A hypnotist is able to predict murders by a terrifying sea monster. In reality, he causes the murders through his lovely assistant, who is the reincarnation of the monster.
1967's "
Creature of Destruction" was among
Larry Buchanan's 8 Azalea pictures, 7 of which were horror/sci fi, 4 of those remakes of
AIP features of the
1950's.
Recycled from
1956's "
The She-Creature," a topical story of that year thanks to the
Bridey Murphy case, incorporating mesmerism with reincarnation and regression, which even
Roger Corman tried his hand at with "
The Undead." "The She-Creature" was no classic, but featured a fine cast of familiar faces, and a memorable
Paul Blaisdell monster that was supposed to look female but didn't, despite the breasts. The original took place at an oceanside park, while this remake is set at a small lakeside resort, filmed at
Lake Texoma 75 miles north of
Dallas, with each shot looking as though it were done at dusk (one unchanged line of dialogue from the 1956 script reports the
Creature leaving saltwater tracks despite now rising from a freshwater lake!)
. In the top billed hypnotist role essayed by
Chester Morris (who had a real affinity for magic), we here have former carnival barker
Les Tremayne, whose solid professionalism lent stature to many lower budgeted horrors since his co-starring part as
General Mann in
1953's "
The War of the Worlds," including
1957's "
The Monolith Monsters,"
1958's "
The Monster of Piedras Blancas,"
1959's "
The Angry Red Planet," 1962's "
The Slime People," and
1974's "
Fangs" aka "
Snakes" (also shot in
Texas).
Rather than a recognizable face like
John Ashley,
Paul Petersen, or
Tommy Kirk, we get the eminently forgettable
Aron Kincaid, who has been remembered as a veteran of AIP's
Beach Party series but only did two, "Dr. Goldfoot and the
Bikini Machine" and "
The Ghost in the
Invisible Bikini," understandably mesmerized by
Quinn O'Hara's red haired beauty (he did do a pair of rip offs, "
Ski Party" and "
Beach Ball," guess they got confused). His unspectacular acting career ended with many voiceovers for animated shows and cartoons (as did radio veteran Tremayne). This final AIP credit finds Kincaid unbearably stiff, looking mighty uncomfortable in an air force uniform two sizes too small for him, in a somnambulistic performance entirely post dubbed in inept fashion. And please don't ask about the inexplicable presence of
Scotty McKay, possibly a local talent who worked cheap, who belts out two songs (one about
Batman!) before the whole mess starts to gel nearly
20 minutes in (incidentally, the five minute pre credits sequence is taken from the climax, which is conspicuously shorter as a result). Non music lovers will be pleased to note that
Scotty's performance receives the scorn it deserves when he's bumped off by the Creature. A Texas filmmaker of notorious repute,
Buchanan certainly qualifies as a real huckster like
Al Adamson, able to churn out numerous titles despite the dearth of talent, perhaps not as laughably incompetent as
Ed Wood, but worth their share of laughs in their own right. Of all his genre films for Azalea, "Creature of Destruction" probably ranks as his least interesting, receiving less airplay in its day than any of the other, better remembered titles, particularly the two with
John Agar. The wet suit that doubles as the Creature (played by
Byron Lord) returned for another go-round in
1969's "
It's Alive!" still adorned with fins on the mask, which were missing in its first appearance (played by
Bill Thurman) in 1966's "
Curse of the Swamp Creature" (at least the monsters in "
The Eye Creatures," "
Zontar the Thing from Venus," and "
In the Year 2889" were unique to them). Come to think of it, one of The Eye Creatures actually showed up in "The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini," but failed to steal the thunder from
Boris Karloff. The kind of movie that one used to find at
3AM, a relic of a bygone era, which probably wouldn't pass muster with someone who never discovered it under those conditions.
Creature of Destruction (1967)
Full Length Sci Fi Films
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- published: 04 Dec 2014
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