The Giant Gila Monster (1959)

Director:

Ray Kellogg

Writers:

Ray Kellogg (original story)
Jay Simms (screenplay)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

Only Hell could breed such an enormous beast. Only God could destroy it!

Plot:

A giant lizard terrorizes a rural Texas community with a heroic teenager attempting to destroy the creature.

Plot Keywords:

Texas | Teenager | Monster | Giant Lizard | Mechanic

Cast

Don Sullivan	...	Chase Winstead
Fred Graham	...	Sheriff Jeff
Lisa Simone	...	Lisa
Shug Fisher	...	Old Man Harris
Bob Thompson	...	Mr. Wheeler
Janice Stone	...	Missy Winstead
Ken Knox	...	Horatio Alger 'Steamroller' Smith
Gay McLendon	...	Mom Winstead
Don Flournoy	...	Gordy
Cecil Hunt	...	Mr. Compton
Stormy Meadows	...	Agatha Humphries
Howard Ware	...	Ed Humphries
Pat Reeves	...	Rick
Jan McLendon	...	Jennie
Jerry Cortwright	...	Bob
Beverly Thurman	...	Gay
Clarke Browne	...	Chuck
Grady Vaughn	...	Pat Wheeler
Desmond Doogh	...	Hitchhiker
Ann Sonka	...	Whila
Yolanda Salas	...	Liz Humphries
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jim Andrews	...	Extra (uncredited)
Patricia Simmons	...	Sherry (uncredited)
Angus G. Wynne III	...	Dumb teen (uncredited)

Directed by
Ray Kellogg

Writing credits
Ray Kellogg		(original story)
Jay Simms		(screenplay)

Produced by
Ken Curtis	....	producer
B.R. McLendon	....	producer
Gordon McLendon	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Jack Marshall

Cinematography by
Wilfred M. Cline		(as Wilfrid M. Cline)

Film Editing by
Aaron Stell

Set Decoration by
Louise Caldwell

Makeup Department
Corinne Daniel	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Ben Chapman	....	production manager

Art Department
Louise Caldwell	....	art designer (as Louis Caldwell)

Sound Department
Milton Citron	....	sound effects
James Richard	....	sound effects
Earl Snyder	....	sound

Special Effects by
Ralph Hammeras	....	special photographic effects
Wee Risser	....	special photographic effects

Stunts
Ken Curtis	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Harry L. Gianneschi	....	camera assistant
Henry A. Kokojan	....	camera operator
George Gordon Nogle	....	camera operator
William John Ranaldi	....	camera assistant

Music Department
Audrey Granville	....	music associate (as Audray Granville)
Jack Marshall	....	conductor
Paul Tanner	....	musician: electro-theremin (uncredited)

Other crew
Audrey A. Blasdel	....	script supervisor (as Audrey Blasdel)

Production Companies

• Hollywood Pictures Corporation (II)

Distributors

• McLendon-Radio Pictures Distributing Company (1959) (USA) (theatrical)
• Rhino Home Video (1992) (USA) (VHS)
• Rhino Home Video (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• Englewood Entertainment (1998) (USA) (DVD)
• Englewood Entertainment (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Madacy Entertainment (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Ventura Distribution (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Diamond Entertainment Group (DEG) (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• VCI Home Video (2000) (USA) (VHS)
• Elite Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• K-tel Video (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Madacy Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Madacy Entertainment (2001) (USA) (VHS)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Gotham Distribution (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Image Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Navarre Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Elite Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Diamond Entertainment Group (DEG) (2004) (USA) (VHS)
• Reel Media International (2004) (worldwide) (VHS)
• Reel Media International (2007) (worldwide) (all media)
• EastWest Entertainment (2004) (worldwide) (DVD)
• Genius Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Image Entertainment (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Legend Films (2008) (USA) (DVD)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (????) (USA) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Cielo  locations: outdoor
• Legend Films  colorization
• Legend Films  restoration

Runtime:

74 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | UK:PG | USA:Approved (PCA #19329)

Filming Locations:

Cielo, Texas, USA

Company:

Hollywood Pictures Corporation (II)

Trivia:

Ken Knox, who plays disc jockey Horatio Alger "Steamroller" Smith, was a real disc jockey working at radio stations in Texas owned by Gordon McLendon, the uncredited executive producer of this film.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The string pulling at the back of the oil truck is visible in the shot when it crashes.

Quotes:

Sheriff Jeff: *What* did you hit him with?
Chase Winstead: My brand new, 100% completed hot rod.
Sheriff Jeff: You'd have had to start in the next county to get up enough momentum to do that to him.
Chase Winstead: Not with 4 quarts of nitro glycerin riding with me.
Mr. Wheeler: You drove across that rough field carrying nitro?
Chase Winstead: Yes sir!
Sheriff Jeff: Do you realize what could have happened?
Chase Winstead: It did. I lost my car!
Sheriff Jeff: Don't worry about that, the railroad will be *glad* to buy you a new one.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Watchmen (2009)

Soundtrack:

I Ain't Made That Way

Classic B-Movie of old

"The Giant Gila Monster" is one of those films of old that despite its numerous flaws retains a certain charm that adds a special mystique to the experience of watching them. Often labeled as one of the movies with worst special effects in history of cinema, this small Drive-In classic shines among similar movies due probably to the same naiveté that made Ed Wood's movies legendary. Like Wood's movies, "The Giant Gila Monster" has more good intentions than talent behind the camera, and that probably is what makes it so special.

The plot starts when people starts disappearing in the roads near a small Texan town. The sheriff Jeff (Fed Graham) is puzzled by the case as the victims seem to vanish leaving no trace. With the aid of his good friend Chase (Don Sullivan), he starts an investigation that will lead them to discover that a monster of huge proportions has been hiding and is eating its victims.

The movie is centered around Chase and the Sheriff's friendship, and the parental relationship that exists between them. Despite having no father and with a handicapped sister, Chase never loses his optimism and is willing to help everyone, from his best-friend the Sheriff to his girlfriend Lisa (Lisa Simone), who is an immigrant and wants to get a job. All this is charged with the 50s innocence and that naiveté that gives the film its charm.

Acordign to history, this movie was the brainchild of Gordon McLendon, a Texan millionaire who wanted to make movies with good Christian values and moral lessons to fight against the movies that were "corrupting" the youngsters of his time. This purpose is notorious through the film as the victims of the monster seem to be punished because of their sins, and becomes blatantly obvious when Don Sullivan sings the movie's theme.

While the movie may have failed as a Christian movie, it has gained a popularity among fans of 50s B-movies because it presents the classic elements of the Atomic Age creature-features. The primitive and simple special effects and the poorly written dialogs are really obvious flaws but the film as a whole has a certain charm due probably to the innocence of its makers and probably of the 50s as a whole.

Don Sullivan is a good lead, and also performs his songs with natural ease. Fred Graham and Lisa Simone are also quite good despite the silly dialog the movie has. Director Ray Kellogg handles the movie with the typical 50s style probably to make it appealing to mainstream audiences. The special effects are indeed poor and it is easy to notice that the Giant Gila Monster is nothing more than a normal Gila Monster walking over a cheap scale model.

To judge "The Giant Gila Monster" under the standard of our times would be a mistake, so it's better to say that the film delivers entertainment and a good glimpse to the idealized society of the 50s. People expecting a classic horror movie will definitely be disappointed, but fans of Atomic Age monsters or of B-Movie classics will find a minor gem to enjoy. 5/10