mark.waltz In one of the most deliciously bad adventure films ever made, practically every cliché is used, whether in dialog, use of props or plot development. Mary Munday is a secretary from Scranton PA who hires Sonny Tufts, a drunken seaman from San Pedro, to work on a boat she has hired to take her to the Caribbean to find some gold she claims her great-grandfather discovered a century before. Tom Monroe plays the resentful captain who makes his dislike to Tufts known from the very start. It isn't clear whether it is Tufts or his lack of acting ability which Monroe doesn't like, but one thing is clear, both of their instant lusts for Munday. At least she has some little bit of acting ability, even if she's no threat to the likes of Maria Montez, Hedy Lamarr, Dorothy Lamour or any other actress in this type of movie who was forced to done a sarong.Rosalind Hayes plays the high voodoo priestess of the island where Tufts believes the gold has been stashed, and she utilizes her muscular henchman (the ironically named Don Blackman) to stalk the island visitors wherever they go. When they do come across the apparent location of the gold, they discover that it is guarded by a large anaconda like snake. One of the funniest moments comes when Munday ends up encountering the large snake and literally has to wrestle with it. I guess the snake hadn't expected that a seemingly fragile looking female like Munday could give it such a work-out.The film is expanded in running time with some stock footage of native rights. This is the one opportunity to see someone doing the chicken dance with a real chicken. There are many moments in this which look like outtakes from the documentary comedy, "It Came From Hollywood!", which took great pleasure in slamming movies like this. Tufts, one of Paramount's attempts to make into a star (with dismal failure) spends much of the screen time with his shirt off, almost resembling the original screen Tarzan (Elmo Lincoln) with his not so trim torso. In fact, I can just imagine scenes from the original screenings of this with audience members screaming out, "Put it back on!".

Woodyanders Snooty secretary Ricki Andre (tartly played by Mary Munday) hires scrappy dockside bum Pete Mason (an engagingly scruffy portrayal by brawny Sonny Tufts) to help her find a million dollar gold treasure that's hidden on a Caribbean island. Complications ensure when Ricki and Pete encounter a voodoo cult on said island. Competently directed by Tom Gries (who also wrote the compact script), this 62 minute quickie offers up all the expected endearingly hokey pulp cinema clichés in reasonably entertaining and straightforward manner: We've got a fierce storm, rough'n'tumble fisticuffs, hostile natives, and a last reel attack by a boa constrictor. Domingo Rodrigues' lively score and Bert I. Gordon's vibrant color cinematography are both up to speed. The cast goes to town on the familiar formula material: Tom Monroe sneers it up nicely as gruff sea captain Kirk Ellis, Don Blackman glowers effectively as fearsome bald hulk Jacques, and Tufts brings a winning blend of brash humor and raw energy to his role. The footage of the Haitians performing a voodoo ceremony gives this picture a dash of tangy exotic flavor. However, the often sluggish pacing, a teeming surplus of rather tedious talk, and the meandering narrative make this movie a bit of a chore to sit through. That said, this flick overall qualifies as an enjoyable enough romp all the same.

Chris Gaskin This obscure and rarely seen movie is the first from good old Mr BIG and in colour too. I quite enjoyed watching Serpent Island.A woman sets out to a remote Caribbean island to search for some treasure that used to be her great-grandfather's which is hidden there. Two of the men on the ship she is on, including the Captain fall in love with her and they fall out over this. There are plenty of dangers as well both on and off the ship: a storm, sharks and on the island: unfriendly natives, voodoo and, best of all, "giant" snakes. These snakes are actually real ones and are not enlarged as you would expect to see in a Mr BIG movie. After managing to escape from the natives, the woman finds the treasure and then fights a snake which the Captain kills. The other man then appears and he is killed by a snake and the Captain now plans to marry the woman and they set off home.The cast is mostly made up of unknowns and the only name I am familiar with is Sonny Tufts (Cat-Women of the Moon).Watching Serpent Island is a good way to spend an hour one afternoon or evening. Enjoyable.Rating: 3 stars out of 5.

manos This is Bert I. Gordon's rookie outing in the world of film making. Known to his fans as "Mr. B.I.G." not only because of his initials, but for using rear screen projections of various living creatures throughout his long movie career. Sadly, this film doesn't have his trademark style.Partially narrated from Sonny Tuft's point-of-view, the movie's plot is very familiar and very "old hat". Sonny Tuft looks like a cross between the Skipper and his little buddy from Gilligan's Island. Rosalind Hayes is very stiff and unconvincing as an actress. Her performance reeks of being that of a Junior High School's drama club student. There is no romantic chemistry between Tufts and Hayes, although she must have spent more time in a science lab than on the school's cafeteria stage.You get plenty of footage from a real Haitian voodoo ceremony. Too much footage. Go get yourself a snack when you hear the bongo drums and chanting. Or fashion a doll of Rosalind Hayes thus using pins in a more productive aspect than plunging them into your eyes after the first half-hour.The biggest let down is the snake of Serpent Island. When you see Mr. B.I.G.'s name on the video box you're thinking "Man, I bet he used a cobra and made it look like it's as long as a football field!". The title monster is nothing more than your everyday, garden variety boa constrictor. And not a very big one at that. I did find myself perked up a bit once the snake started to wrap itself around Ms. Hayes' neck, though.Unless you're a completist fan of Mr. Bert I. Gordon, you should skip this offering. There is nothing notable about this movie other than being his first foray onto the silver screen. You're better off jumping straight to his second picture "KING DINOSAUR". That was the true beginning for Mr. B.I.G.!