Behemoth the Sea Monster (1959)

Directors:

Douglas Hickox
Eugène Lourié

Writers (WGA):

Robert Abel (story) &
Alan J. Adler (story) ...

Release Date:

3 March 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

The Biggest Thing Since Creation!

Plot:

Marine atomic tests cause changes in the ocean's ecosystem resulting in dangerous blobs of radiation and the resurrection of a dormant dinosaur which threatens London.

Plot Keywords:

Monster | Dinosaur | Radiation | Electric Shock | Helicopter

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Gene Evans	...	Steve Karnes
André Morell	...	Professor James Bickford
John Turner	...	John
Leigh Madison	...	Jean Trevethan
Jack MacGowran	...	Dr. Sampson, the Paleontologist
Maurice Kaufmann	...	Mini Submarine Officer
Henri Vidon	...	Tom Trevethan
Leonard Sachs	...	Scientist

Also Known As:

Behemoth
The Giant Behemoth (USA)

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Norway:16 | USA:Unrated | UK:X (original rating)

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

Artistes Alliance Ltd.

Trivia:

The puppet of the behemoth is owned by Dennis Muren.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In the scene where the behemoth crushes the car, the people seen running in the background keep freezing in place every few steps, due to the poor attempts at matching the movements of the animated monster in the foreground with the live footage of the people running being projected behind.

Quotes:

[Jean finds her father badly burned]
John: What happened, man? Can - Can you talk to us? Can you hear us, Tom?
Jean Trevethan: Dad? Dad?
Tom Trevethan: From the sea... burning, like fire!
John: What was it?
Tom Trevethan: Behemoth!

Movie Connections:

Featured in Trailer Cinema (1992) (TV)

Behemoth a Generation Favorite

This film was made before the days of cgi and therefore must seem painfully dated to younger viewers but to us who grew up in the atomic monster age it is both scary and charming. We do not look with judgment on the film but rather on the times in which it was produced. Fond memories of drive-in theaters and Saturday night scarfests with friends. Carefree times of youth and adolescence. That said "Behemoth" is ultimately more entertaining with it's challenging fx than many of our modern day films which completely lack any charm. Simply filling a film with eye catching Cgi does not a movie make. Willis O'Brian's painstaking stop-motion effects and Eugene Lourie's talent with a minuscule budget unite to make a scary premise very entertaining and certainly fondly remembered.