Reviews (16) 
Classic Drive In Flick
I first reviewed this great drive in flick over in the VHS section (review titled "Late Show Movie Classic"). Since that time I was very surprised to see it come to the DVD format. Unfortunately the quality is substandard to say the least. Horrible streaking & scratches, a pinhole of light on the righthand side of the print, pitiful color saturation...just like my old beat up VHS copy. My only concession is that being on DVD, it should last indefinitely unlike my old VHS tape. As for the movie, my old review still stands. Lots of fun, uniformly good acting (for this type of picture), great music & sound effects add to the chills, excellent cinematography by the great Dean Cundey (of "Halloween I, II, III", "The Fog", "Escape From New York", "Romancing The Stone", "Back To The Future II, III", "Jurassic Park", "Apollo 13", "Big Trouble In Little China" fame), tons of back water swamp atmosphere, genuine scares, a clever twist ending, and of course...the old "guy in a chintzy bigfoot costume". There's no high tech effects or gore & it's fairly slow paced, but it has a genuine charm & it outshines 95% of the other horror dreck that is out now-a-days. Old timers Jack Elam & Dub Taylor chew up the scenery while John David Carson & Dennis Fimple yuck it up as the two college guys who track the beast. The DVD back boxcover mistakenly identifies John David Carson as "Pahoo" (one of moviedom's all time classic character names) & Dennis Fimple as "Reeves" while in fact, it is the other way around. So that shows you the poor care Sterling Entertainment exhibited in making this DVD. They tout "Guaranteed Superior Quality" on the boxcover... I know it's just a low budget horror flick that they figure nobody will care about so they just throw something against the wall to see what sticks & sell a few copies. But come on, you can't even get the facts correct on the boxcover, let alone getting a better print to master from? I'm sure the original film makers have a decent print but I'm sure Sterling doesn't want to have to pay them their due but using their materials. As for the extras...they are worthless as well. So unfortunately, a shoddy piece of junk quality wise, but it's no worse than my VHS copy. So, enjoy the flick & try to excuse the poor quality. Make sure you watch for Pahoo's 70's-style jersey that sports his name on the back! Classic. I love this movie but I wish they'd have taken a bit more care in the quality department. I docked the film one star for this unfortunate sorry print they used to master. It kind of adds to the 70's drive in feel none the less. Thanks to the creators Joy Houck & Jim McCullough for all the years of enjoyment I've gotten from this scary, campy & funny flick! The DVD is a welcome addition to my "Creature" poster & lobby card set despite the poor hackjob Sterling did in mastering the DVD. Thanks to Amazon for offering yet another great "lost find" to their growing list of offbeat films & stuff you'd never find at your local stores. Bravo!
Late Show Movie Classic!
"Creature From Black Lake" is one of those 70's late show movie classics that has sadly been forgotton. Is it cheesy?...sure. Is the creature a high tech CGI effect ala the blockbusters of today... no, it's a guy in an ape suit (which you bearly ever see). But is it entertaining? You betcha! The acting by old time thespians Dub Taylor (who makes one great backwoods pappy) & the OVERacting by Jack Elam (who chews through the scenery like a wood chipper) is lots of fun. The two younger leads played by John David Carson (who's looks should at least keep you fellers girlfriends interested) & Dennis Fimple as goofy "Pahoo" (one of moviedom's all time classic names!) are fine as well. Bill Thurman does a nice job with the thankless sheriff role. Jim McCullough, Jr. adds a top notch good ol' boy song "Exits & Truckstops" as well as lending his acting chops to the role of Dub Taylor's grandson "Orville" (plus he wrote the screenplay thus completing what I like to call "The Black Lake Trifecta"). Now throw in some nice Louisiana swamp water atmosphere, a frightening flashback sequence, some 1970's small town southern diner vibes, some "wonder what's out there in the dark" camp ground scenes, add a couple of Louisiana girlies for the boys to hook up with, toss in a pinch of frightening movie score, some extremely creepy cinematography by Dean Cundey (of "Halloween I, II, III", "The Fog", "Escape From New York", "Romancing The Stone", "Back To The Future II, III", "Jurassic Park", "Apollo 13", "Big Trouble In Little China" (WOW! what a list)), a MAJOR twist ending (very clever boys!)...and of course the guy in the ape suit...and you have a beautiful cajun stew cooked up by director Joy N. Houck, Jr. No there aren't thrill a minute effects or gore of any kind. It's actually pretty slow paced & laid back. But this film has a genuine 1970's drive in movie "feel" to it & atmosphere to burn. I like to pair it up with "Legend of Boggy Creek" for a true backwoods drive in double feature that despite it's modest budget & limited resources, outshines & outwits 95% of the brain dead horror films of the modern era. Give these good old boys a chance & see if they don't charm your socks off. One star demerit for the shoddy copy I bought a few years back. Amazon's offering might be better. The version I have looks like it was copied on a VHS camcorder directly from the wall that a 16 mm projector projected it onto (haha). But ironically the grain, chopped off edges & horrible color only adds to the "feel". Give it a shot...how can you go wrong for a couple bucks? Worst case scenerio, you can re-use the tape to go shoot your OWN cheesy Bigfoot flick! Best case scenerio...Joy Houck & Jim McCullough finally get this classic out on DVD with some extras!
A worthy entry in the Cinema du Sasquatch
This is a film about Bigfoot, in my opinion. I felt they were too much emphasis on sex in this movie, and it is not suitable for small children under three or so. This definitely is not one of Joy Houck's better efforts as a filmmaker, Brain Machine and Gray Matter were much more cool, although kind of similar to each other. Anyway on the plus side though, this film has excellent special effects and make up, with a very realistic looking Bigfoot. I would like to see this movie gets remade one-day, preferably by Disney or Tarantino.
bigfoot as a sex fiend
in this flick, bigfoot manages to get it on with a half dozen people, yes friends, this is a soft porn version of bigfoot and he is anatomically correct
he manages to have 5 women of normal stature, and 1 female midget, trust me see it to believe it
plenty of blood, sex, 3 monkeys, and redd foxx's grandson make this a great film for the whole family
Buried Treasure
This is a fun little movie that entertains.
It is a fast paced and actually quite humorous in some parts.
The two main characters have a really good chemistry and work well together. The final scene surprisingly gets pretty creepy and has a great atmosphere to it.
I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys the Bigfoot genre, independent horror or 1970's cheese.
This is probably the best Bigfoot movie ever made and it is suitable for all ages.
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