The Beast (1996) (TV)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

Jeff Bleckner

Writers (WGA):

Peter Benchley (novel)
J.B. White (teleplay)

Release Date:

28 April 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Drama | Thriller

Plot:

Mysterious things happen at the coast of Graves Point: An empty boat lies at the shore, divers vanish. The sea biologist Dr. Talley thinks he knows the solution of the mystery: In the depth there is a gigantic squid.

Plot Keywords:

Sea | Squid | Giant Squid | Helicopter | Architeuthis

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy. Another 1 nomination

Cast

William Petersen	...	Whip Dalton
Karen Sillas	...	Lt. Kathryn Marcus
Charles Martin Smith	...	Schuyler Graves
Ronald Guttman	...	Dr. Herbert Talley
Missy Crider	...	Dana Dalton
Sterling Macer Jr.	...	Mike Newcombe
Denis Arndt	...	Osborne Manning
A.J. Johnson	...	Nell Newcombe (as Adrienne-Joi Johnson)
Larry Drake	...	Lucas Coven
Murray Bartlett	...	Christopher Lane
Laura Vazquez	...	Hadley
Robert Mammone	...	Ensign Raines
David Webb	...	Jameson
Marshall Napier	...	Commander Wallingford
Les Hill	...	Spike

Also Known As:

Peter Benchley's The Beast

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some violence and terror.

Runtime:

176 min (2 parts) | USA:116 min (VHS version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Dan Wigutow Productions

Trivia:

Port Angeles, the town that Howard & Elizabeth Griffin (Chad Tyler & Angie Milliken) called from the "Occupational Hazard" is on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington, across the Juan de Fuca Strait from Victoria, the capital of British Columbia. A major fault line runs along the middle of the strait, with the result that the two cities are on different tectonic plates.

Goofs:

Continuity: The Coast Guard home in on a beacon of a distressed yacht, but when the yacht sinks earlier, we never saw anyone release a beacon.

Quotes:

Whip Dalton: How do we keep her from attacking the boat?
Dr. Herbert Talley: [shows him a recording device] We'll repel her with this. It contains recorded sonar waves given off by a mature sperm whale hunting for squid.
Whip Dalton: She killed a whale.
Dr. Herbert Talley: Only an infant. She wouldn't dare attack a whale the size of the Privateer.

Movie Connections:

References 20000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)

That's Entertainment!

Since we are no longer in the age of cheesy Godzilla movies, one's lust for radiated oversized vicious cheesy animatronic monsters can be satiated with a viewing of this movie. Highly unpredictable! While the hero doesn't die, a great amount of the other cast does. I wouldn't say it was better than Moby Dick, but it definitely beats the hell out of Lake Placid. And no the squid does not look real, but that doesn't take away anything from the movie. Still an entertaining evening viewing.