The Curse of the Komodo

I thought 'Curse of the Komodo' was decent. Sadly, though, Jim Wynorski took what could have been a fascinating subject and turned it into a cheesy B movie.

The characters' remark that the Komodo Dragon is 'the world's most dangerous reptile' is probably accurate. It is certainly one of the more intimidating. The thought of Komodos being mutated to be larger, stronger, more aggressive or perhaps less held in check by whatever forces of nature hold them in check, is a pretty scary one. A movie in which mutated Komodos grow to be maybe 1.5 or twice their normal size would be scary and feasible enough to be acceptable for a horror movie junkie.

However, Wynorski seems to be trying to make another dinosaur movie. These gigantic Komodos look an awfully lot like raptors or T-Rex's! Do Komodos actually walk around on their hind legs? I cannot recall ever seeing a photo of one doing so. The scene that lost me was when the four crooks are sneaking up on the others and see them fighting off the Komodo from a side view. That shot was as cheesy and phony as any I recall seeing from the 1950s! Of course, those who touch the Komodo 'venom' turning into murderous zombies, is a bit over-the-line, too! That said, the movie wasn't terrible. I disagree with the attacks on the acting. The no-name cast isn't bad. I really like William Langlois as the professor---although he really reminds me more of a high school or college football coach than a scientist! He and his co-worker Dawn (Gail Harris) work well together. I couldn't keep the other 'good guys' straight in one and a half viewings.

The crooks aren't bad, either. Bad dude/bodybuilder Drake (Paul Logan) is convincing enough, although I was never really sure what I thought about him. His girl Friday, with her Meredith Baxter-Birney neon-white teeth, is a level above the average B-horror bimbo. I halfway felt myself being drawn to her as the film went on. I can't say the same for the good doctor's whiny big-boobed daughter, who really deserved to be Komodo food. I like the other two crooks, too. The booze-swilling copter pilot is well played by Ted Monte and Cam Newlin is good as Reese, the other crook.

Overall, this isn't a bad one. I certainly made sure I returned it in time, though. This isn't one that's worth paying a late fee on!

Want to see Jurassic Park style special effects and Oscar caliber acting? I can recommend a lot of movies for you...but this is not one of them.

That however, is not a knock of this movie. Curse of the Komodo is a low budget romp and it serves it's purpose. It entertained me for 90 minutes, just as it was meant too.

My review. Not as good as the 'original', but still entertaining. It had it obligatory boob scene (rather pointless) and women in tight shirts, buff guys and baaad military guys. Did I mention the horrendous special effects? These FX would not have been out of place in the 60's! Bullerproof lizards, zombie creating slime, bank robbers and corrupt military officers, buff guys and buxom women, stock footage of big boats...what more could a movie want?

In the Isla Damas, a group of soldiers lands on the island and are attacked and murdered by a Komodo dragon. Two men, Hanson (Ted Monte) and Jason (J.P.Davis), leave a building surrounded by an electric fence to seek out survivors. They run back to the building and a woman, Rebecca "Becky" (Glori-Anne Gilbert), who is the daughter of the scientist. Nathan Phipps (William Langlois) deactivates the fence. Phipps and his assistant Dawn Porter (Gail Harris) contact the Chief of a Naval Base at Hawaii, Foster (Jay Richardson), to discuss the dragons that are genetically-engineered by them to produce food that have turned into war machines by Foster. Meanwhile, a casino is robbed in Hawaii by the thieves Drake (Paul Logan), Tiffany (Melissa Brasselle), and Reece (Cam Newlin) that flee to Damas using the pilot of helicopter Jack (Tim Abell). Soon they meet Phipps and Dawn shooting at a Komodo dragon and they learn that they need to team-up with the scientists to survive. Further, the contact with a Komodo turns the person onto a zombie. However the fuel of the generator is finishing and Foster does not have the intention of rescuing the group that knows too much about his project Catalyst. How will they survive from the dragons?

"The Curse of the Komodo" is one of those movies so lame, illogical and trash that becomes funny. The plot is absurd and stupid. Why the soldiers have come to the island? If fuel is primordial to keep the protection against the dangerous creatures, why there is not enough fuel and a backup generator? If bullets do not affect the dragons, why the group insists in shooting at the Komodo? In addition the ham acting is hilarious inclusive with the participation of soft-porn actress. My vote is three.

Title (Brazil): "Criaturas" ("Creatures")

That in the "bombing" and "hes turning into a zombie" scene the lines of this movie and its counter-part Komodo vs. Cobra were exactly the same.

In the "they got off the island" scene, the only thing that was changed was the name of the sergeant!

Did someone run out of money for the script writers?

Also, this movie was based in the '00 but the Geneva Conventions, Napalm was banned as a unfair chemical, along with nerve gas, etc.

I wish someone would have made this movie better, it was sort of a good plot.

The only thing i can say about this film is that it's awful in every aspect. The script is terrible. The story is a poor excuse and the dialogs are very badly written. The actors look like amateurs. Two actresses were selected probably because they have large breasts (and only because of that), since their acting skills are as good as the Komodo's. And even the visual effects are surprisingly bad, since this film is quite recent. There is almost no interaction between the Komodo and the actors. The result is a movie with not a single point of interest to show for.

Even if your are fan of this genre of movie, my advice is look elsewhere.