Humanoids from the Deep (1980 film)
Monsters (1980), AKA Humanoids from the Deep and Beneath the Darkness; a 1996 made-for-television remake with toned-down violence and nudity (Humanoids from the Deep 1996) was also made
Summary
"From the caverns of the ocean depths they strike... to terrorize... to mate... and to kill!" Scientific experiments backfire and produce horrific mutations: half man, half fish, which terrorize a small fishing village by killing the men and raping the women.
Details
- Release Date: 1980
- Country/Language: US, English
- Genres/Technical: Horror, Science Fiction
- Setting: 1980s Noyo, California
- Runtime: 1 hr 20 min
- Starring: Doug McClure, Ann Turkel, Vic Morrow
- Director: Barbara Peeters, Jimmy T. Murakami (uncredited)
- Writer: Frank Arnold & Martin B. Cohen (story), William Martin (screenplay, as Frederick James)
- Producer/Production Co: New World Pictures, Roger Corman
- View Trailer: (link)
- IMDB Page: (link)
Ratings
MPAA Ratings
- Rated: R (Violence, Profanity, Adult Content, Nudity)
Tentacle Ratings
A rough measure of how "Lovecraftian" the work is:
- S____ (One Tentacle: Debateably Lovecraftian; has almost no direct connection to Lovecraft's work)
Not a lot here to call "Lovecraftian", but the fish-men are basically Deep Ones (created according to dialogue by human genetic tampering rather than by the genetic tampering of ancient alien god-monsters)....
Note: This rating is not intended as a measure of quality, merely of how closely related to Lovecraftian "Weird" fiction the work is.
Reviews
Review Links:
- David Becker at the 2500 Movies Challenge (link) - "The movie comes by its screams honestly; despite its low budget and the general tackiness of the creatures ..., Humanoids from the Deep does manage to generate its fair share of spine-tingling moments."
- Brian M. Sammons at Innsmouth Free Press, (link) - "...Those not so enamoured with 80s horror, bloody killings, naked ladies, and googly-eyed monsters may not love this film as much... [but] Humanoids from the Deep does a good job of taking what Lovecraft started in "The Shadow Over Innsmouth (fiction)" and making that its own, while placing things in a modern setting. Other than that, there's not much HPL goodness to be found here. So, no matter how much I love this film, I can't say that it's very Lovecraftian...."
- Richard Scheib at The Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Film Review (3/5 Stars) (link) - "The only difference between this and a 1950s B movie is that Humanoids from the Deep leaps in with an unrestrainedly over-the-top barrage of 1980s sex and gore."
Synopsis (SPOILERS)
Spoiler Section (Highlight to Read)
Scientific experiments backfire and produce horrific mutations - half man, half fish - which terrorize a small fishing village by killing the men and raping the women.
Notes
Comments, Trivia, Dedication
- The film was originally titled Beneath the Darkness and shopped to a higher class of potential actors and investors as a more ambitious film, but the title was changed to Humanoids from the Deep as the film developed into a more trashy direction; an even racier version was made with additional and quite gratuitous sex and nudity for foreign markets, re-titled Monsters - the original director, Barbara Peeters, objected, and was fired, replaced with a director more willing to add such content; actress Ann Turkel, who originally only agreed to do the movie because the original script included no sex or nudity, was horrified when she found out about the new content....
- There are only three Humanoid creatures seen together on-screen in the same frame throughout the movie. The production really only had one fully functioning Humanoid costume and two others that could only be shot from certain angles because they weren't as convincing. Use of such angles, as well as the editing, would help to create the illusion that there were much more Humanoids than just three for the climactic carnival massacre....
Associated Mythos Elements
- film: see the similar The Island of the Fishmen (1979 film) and Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954 franchise)
- fiction: contrast with "Shadow Over Innsmouth (fiction)" or "Dagon (fiction)"
- race: Deep Ones
Keeper Notes
- In response to genetically-engineered fish released into the sea, mutant Deep Ones rise from the sea to take revenge on careless surface-dwellers....
