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Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)

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Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 3
Fresh: 2 | Rotten: 1

audience

65

liked it
Average Rating: 3.3/5
User Ratings: 22,599

My Rating

Movie Info

Universal Pictures introduced audiences to yet another classic movie monster with this superbly crafted film, originally presented in 3-D. The story involves the members of a fossil-hunting expedition down a dark tributary of the mist-shrouded Amazon, where they enter the domain of a prehistoric, amphibious "Gill Man" -- possibly the last of a species of fanged, clawed humanoids who may have evolved entirely underwater. Tranquilized, captured, and brought aboard, the creature still manages to

Aug 28, 2001

Universal Pictures

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All Critics (29) | Top Critics (3) | Fresh (24) | Rotten (5) | DVD (13)

Jack Arnold has a flair for this sort of thing, and if there really is anything frightening about a man dressed up in a rubber suit with zippers where the gills ought to be, Arnold comes close to finding it.

September 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | Comment (1)
Chicago Reader
Top Critic IconTop Critic

This adventure has no depth.

October 31, 2006 Full Review Source: New York Times | Comments (3)
New York Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The routine story is mightily improved by Arnold's sure sense of atmospheric locations and by the often sympathetic portrait of the monster.

February 9, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out
Time Out
Top Critic IconTop Critic

What distinguished Jack Arnold's pictures from mutant spinoffs/knockoffs is even more imperative to sci-fi today than it was in 1954: wonderment.

October 11, 2012 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine

The beats of the film are like overused sandpaper, too worn down and tattered to have more than a passing effect.

October 16, 2011 Full Review Source: Suite101.com
Suite101.com

Like Silly Putty, Super 8 is silly fun. It stretches, snaps, and bounces. It's as elastic as pubescent imagination.

June 14, 2011 Full Review Source: tonymacklin.net | Comments (2)
tonymacklin.net

Imbued with great atmosphere by director Jack Arnold, the film is genuinely frightening, but also elicits a certain amount of pathos for the creature.

September 26, 2007 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide
TV Guide's Movie Guide

The underwater sequences were excellently shot by Havens, and the make-up for the half man, half fish was a masterful creation by Bud Westmore and Jack Keven.

September 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Film4
Film4

Very neat

July 8, 2005

As directed by Jack Arnold, the film suffers from silly stretches of dialogue and wooden acting, but the underwater footage is still beautiful, and Adams radiates a strong, sexy screen presence.

November 1, 2004 Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid
Combustible Celluloid

Creepy underwater horror flick. Ahead of its time.

November 5, 2003
Juicy Cerebellum

Incluindo um curioso subtexto ecológico, o filme envelheceu bem: pode até não assustar como na época de seu lançamento, mas continua interessante.

July 28, 2003
Cinema em Cena

Great monster suit. Not much of a movie

August 7, 2002 | Comments (3)
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

One of the best of the 1950's creature features. (By a long shot.)

July 26, 2002
eFilmCritic.com

Tremendous chilling fun, whether in 3-D or no. And Julia Adams is still hot in that swimsuit.

July 26, 2002
Flipside Movie Emporium

Its solitary aim was to exploit the viewer's fear of the unknown.

November 30, 2001 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | Comment (1)
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Cool creature!

September 11, 2001 Full Review Source: Old School Reviews

This is still a decent movie and a good example of the monster movie genre.

July 25, 2001 Full Review Source: Apollo Guide
Apollo Guide

The technical material is so good, in fact, that if you might actually like the movie... if you can ignore everything else.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | Comment (1)
Filmcritic.com

[A] B movie classic.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Edinburgh U Film Society
Edinburgh U Film Society

Audience Reviews for Creature from the Black Lagoon

great atmosphere and underwater scenes! a monster movie classic
June 7, 2012
rubystevens
Stella Dallas

Super Reviewer

The story and characters are rather simplistic but the true reason to see this film is for the legendary "Gill Man". The underwater scenes are beautifully shot, containing a surreal sequence were Gill Man swims beneath an unsuspecting female diver. That scene would later inspire the opening sequence for Steven Spielberg's "Jaws". The music was also awesome, filled to the brim with dramatic orchestral cues. A must see for any fans of the monster movie genre.
February 11, 2012
Christopher Heim

Super Reviewer

    1. Lucas: It is impossible. But I, Lucas, will do it.
    – Submitted by Francis L (13 months ago)

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Foreign Titles

  • Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) (DE)
  • Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) (UK)
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