10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Perfect for fans of this amiable film, January 12, 2007
Who'd have thought "Dinosaurus!" would ever be restored in widescreen on DVD? Who'd have believed the print would be this ravishing? Stanley Cortez, the brilliant cinematographer who filmed "Citizen Kane" may have been slumming here, but his images are splendid, the color is rich and saturated, and the action wild! Most fans know the story, but for the uninitiated: two dinosaurs and a caveman (played by the disturbingly convincing Greg Martell) are unearthed on a tropical island, and revived by a lightning storm. The inhabitants of the island, a stumblebum but appealing crew of semi-recognizable faces, must fend for themselves over the next several hours until the supply boat gets in. Nice stop motion animation by Tim Barr, Wah Chang, and Marcel Delgado (of "King Kong" fame) and a great score by underrated Ronald Stein make this a must-have for completists. The perfect movie for ten-year old boys and girls, it's a fan favorite, and has been for years. Bless you, Image entertainment, for delivering such a grand print of this neglected gem. Nice widescreen transfer from Cinemascope elements, some pleasant extras (photo gallery, trailer, etc.) round out this attractive package. "Dinosaurus!" fans, buy this. Where, where are Greg Martell, Alan Roberts, Kristina Hanson, and the rest of the gang? This movie screams for an actor's commentary.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"He's just a nice caveman, really..", February 28, 2007
"Dinosaurus" is one of the great, cheap kiddy-matinee movies that were plentiful in the 1950's. It featured action scenes no 50's kid could resist: a face-off between a T-Rex and a power shovel, the T-Rex destroying a bus... It must have made enough of an impact on Steven Spielberg that he paid homage to this film (along with several other oldies) in his "Jurassic Park" movies.
As noted in the other reviews on this page, the print of "Dinosaurus" on this dvd is outstanding. Here are some other reasons to watch this film:
First, it's hilarious. Second, it's entertaining. Third, it's hilarious. It's populated with the kind of cardboard heroes and villains that were typical of 50's television. "Senor Bart" is the main man here. He's a developer on an anonymous Caribbean island, who is going to build a harbor which will bring tourists and trade to its poor inhabitants. Among his crew is a heavy equipment operator named "Dumpy", who shambles around like a typical western sidekick.
"Senor Bart's" girlfriend is Betty, who arrives on the scene in a motorboat in the beginning of the movie, in order to do some reef-diving--(shades of James Bond). Bart's crew has set some underwater explosions, and Betty blunders into a frozen T-Rex. Thereby begins the tale.
The equipment operators pull the T-Rex and a Brontosaurus ashore. Unbeknownst to them, a frozen caveman has also been blasted to the surface and drifted to another part of the beach.
Later that night, another colorful character--an Irish drunk--is watching the beachfront digs when a storm arises and a bolt of lightning strikes both dinosaurs.
Freudians would have a picnic with this scene, and indeed with the whole movie. Try not to chuckle at the sight of two frozen dinosaurs on the beach, stretched out like Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr in "From Here to Eternity", their mouths agape and steaming in seeming bliss.
Many more "nudge and wink" scenes follow. The caveman has been awakened along with the dinosaurs, and he is shown in several slapstick scenes when he acquaints himself with 50's civilization by invading a beach house. Chiefly, the caveman is there to become the pal of Julio, the lovable 50's brat who is the movie's tie-in to its main audience.
The caveman winds up sacrificing himself in true noble-savage style, but not before he cross-dresses, throws a pie in the bad guy's face, rides the Brontosaurus like "Alley Oop" with Julio, and tries to put the make on lovely Betty.
Julio loves the Brontosaurus, who is remarkably docile and is fated to be meat for the T-Rex, when the inevitable battle occurs. But after being subdued by the T-Rex, the Bronto manages to thwart the carnivore's desires by limping off to expire in a bed of quicksand. More meat for Freudians.
After further terrorizing the natives, and getting a Molotov cocktail thrown into his mouth (the T-Rex seems to like that..he tosses his head back and seems to go "hotcha-cha-cha!"), the big nasty carnivore is dispatched by hero Bart's quick use of the power shovel. Bart swats the dinosaur over a cliff, and saunters away from the wreckage with a distinctly John Wayne-like gait.
"Projects Unlimited" did the stop-motion animation for this little winner, and as animation goes, it manages to be effective in a cute kind of way. The dinosaurs are hardly terrifying, so the sound-effects team provided the T-Rex with an over-the-top roar that includes several animal noises--lions, bears, wildcats (oh my!) "Projects Unlimited" went on to work on the TV show "The Outer Limits", and sure enough the patented roar (as well as one of the puppet T-Rex heads) showed up on one of the sci-fi series' episodes.
Watch this movie for the sheer fun of it, and if you're old enough, reminisce with it. What other movie can give you walkie-talkies, characters named "Dumpy" and "Mousie", foot-stomping dinosaurs and Hispanic maids who know how to make Molotov cocktails because there was a revolution where they used to live.
Everybody who made this movie seemed to have fun with it. You should, too.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
FUN SATURDAY FRIGHT FARE, BUT DON'T PAY THESE PRICES!, August 17, 2009
I remember this juvenile monster romp fondly from my childhood and I am pleased to see this on DVD looking crisp and clean with trailers and a stills gallery to boot! The film is silly fun and filled with stop motion animation, but don't expect Harryhausen quality FX in this lost fantasy film from the days of Creature Feature programs. The film is quick paced with plenty of action and goofy laughs. The dinosaur FX are pretty cool looking for the budget,maybe a few notches above the 'Land Of The Lost' TV series FX.
The film is out of print, but you can find this little treasure on other sites for under $10 shipped. If you're a fan of stop motion then you will probably like this enjoyable little film. Grab a bowl of your favorite sugar packed cereal and enjoy this film on a nice relaxing Saturday morning! .......ahhh the good ol' days!
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