Rating: 13/20
Plot: Scientists using radiation to look for a cure for cancer accidentally create spongy turtlish tentacle things that pussyfoot around an island and suck out its inhabitants bones. Scientists have to helicopter in and try to stop them!
It was the last week of school, and I decided to spend my prep periods watching a movie since that sounds like something a barely effective teacher would do. I stumbled upon this randomly and accidentally watched a second movie in a row with Peter Cushing. And he has something happen to him here that is a very Star Warsy thing to have happen to somebody even though it is not something that happened to him in Star Wars. The monsters--Silicates, apparently--are really silly but are so different from anything I've seen in a movie like this that I kind of ended up liking them. They really are like spongy turtles with a stalk thing that sticks out the front of them and grabs potential victims. The slurping sound effects during those victims' demises are a nice touch. The problem is that they're not very menacing. They move so slowly and just kind of sit there when the characters are shooting at them, tiptoeing around them with Geiger counters, or hurling sticks of dynamite in their directions. Sometimes, they're crafty and fall out of trees on to unsuspecting victims. I can't imagine the things climbing trees. The solution to the titular island's problem--a solution that involves cattle--seems a little goofy, but I'm sure it makes perfect scientific sense. I'm not about to argue with science on this blog! This was produced by the same people who made Fiend without a Face which I rated harshly and made fun of. The titular fiends in that one resemble smaller versions of the Silicates. Anyway, this isn't a terrible movie. It's got the kind of script which can make scientists seem cool, something that causes me not to trust a movie quite as much, but it's got a little atmosphere, interesting scientific detective work, and some pretty cool little slurping monsters.
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