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Roger Corman was ONLY 28 Years old... And at the very beginning of one of the longest and most prolific movie carreers in the History of CINEMA! Here he is listed as a PRODUCER.... Bet there have not been many in that role at such a tender age! (At least.... for a PRODUCER!) Of course, for a LOW BUDGET mid-50s Horror Movie.... Well, OK...Better than MOST... But THAT really isn´t saying MUCH.... Is it???

Strictly from a technical standpoint... and of course compared to other mid-50s flicks... Perhaps a tad above average in that respect! Somewhat weak in the originality department... But to put things in the right perspective.... This was really one of the first in a genre that would go on to be one of the most overworked of the 1950s and 60s! So, taking that into consideration... You could almost say that simple fact alone puts a bit of an AVANT GARDE spin on the production!

Perhaps had I posted this Review 50 Years ago... I might have rated it a CAMPY 7*******... But I have seen so many films of this ilk in the past half century... That I have to say this one just doesnt stand out all that much!

If You just LOVE these sleazy old cheesy movies.... Well, go ahead! Be my guest! Otherwise... You would probably be much better off if You simply DON´T give MONSTER the EYE!!!

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.

Julie Blair (Anne Kimbell) is an American vacationing at a sea-side village in Mexico. She hears stories about a man-eating creature dwelling in the cove.

This film is a low budget science fiction film in every sense of the term low budget. Director Wyott Ordung (1922–2005) doubled as an actor (playing Pablo), and this was his first of only two times in the director's chair. In fact, his only real experience before this was a writer on another low budget flick, "Robot Monster".

Most notable is the producing credit of Roger Corman, who took a modest $30,000 budget and earned more than ten times that back at the box office. No small feat, especially from someone just starting out in the business. This also marks a collaboration between Corman and cinematographer Floyd Crosby; Crosby had been making films over twenty years, but would be possibly best known later on for shooting Corman's finest films.

This was also the debut of Jonathan Haze, a gas station attendant that filled the small role of Joe. He must have done something right, because Corman hired him for numerous productions over the next decade, including the starring role of Seymour in "Little Shop of Horrors".

As for the film itself, there are things to like and things that could have been improved. The monster is actually rather cool looking, and when revealed is no disappointment. To use him sparingly, they also have a shark and an octopus, which may cause a few people to jump. The film is also rather short -- only 64 minutes -- so there is little time for the pace to slow down. Variety praised the film, calling it an "oddity" but "well-done", noting that "Corman's production supervision has packed the footage with commercial values without going overboard."

The negatives are few, but worth pointing out. The forced romance was a bad idea, though probably almost necessary for a film of its day. This is somewhat compensated for by having the main character be a heroine rather than a hero -- not the strongest female lead, but a female lead nonetheless. The biggest issue is the sound. Clearly they had not invested in a boom mike, because scenes were either overdubbed, or the conversations were drowned out by the ocean waves...

While not the best film of 1954, it has its historical merits and is fun in its own way. For a low budget film now sixty years old, I think it holds up respectably well.

On the surface, this film appears to be just another entry into the 50's cinema monster mill. But when we dive deeper we find some subtle and entertaining differences. The heroine is remarkably modern. She is brave, independent, determined, and completely oblivious to what the rather effete male characters think of her. The film is actually developed around her persona, and her dogged determination to seek the monster lurking below. The underwater scenes are beautiful examples of early open water cinematography in the lush, cool Pacific Ocean. The submarine is great. I really wanted one when I was a kid and first saw this film. The spunky actress seems to have done her own diving too. The scene in which she tries to fend off the shark is exciting. If you forget the rather weakly done monster, its minimal time on screen, and instead, focus on the enchanting heroine and her quest, this is not a bad film at all. I certainly find it entertaining. I have it on DVD and watch if often.

"Monster from the Ocean Floor" is historically important as the very first film produced by a young Roger Corman, so it's a shame it's not more entertaining than it is. It does have some schlocky charm, but owing to an obviously very low budget, it gets bogged down in talk and becomes fairly dull. It's not even that much fun on the "so bad it's good" level. It's too bad, because if you're a B movie enthusiast you'd certainly *want* to like it. It does have its moments, but they're spread too far apart.

There is some enjoyment to be had from watching the amateurish acting. The pretty Anne Kimbell plays Julie Blair, an American artist on vacation in Mexico. She hears stories of locals disappearing from the waters and learns that there's a legend believed by the natives. She meets a handsome marine biologist named Steve Dunning (Stuart Wade) - their initial encounter is amusing, to say the least - and while he's a practical, hard headed kind of guy, she becomes convinced some sort of mysterious beast is the culprit - and she's right, of course.

It's naturally a good thing that the monster in this film - resembling an octopus with one great big red eye - is seen so little. Our anticipation is built up, and the payoff isn't bad. I can believe that people who'd seen this movie as little children would have been frightened. The problem is that for a movie running only one hour and five minutes, there's too much padding on this thing. Still, "Monster from the Ocean Floor" isn't without its assets. Corman works with ace cinematographer Floyd Crosby - who shot his colourful, widescreen Edgar Allan Poe adaptations - and Crosby creates good atmosphere. The underwater photography is likewise well done. Kimbell has one harrowing scene with a shark. And the original music by Andre Brummer is enjoyable.

Cormans' stock company player Jonathan Haze (billed as Jack Hayes) makes his film debut as the character Joe, director Wyott Ordung plays the key supporting role of Pablo, and Corman himself makes an uncredited on-screen appearance as Tommy.

This does have high curiosity value just to see the humble beginnings of one of the great independent filmmakers of all time.

Four out of 10.

Notable perhaps only because it was the producing debut of the B-movie king Roger Corman, Monster From the Ocean Floor is one of hundreds of dirt-cheap monster movies produced in the U.S. in the 1950's. Atomic testing had opened the floodgates for many a wannabe film-maker to throw someone in a rubber suit, and build a generic story around it for exploitation purposes. Many of Corman's films were about unknown dangers lurking in the vast and unexplored ocean, and produced/directed many profitable pre and post-Jaws (1975) horrors, and here, the beastie is a giant one-eyed octopus skulking amongst a coastline in Mexico.

While holidaying in Mexico, Julie Blair (Anne Kimbell) learns about a mysterious monster who has eaten various residents of the sea-side town. The only clues it leaves behinds are massive drag marks that resident Pablo (director Wyott Ordung) describes as "not a seal." Marine biologist Steve Dunning (Stuart Wade) picks her up in his mini-submarine and the two hit it off, only Steve is unconvinced by Julie's concerns about the mythical creature. With Steve moving on for further exploration, Julie is left on her own, with one of the local residents whispering in Pablo's ear that a human sacrifice may cause the creature to go back into hibernation.

At only 64 minutes, Corman's beginning to what would become an extraordinary career (he's still going), is a massively dull affair. There are long moments of exposition that drags the film along while it struggles to come with anything remotely inventive or entertaining. The misleading poster that depicts the monster bursting out of the ocean is laughable given we only glimpse the creature twice throughout the whole movie (though this wasn't anything new - dazzling posters brought the audience in under false pretences). The film doesn't look half bad given its obviously modest budget, but even a giant rubber octopus can't save this film from becoming a damp squib.

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I rented this film because the composer was a good friend of my musician father Felix De Cola (who may have played the piano on the score!). It's a silly movie with an absurd monster, but there's a scene around minute 40 where the heroine encounters a shark that had me quite startled. The fish appears to be 2 meters long and its open mouth comes at the camera and then at the girl in several shots. Even if she was an experienced diver, this must have been an unsettling experience. And no, it's almost certainly not an animatronic.

This was a time when the psychotechnology of horror films was developing at its fastest, so you can see how the director (clumsily) tries to manipulate our fears. Crude films often teach us more than well-made ones.

As for the music, there's a distant similarity between Brummer's music and John Williams' Jaws theme, but I doubt the link is real.

1954's "Monster from the Ocean Floor" marked Roger Corman's science fiction debut, directed by cast member Wyott Ordung, at the helm for only one other feature, 1956's "Walk the Dark Street," but already infamous as the screenwriter behind "Robot Monster," later involved with titles like Richard Denning's "Target Earth," Marshall Thompson's "First Man into Space," Anthony Eisley's "The Navy vs. the Night Monsters," and John Carradine's "The Mummy and the Curse of the Jackals." The script was conceived by William Danch, thereafter a name heavily involved in animated cartoons over the next several decades, from Mr. Magoo to The Archies to Fat Albert. Corman first cut his teeth as a producer on Allied Artists' "Highway Dragnet," issued three months before this Lippert release, his third effort already before the camera as this one was rolled out, a racing picture called "The Fast and the Furious," the title that began his association with James H. Nicholson and Samuel Z. Arkoff. "Monster" apparently was completed in six days for a mere $12,000 plus deferments, advanced $60,000 by Robert Lippert to start a new career as director before year's end. The hook upon which the entire picture hangs (working titles "The Sea Demon" and "It Stalked the Ocean Floor") was a newly advertised one-man minisub from Aerojet General that the aspiring producer was able to acquire for easy promotion, it gets more action than attractive leading lady Anne Kimball (she does hitch a ride alongside), only 21 but calling it quits after two more features. The most notable cast member is Pittsburgh native Jonathan Haze, here billed as 'Jack Hayes' in his screen debut, swiftly going from gas station attendant to movie actor to remain a fixture in Corman films for 15 years before vanishing from sight, six years before his iconic role in "The Little Shop of Horrors." Yucatan was the setting for the slight story of a commercial artist (Anne Kimball) who hears tales of a demon that has claimed the lives of local villagers in the cove, spying a large octopus but little else in her never ending search beneath the waves. One notable encounter is with the minisub piloted by marine biologist Steve Dunning (Stuart Wade), who offers her a tour of his floating laboratory when not serenading her on guitar. Jonathan Haze is only in for a couple of scenes as the fisherman whose diving partner vanishes from his outfit, found intact with no body, while director Wyott Ordung plays a superstitious local who believes that by sacrificing the 'fair one' to the sea demon it will go away. All of this serves as padding until the final moments, when what is described as an amoeba emerges from hiding (actually an octopus puppet created by Bob Baker maneuvering through a fish tank, sporting one red eye and tentacles), capable of absorbing potential victims but saved from claiming Anne by the sub, taking out the huge orb and looking for all the world like a submarine sandwich that has yet to be swallowed (the monster's screen time is approximately 55 seconds). Producer Alex Gordon marveled at how well it came out considering its miniscule cost, obviously post dubbed and lacking any real excitement yet earning over $800,000 at the box office, the 27 year old Corman on his way to an astonishing career spanning 8 decades.

Ok story and acting. Some suspense. Terribly campy monster.

Legend has it a sea creature in the Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean comes out by the light of a full moon to feed until he is appeased by the sacrifice of the fairest maiden. Unfortunately for our star, she is a blond American and fits the bill perfectly. Her persistence at proving the existence of the mysterious creature, however, sets her up to fulfill what natives may view as her destiny. Meanwhile her marine biologist lover who does not believe in the creature discovers that nuclear testing in the area may actually have created such a monster.

Another b&w sci fi horror B-movie, This time around the giant killer animal is a microscopic single-celled amoeba that has overgrown into what resembles a one-eyed octopus. As you may have guessed, the mutation is caused by seeped radiation from an underwater A-bomb test, albeit almost 10,000 km away.

To keep track, so far we've had giant crabs 🦀, giant grasshoppers, a giant Gila monster 🦎, a giant bat 🦇, and a giant amoeba.

As in most such movies, at the center of the action is a pretty blonde woman and a handsome young scientist who fall for each other. In this case, the woman is an American vacationer at an isolated beach 🏝 in Mexico 🇲🇽. The man is an American marine biologist whom, with a colleague, is studying🔬marine life offshore from aboard a small research vessel.

In the waters of a cove that harbors the beach lurks the octopus-like monster. Some locals believe in its existence, but the scientists don't. Our heroine is curious and brazen and begins to dive into deeper waters to investigate.

The movie started off quite well and suspenseful. I started sensing a 5.0 rating. But, half-way through, the production falls flat on its face. The monster surfaces at full moon to snatch a stray cow off the beach. Our heroine sees it and faints but still manages to acquire a scrap of its flesh. The scientists will later become believers when they view a sample from the scrap under the ever-present microscope; and in less than a minute, everything becomes obvious.

It is widely believed that the movie was filmed in 6 days at a budget that may have been as low as $12,000. This may be a key reason why the movie sits with a poor 3.8 rating on IMDb. I couldn't give it anything higher than a 3. It is on YouTube.

I should note, that the movie showcased a single-operator electric submersible built at the time by Aerojet General for the U. S. Navy.

I was lucky enough to find this movie years ago pre-viewed at a Blockbusters and immediately loved it. As soon as I found out it had been released on DVD, I bought it outright. Why? It's just an all around great movie. No it doesn't have the best production values, No the acting will not win any awards EVER! But what the flick does have is soul. It straight forward, to the point. A monster is terrorizing a village. A woman visiting the area wants to help out. She tracks down the monster and...... Well I wont give away the ending.

The film is short and sweet, just over an hour its running time is just perfect. The monster in my opinion is very well done. Sure you may laugh now...But I can imagine back when I was a wee lad the sight of that horrible thing rising out of the bubbling oceans probably would have sent me to bed shivering and begging for the light to be left on. I think this is the perfect movie to introduce the younger generation (6-9 year old) to the genre. If you haven't yet, watch this at least once. You may wind up like me, addicted to the Monster From The Ocean Floor!

Monster From the Ocean Floor was the first monster movie from Roger Corman and I quite enjoyed watching this, despite reading some bad reviews.

A series of deaths and disappearances turn out to be the responsibility of a one-eyed octopus which only comes ashore on nights when the moon is out full. It also kills a cow. A woman and marine biologist team up and destroy it and also fall in love.

This movie also includes an unusual pedal powered submarine, sharks, the marine biologist singing and a mad local native who wants the woman dead so the creature won't appear again (according to local legend). There is also some nice scenery and a good music score.

The cast includes Stuart Wade (Teenage Monster), Anne Kimbell and Corman regular Johnathan Haze (Little Shop Of Horrors).

Monster From the Ocean Floor is a good way to spend just over an hour one afternoon or evening.

Rating: 3 stars out of 5.

A radioactive creature menaces a seaside community. It has a decent storyline but the lead female talks incessantly about nothing. Very distracting. Every thing about this movie is disappointing.

Plot - Legend has it that a one-eyed monster lurks off Mexican shores, though most non-hispanics don't believe it's real. Despite her science-imbued male friends, adventurous Miss Kimbell believes the legend and attempts to seek it out, along with boy friend Ward in his real-life one man submarine. So who will win out, woman or beast.

Seeing the name Corman as producer, I naturally expected a cheeze fest, having spent my teens imbibing his silly drive-in roasts. Surprisingly, that's not the case here. In fact, the undersea monster gets only a couple of cameo appearances and are not that badly done. It may be that an exceptionally cheapo 28-grand budget limited the effects, along with a storyline that takes place almost entirely along the LA area coast. Though limited in area, these scenes from both top and bottom of the Pacific, are well-done and keep viewer interest alive amid a skimpy script.

Of course, it helps guy viewers that the curvaceous Kimbell, gets a lot of screentime in a goody swimsuit. Plus, she's quite a good actress, in an unfortunately brief acting career. In fact, the script delivery amid the five principals is much better than the usual Corman brand. Then too, the science vs nature comments make up something of an unusual Corman subtext, along with the female hero, a move in advance of its time.

Despite the comic book title and skimpy budget limitations, the flick almost amounts to a respectable B-movie rating. Clearly Corman is feeling his way along at career's outset; that is, before he found riches serving up fun-filled late-nighters to drive-in freaks like me. I'm glad that as of 2021, he's still with us. Good.

One of the great Horror-cum-Comedy Monster Movies of the 1950's with a typical modern science vs. Ancient superstition theme. In fact, the ancient high priestess (Inez Palange), practitioner of the "Old Ways," is the most notable thing, along with the nifty pedal-powered one man (Stuart Wade) submarine that was Corman's inspiration for the whole project. Everything else is pretty bland, and, though the Monster can't claim to be the best of the worst, when it finally emerges from the murk to menace our fair maiden (Anne Kimbell), it is laughably threatening enough to satisfy your taste for the tacky.

I know many people judge a movie solely on its of special effects. This one doesn't have a lot of eye-candy, even considering the time it came from. But the story and the acting are above par for movies of this type and when all was said and done, I enjoyed myself watching this movie.