The Beast of Hollow Mountain

This movie is scripted by Willis O'Brien ,who obviously thought so much of it ,that he used it again in 1969 for the superior The Valley of Gwangi It is a curiosity among movies, being a science fiction and Western hybrid .Mexican based rancher Jimmy -woodenly played by Guy Madison -believes that his dead cattle are the result of predators .He is thinking "Mountain lion " or "coyote " maybe .Wrong!Its a T-Rex and the pattern then follows the standard monster movie template -capture and escape ,rampage and eventually happy ever after resolution . The monster effects are okay for the era but completely overshadowed by the genius of Ray Harryhausen ,employed in the remake .Add somewhat muddy colour and you have a movie whose technical side is deficient by today's standards It still remains worth watching however if only for its being such a rare commodity in combining monster movie and Western

I saw The Beast of Hollow Mountain in the theatre when I was nine. I slept under my bed for weeks. I just knew that T. Rex was going to walk up to 504 5th Avenue West and look in my second storey window and consider me a tender morsel. The world has changed considerably since this movie was in theatres. While it was just as primitive as described by the other reviewers here, this little boy had the be-Jesus scared out of him. I call that good film-making.

I first saw this movie as part of a group of summer matinees offered for children. Later, I remembered it when it came on TV as part of a Cable TV Monstervision. This movie has some very interesting scenes, it is good family entertainment. I will try to contact the Cable TV Networks to please air this movie so others can enjoy it. IF ANYONE KNOWS WHERE I CAN GET A COPY OF THIS MOVIE, PLEASE E-MAIL ME.

It is said that a mountain surrounded by a swamp is hollow and that a prehistoric monster from 'the dawn of time' comes out during times of drought to stalk the land.

Alright, so the plot lacks any sense of reality (there would have to be a whole race of dinosaurs for them to survive until the present day). The special effects also leave something to be desired. But look over these faults and you'll find that this film is actually very enjoyable and entertaining. The dinosaur isn't revealed until the last twenty minutes, but when it shows its face there's non-stop action, and for once the dinosaur can move fast and so poses a genuine threat. The dinosaur itself is fairly well-animated and there is a wonderful 'golden age of monster movies' feel about the whole thing.

When looking through a book of film reviews you would (as I've found) not always find this film. It's minor, old and unacclaimed, and as a result largely unknown. It's worth a look, though. While most reviews would not rank it at all highly, and while it's hardly 'Godzilla' or 'King Kong', it's not that bad. The build up and Mexican scenery promise much, and the story (about a strange beast eating ranchers' sheep in a small Mexican town) does have its fair share of suspense. However, the climax, marred by awful special effects (due to the low budget) lets the whole thing down. This film has its good points, so watch it, but don't expect to be overwhelmed.