last dinosaur - prowl

It’s funny what movies stick with you when you’re a kid. I remember watching The Last Dinosaur in 1977, a made-for-TV movie designed to compete with the Godzilla craze, and being more scared of star Richard Boone than any of the rubber monsters on display. As the actual “dinosaur” of the title, Boone is a loud-mouthed, hulking misogynist billionaire who longs to put a T-Rex on his trophy wall. His chance comes when his oil drill breaks through into a prehistoric world, populated by the same man-in-suit monsters seen in similar fare like At The Earth’s Core and The Land Time Forgot. While primitive, the effects are charmingly effective and photographed with more creativity than usual (a boneyard T-Rex / Triceritops fight is most impressive). But it’s Boone you remember; his bloated features and gruff voice perfect for a man who’s more at home in a cave than a mansion. While the script and acting in general will make you cringe if you haven’t seen it since it’s small screen debut, this Rankin/Bass production (yep, the same folks who made Rudolph and Frosty) will most definitely hit the nostalgia button. Especially when you hear than heart-breaking theme song…is that available on iTunes?

Even though Twilight turned vampires into emo-fashion models that twinkle in the sunlight, you don’t have to look hard for movies that portray bloodsuckers as the evil, ugly, nasty creatures they really are. Prowl prefers the From Dusk ‘Til Dawn approach, with a group of teens delivered via tractor-trailer to a vampire feeding ground as live-game for hunting practice. Part of the After Dark Originals, the film has a promising set-up then zig-zags around looking for a plot to follow, stranding us in the all-too-typical abandoned warehouse setting (a favorite location of low-budget horror and sci-fi filmmakers). A hair or two better than your average direct-to-DVD far, Prowl loses itself with a rather ridiculous plot twist that might have served better as a TV pilot. Here, we’re left hanging as one movie ends…setting up an arguably much better one we’ll never get to see. Still, director Patrik Syversen executes at least one doozy of a scene in the back of a delivery truck. After that, his film just runs out of gas. Extras include a Making Of and commentary.