The Giant Behemoth (1959 film)

***The Giant Behemoth*** is a 1959 science fiction monster film produced by the Artistes Alliance. It was released to American theaters on March 3, 1959 and to British theaters in October of the same year.
Originally a story about an amorphous blob of radiation, the script was changed at the distributor's insistence to a style similar to *The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms* (1953), though elements of the original concept remain in the early parts of the film and in the "nuclear-breathing" power of the titular monster.

## Staff

Staff role on the left, staff member's name on the right.

* Directed by   Eugène Lourié, Douglas Hickox
* Written by   Eugène Lourié, Daniel Hyatt
* Produced by   Ted Lloyd
* Music by   Edwin Astley
* Cinematography by   Ken Hodges
* Edited by   Lee Doig
* Production design by   Harry White
* Assistant directing by   Kim Mills
* Special effects by   Jack Rabin, Irving Block, Louis de Witt, Willis O'Brien, Pete Petterson

## Cast

Actor's name on the left, character played on the right.

* Gene Evans   as   Steve Karnes
* André Morell   as   Professor James Bickford
* John Turner   as   John
* Leigh Madison   as   Jean Trevethan
* Jack MacGowran   as   Dr. Sampson
* Maurice Kaufmann   as   Mini submarine officer
* Henri Vidon   as   Thomas Trevethan
* Leonard Sachs   as   Scientist

## Production

The live-action scenes for *The Giant Behemoth* were filmed entirely in Great Britain, including London. The stop-motion animation special effects by Willis O'Brien were shot in a Los Angeles studio, where they were also optically integrated with the live-action footage.

In an odd connection between O'Brien and his most famous creation, stock screams that were used in *King Kong* can be heard in the scenes where the creature attacks the ferry and when it invades London.

In the book *Video Movie Guide 2002*, mention of the stop-action animation was made, but with the proviso that "the film monster wasn't bad but Willis O'Brien was clearly working with a low budget".

The original 71m 07s version, as *The Giant Behemoth*, was initially given an X certificate by the British Board of Film Censors on 9 January 1959, before a version cut to 69m 07s, as *Behemoth the Sea Monster*, was given an A certificate four days later.

## Reception

American film critic Andrew Wickliffe considered the lead up to the appearance of the monster to be more interesting than the rampage that follows, writing, "I'm not sure the British are really suited for giant monster movies. No offense to the Brits, but watching a bunch of folks stand around and keep the stiff upper lip while radioactive monsters from the deep attack London isn't too much fun".

Regarding a later release of the film in a package with other science fiction features, film reviewer Glenn Erickson observed that *The Giant Behemoth* was derivative, speculating that "... director Eugène Lourié apparently instructed writers Robert Abel and Alan Adler to repackage his original *The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms*, copying whole scenes and situations. The structure and script are almost a verbatim clone, right down to the dotty paleontologist".

## Alternate titles

* ***Behemoth the Sea Monster*** (original English title; *Behemoth, o Monstro Marinho*, Portuguese title)
	+ ***Behemoth - Sea Monster*** (Бегемот - Морской Монстр, Russian title)
* ***Giant Sea Monster Behemoth*** (大海獣ビヒモス, Japanese video title)
* ***The Undersea Monster*** (*O Monstro Submarino*, Brazilian title; *El Monstruo Submarino*, Spanish title)
* ***The Monster of the Sea*** (Το Τέρας Της Θαλάσσης, Greek title)
* ***The Dragon from the Abyss*** (*Il Drago Degli Abissi*, Italian title)
* ***The Loch Ness Monster*** (*Das Ungeheuer von Loch Ness*, German title)

## Theatrical releases

* United States - March 3, 1959
* United Kingdom - October 1959
* Germany - March 3, 1961

## Video releases

**Warner Brothers** DVD (2007)

* **Region:** 1
* **Discs:** 1
* **Audio:** English
* **Subtitles:** English, French
* **Special features:** Audio commentary by Dennis Muren and Phil Tippett
* **Notes:** May also be packaged with *Queen of Outer Space* and *Attack of the 50-Foot Woman*

**Run Corporation** DVD (2009)

* **Region:** 2
* **Discs:** 1
* **Audio:** English
* **Subtitles:** Japanese

**Simply Home Entertainment** DVD (2010)

* **Region:** 2
* **Discs:** 1
* **Audio:** English

**Warner Brothers** DVD (2011) / Blu-ray (2019)

* **Region:** 0
* **Discs:** 1
* **Audio:** English
* **Subtitles:** English
* **Special features:** Audio commentary by Dennis Muren and Phil Tippett, theatrical trailer

**L'atelier 13** DVD (2015)

* **Region:** 0
* **Discs:** 1
* **Audio:** English
* **Subtitles:** German, French
* **Notes:** Comes packaged with *Attack of the Crab Monsters*