OllieSuave-007
I remember seeing this dinosaur movie when I was a kid - as a dino fan, anything dinosaur is movies was intriguing for me.A dinosaur was captured by cowboy James Franciscus and brought to the Mexican circus. Of course, it's all mayhem while the T-rex escapes and wrecks havoc upon the town and threatening its citizens.It was neat seeing the T-Rex roaming around and serving up some neat dino action and mayhem. The stop motion special effects weren't bad for its time, but the overall plot was little boring if I recalled and the acting was pretty mediocre.But, not a bad special effects film - definitely better than some of the black and white B-movies.Grade C+
Terryfan
It only takes creativity and imagination to make a film like this work.The Valley Of Gwangi takes two childhood favorites and mix them together into one. Every child loves Dinosaurs and many love westerns so having a mix of the two actually works out.For a film in the 1960s it had some very good stop motion work with the Dinosaurs in the film every frame has been timed to make it work where the actors are actually in the same frame.The setting for the film does feel like a old time western but with Dinosaurs added to the mix how could you go wrong?The cast and crew does a good job with helping with the story along with some very good music in the film to help express the emotion during the film. It is a shame that this film is not given much respect for being creative at the time of it release The Valley of Gwangi is one of the few films that truly original in terms of story mixing dinosaurs with Cowboys. While it may not get much attention today as it did back in the day it is still a film that worth watching if you love Dinosaurs.I give The Valley of Gwangi an 7 out of 10
dangkoen
Boy, some of the plot holes are noticeable. But do we care if a film is enjoyable in such a goofy way? With great stop-motion from Ray Harryhausen, good performances from it's cast and the infamous, terrifying Gwangi practically at the helm, this is an ingredient for solid campy fun.The plot wasn't even original by the time this film was released, however it largely succeeds here because of the above mentioned factors. If you are a fan of Westerns, practical effects or creature films, it has all three categories. I am certain casual viewers will enjoy it as well! 10/10!
tomgillespie2002
Like the Hollywood western in the 1960's, the "wild west" depicted in The Valley of Gwangi - set at the turn of the century - was the post- cowboy sideshow, as displayed in reality by its most famous component, Buffalo Bill. It was this type of circus show that actually inspired much of the iconography of the filmic western. In this 1969 film (a time when westerns were more popular in television, and Hollywood was dissipating), we are introduced to a Mexican rodeo owner, the "cowgirl" T. J. (Gila Golan), and her once fiancée, Tuck (James Franciscus), T. J. being the owner of a struggling rodeo. After Carlos (Gustavo Rojo) returns from the "forbidden valley" he has in a burlap bag, a tiny, pre- historic ancestor of the modern day horse. After its escape, a team are set up to recapture the profitable little tyke, and return it for display. On entering the forbidden zone, they discover a wealth of creatures directly out of the past, extinct only to the outer area of the zone.The film is largely a combination of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's story, 'The Lost World' (which was itself filmed in 1925), and the 1933 genre defining King Kong. Gwangi was penned by the special effects wizard of Kong, Willis O'Brien, but was shelved, and not considered as a conceivable project until after his death in 1962. (Incidentally the script inspired a very similar film in 1956's The Beast of Hollow Mountain.) However, by its release, even the monster movie was a dying breed of film, as the New Hollywood began to take over. Of course, as with the film version of The Lost World, and King Kong, the group capture a beast to take back for a unique public show, which inevitably leads to destruction and disaster.Whilst this genre mash-up was clearly treading ground already exhaustively explored, the film has much period charm. The film is helped a great deal by the genius of Ray Harryhausen (a protégé of O'Brien - and instigator for the production of this film). His attention to detail is incredible, and he imbues character into the monsters. There are an incredible amount of his special effects (dynamation as it is known here), and he delivers with aplomb. When the horseback riders capture a dinosaur using ropes, the sequence must have been a logistical nightmare, but the effect is brilliant - this highlights the reason Harryhausen is a legend. Gwangi also marked the last project that he would animate his beloved dinosaurs, and his later projects largely involved the mythical creatures of Sinbad's '70's outings (Golden Voyage (1973) and Eye of the Tiger (1977)) and Clash of the Titans (1981).www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com
