The Killer Shrews (1959)

Director:

Ray Kellogg

Writers:

Jay Simms (story)
Jay Simms (screenplay)

Release Date:

6 April 1962 (West Germany)

Genre:

Horror | Romance | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

All that was left after...THE KILLER SHREWS! (Used in conjunction with a woman's pink pump and splattered blood)

Plot:

On an isolated island, a small group of people is terrorised by giant, voracious shrews in the midst of a hurricane.

Plot Keywords:

Coward | Boat Captain | Sea Storm | Food Chain | Slang

Cast

James Best	...	Thorne Sherman
Ingrid Goude	...	Ann Craigis
Ken Curtis	...	Jerry Farrell
Gordon McLendon	...	Dr. Radford Baines
Baruch Lumet	...	Dr. Marlowe Craigis
Judge Henry Dupree	...	'Rook' Griswold (as J. H. 'Judge' Dupree)
Alfredo DeSoto	...	Mario

Also Known As:

The Attack of the Killer Shrews

Runtime:

69 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | UK:PG (video rating) (1996) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:Approved (PCA #19311)

Filming Locations:

Dallas, Texas, USA

Company:

Hollywood Pictures Corporation (II)

Trivia:

This film and its companion piece, The Giant Gila Monster (1959), marked the directorial debut of veteran special effects man Ray Kellogg.

Goofs:

Continuity: As Thorne and Jerry are fighting at the gate, Ann and Radford look out the window to see what's going on. In the close-up Ann is wearing a black top, even though she had just changed into a white blouse. When Thorne comes back into the house after the fight, Ann is again wearing the white blouse.

Quotes:

Jerry Farrell: Looks like a rat, smells like a skunk - some call them bone-eaters.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Killer Shrews (#5.7)" (1992)

Danger, mutant shrews on the loose

I've seen The Killer Shrews several times and despite the low budget and reading bad reviews, isn't that bad. It was released in the UK on VHS as part the Screamtime Video series, long deleted but luckily I own a copy.

A small group of people on a remote island are stranded there by a hurricane. One of this group is a scientist who been doing experiments on shrews and as a result, these have turned into giant mutant monsters and have escaped and are hungry. They start trying to get into the house and gradually, members of the group are killed and eaten until there are three survivors and these escape to the sea by using old barrels welded together. Not surprisingly, two of the survivors declare their love for each other at the end.

The giant shrews in this movie are actually dogs with shaggy coats and large teeth.

The Killer Shrews's cast is mostly made up of unknown B-movie actors including James Best, Ingrid Goude and Ken Curtis, who also produced.

This movie is worth looking at, despite its low budget.

Rating: 3 stars out of 5.