The movies have long been interested in stories about extraordinary animal "monsters" and their interaction with human beings. They generally went in two directions. In one, the tale would involve an effort by humans to invade the monster's world--which would usually end in chaos and disaster. The King Kong films are a good example of this genre. The monster was usually portrayed as the innocent victim of human greed and/or depravity. In the other, the story would involve a monster's effort to invade the humans' world--which would likewise usually end in chaos and disaster. The Godzilla films are a good example of that genre. In them, the monster is regularly depicted as brutal and ruthless. These monsters often had the added plot element of being adversely affected by an atomic energy event gone bad.
Then there is a film like One Million B.C. (OMBC), that goes in an entirely different direction. In OMBC, the producers (reputedly including the legendary uncredited D. W. Griffith of Birth Of A Nation fame) gave us a story where the humans and monsters co-exist in the same world, and survival is the principal motivation for the presence of both groups in that world.
The one thing that all of these films have in common is their complete departure from reality. In OMBC, the monsters are supposed to be real as opposed to the fanciful ones of the King Kong and Godzilla movies. However, we now know with reasonable certainty that dinosaurs and humans did not share the same space at the same time.
It is true that Neanderthals and Homo sapiens at one time did overlap in their evolutionary history, and there is DNA evidence to prove that they inter-bred with each other. The film's producers seem to suggest to a modern audience that the crude and violent Rock People shared some characteristics with Neanderthals, and that the peaceful and gentle Shell People were more like the majority of contemporary humans in their general behavior.
OMBC is a fondly remembered film by many people. The special effects while crude by our current standards did make the scenes of monster-human interaction quite believable. The Shell People were presented as such likable folks with very sweet dispositions that you would have to be made of stone not to align with them. And in the end, the Rock People were shown to be capable of change for the better when properly exposed to the Shell People's positive social graces and values.
OMBC was also an important milestone for its three principal performers. It was made by Lon Chaney, Jr. just after Of Mice And Men, and immediately before he took on his most famous film role as Larry Talbot in The Wolf Man. This was Victor Mature's early "hunk" outing, which culminated several years later in the much more spectacular Samson And Delilah. Yet in between these two roles, Mature showed that he had brains as well as biceps in such successful movies as Kiss of Death and My Darling Clementine. Finally, OMBC was an impressive accomplishment for twenty-one year old Carole Landis, and she was sexy, lovely and endearing in her part as the Shell People Princess in love with Mature's Rock People Prince. Unfortunately, physical and personal problems continued to intrude into her brief life, and it would end in suicide at the age of just twenty-nine without ever realizing her possible potential.
OMBC is an enjoyable film from film's Golden Age, and is definitely worth a visit.
Then there is a film like One Million B.C. (OMBC), that goes in an entirely different direction. In OMBC, the producers (reputedly including the legendary uncredited D. W. Griffith of Birth Of A Nation fame) gave us a story where the humans and monsters co-exist in the same world, and survival is the principal motivation for the presence of both groups in that world.
The one thing that all of these films have in common is their complete departure from reality. In OMBC, the monsters are supposed to be real as opposed to the fanciful ones of the King Kong and Godzilla movies. However, we now know with reasonable certainty that dinosaurs and humans did not share the same space at the same time.
It is true that Neanderthals and Homo sapiens at one time did overlap in their evolutionary history, and there is DNA evidence to prove that they inter-bred with each other. The film's producers seem to suggest to a modern audience that the crude and violent Rock People shared some characteristics with Neanderthals, and that the peaceful and gentle Shell People were more like the majority of contemporary humans in their general behavior.
OMBC is a fondly remembered film by many people. The special effects while crude by our current standards did make the scenes of monster-human interaction quite believable. The Shell People were presented as such likable folks with very sweet dispositions that you would have to be made of stone not to align with them. And in the end, the Rock People were shown to be capable of change for the better when properly exposed to the Shell People's positive social graces and values.
OMBC was also an important milestone for its three principal performers. It was made by Lon Chaney, Jr. just after Of Mice And Men, and immediately before he took on his most famous film role as Larry Talbot in The Wolf Man. This was Victor Mature's early "hunk" outing, which culminated several years later in the much more spectacular Samson And Delilah. Yet in between these two roles, Mature showed that he had brains as well as biceps in such successful movies as Kiss of Death and My Darling Clementine. Finally, OMBC was an impressive accomplishment for twenty-one year old Carole Landis, and she was sexy, lovely and endearing in her part as the Shell People Princess in love with Mature's Rock People Prince. Unfortunately, physical and personal problems continued to intrude into her brief life, and it would end in suicide at the age of just twenty-nine without ever realizing her possible potential.
OMBC is an enjoyable film from film's Golden Age, and is definitely worth a visit.