The 1953 American independent monster film The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms began as a 1951 short story of the same title by Ray Bradbury, later published as “The Fog Horn.” The titles credit the film as being suggested by the story. The movie beast was obviously modeled on the original illustration which appeared with the story in The Saturday Evening Post. This groundbreaking film showcased the first major special effects work by stop motion genius Ray Harryhausen, who was also Ray Bradbury’s best friend.

The story opens with a nuclear bomb test far north of the Arctic Circle. The explosion frees a 200-foot long carnivorous dinosaur known as a Rhedosaurus which was trapped in ice for a hundred million years. The creature emerges hungry and apparently angry.

The first person to see this beast is Professor Tom Nesbitt, played by Paul Christian. No one believes him and his account is dismissed as caused from the shock of barely surviving an accident which killed a colleague. He is sent south to recover.

Soon the beast pursues a southerly course, wreaking an ever-increasing trail of destruction until it reaches New York City where it can and does do hundreds of millions of dollars in damages.

Objectionable content includes smoking. There is a surprising mention of the smoking of mind-altering substances in reference to one of the witness accounts: “Tell him to stop smoking that stuff.” There is no other objectionable content except a lot of shooting at the beast as it creates casualties and copious carnage including eating at least one victim on camera.

The special effects are quite impressive for the time. There is a scene at a lighthouse, as in the original story, and a climactic showdown at a roller coaster. It was a derelict roller coaster which inspired Ray Bradbury’s original story, so the roller coaster scene is especially appropriate. Bradbury saw an old coaster’s ruins as the bones of a prehistoric beast.

This film is historic in predating the Godzilla movies and influencing the Jurassic Park series. It is very different in tone from the original short story which creates reader sympathy for the beast. Some movie viewers also feel sympathy for a creature out of place in the modern world.

I say, let the kids watch this! It may induce nightmares but they might just like it.