The Giant Gila Monster

Director - Ray Kellogg (The Killer Shrews, The Monroes)

Starring - Don Sullivan (Curse of the Undead, Teenage Zombies), Fred Graham (The Crimson Ghost, Thriller), and Lisa Simone (The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse, Missile to the Moon)

Release Date - 1959

Genre - Horror

Tagline - "Only Hell could breed such an enormous beast... only god could destroy it"

Format - UHD (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     While I was born in the late 80s and survived the 90s, I lived in the household with an older dad that had an eye for classic cinema. He was constantly watching films from the 40s, 50s, and 60s. Like many of us, he was trying to revisit his childhood and the fond memories he had watching these films with his friends and families. I was introduced to a lot of films from this time. Most were westerns but I was lucky enough to watch a few sci-fi and horror titles with him. One weekend I remember watching the original Giant Gila Monster from 1959 along with a few horror and sci-fi films from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. I credit this with my love for drive-in era schlock. A few weeks back I received the UHD release of The Giant Gila Monster for review and was extremely excited to revisit it. I want to thank Film Masters for sending this one over for review. 

      The film follows a mechanic who is working with the police collecting wrecks and abandoned cars. When some friends go missing he partners with the sheriff to find them. His search leads him to another wrecked car and signs of something big visiting the area. He soon realizes that a giant lizard is attacking cars and eating the people. No one believes him but once it starts making it’s way to town they realize he was right and they are all in danger. 

      I love cheesy and campy films so I often gravitate towards these low budget films of the drive-in era spanning from the 50s through the 70s. These movies are often mocked and riffed on by genre fans but I enjoy them. The cheesier the better in my opinion and these type of films are the cheesiest. The Giant Gila Monster is far from perfect but I absolutely love it. The acting in this one is so campy. The cast is over dramatic and their timing is so wrong. They talk over each other, look at the camera, and offer up very little emotional range but I fucking love it. When you add that to the generic characters and stiff acting you get something that is unintentionally funny which adds another layer of fun to the film. The story for this one is a bit repetitive and extremely goofy but fans of drive-in cinema know exactly what to expect. The film is extremely low budget and I would almost bet that the film was being written as they filmed. The characters have very little depth aside from the protagonist and the story is predictable. What makes it so enjoyable is the bearded dragon that is being passed as a gila monster and the miniature sets. Finally, this is not a bloody film. We get lots of wrecked vehicles, footage of a bearded dragon crawling around, and questionable acting to hold our attention. Overall, The Giant Gila Monster is a campy film that is easy to mock but I find it rather enjoyable. Fans of campy cinema will want to check out this UHD release from Film Masters. It looks beautiful which is something this underrated classic needed.