Wednesday, October 11, 2023

Horror 2023 Countdown: One Million Years, BC (1966)

One Million Years, BC (1966) dir. Don Caffery, Hammer Arts Productions-Seven Arts


For a period of time, along side gangsters, pirates, monsters and the like, there were caveman films. A sort of proto peplum, they usually had a bunch of fairly good looking people in furs running around a desert. If there was a good budget you might even get some dinosaurs, although most of the time they would your average lizards with junk glued on them. 

The chief of the Rock People (Robert Brown) is having issues with his two sons, Tumak (John Richardson) and Sakana (Percy Herbet). Both brothers seem to hate each other but the elder Tumak has eyes on being chief. He challenges his old man to a fight, but the elder is still standing at the end of the fight and Tumak finds himself banished. 

Tumak wanders for a bit, until he passes out near the shoreline. His luck has an upswing when Loana (Raquel Welch) finds him. Old habits die hard and his attitude gets him banished from the beach. He heads back home, Loana in tow.

Sakana, meanwhile, has had a bit more luck in taking over the tribe, tossing dear old dad off a cliff. When the two brothers meet again, a war is clearly brewing. 

Not horrible; Ray Harryhausen's effects steal the show although one could argue they steal too much and stretch the film out. The rest is serviceable if not great but the overall idea of scanitly clad men and women fighting dinos is an easy sell.



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