
Creature From the Black Lagoon
1954, Horror, 1h 19m
41 Reviews 10,000+ RatingsWhat to know
critics consensus
A solid, atmospheric creature feature that entertains without attempting to be deeper than it needs. Read critic reviews
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Movie Info
Cast & Crew
David Reed
Kay Lawrence
Mark Williams
Carl Maia
Lucas
Dr. Edwin Thompson
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Critic Reviews for Creature From the Black Lagoon
All Critics (41) | Top Critics (7) | Fresh (32) | Rotten (9)
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It makes for solid horror-thrill entertainment.
November 16, 2014 | Full Review… -
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 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review… -
Jack Arnold's direction has done a firstrate job developing chills and suspense, and James C. Havens rates a good credit for his direction of the underwater sequences.
July 6, 2010 | Full Review… -
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… -
This adventure has no depth.
October 31, 2006 | Full Review… -
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…
Audience Reviews for Creature From the Black Lagoon
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Sep 12, 2016The creature's makeup and design are stunning and look very realistic for the time the movie came out, while the underwater scenes are really awesome and creepy, making for a classic monster movie that aged well enough and can still be fun for modern audiences.Carlos M Super Reviewer
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Oct 23, 2014An Atomic Age Creature feature that smartly forgoes a radioactive beastie for a straight up monster thriller, this Black Lagoon birthed a very worthy final act for Universal Horror. After all, Godzilla already cornered the market on A-Bomb reptiles. Just to prove that the Atomic market was already cornered, Them! featured gi-normous nuclear ants and Tarantula featured...well, you guessed it. Here, instead, filmgoers get thrown back into a well-proven genre, albeit with a highly effective monster and well wrought script. Allusions to the word 'throw back' are not at all mistaken. At this cultural juncture, the mid-'50s, the original Universal horror flicks enjoyed a hugely successful theatrical re-release and television premiere. The Creature from the Black Lagoon may have been Johnny-Come-Lately, but the quality speaks of Johnny-on-the-Spot. In this unrated classic Universal horror flick, a strange prehistoric beast lurks in the depths of the Amazonian jungle where a group of scientists try to capture it and bring it back to civilization for study. Cutting his teeth t great effect here, director Jack Arnold would go on to helm The Incredible Shrinking Man and the aforementioned Tarantula. He never achieved the same Wow factor as with Creature, however. Harry Essex and Arthur Ross provided a decent script. Granted, The Creature fell into that classic Beauty and the Beast formula made infamous by King Kong. The scares truly chill and thrill, however, heightened by the then-pioneering 3D "gimmick." The true measure remains Black Lagoon's extant ability to frighten audiences without the technology. Thankfully, however, the Blu-Ray edition smartly restores the third dimension. Bottom line: Jurassic LarkJeff B Super Reviewer
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Dec 12, 2012It's pretty amusing to see a low-budget monster movie that has influenced so many filmmakers and movies. It's painfully obvious that the creature is just a professional swimmer with a rubber suit on, but that only makes it more fun to watch. The underwater scenes are quite good for a 50's movie and the story is simple enough to just kick back and enjoy without putting too much thought into it, which is nice for a change. Considering the fact that this movie is over 50 years old and it wasn't actually filmed in the Amazon (which is where it takes place) there is undeniably a great sense of atmosphere: it really feels like the actors are on a boat in the middle of an exotic river rather than the United States. Overall, it's worth seeing if you're a fan of newer monster movies such as Cloverfield and Jaws.Kevin M Super Reviewer
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Jun 07, 2012great atmosphere and underwater scenes! a monster movie classicStella D Super Reviewer
Creature from the Black Lagoon Quotes
Lucas: | It is impossible. But I, Lucas, will do it. |
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