The way I was introduced to classic films was through the Universal Classic Monsters all of which had become a source of inspiration to my storytelling. One especially would be one of the first films I ever bought. Creature From The Black Lagoon on paper should be another fifties horror film. But, what it became was another fresh edition to the monsters. This wasn’t your average chiller from the thirties or forties. It followed a scientific approach, with the creature not being a supernatural being but rather a missing link between the land and the water. A Gill-Man, that dates back to the devonian age. The suspense on the creature remains a stellar build up to one of Universal’s most iconic IP’s.
From what I learned from this brilliant film, is that the actor who played the Creature had to hold his breath for at least five minutes during the duration of each underwater scene. To this day, those scenes remain impressive and I was absolutely dumbfounded when I first saw this film. I actually had met the actor himself at a horror convention during my years in Florida. Later on, I would come to find out that the film was mostly shot in Wakulla Springs which would add to my personal love to the film. Since I grew up in Florida, it has always fascinated me about the swamps and unidentified creatures that may lurk under the dark blanket.
The creature has always been my favorite classic monster! I developed far more sympathy and enchantment as opposed to the suave Dracula, the maniacal Invisible Man, or even the tragic Wolf Man. His appearance has always been alluring to me and of course he’s only being territorial. He doesn’t really want to kill, but he feels his home is threatened. He’s only acting on instinct rather than intention like the other monsters. However, he develops a love for the female scientist on the expedition which only causes disposition and eventually calamity. What I love is that human characters are mostly likable.
They only want answers all in the name of science, and they’re very resentful of attempting to capture or kill the creature. One does think they should bring it back to be put on display, to prove what they had found. The rest strongly disagree, saying that it’s too risky. The creature himself is all the more charming even if he doesn’t utter a word. It’s the visual feature that emotionally evokes the audience to the Gill-Man. The Amazon is a beautifully dangerous place, which the film powerfully states. It’s a tragic romance, about a monster from another world being invaded by an alien species and all he does is try to protect his home. But, when love and lust becomes a part of the equation with his hand, staying from killing only makes him as good as dead…
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