Gorgo (1961)** 1/2 (out of 4)Sailors are fishing off the coast of Ireland when they spot a giant lizard-like creature. Instead of killing it they decide to capture it and then take it to London where it will be on display. As you can guess, the creature escapes and soon the entire city is destroyed.GORGO is a rather interesting low-budget movie. As you can tell, the story is pretty much KING KONG and the monster was obviously inspired by GODZILLA. What's interesting about this movie is that it manages to get the job done even though it's obvious that they're working with very little money. Filmmakers like Edgar Ulmer and Mario Bava were known for taking low-budget films and turning them into something that looked like a big-budget picture. Director Eugene Lourie doesn't quite do that here but it's still an entertaining film.Obviously the best thing about the picture is the monster. The guy-in-a-suit monster certainly looks rather silly and the thing isn't nearly as mobile as it needs to be but at the same time this is a giant monster movie and on that level the creature works. The final twenty-minutes of the movie is certainly the highlight. Once the monster breaks loose and goes on its rampage the film is a lot of fun as the monsters crashing through a number of buildings while trying to stay clear of the military who are constantly firing explosives at it.The performances are decent for what they are. On a technical level the film isn't the most impressive thing that you're going to see and I'm going to guess that the budget was lower than even some of the Godzilla films that would follow this. The story is about as unoriginal as you can get yet with all the campy things, GORGO manages to keep you entertained throughout its running time.

GORGO (the name given to the monster is supposedly because it has the power to turn men to stone with fright, like the gorgon, but I suspect it's merely a derivative of GODZILLA) is simply a British version of the typical monster on the rampage in a city theme, done to death in films like THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS and all the others. The British aspect has both good and bad points; unfortunately the budget is slightly hampered, but there is the endearingly British aspect to things.As monster movies go it's not a bad rip-off, hardly original, but it passes the time. All of the traditional things are in the film, including bad acting, the army fighting the monster (including the typical stock army footage of aircraft taking off, etc.), the monster trashing the city only for the world to be saved at the end. I was going to comment on the bad back projection in this film, however after recently viewing AT THE EARTH'S CORE it doesn't seem as bad. But then I don't think anything would. The actors are all bland, sailor types, and you won't give two hoots about any of them, apart from an endearing little boy who runs about in peril. Bill Travers is particularly wooden which is a surprise given the charismatic performances he gave in his later 'animal' films like BORN FREE.There are some effective moments in the film, including the arrival of the red-eyed monster and a hilarious moment involving some giant rubber fish, but these are few and far between. The trouble is that we've been here a million times already and the film doesn't offer up much that's new. Is the final destructive climax worth waiting for? All I'll say is that the smashing buildings are slightly more realistic than those in the Japanese equivalents, that's not really saying much though. The monsters in the film are strictly of the man in a rubber suit variety, and not realistic at all, and pretty generic really.Also, there isn't that intentional/unintentional humour aspect which makes films like these so enjoyable, for instance it's nowhere near as much fun as the kaiju DESTROY ALL MONSTERS. However, there is a good ending to the film, something of an anticlimax but good nonetheless. This time around, the monsters survive and return back to the ocean. It's a happy film to watch for those of us who root for the monsters in these things and it really brings a smile to the face when the brunt of the military force just can't defeat mother nature. It's certainly a first for me anywhere, more endings to monster on the rampage films should be like this, after all Gorgo is only defending her young. All together, GORGO is a typical monster on the rampage film, with nothing to distinguish it from all the others apart from the British setting. In which instance it gets an extra star. It passes the time, but there's no need to go out of your way to see it.

Gorgo is a beautiful film whose conclusion will surprise you and warm your heart.Greedy sailors kidnap Gorgo's baby for purposes of exploitation. They're men unconstrained by principles, made giddy by their ill gotten gains.But families are not to be invaded. Bonds twixt mother and child are not to be trifled with even in the sea monster kingdom, so it seems.Strange and horrifying consequences occur when a concerned Mrs. Gorgo comes ashore, expressing concern as to the whereabouts of her baby.Why do the Giddy always think they can get away with it when common sense dictates that they can't. The exciting conclusion to Gorgo demonstrates that greed has often unforeseen consequences.Gorgo also demonstrates that bonds among families run deep, and those who seek to break them do so at their own peril.This is a beautiful movie with a joyous conclusion.See it.Paul Vincent ZecchinoManasota Key, Florida10 November, 2012

The film begins off the Irish coast. A crew is looking for sunken treasure when a storm hits and the ocean floor is torn apart by a volcanic eruption (near Ireland?!). As a result, some weird primordial creatures are unleashed. However, despite a HUGE Godzilla-like creature stomping about, the greedy jerks STILL stick around and try to salvage the wreck. And, in the process, they manage to capture the monster and they bring it back to London to put it on exhibition (like King Kong)--not realizing that it is just a baby and mama is NOT at all pleased about losing her kid!I noticed that one reviewer talked about how impressive the special effects were, though I assume they couldn't have been talking about 'ol Gorgo. This monster was similar to the Japanese giant monsters but managed to look even more fake...and more obviously just some fat guy running about in a rubber reptile suit. The red eyes especially looked silly as did the weirdly hinged lower jaw. And, like many of the Japanese films, it has the annoying cliché of the all-knowing child who KNOWS that the creature is good and thinks he has some weird psychic connection with it--just like in many of the Godzilla and Gamera films. Stupid little know-it-all kids!So is it worth seeing? After all, the plot idea is pretty ordinary has been done many times previously (not just Kong and Gozilla, but in films like "20 Million Miles to Earth" and "It Came From Beneath the Sea"). As a result, it loses some originality points. It also has way too much stock footage of Naval ships (some a bit fuzzy). While this footage is sometimes effectively integrated into the plot, it seem an awful lot like padding after a while. And, I loved the stock shots of American planes flying over the desert (in England?!?) as well as those flying during the daytime--even though the monster is stomping about at night!! However, at least the ending is a bit different--a nice plus. It's worth seeing if you adore these sort of films or were dying to see a British giant monster flick, but frankly it's not terribly original and there are many better giant monster films out there--so it's easy to skip.