Humanoids from the Deep Review

Movie: Humanoids from the Deep
By: Maniac E
Date: April 16, 2012

They hunt human women. Not for killing. For mating.

In my attempt to discover another Roger Corman film that provides a similar level of entertainment as my two favorites (Death Race 2000 & Starcrash) I've finally been witness to another bizarre Corman classic that almost fits the bill of over-the-top cheesy, yet still remains to be incredibly enjoyable. If transcontinental death races aren't your thing, and campy space flicks with robots and an evil vampire looking fellow don't tickle your fancy, maybe mutated fish-men with the urge to eat dogs, kill men and mate with women will be the ticket!

Humanoids from the Deep (aka Monster) is another spin on the classic monster idea of food sources mutating into creatures that aim to kill humanity, we saw it in Forbidden World and see it again here only in a much more enjoyable execution. A small fishing town is about to get a break as a new cannery is bringing in a scientist who has been working on perfecting a new breed of salmon that will be bigger, better and reproduce faster, ultimately increasing the dwindling catch for the local fishermen. But once again what happens when you mess with nature and the cycle of life is you end up creating something not natural to this world. The fish grow at an extensive rate but what they grow into is mutated fish/man creatures that are systematically terrorizing the town by killing all the local animal life, the male population and having they're way with the women. At first a few of the townspeople blame the local Indian, Johnny Eagle, for the recent string of murdered animals and missing teenagers, but those accusations are soon thrown to the wayside when the fish creatures begin to attack in full force.

At a local dance, fighting breaks out amongst these combatants. I love cheap fight scenes. You can't feel a single blow landing, but hey, there's lots of whacks and walloping sounds. Soon we get the traditional horny teens out in the ocean scene, along with POV shots of the aforementioned teens, as they get swept away and the guy gets gorily mauled by a humanoid from the deep - a large, fishy looking monster with a big-brain head and long clawed arms. It's actually a pretty good monster costume. Okay, so the guy gets his face ripped off? What happens to the girl? Well folks, this is the one of the few instances in schlock cinema where the monster actually rapes the female victim, instead of just carrying them off. We actually see tops being ripped off, and the thing sort of humping the screaming victims. Look, in 1980 it was probably controversial, but it actually all seems pretty mild these days. Jaded, aren't we? It's a very quick, non-graphic rape, but you certainly get the idea of what's going on.

Director, Barbara Peters - yes, a women directing a "monster-rape" film - has fashioned a classic in the oeuvre of the B. There's really nothing technically wrong with it - the filming, music, costumes, acting and so forth are all quite competent. Even the men-in-rubber-suit monsters, created by future makeup maestro Rob Bottin, are quite impressive and creepy in some shots. It's just the central premise, which seems sorta fifties or something, dragged into the graphic eighties, that's something to be savoured. And we've gotta have that jolting ending. Where would an eighties horror be, without it?

After the rather lack luster appeal with Piranha, Humanoids from the Deep was a nice retreat back into the overly campy atmosphere of a mutant Corman film. Imagine Creature from the Black Lagoon on crack, with a fair amount of gore, a fair amount of skin and about twenty plus creatures! Essentially that's the driving force behind this film and the aspects that make it an enjoyable ride. My only major disappointment was the ending which was either a teaser to a possible sequel that never ended up seeing the light of day, or the writers twisted way of leaving the viewer wanting more, whatever the case I wanted more and was sorely disappointed when it simply ended. Overall, Humanoids from the Deep is still not as entertaining as my top two Corman films but it's worth checking out if you're a fan of creature films.