Review of The Valley of Gwangi (1969) by Byron B — 18 Sep 2015

With the recent release of Jurassic World my favorite local movie chain Cleveland Cinemas wanted to re-screen the first Jurassic Park film with the midnight early release of Jurassic World to follow. The studio did not consent because the Jurassic trilogy was scheduled to re-air on TV in the week leading up to the new release.

So, The Valley of Gwangi was cleverly chosen instead. A scientist from the Cleveland Museum of Natural History also spoke about archaeology at the screening. My schedule prevented me from seeing the movie on the big screen, so, ultimately I watched this at home on a library DVD.

Jurassic Park is about the island theme park where the plan is that the public will pay to see dinosaurs brought back to life. Gwangi, brought to life by special effects titan Ray Harryhausen, is about Wild West show performers capturing ancient monsters to display to the paying public at a rodeo arena.

There is even a professor character who is quite similar to Attenborough's Jurassic Park founder, although this professor is more interested in scientific study rather than exploitation. The film is based on sketches that Harryhausen had in his possession from an unrealized project that his mentor Willis O'Brien began.

It has the feel of a Spaghetti Western since it was filmed in Spain with an international cast. Spain stands in for Mexico, but instead of being a period western it is set in modern times, the 1960s. There were some cheesy moments with the Mexican gypsies and the horse in the Wild West show that jumps into a shallow pool of water.

Also when Harryhausen mimics the movement of a recognizable animal like the tiny prehistoric horse or the elephant the effect is not as impressive as when he animates creatures that require more imagination.

In general, I truly enjoyed the action, characters, and dialog that bring this fantastic tale into being.