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THE VALLEY OF GWANGI **1/2 out of *****
 Genres
1969
Directed by Jim O'Connolly Written by William Bast Julian More (additional material) Willis H. O'Brien (uncredited story "Valley of the Mist") Cast James Franciscus .... Tuck Kirby Gila Golan .... T.J. Breckenridge Richard Carlson .... Champ Connors Laurence Naismith .... Prof. Horace Bromley Freda Jackson .... Tia Zorina Gustavo Rojo .... Carlos dos Orsos Dennis Kilbane .... Rowdy Mario De Barros .... Bean Curtis Arden .... Lope
 | Those have to be some damn strong
horses. | The Valley of Gwangi follows Champ Connors' (Richard Carlson) Wild West show, which is falling apart on a Mexican tour around the turn of the century. Disreputable circus wheeler-dealer Tuck Kirby (James Franciscus) is trying to get Connors’ star equestrienne T.J. Breckinridge (Gila Golan) to quit. But T.J. is keeping a secret from both Tuck and Champ; with the help of gypsy cowboy Carlos dos Orsos (Gustavo Rojo) she's entered the Forbidden Valley of Gwangi and stolen a rare prehistoric horse called an Eohippus. But when gypsies steal the Eohippus back to return it to its home, everyone follows. This includes professor Horace Bromley (Laurence Naismith), an expert on extinct animals. In the Forbidden Valley, the fossils he specialises in are alive and kicking!
After spending the night in the Forbidden Valley the group attempt to capture a T Rex-type dinosaur for the circus. The attempt fails and they try to escape the valley and return home, but the dinosaur gives chase. It’s finally knocked unconscious by large boulders falling on its head while attempting to follow the group outside the valley. Finally captured, the beast becomes the new show’s attraction, but when the Gypsies hear of this they send in one of their own to free the beast. He escapes and runs amok throughout the town.
 | The film is lauded for its sensitive
portrayal of gypsies. | The Valley of Gwangi is best described as a western/prehistoric adventure film made for the Saturday matinee crowd looking for a good time but little substance. It’s no surprise that the film’s release was met with relative disappointment, despite the inclusion of effects from the industry wizard Ray Harryhausen (the man behind the magnificent stop motion effects in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad and Clash of the Titans, among others). The film’s failure cannot be blamed on the effects, really the one area that this film excels in. These magnificent effects were then the peak of cinematic visual trickery. However, the film falls flat in a number of areas, primarily the script, which is poor to say the least. This is your typical monster movie that has clearly taken its tune from King Kong: a monster is captured, taken back to the civilised world, escapes and wreaks havoc. So originality is not its strongest suit.
 | Don't you want to know how Gwangi
keeps starting fires? | The Valley of Gwangi is about as formulaic as B-movies get, aside from the western/prehistoric combination, which I believe was a first at the time. Lucky for us this trend didn’t catch on. Now aside from my misgivings this film is fun to watch, if not for the camp action then certainly for a reference to special effects of days past. The now-dated effects are certainly cheesy, but you can’t deny that the craft and skill that went into them is a feat to behold. Look close enough and you’ll see a performance in these stop motion beasts that are still used today as references for big budget CGI-loaded films.
The Valley of Gawngi is one of many B-grade monster films created during the 60’s, but what makes it stand out from the others is the great Harryhausen and his wonderful monsters. It’s worth checking out just for that alone.
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