Monster from the Ocean Floor: Special Edition (Blu-ray Review)
- Review Date: Jun 06, 2025
- Format: Blu-ray Disc
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Director
Wyott OrdrungRelease Date(s)
1954 (February 4, 2025)Studio(s)
Palo Alto Productions/Lippert Pictures (Film Masters)- Film/Program Grade: D+
- Video Grade: B+
- Audio Grade: C+
- Extras Grade: B+
Review
Roger Corman had already been working in the motion picture industry by the time he produced his first film, 1954’s Monster from the Ocean Floor. Shot in less than a week with a meager budget, it was the first of many quickies that the legendary filmmaker would participate in and build a reputation for himself before eventually forming his own distribution companies. Originally titled It Stalked the Ocean Floor, Poverty Row movie studio Lippert Pictures released the film, as well as other science fiction and horror films like Unknown World, Rocketship X-M, Project Moonbase, King Dinosaur, and Lost Continent, among others. Today, it’s remembered for its lesser qualities and not celebrated for its better ones, though monster movie fans mostly adore it.
While on vacation in Mexico, Julie (Anne Kimbell) learns of a local legend involving a deep sea creature that swallows men whole and dwells off the nearby coast. Her potential love interest Steve (Stuart Wade), a marine biologist, scoffs at the notion, insisting that it’s nothing more than local speculation and superstition. However, Julie is determined to learn more about it, and begins diving beneath the waters to find any evidence of such a creature. She eventually does and puts herself in immediate danger from not just the oversized monster, but from the local villagers who will try and sacrifice her in order to appease the underwater-dwelling monstrosity.
In many ways, Monster from the Ocean Floor is a very progressive film, putting a woman in the leading role, who is fully determined to hunt down a creature without the direct help of a man. Anne Kimbell is quite wonderful in the role and it’s a shame that she didn’t go on to bigger and better things after this film. Not only does she have the movie star looks, but the talent and charisma to go along with it. On the other hand, the sexism of films in this era is prevalent in the character of Steve, who fully dismisses not just Julie’s, but everyone’s notions about the titular monster. Not only that, but the two are immediately smitten with each other for little to no reason. That said, it’s quite refreshing at the end after the monster is discovered that Steve apologizes to Julie out loud before the credits roll. It goes a long way in healing over his chauvinistic qualities.
As for the special effects, with the creature being puppeteered by the great Bob Baker, there’s no need to attack them. They’re very well done for the budget at hand. The filmmakers even add in a hazy, watery overlay whenever the monster is shown to help hide the fact that it’s a puppet, making it more effective and interesting to look at it. In other words, the special effects are not the issue. Instead, it’s the massive amount of dialogue, most of it character development. There are very few moments involving the creature itself, and you sometimes forget that you’re watching a monster movie because of it. We’re also treated to a large amount of underwater photography, but once again, little of it is monster-related. But, because Anne Kimbell’s Julie is so likable, she manages to pull you through the scant 64-minute running time. In short, Monster from the Ocean Floor is certainly no underseen masterpiece, but it’s charming in spite of itself.
Monster from the Ocean Floor was shot by cinematographer Floyd Crosby on 35mm film, finished photochemically, and presented in the aspect ratio of 1.37:1. Film Masters debuts the film on Blu-ray with a new 4K scan of the original camera negative, encoded to a dual-layered BD-50 disc. The film has mostly been available over the years in poor quality presentations, making this presentation stand out even more than it already does. It has a nice organic quality with a bitrate mostly sitting between 30 and 40Mbps, and higher levels of detail than ever seen before. The titles and other opticals likely came from other sources and there are occasional scratches, but it’s primarily cleaner and much sharper. Gradations are decent above the water with mostly solid grain, but stock footage and underwater photography, which appears to have been shot on 16mm and blown up to 35mm, carries the film’s lesser visual qualities. Oddly, there’s a “Splice Here” film leader visible for a single frame at 27:18 during a reel change, which was likely overlooked during restoration. Regardless, it’s still a major step up from previous incarnations of the film.
Audio is included in English 2.0 mono DTS-HD Master Audio with an English 2.0 mono Dolby Digital alternative. Optional subtitles are provided in English SDH, but also included with the commentary, which is always a plus. It’s clear that the audio has been pieced together from different sources that vary in quality, meaning that you get some obvious variances, but Film Masters appears to have cleaned everything up and ironed those sections out as best as they could. The dialogue is a mix of dubbing that was obviously not recorded in a sound booth, and location audio, with waves crashing loudly in the background. However, all of it is serviceable, even if it isn’t uniform. There’s a minor click at 40:31 and an occasional thump, but the track is relatively free of hiss and crackle, with only some distortion built-in. The Dolby Digital track is much fuller with less clean-up, and a little louder, as well. Besides being lossy, it carries obvious hiss and some dropouts. Like the DTS track, it’s also pieced together from surviving elements. In some ways, I actually prefer it over the DTS track, only because it has much more body to it, but you be the judge.
The Film Masters Special Edition Blu-ray release of Monster from the Ocean Floor sits in a blue Amaray case with an insert that replicates the original theatrical poster artwork. Also included is a 16-page (18 pages counting the front and back) booklet containing extensive liner notes by Tom Weaver, as well as newspaper clippings and photos. The following extras are included on the disc:
- Audio Commentary with Tom Weaver
- Bob Baker: From Monsters to Marionettes (HD – 14:01)
- Roger Corman: Becoming a B-Movie Maker (SD – 8:42)
- Original Theatrical Trailer (Upscaled SD – 1:54)
- Re-Cut 2024 Trailer (HD – 1:54)
- Gallery of Stills (HD – 25 in all – 2:12)
The bonus materials begin with another great audio commentary by author and monster movie film historian Tom Weaver. As per usual with his commentaries, he provides a wealth of information about the film, interspersing a phone interview he conducted with Roger Corman throughout, and adding in performances from actors who stand in to provide quotes from some of the cast and crew. He astutely points out that Monster from the Ocean Floor, despite its reputation, did many things first that other science fiction and horror films of the 1950s and 1960s got all the credit for. He also defends the film in terms of its low budget and special effects, assessing that it’s worth appreciating more than simply tearing down.
Next are a pair of two brief featurettes from the always excellent Ballyhoo Motion Pictures. Bob Baker: From Monsters to Marionettes features an extended interview with author and film historian Justin Humphreys, who discusses the career of marionette puppeteer Bob Baker, founder of the Bob Baker Marionette Theater in Los Angeles, and the various projects he worked on during his lifetime. Those credits include The Angry Red Planet, Escape from Witch Mountain, the original Star Trek series, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Roger Corman: Becoming a B-Movie Maker features an interview with the legendary late producer and filmmaker about his breaking into the film business, starting out with the Westerns Five Guns West and The Gunslinger, moving on to It Conquered the World, The Undead, and The Saga of the Viking Women and Their Voyage to the Waters of the Great Sea Serpent. He also briefly refers to various distribution companies he had a hand in. Last is the film’s theatrical trailer, an HD version of the same trailer re-created digitally using the new restoration, and a stills gallery containing 25 images of publicity photos, posters, and press materials.
Monster from the Ocean Floor is a cheap creature feature, cheaper than most, but makes up for it with a charming leading lady and decently-realized monster, whenever we’re allowed to see it. Film Masters have put together a very fine release that, while not perfect, certainly bests any previous VHS or optical disc-based release of the film. If you’re a monster movie fan, this one belongs on your shelf.
- Tim Salmons
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