DESTINATION INNER SPACE (Blu-ray)
1966 / 82 min
Leomark Studios
Review by Stinky the Destroyerš¼
Poor Commander Wayne (Scott Brady). Sent to investigate a mysterious object buzzing around an underwater laboratory, he dutifully goes down there in a diving bell, only to get nothing but flak from the staff.
Former Navy man Hugh Maddox (Mike Road) absolutely hates him. Photographer Sandra Welles (Wende Wagner) hates him mostly because Maddox does. And both of them like to mind Wayne they don’t take orders from him. The object turns out to be a ship that touches down and unleashes an amphibious monster, which wreaks havoc on the station. Wayne wants to kill it, but Dr. LaSatier (Gary Merrill) poos-poos his decision, preferring to study it (even after the beast has killed a few people).
The guy can’t get a break. Even the diving suit they provide for him is obviously two or three sizes too small. In fact, there’s a hilarious scene where he’s arguing with everyone while spending at least a couple of minutes trying to squeeze into the thing (with Brady himself looking exasperated). Still, he leads the charge to defeat the creature and blow up its ship before the station runs out of air.
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| Directed by James Cameron |
Destination Inner Space is a daffy, ultra-cheap underwater thriller that still manages to be entertaining, largely at its own expense. The basic concept of being trapped underwater with a monster is actually pretty solid, and has been used in such later (bigger) movies as Leviathan and Deep Blue Sea. But here, the special effects are gloriously bad, especially the shots of this ‘50 foot wide’ ship hovering over the ocean floor (which would make the clearly visible tiny fish swimming around it the size of Great Whites). Elsewhere, the creature is certainly colorful, but obviously a guy in an ill-fitting rubber suit.The dialogue is often chuckleworthy, too, such as an early scene where Wayne flirts with Dr. Peron (Sheree North), as well as the priceless moment where Maddox’s confession of being a coward makes Sandra love him even more. In fact, all of the manufactured romance here is pretty damn funny. Ultimately, this makes Destination Inner Space an endearingly tacky must-see for bad movie lovers. Be advised, however, that this Blu-ray release sports a picture loaded with film damage and artifacts (unlike a restored version served up by Kino Lorber a few years ago). Additionally, there are no bonus features, chapters, language options or even a main menu. Great cover, though.
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