THE MOLE PEOPLE breaks no new ground (...), but it's not a bad way to spend some Time. The filmmakers make extensive use of some stock mountain-climbing footage and so the story progresses, accordingly, one step at a time; this makes for some slow going, to be sure, but the Mole People of the title more than make up ("makeup," giddit?) for it once they're introduced. The articulation in what's normally referred to as "the hero mask" is excellent: he chomps his lips hungrily as he lurches after his victim(s) and the fact that his mouth appears to open and close VERTICALLY only adds to the Horror... John Agar once again comes through with flying colors, as does Hugh Beaumont as his sidekick, but the abrupt death of a third character may catch viewers by surprise.

Silly B-movie has a kitchen sink plot and fun mole monster masks and gloves for the performers, with the highlight being fine matte painting work of the lost civilization village deep underground. Archaeologist John Agar (Tarantula) and his team (Hugh Beaumont (Leave it to Beaver), Nestor Paiva (Creature from the Black Lagoon), and Phil Chambers) discover Sumerian albino civilization who worship Ashtar and are tormented by light. They enslave creatures who work labor, offering them mushrooms and the whip in return. The women are also subservient, often whipped for clumsiness or not adhering completely to the men as expected. Cynthia Patrick is a beautiful blonde named Adad, considered particularly notorious for "having the mark" (she doesn't have their pale flesh or pain of light), Agar's love interest. Alan Napier, hardly recognizable, is the high priest who connives behind the people's selected king (Rodd Redwing) and wishes to destroy the intruders. Napier is entertaining as the scheming priest, just looking to seize total power over the people, looking at the intruders as his path to doing so. The mole people look campy in suits with bulging humps on their backs. There's an inexplicable opening from a Southern Cal English Professor positing theories from others of note regarding the earth's core which introduces the film. A flashlight is considered a power (light) of Ishtar which Agar uses to influence the people from attacking them! The ending is rather uncalled-for...why would Adad run around confused when an earthquake emerges, heading towards (!) where she just escaped from??? The reason of the studio for this-- interracial coupling is a no-no--says a lot about that point in time. The mole people being heroic was a nice change in the formula. Hard for the film to be taken too seriously but the earnestness of the participants makes this all the more a treat.

My pre-viewing research on "The Mole People" uncovered that it's not that well regarded by a number of fans of science fiction and monster movies from the 1950s. So I was prepared for the worst when I sat down to watch it. After watching it, I can understand why there are negative feelings towards it... though I didn't find it quite as bad as some people have made it out to be. Some of the sets and special effects don't look too bad, for one thing. But production values aside, the movie is kind of tough to sit through. Although it involves scientists finding an underground kingdom, the movie is surprisingly dull for the most part. Don't let the fairly short running time fool you; the movie moves very slowly, with a lot of blatant padding throughout, like the completely unnecessary opening sequence. And there is no sense of awe, wonder, or excitement. Instead, there is an almost casual attitude. A slight tongue in cheek attitude might have added some goofy charm, but there isn't even any comedy relief here. It goes to show that adding major studio gloss does not always make a movie better than low budget independent efforts.

"The Mole People" is not top-tier in terms of the Universal-International product of the 1950s, but it's not terrible as some reviews might have one believe. It has an entertaining story, good atmosphere, and decent creatures, although it also has a rather sedate pace. Of course, it's hard to knock any movie of this kind that starred John Agar. He's likable as always, and the rest of the cast does effective work. Some of them have some pretty priceless dialogue to recite (you could play a drinking game for every time the name "Ishtar" is uttered).As many genre movies of this period did, this one begins with exposition, as a scientist named Frank Baxter educates us on various theories as to what exists below the surface of the Earth. Then we begin the story proper, as archaeologists including Dr. Roger Bentley (Agar) are on an expedition in the Asian mountains. They venture inside a mountain, and eventually climb down so deep as to discover an ancient Sumerian race that thrives in relative darkness. They also discover the "mole men" beasts that these people treat as slave labour.Agar is well supported by actors such as beautiful Cynthia Patrick, playing the "marked one" Adad, Hugh Beaumont as Dr. Jud Bellamin, Alan Napier as the evil priest Elinu, and the always engaging Nestor Paiva as Professor Lafarge. The stock compositions are used to good effect, the special effects are generally decent, and the masks for the mole men are pretty cool. The conclusion is a little rushed, but that could be said of a number of other movies of this kind during this era. The resolution is actually a little surprising.As directed by Virgil W. Vogel ("The Land Unknown"), who mostly worked in TV, "The Mole People" is nothing special but it *is* reasonably diverting.Six out of 10.