Caltiki, the Immortal Monster

Amusing, cheap Italian imitation of "the Blob" (along the same lines as the British "X: The Unknown", this film exchanges heroic teenagers for the more usual scientists). Involves scientists who have dug too deeply into the mysteries of "Caltiki" and awakened the giant jelly after his centuries-long snooze. The lead scientist is so smart he leaves a chunk of Caltiki on a table near his kitchen.

Poor direction, hilariously impossible dialogue in the best 50s American style. The photography is noticeably better in quality from the rest of the film, so I wasn't too surprised to see genre pro Bava's name attached (looks like he may have directed some of the more fast and furious climax scenes, too).

All in all, a fun entry in the 50s horror cycle that holds up to the better American camp films of the same period.

In early January, 1961, my older brother and I noticed an ad for CALTIKI in the Chicago Sun Times. A few weeks later, one of my brother's 6th-grade classmates actually saw the film, and reported something about "...a guy who goes down...and comes back up a skeleton." Sounded like something I had better avoid.

In Spring of 1963, my brother borrowed an off-brand monster magazine from a friend that included a big picture-story article on Caltiki, featuring all of the commonly available stills. Significantly, they did NOT show any of the FOUR BIG SHOCK SCENES--so I had no idea what I was in for when, on Saturday night, May 18th, 1963, a Chicago station showed CALTIKI for the 1st time on local TV. My brother and I sat in our den with the lights out, attentively following the film as it unfolded. Suffice to say, when it ended, I was grateful for the phony looking doll-house furniture and toy tanks used in the final scenes, since they helped alleviate the sense of SHOCK caused by the first 25 minutes of the film.

CALTIKI is an astoundingly dark, disturbing film experience....up until and including the first hospital scene. Mario Bava and the Italian horror culture of that era were masters of the ominous, morbid, and grotesque, possessing that unique ability to probe the depths of the truly horrific, stomach-turning---but subtle--- fear that lurks within us all. For a low-budget film, the first 25 minutes of CALTIKI are remarkably well designed and directed---and the script and acting are also generally above average.

Of the four big SHOCK scenes, the fate of the hapless Bob (the diver--played by Daniele Vargas) was undoubtedly the most traumatic for me. WOW-- what a stunner! Expertly staged and edited.....the terrifying underwater scenes (and extremely effective musical score) and the intense pacing as the wet-suit clad body is pulled out of the water...and the fact that the guy is still BREATHING when he is unmasked..really knocked me out on first viewing. It's an image that keeps on giving over the years, a moment that I never recovered from as the film progressed.

Then there's Max's gory, outrageous death scene--but by the time it came around, my 12-year old brain was fried. And how about the infamous and truly disgusting hospital scene, when the hunk of Caltiki is peeled off of Max's arm....GEEZ, guys...could you have thought of anything more sensational and sickening? But that's the peculiarly gory "sensibility" of the Italian/Mexican/Spanish horror industry of the time. (However-- if you look closely, as the nurse walks toward the camera with the blob encased in glass, you clearly see Max's right arm stretched out on the table, looking perfectly normal).

The fourth SHOCK (for me, at least), which is rarely mentioned, is the sight of Ulmer's corpse...deeply disturbing, yet almost beautiful in its nightmarish way--a bizarre piece of cinematic high art that confirms our worst fears about Ulmer's fate, points to the upcoming plot developments, and explains Nieto's delirious rants about "the mummy...!"

Viewing CALTIKI again on this superb new DVD is quite an experience; the very generous commentaries perform a valuable service in documenting the Bava/Italian cult-like appeal of the era, and Tim Lucas' expert observations are greatly appreciated--especially his explanations of the techniques used to create the opening jungle montage with glass-paintings, miniature set pieces, mattes, etc, which have always mystified me. I wish, though, that one or these expert commentators had something REALLY unique about the film to show us: behind-the-scenes production photos, an original script or storyboard, the National Geographic clippings that Lucas mentions were matted into the opening shot...ANYTHING that might still remain of the film. But there's nothing. We DO get a lot (and I mean a great deal) of chatter about the influence of the British Quatermass films on Caltiki...which gets a bit tiresome, especially in the absence of any of the above mentioned rarities which would have greatly enhanced the disc's special features.

My overall opinion of the film hasn't changed much in the 57 years since I first saw it: after the first 25 minutes--in which the sense of dread and ominous, suffocating terror slowly, methodically build and overpower the intrepid band of scientists---- the film really takes a nose-dive, becoming a rather drab, uninspired, routine sci-fi action/melodrama. The only scenes which really maintain the creepy, lurid tone of the opening are the scenes in which Max (Gerard Herter) is onscreen. He's one fascinating and crazy guy to watch.

In any case, this new DVD rescues one of the great, low-budget cult horror films from obscurity. Who knows?-- maybe CALTIKI will now get a little more respect, thanks to this new, admirably documented release.

PS-- If you'd like to see and hear Gerard Herter's (who played the demented "Mad" Max in CALTIKI) real (German accented) voice, check out the episode "The Great Casino Caper" from TV's "It Takes a Thief" (posted on You Tube), and the scene at 21:55". Herter lived and worked in Italy, where this episode was shot (with Robert Wagner, Fred Astaire, and Ed Binns). Make sure you watch an ENGLISH-dialogue version, not the Italian dub that's also posted. LR

This shocking movie provides great load of screams , terror, creepy atmosphere which becomes pretty sinister with the mound of glop appearing here and there . Set in Mexico , this sci-fi picture has blob-ish fiend pursuing members of a team of archaeologists . As the scientific people in Mexico encounter an amorphous , blob-like monster that shows up to be connected with the collapse of the Mayan civilization. This monster is stripping human flesh from bone , creeping, multiplying, devouring and hungry for the blood of a world . Along the way , a comet from exterior space is due to pass close to the Earth , resulting to be the same comet passed near the Earth at the time the Mayan civilization mysteriously collapsed. And at a house and a hospital are besieged by the enormous, man-eating amoebic mass and fast-growing .Will the first life on Earth be the last terror of Man?. Terror amok! Hungry for the flesh of the world! . Towering over Jungle and City... Creeping, Multiplying, Devouring! Man is no longer the supreme being on this planet ! . Now, terror has no shape !. Scream now, while there's still room to breathe. Terror has no shape. If it had a mind, you could reason with it. If it had a face, you could look it in the eye. And if it had a body, you could shoot it. Slimy Glob of Doom Engulfs The World! . Crawling, Crushing Colossus of Terror!. None Can Stop It! Nothing Can Kill It! The Ever Growing Thing! Armies of the World Combat Deadly Menace! Death Dance of the Voodod Virgin! Whole Cities Swallowed Up By Gruesome Mile-High Glob!

A camp classic that was shot with medium budget from the Fifties containing intrigue , suspense , grisly murders and lots of blood and gore , while shocking when the large Glob exploding through the theater screen and the spectators are watching. The plot is plain a simple, a group of archaeologists investigating some Mayan ruins come across a blob-like monster , then things go wrong . The movie belongs to Italian Horror genre , in which Riccardo Freda (¨Secret of Dr. Hitchcock¨ , ¨Il Vampiri¨) along with Mario Bava (¨Planet of vampires¨, ¨House of exorcism¨) are the fundamental creators . In fact , both of whom collaborated deeply among them , as Bava finished two Fedra's films , this ¨Il Vampiri¨ and ¨Caltiki¨ . Although being poorly conceived , however being entertaining and fun enough . It's a sleek production with genuine chills , tension, shocks and nice special effects by Mario Bava himself , making an exciting slimy jello invader and frightening and horrifying to the audience . This thrilling film was well starred by an unknown but functional duo : John Merivale and Didi Sullivan , accompanied by a plethora of familiar Italian actors , such as : Giacomo Rossi Stuart , Daniela Rocca , Daniele Vargas , Gérard Herter , Arturo Dominici , Nerio Bernardi and Renzo Palmer as narrator . This¨Caltiki il mostro immortale¨ or ¨Caltiki, the Immortal Monster¨ (United States title,1959) takes parts of ¨The Blob¨ (1958) by Irvin S Yeaworth with Steve McQueen , the latter was followed by a remake that rips off Irvin S. Yeaworth's version ,¨The Blob¨ (1988) by Chuck Russell with more gore and guts than original, being again remade by Larry Hagman in ¨Beware, the Blob¨ (1972) .

The motion picture was professionally directed by Riccardo Freda assisted by Mario Bava. Riccardo Freda used to sign his works with a number of aliases during his career, including Robert Hampton or George Lincoln and as screenwriter Riccardo Freda . His artistic spirit led him to a strong belief in the importance of visual composition in filmmaking . Freda worked in many popular genres, including viking films, Peplum, spaghetti westerns, action, and even Softcore, but it is his horror films and Giallo mystery films which stand out and for which he is best remembered . Freda along with Vittorio Cottafavi continued to realize films in the historical-spectacular style , at which he developed a considerable skill and mastery . From the mid-50s Freda's liking make for atmospheric and colorful scenes of shock began to itself apparent , especially in such Musclemen epics as ¨Teodora¨ , ¨Spartacus¨ , ¨Giants of Thessaly¨ , ¨The seventh sword¨ , ¨Maciste all's inferno ¨, the latter a gripping/horror Peplum and , of course, ¨Maciste in the court of the Great Khan¨, one of his best films . In the early 60s , he was a pioneer in Italy of horror-fantasy films frightening audiences the world over , especially with ¨I Vampiri¨ and ¨L'Orrible Segreto del Doctor Hitchcock¨ as he combined with that wide-staring of actress , the British-born Barbara Steele . He also made adventures as ¨Black Eagle¨ , ¨The son of Black Eagle¨ , ¨White devil¨ , ¨Son of D'Artagnan¨ , and uncredited ¨Daughter of D'Artagnan¨ ¨. From there he went to melodrama and spy films as ¨¨Mexican Slayride¨and ¨Coplan FX18¨ and even made some westerns as ¨No killing without dollars¨ with Mark Damon and signed under pseudonym as George Lincoln . Freda's movies had popular appeal , and were usually commercial hits . Several were French/Spanish/Italian or other European co-productions . He has been called a filmmaker "who brings some style to exploitation pictures", and has something of a cult following . Rating : 6.5/10 , better than average horror/monster movie .

This Italian sci-fi/horror film has been mentioned so often ever since I've been browsing the Internet (and prior to that on the occasional reference book) that it had practically acquired legendary status! Now that I've watched it myself, I can say that it's an effective blend of THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT (1955) and Mexi-Horror – though it's not as intellectual as the former, nor as campy as the latter (on the accompanying Audio Commentary, Luigi Cozzi also mentions the Japanese sci-fi THE H-MAN [1958] as a possible influence); the climax, then, seems to have been inspired by QUATERMASS II (1957) – while the archaeologists' discovery of footage shot by their missing/deranged companions actually looks forward to CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST (1979).

For its miniscule budget (which shows in the distinct lack of extras during a conference held to announce to the world the historic find!), the film's look (Rome standing in for Mexico!) and make-up effects (quite repulsive for the time, with the monster scenes themselves being perhaps more extensive than contemporary genre efforts) are very convincing; the attack by the blob-like monster on lead John Merivale's house (with his wife and daughter trapped inside) is especially well done – and reasonably scary. The cast – also featuring Gerard Herter (an unsympathetic variant on THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT's Richard Wordsworth), Daniela Rocca and Arturo Dominici – is interesting as well and there's a fine, suitably rousing score by Roberto Nicolosi.

The DVD supplements are superb (I'm lucky to be fluent in Italian) and include two separate interviews featuring genre exponent Luigi Cozzi – who attempts, firstly, to restore to its proper place screenwriter/designer Filippo Sanjust's undervalued contribution to the film and, then, outlines Bava's exact function behind-the-scenes (he didn't actually direct any of it but, following Freda's departure, took charge during the editing stage) – and critic/historian Steve Della Casa – who talks about Freda's place in the history of Italian cinema and mentions an especially amusing anecdote involving Freda and another cult film-maker, Vittorio Cottafavi, on meeting one another in their old age at a Film Festival (each thought the other would look down on his work only to discover that they were secret admirers of one another!). It's a pity, therefore, that film buffs unfamiliar with the language can't enjoy the Audio Commentary either, as it's a truly fascinating discussion: among other things, critic Giona A. Nazzaro voices his regret over the lost art of Italy's genre cinema; there's also an interesting sideline into the unusually creative contribution of editors to Italian films during this era, among whom Mario Serandrei (responsible for CALTIKI itself) was one of the undisputed masters; Cozzi, however, mistakenly refers to John Merivale as having played Sherlock Holmes in A STUDY IN TERROR (1965), when it was actually John Neville (Merivale didn't in fact appear in that film!).

Finally, since Image's DVD of an earlier Freda/Bava collaboration – I VAMPIRI (1957) – hasn't gone out-of-print and, so, will probably not be part of Anchor Bay's upcoming Mario Bava releases, I may well spring for it in the near future along with THE GHOST (1963), an unwatched classic Freda that's been coupled with a German Krimi – DEAD EYES OF London (1961) – on the Retromedia DVD

I saw this when I was 8 years old, and it scared me so much I had to momentarily leave my seat. I ran back to the men's restroom and hid inside for a minute or so, then slowly came back out and stood in back by the usher and watched for another minute or two more, and finally returned to my seat for the rest of the movie. This never happened to me in any other movie, and as an adult, I was very curious to know just what it was in this otherwise standard black and white B-Movie Monster fare that could cause such a reaction. I just watched it again, for the first time since 1959, and I believe it was a combination of having my wits scared out of me when I identified with the little girl and her mother trapped in the bedroom with Catiki swelling up against the door, and stomach churning revulsion at the nasty looking mess that was left after Caltiki started digesting its victims. Unlike Steve McQueen's Blob which looked almost like an edible piece of cherry Jello, Caltiki sometimes took on the appearance of a soiled cloth rag completely saturated with thick dark mud (or some unmentionable organic substance), and the mess that was left after it digested its victims was indescribably disgusting for the era. The plot is corny and hackneyed, with the obligatory hysteria over the evils of radiation, and knuckle-headed careless scientists. But it is campy and scary, and worth watching. I ended up springing for a DVD, since I never see this shown on television anymore, apart from once seeing it offered by Showtime many years ago. Why do movies like this just vanish?