Monster from the Ocean Floor

A low key monster movie from producer Roger Corman (his first) and director Wyott Ordung. What struck me as creepy were the rules the monster played by -- werewolf rules. He only came out at night and he only came into his own when the moon was full. He didn't rush about like one of those "humanoids from the deep" (another Corman production) and he didn't eat flesh (cow excepted). He simply menaced and eliminated his enemies off-screen. I liked that. I could handle that.

I was always very impressed by the pedal-powered submarine. It was like something the Professor from "Gilligan's Island" might have pieced together. I wanted one of those. It reeked of adventure. I was also impressed by the film's title, an evocative title if ever there was one. I loved the title "Monster From The Surf", too, but after suffering through that one, I was happy to stick to the ocean floor.

The score, as mentioned by another reviewer, really is effective and plain eerie, and the film's cinematography never betrays its poverty row budget.

Corman knew, from the beginning, that good characters are the foundation of any good movie, whatever its genre, and this, his first, is a tinpot classic with charm and presence.