Giant scorpions are unearthed by an earthquake and threaten to attack New Mexico. By the numbers script, but the acting is (surprisingly) good...it's just that the script is VERY dull. And when the giant scorpions (and worms and spiders) are on screen the movie is fantastic. These creatures look terrifying (the close ups of the scorpions' face are not pleasant) and the stop motion animation is superb. So...dull except when the monsters are on screen. Worth seeing for monster fans.

A scientist (Richard Denning) just happens to be in Mexico to study volcanoes when disaster strikes--an enormous nasty scorpion attacks and starts killing folks. That's bad--especially since this takes him away from a hot señorita (Mara Corday). Eventually, Denning and his coworker are lowered into a huge pit where they destroy the killer arachnid and the world is saved...that is, until MORE scorpions begin to show themselves and kill even more folks. The Mexican army sure looks pitifully prepared to handle the beast and once again Denning is called into action as an exterminator.

In so many, many ways, this film seems very much like "Them!" except that instead of giant carnivorous ants, we have scorpions. It's all fun in a silly 50s B-movie sort of way, though I was surprised by the special effects. Although the famed Willis O'Brien was in charge of making the creature come to life, this was NOT anything like "King Kong" in quality. Sometimes the creatures looked pretty good--often they were very fuzzy and cheap--and looked nothing like the stop-motion versions by O'Brien. Frankly, Ray Harryhausen's work at this time period was a lot better. Perhaps O'Brien didn't have a budget to work with--all I know is that the effects were so very indifferently done. Fun for those who like this sort of film, but there are better giant killer bug movies--though I can't think of a single better giant scorpion film! Where are the Mexican accents? Guy on police radio has VERY American voice and lady who fell off horse has almost no accent like the locals.

By the way, although this is supposed to be set in Mexico, many of the Mexicans forgot to have Mexican accents. The police dispatcher spoke with an amazingly American accent--and not a hint of Mexican. And Corday had a hint of one...at first and then,...nothing.

A textbook, cut-and-paste example of a '50s monster movie, with all the typical ingredients including strange isolated deaths, a rampage through a city. Really, you could swap the scorpions in this film for a group of giant ants, or a scaly lizard, and it would still make sense.

However what these kind of films all have in their favour are the special effects. For THE BLACK SCORPION, Willis O'Brien, the creator of the original King Kong, is on hand near the end of his career, and he creates some superb scenes with the scorpions. Highlights include a battle between a scorpion and a giant worm (in these stop-motion fests, two monster always end up fighting each other. It's an unwritten rule) and a scene where the scorpions smash apart a model train. And then of course there's the rampage through a city, something which I'll never get tired of.

The actors all do their bit but it's the stop motion effects which we are really watching for, and they don't disappoint at all. The scene where the scorpion smashes the helicopters is exciting, but unfortunately there is no pathos to be spared for insects, and this element is missing. However you do have to feel a bit sorry for something that has just been killed by a man wearing a tank top! THE BLACK SCORPION is a generic film with some excellent special effects to keep things moving along. It's an average example of a monster movie in every respect, but it'll keep you entertained if you're a fan of these things.