretty much a "quickie" production. "Them" is the classic "atomic radiation has unexpected results" theme that was copied ad nauseum, but rarely done better. The effects are, well, giant puppets, but the photography and sound effects still manage to make them pretty impressive, and the shots of the desert are still genuinely creepy. The fire-fight between the army and the nest of giant ants at the climax of the picture is first rate.

The special features are pretty good. The "archive footage" from the "Them" side is interesting, but a little skimpy. The special features on the "Beast" side give a little more background. Both side's menus are easy to navigate, and the "them" side is set up in an amusing fashion. Overall for anyone who likes 50's science fiction, you'd want to have both these titles anyway. Getting them together is a great deal.

Raquel Welch Collection (One Million Years B.C. / Bandolero! / Myra Breckinridge / Mother, Jugs & Speed / Fathom)

Average customer rating:

Raquel Welch
Way overpriced..........
Buy the best movies individually
NICE COLLECTION OF RAQUEL WELCH "CLASSICS"!!!

Raquel Welch Collection (One Million Years B.C. / Bandolero! / Myra Breckinridge / Mother, Jugs & Speed / Fathom)
Starring: Raquel Welch
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00018D418
Release Date: 2004-03-09

Description

Disc 1: One Million Years B.C. Disc 2: Bandolero Disc 3: Myra Breckenridge Disc 4: Mother, Jugs and Speed Disc 5: Fathom

Customer Reviews:

Raquel Welch.......2007-01-11

Excellent collection. Good stories. Well acted. Worth the money. A lot more humor, than you might otherwise expect.

Way overpriced.................2005-05-24

A collection of way overpriced RW videos............that you can get in the bargin bins at Walmart for $5 each.

Buy the best movies individually.......2004-05-07

Not knowing ALL of Raquel's work, but always enjoying "Bandolero", "One Million Years BC", "Fantastic Voyage" and the "Musketeer" movies, I bought this boxed set hoping for the best. I got some of that...and some of the worst, too.

"Myra Breckenridge" - not since "Babe, Pig in the City" have I hated a movie so much, I turned off a movie before it was over. This has to rate with "Howard the Duck" as one of Hollywood's all time stinkers. [If you absolutely MUST, the transfer is beautiful....too bad to waste it on such a bad movie.]

"Fathom" - Entertaining....for one viewing. It's obvious, Raquel wasn't quite in the groove yet, acting-wise, on this one. The dialogue is pretty stilted. Still, there are some entertaining parts, and it's a fun movie all around. The transfer on this movie was not the best, however. Both the left and right side appeared to be compressed...such that if a person or object moved into these areas, it suddenly became skinny.

"Mother, Jugs, and Speed" - Again...okay for one viewing, but not one to keep in your film library. A terrible transfer on this one....lots [I mean LOTS] of grain.

"One Million Years B.C." - Okay...so there are arguments that this isn't the complete version...available in Europe. Regardless, this is a real fun movie, and one you'll want to see again and again. Buy it on its own. The transfer is relatively clean, and Ray Harryhausen's special effects are wonderful.

"Bandolero" - Not really a "Raquel" movie, per se....the real stars here are Martin and Stewart. And that's just fine with me, as they are pure class, no matter what the movie. Definitely a keeper. The only real negative is...it's hard to picture Dean and Jimmy as brothers. But I guess odder things have happened. Nice transfer, too.

All in all....I'd recommend buying "Bandolero" and "One Million", and skipping the rest of the set. Spend your money on "Fantastic Voyage" and "The Three Musketeers" instead!

NICE COLLECTION OF RAQUEL WELCH "CLASSICS"!!!.......2004-03-13

For fans (like myself) of Raquel Welch, THE #1 "Sex Goddess" of the swinging 60's and super 70's, this is a must have collection of 5 of her better films. The only major disappointment in the set is the lack of supplementary material (interviews, commentaries) and the fact that the "major" film of the set, "ONE MILLION YEARS B.C." is the shorter U.S. theatrical version. But these are disappointments I can live with as long as I get to ogle the beautiful Miss Welch.

To the films:

Yes, as I stated, "ONE MILLION YEARS B.C." is the shorter version released by 20th Century Fox in 1966. The US version is listed as 91 minutes (closer to 92, as I timed it last night), while the UK version is 100 minutes. Missing is a sexy dance by Nupondi the Wild One (Martine Beswick) and some shots of Ray Harryhausen's animation. While it is too bad that Fox didn't release the longer version, folks, this film is NOT "CITIZEN KANE". As it is, at 91 minutes I feel the film is about 10 minutes too long! So while I do miss the footage (hopefully Fox will make things right and put the longer version out on dvd some time in the future), I really can't complain. Rocky looks beautiful in this film, Harryhausen's dinosaur's are still a sight to behold and every bit as good as the CGI fx of such big time Hollywood blockbusters as "JURASSIC PARK" (and maybe even better) and the music by Mario Nascimbene is fantastic. One mistake of continuity I noticed in the film itself: when we first see Raquel by the sea she kneels down on a rock and we see her feet are bare. A few seconds later when she runs up the hill and kneels next to Tumak she is wearing her fur booties. A few seconds later, her feet are again bare! I notice things like that, I have a foot fetish (ha)! Also, one question I have, when it is clear that Loana (Raquel) has the hots for Tumak (John Richardson), why does he spend so much time fighting with Ahot for possession of his oodala (spear)? Does that make sense to you?

Picture and sound are very pleasing on this disc (I have no complaints).For some reason I like the mono sound over the stereo, but that's just me. I'm weird. The only extras are trailers for this film and several other Fox sf titles and a restoration comparion (boring).

"MYRA BRECKINRIDGE" is a very weird, often unpleasant, film. Rocky is the only real saving grace. Mae West is awful, the script stinks, and the film put me to sleep! Picture and sound are fine. This is the only disc with some interesting extras. In fact, the extras are better than the film! Included is the AMC "BACKSTORY" episode about the making of this turkey and an often funny and insightful audio commentary with Miss Welch in which she reveals that when she first met her legendary co-star Mae West, she thought Miss West was "a man in drag"!!!

Of the other three films, "FATHOM" (an enjoyable spy spoof) was previously released by Fox, but "BANDOLERO" and "MOTHER, JUGS AND SPEED" are new to this set.

"BANDOLERO" is an entertaining western featuring James Stewart and Dean Martin as bank robbing brothers who kidnap Miss Welch when they are on the run from Sherrif George Kennedy and the law. The stars are all good and the script is often touching and quite funny. The score by Jerry Goldsmith is one of his best! Again, sound and picture quality are very good on this fine dvd. The picture of Rocky on the cover is actually from another Fox/Welch oater, "100 RIFLES" that Welch later made with Burt Reynolds and Jom Brown.

"MOTHER, JUGS AND SPEED" is a very funny comedy about an inept bunch of ambulance drivers. It co-stars Bill Cosby, Harvy Keitel and Larry Hagman. Pic and sound are good.

Amazon.com

A certain lime-green bikini reaches icon status in Fathom, clinging as tightly to Raquel Welch as those phagocytes that attacked her in Fantastic Voyage. Raquel was the reigning sex goddess of the moment, which is all you need to know about Fathom, an otherwise extremely silly example of proto-Austin Powers spy spoofery. She's a poster come to life, and the movie is geared around her '60s outfits (a purple-and-cornflower ensemble is particularly stupefying), her orange-peach lipstick, and the way her hair seems perfectly in place even after a high-speed boat chase. Sadly, Raquel's dialogue delivery is as stiff as her brunette mane, but the movie perks up when she is chased around by an angry bull, a sequence that may have you wondering whether you ate some bad cheese. By the way, her character is a dental assistant, visiting Spain as part of a skydiving troupe. Enjoy! --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews:

Welch is "the body" simply beautiful .......2007-04-05

This is a light film, funny. Is a good option to remember old & wholesome times.

Life can be great!.......2006-03-22

Can you imagine being paid to spend days making a movie with Raquel Welch in such a beautiful setting. Not to mention the outfits Miss Welch was wearing. Tony Franciosa definately had some very good Karma to be able to achieve this. Outside of the obvious... This is a wonderful movie with terrific acting. Tony Franciosa is probably the most under rated actor of all time. He has a great intensity that shines beneath the smoothest "one of a kind" voices on this planet! Raquel Welch is indescribale... So Beautiful.. and so Talented! A fast moving fun movie not unlike a good James Bond movie with a cute and funny twist. And the period in which this was filmed was such an innocent sweet period in our world. I highly recommend this film for pure escape and great entertainment.

Good clean fun---in a lime-green bikini!.......2005-06-29

Knockout Raquel Welch creates a sexy, lively, tongue-in-cheek character here, playing Fathom Harvill, wise-cracking, sky-diving dental assistant(who's "sick of staring at molars!")mixed up in murder and intrigue in Spain. Someone took great care to cast lots of colorful eccentrics in the supporting roles, and the beauty of the location is perfectly captured. Of course it's a sub-James Bond fluffball, but the aerial stunts and blue-screen effects are fantastic and the script is a charming collection of witty one-liners.

Raquel Welch looking here best.......2005-03-30

This was my first movie that showed a young Raquel Welch. Raquel was simply gorgeous in this movie in here green bikini. Raquel plays a character named Fathom Harvill who's built a reputation as one of the best sky divers in the business. After hearing about Fathom reputation she's now being watch and then recruited by a top secret government agent whose want here to do a job for him. The agency wants Fathom to sky dive into the middle of Spain to try recovering a missing war defector Tony Franciosa and a missing H-bomb detonator he is believed to possess. However, Fathom gets in way over her head and gets more then she bargained for. As Fathom unravels the truth will she get out of Spain a live? The other question is whose double crossing who? I give the movie 5 weasel stars based on the beauty of Raquel Welch alone. She makes watching this movie worth the time. This review is based on the DVD version of this movie which you can get right here on Amazon.com.

Mildy Entertaining but Mostly Forgettable.......2004-11-20

Raquel Welch is a stunningly attractive woman, a genuine and deserved sex symbol that long before the so-called supermodels lumbered onto the scene gave men yet another reason to drop to their knees and be thankful. That's about the best thing I can say about anything related to "Fathom." Oh, I suppose the locations are picturesque, too, and Clive Revill turns in yet another fun, colorful supporting performance. Less a genuine spy spoof and more a cheeky travelogue with some warmed-over espionage shenanigans, "Fathom" doesn't really try very hard to do anything but show Welch in all of her mostly underdressed glory. I admit that that is a strong draw but still not really enough to keep a viewer's complete attention and like Halle Berry or Denise Richards, she'd probably do better if most of the time she said less onscreen. Believe it or not, the thin story comes from a novel and was adapted by Lorenzo Semple, Jr., a screenwriter known for both genuine thrillers ("The Parallax View"; "Three Days of the Condor") and camp ("Batman"; "Flash Gordon"), as well as the uneven "Thunderball" remake, "Never Say Never Again." "Fathom" falls mostly into the camp camp, meaning that we're supposed to chuckle knowingly at the thought of a skydiving dental assistant being recruited to be an international spy by character actor Ronald Fraser (who looks disturbingly like a grown-up version of "Stewie" from "Family Guy.") Never-quite-a-leading-man Tony Franciosa tries valiantly to inject some cool into the film and Tom Adams, who starred in his own, hard-to-find "Charles Vine" spy spoofs, is a stoic antagonist. While "Fathom" probably isn't worth an hour and a half of your time, Welch does look dazzling most of the time, and the photography is quite pretty. These qualities might be enough for some viewers.

Captain Fathom Volume 2 Thrilling Undersea Adventures

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Captain Fathom Volume 2 Thrilling Undersea Adventures
Director: Alex Toth
Manufacturer: East West DVD
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Product Description

Join Captain Fathom and all his undersea friends in this thrilling action packed collection of thrilling adventures. on his submarine, the ARGONAUT. His crew-members are Cookie, Ronnie, Scotty, Miss Perkins and Flip the porpoise.

DVD:

DVD

DVD