Beyond Atlantis

Eddie Romero – 1973 – USA
 

One of many exploitation films produced in the Philippines by Roger Corman in the 70s, Beyond Atlantis also continues genre director Eddie Romero’s apparent preoccupation with the theme of Wells’ Dr. Moreau.  As in Terror is a Man (1959), (which Romero only wrote) or The Twilight People (1972), there is so often a remote island where animals and humans have been spliced together either through evolutionary mutation or (more often) the cruel experiments of a mad scientist.  In Beyond Atlantis, a race of fish-eyed people have a human-looking princess (Leigh Christian) who must mate periodically with a full human in order to keep the tribe going.  They also have an abundance of large pearls in the waters surrounding the island that they use to barter for supplies, and which draw the attention of fortune-seekers on the mainland.  An unlikely group – pimp Sid Haig, diver John Ashley, anthropologist Lenore Stevens and boat pilot Patrick Wayne – set sail to investigate, finding themselves unwelcome intruders on the reclusive fish-people’s island.  It’s a lot of silly fun, some political topicality, some beautiful scenery (including much underwater photography), humor and even an homage to The Treasure of the Sierra Madre as the camaraderie between the three men breaks down once the pearls start to pile up.