*** Welcome to piglix ***

The Black Scorpion (film)

The Black Scorpion
BlackScorpion1957movie.jpg
Directed by Edward Ludwig
Produced by Jack Dietz
Frank Melford
Written by Robert Blees
David Duncan
Starring Richard Denning
Mara Corday
Carlos Rivas
Mario Navarro
Music by Paul Sawtell
Cinematography Lionel Lindon
Edited by Richard L. Van Enger
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Release date
  • October 11, 1957 (1957-10-11) (USA)
  • January 15, 1958 (1958-01-15) (Japan)
Running time
88 minutes
Country United States
Mexico
Language English

The Black Scorpion is a 1957 black-and-white Mexican-American giant insect horror film from Warner Bros., produced by Jack Dietz and Frank Melford, directed by Edward Ludwig, that stars Richard Denning, Mara Corday, Carlos Rivas and Mario Navarro.

The film's stop motion animation special effects were created by Willis O'Brien.

An earthquake strikes Mexico, resulting in the overnight birth of a new volcano. Sent to study this phenomenon are geologists Dr. Hank Scott (Denning) and Dr. Arturo Ramos (Rivas). En route to the village of San Lorenzo, the two men witness a destroyed house and police car. They find a dead policeman nearby, as well as an abandoned infant.

They take the infant to San Lorenzo and give it to friends of the child's now missing parents; they are welcomed by the village's priest, Father Delgado (Pedro Galván). In addition to the disappearances of locals and the destruction of their homes, there have been wholesale slaughter of livestock and strange roaring noises in the night. The villagers believe the culprit to be a demon bull and have been pestering Delgado for divine assistance. Undaunted, Hank and Arturo begin their geological survey as members of the Mexican army, led by Major Cosio (Arturo Martínez), arrive in San Lorenzo to begin disaster relief efforts. Hank meets and falls in love with local rancher Teresa Alvarez (Corday) and makes friends with a young boy named Juanito (Navarro).

The volcano erupts again and the true culprits behind the disappearances and deaths are revealed as giant prehistoric scorpions. After killing a staff of telephone repairmen, the scorpions turn their attention to San Lorenzo itself, with the guns of Major Cosio's troops having no effect on them. The next morning, the scorpions have returned to their underground lair (which, in addition to the scorpions, is home to giant worms and spiders), leaving the authorities to seek the help of renowned entomologist Dr. Velasco (Carlos Múzquiz). It is up to him, Hank and Arturo to figure out a way to either destroy the scorpions or seal off the entrance to their cavern home, before more innocent lives are lost.


...
Wikipedia

...