This movie has flaws but little did they know that if they just showed the one dinosaur in this movie a little more instead of at the end, it would have gone down as a classic. Apparently this Dino had a poor agent. His part should have been larger and he would have found steady work in sequels is my guess. I mean who doesn't like seeing Dinos go nuts and eat things? I did like the nostalgia of the film as it captured ranch scenery and a type of life style sort of laid back for its time. Also, where there is one leftover beast from bygone days there has to be others plus plants or insects etc. One hold-out defies biological sense. We learn this from the original King Kong move. There had to be more than one Kong or how else could they hold the island for so long? Same here. There would have to have been a whole world slowly dying out at least but just one measly dino for the whole flick? That's why it gets a four. It is a must see just to say you have seen it. I usually recommend a snack or meal with movies plus a tasty drink. However on this, I had the remote in my hand speeding it up here and there. If you want to see what it was like to try to make a a dino movie way back then with little or no funds and still come out plus satisfy your inner creature feature urges....this films for you

One of two 'cowboys vs. dinosaurs' movies penned by Willis O'Brien, the other being the far more successful VALLEY OF GWANGI made in 1968. THE BEAST OF HOLLOW MOUNTAIN is something of an obscure film despite its mainstream status as an average '50s B-movie monster flick. For the most part, the film is flawed in numerous ways and fails to deliver on the entertainment stakes until the last twenty minutes. The film was made in Mexico on the cheap and it shows, with an entirely Hispanic cast aside from imported lead Guy Madison (AVENGER OF THE SEVEN SEAS). Perhaps these are the reasons for its lack of popularity. Another reason is that this film is far more of a routine oater than a monster movie; due to the budget (or lack thereof) we don't actually get to see the monster until the final twenty minutes of the movie.Up to then, THE BEAST OF HOLLOW MOUNTAIN follows all the usual clichés of the western genre, filling the screen with a bunch of predictable characters: the noble, kindly newcomer; the damsel in distress; the jealous Mexican bad guy; the drunk; the annoying little kid who screams and cries a lot. There's a hell of a lot of smalltalk going on and far too much filler, especially during a never-ending street party in the latter half of the movie. At least its short and you can just about get by watching it without dozing off. There are one or two notable action sequences to enliven things, including a nicely-choreographed fist fight on the street and a cattle stampede from hell. There are a fair amount of real stunts involving horses which appear to be pretty dangerous and likewise a scene where villagers let off fireworks IN THEIR HANDS shows that in Mexico there are no health and safety measures to worry about.Cast-wise there are few surprises to be had. Everybody fulfils their own role without really standing out from the crowd. Ten minutes after the film ended I couldn't really remember a face or character which may tell you something. Guy Madison does his best with the material and goes through his familiar motions, carrying off some great athletic work there too (the bit where he runs and jumps on a horse is very impressive). This was just before Madison set sail for Italy and pursued his career as a villain in an assortment of swashbucklers and peplum epics for the next ten years.As for the Beast itself, it turns out to be a mouldy old dinosaur inexplicably living in the mountain for thousands of years without dying of old age. The stop motion effects used to animate the beast are usually poor; O'Brien should have been allowed to handle the effects himself instead of some amateur doing the job. At least the stop motion is better than the terrible rubber dinosaur feet used in the close-up shots. The last twenty minutes of the film is one long-running action scene with the dinosaur figuring heavily in the action stakes; although it may not look the best it is pretty well animated, especially when we see it running after a horse. The trap our hero sets for the Beast is the cleverest thing in the movie.As a kid I was fortunate enough to catch this one on television and I loved it totally. Seeing it as an adult I am well aware of the flaws and faults but I still view it with a sentimental eye. Although the monster looks cheap, at least it gets to eat a few cows and kill a couple guys, and the ending will impress all but the most spoilt kids. Hardly a classic movie but a winner on the nostalgia front. They don't make 'em like this anymore, that's for sure.

This Mexican-American low-budget effort starring Guy Madison and Patricia Medina is a precursor to the much more rewarding THE VALLEY OF GWANGI (1969) in its prehistoric-monster-in-a-Western-setting scenario. That said, the 'stop-motion' mayhem (courtesy of KING KONG [1933]'s Willis O'Brien) is relegated to the last 20 minutes of this 80-minute movie and can hardly count among the animation technique's better examples; in fact, the rest of the film is dedicated to more traditional 'horse opera' elements – including business/romantic rivalry and, worse, child interest/comic relief. For the record, as part of this ongoing annual Halloween marathon, I will also be watching another anachronistic mix of horror and the Western genre of similar vintage that, in hindsight, would also prove to be much more enjoyable than this one here, namely Edward Dein's CURSE OF THE UNDEAD (1959) with Australian actor Michael Pate as a vampiric cowboy but, of course, bearing an age-old noble lineage!

While I have to agree with most of the reviewers about the amateurish stop-motion animation, the monster is not really all that bad, it seems that way compared to the movie magic that modern CGI (Jurassic Park) is capable of now. The acting is quite good, with Guy Madison proving that he had more than the ability to ride a horse with the best of them...he had genuine talent as an actor too. Patricia Medina is more than lovely...she is a dream in color. The plot is surprisingly well thought out, and the script is pure 1950's fun from start to finish. Once the action gets going, it is worth the wait...a tough fist fight, a couple of fast draws, and some horsemanship that is very impressive. Some people complained about how the monster meets its end, but I thought that it was quite a change from the usual manner in which the hero brings it down...actually something that might work if such a monster was to show up for real. In short, this is NOT Valley of Gwangi, or Jurassic Park, but it is just good clean fun for everyone in the family! Sit down with a big bowl of popcorn, a mug of Pepsi, a pack of smokes, turn out the lights, and enjoy an hour & a half of pure fun. Don't criticize it, just enjoy it.