Creature from the Black Lagoon: Horror, Politics and Passion in 1954

As usual there are spoilers ahead!

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Description
Creature from the Black Lagoon released in 1954 is in many ways the epitome of 1950s science fiction cinema. Jack Arnold (director), William Alland (producer) and Richard Carlson (the leading man) were all people who has become associated with the increasingly popular genre. It also has a beautiful and stylish Julie Adams as the heroine, scientists on a mission and of course the monster. But there are no themes of nuclear radiation, Russian invasion or small town shenanigans here. The film was filmed in 3D although the peak of 3D popularity had faded and most viewers saw this film in 2D.

Two absolute heavyweights of sci-fi research join me to enlighten us.

The Experts
Jay Telotte is a Professor Emeritus of film and media studies at Georgia Tech. He has written/edited numerous books and articles about science fiction film.

Mark Bould is a professor of Film and Literature at the University of West England, Bristol. He has also written/edited extensively about science fiction cinema.

You can take a look at the Forbidden Planet poster mentioned amongst others that have the same trope by viewing my instagram post here.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction to the film and guests
02:16 Little Jay goes to the cinema
03:19 Universal monsters and comebacks
06:20 The mythical origin of the story
10:03 The monster, its maker and dangerous desires
21:37 Human invaders and Jack Arnold
23:22 Everybody loves Kay
28:59 Man, nature, science and the environment
29:12 Evolution: The Scopes Monkey Trial
33:32 1950s sci-fi: Space opera to the dangers of the depths
38:55 The Legacy: Sequels
45:00 Legacy cont: The Shape of Water
53:10 Recommendations for listeners

NEXT EPISODE!
Next episode we will be taking a closer look at Them! (1953). You can check Just Watch to see where it can be found in your region and the film is available to buy or rent at many outlets including Apple TV.

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