Product Description

Commies made him an atomic mutant! Noted Russian nuclear scientist Joseph Javorsky (Tor Johnson) escapes to the United States with "Top Secret" Soviet documents. U.S. Army personnel accompany him to the Yucca Flats Atomic Testing Grounds, but Soviet agents are in hot pursuit! They run Javorsky's car off the road, right into the bomb testing site. During the ensuing gunfight, an H-bomb detonation kills everyone except Javorsky, who is transformed into a crazed atomic-mutated beast on a bloodthirsty rampage! Inspired by the Cold War, Communist infiltration of America, and the constant threat of atomic attacks, this drive-in theater classic from the Kennedy Era stars cult favorites Tor Johnson and Conrad Brooks from "Plan 9 from Outer Space."

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #25741 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-09-05
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Black & White, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 54 minutes

Amazon.com
Government security sure has gotten lax at nuclear test sites. It seems like any old defecting Russian nuclear physicist fleeing Soviet agents (who are oddly indistinguishable from American gangsters) can stumble into an A-bomb detonation by accident and turn into a bloodthirsty monster. (You think Stan Lee watched this film before creating the Incredible Hulk?) Meanwhile a vacationing family wanders through the desert as the cops hunt the atomic beast. Tor Johnson (an Ed Wood Jr. fixture) makes a superbly cheesy rampaging mutant, but the film really enters the Twilight Zone when the investigating cops mistake an innocent dad looking for his sons lost in the desert for their target ("Shoot first, ask questions later" is their motto). Supercheap cult director Coleman Francis shot this without sound, dubbing it all in later, and he clumsily cuts away from every actor as they start to speak to hide his handiwork. He hardly had to worry: the flat dialogue and wooden narration is almost absurd enough to distract viewers from his cinematic incompetence. In short, a masterpiece of zero-budget camp with an unbelievably surreal edge. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews

Bevare!
Cool title, neat cover, Tor, looks like a winner, right? Don't be fooled. I love Robot Monster, Kronos, Colossal Man (BTW, why is this not on DVD?), etc., and truly believe that Ed Wood Jr. is a far superior filmmaker to Lucas, Speilberg, et al., but even for a fan of this kind of thing, this one is excruciating. By all means buy it for the cover so friends will think you're outre hip or whatever, but do not actually watch it or you will hate yourself. I'm writing this to help people. Ignore at your own risk!

No-Budget Cinema
The theatrical trailer proclaims that this 1961 schlock-fest was "filmed ENTIRELY on location in Yucca Flats!" How's that for an endorsement? Actually, the trailer is far superior to this dreary attempt at Z-grade science-fiction, with no synchronized dialogue but more voiceover narration than any movie in history. "The Beast of Yucca Flats" does not belong in the "so bad it's funny" category - it's just plain bad. Recommended only to fans of Tor Johnson.

Awful Movie and Video To Boot
Everybody knows that this MAY be even worse than "Plan 9" or "Manos The Hands Of Fate" and it is. The only problem with this Alpha Video release is that the source print is the worst I have EVER seen. I cannot believe a better print was not available. Avoid this and go with the DVD from Image.