Humanoids from the Deep (1980)

In my attempt to discover another Roger Corman film that provides a similar level of entertainment as my two favorites (Death Race 2000 & Starcrash) I've finally been witness to another bizarre Corman classic that almost fits the bill of over-the-top cheesy, yet still remains to be incredibly enjoyable.  If transcontinental death races aren't your thing, and campy space flicks with robots and an evil vampire looking fellow don't tickle your fancy, maybe mutated fish-men with the urge to eat dogs, kill men and mate with women will be the ticket!

Humanoids from the Deep (aka Monster) is another spin on the classic monster idea of food sources mutating into creatures that aim to kill humanity, we saw it in Forbidden World and see it again here only in a much more enjoyable execution.  A small fishing town is about to get a break as a new cannery is bringing in a scientist who has been working on perfecting a new breed of salmon that will be bigger, better and reproduce faster, ultimately increasing the dwindling catch for the local fishermen.  But once again what happens when you mess with nature and the cycle of life is you end up creating something not natural to this world.  The fish grow at an extensive rate but what they grow into is mutated fish/man creatures that are systematically terrorizing the town by killing all the local animal life, the male population and having they're way with the women. At first a few of the townspeople blame the local Indian, Johnny Eagle, for the recent string of murdered animals and missing teenagers, but those accusations are soon thrown to the wayside when the fish creatures begin to attack in full force.

After the rather lack luster appeal with Piranha, Humanoids from the Deep was a nice retreat back into the overly campy atmosphere of a mutant Corman film.  Imagine Creature from the Black Lagoon on crack, with a fair amount of gore, a fair amount of skin and about twenty plus creatures!  Essentially that's the driving force behind this film and the aspects that make it an enjoyable ride.  My only major disappointment was the ending which was either a teaser to a possible sequel that never ended up seeing the light of day, or the writers twisted way of leaving the viewer wanting more, whatever the case I wanted more and was sorely disappointed when it simply ended.  Overall, Humanoids from the Deep is still not as entertaining as my top two Corman films but it's worth checking out if your a fan of creature films.

7/10

Humanoids From The Deep Full Film