The Universal Classic Monsters--as epitomized by Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf-Man,
and The Mummy--were in steep decline by the early 1950's, with increasingly low-budget
sequels not doing spectacular business at the box office. The most successful
entries in the loosely-connected franchise were spoofs featuring Abbot and Costello,
but Universal refused to give up on the formula, and with science-fiction on the rise, the studio
knew there was potential to create another horror icon. All that was needed was a good story,
and a good story was exactly what producer William Alland had been sitting on for a decade.
On a quest to find the fossilized remains of a half-man half-fish from the Devonian age, the
crew of the Rita travel into the unspoiled majesty of the Amazon, to a place from whence no man has
ever returned. There, they are discovered by a living example of the ancient being they seek,
and this Gillman, drawn to the only woman on the expedition, makes himself known,
only to be attacked on sight. Before long, the crew of the Rita realizes just how dangerous
this creature can be, and they must fight for their lives if they wish to escape his domain.
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During the filming of Citizen Kane in 1941, William Alland was told a fantastic story
by cinematographer Gabriel Figueroa about a half-man, half-fish creature that would come
up from the waters of the Amazon River once a year to kidnap unwitting maidens. Alland was so
taken with the tale that he wrote it down as a story outline called "The Sea Monster."
Then, ten years later and shortly after assigning the sci-fi legend Ray Bradbury to write the story
for It Came from Outer Space, Alland expanded his sea monster story into a movie treatment
that combined Figueroa's fish-man tale with the general plot outline of 1933's King Kong.
This treatment had two possible endings: one in which the creature is put down heroically,
and one in which it is taken back to civilization where it escapes and wreaks havoc.
Maurice Zimm and Leo Lieberman were then assigned, in turn, to work on the story further,
but Universal was ultimately unhappy with the end results, complaining that they were too
similar to King Kong. With the project on life support, Alland then gave it to Arthur Ross--who
suggested the idea of turning one of the scientist leads into a heroic figure--and
Harry Essex, who would later claim far more credit for the story than he probably deserved,
much as he did for It Came from Outer Space.
With It Came from Outer Space proving to be a hit, Alland hired that film's director, Jack Arnold,
to helm what was then called "Black Lagoon," a 3-D sci-fi horror spectacle for the ages.
After briefly considering Frank Lovejoy to play the lead,
the role was ultimately given to Richard Carlson, yet another veteran of It Came from Outer Space.
Alongside him as the female lead was Julie Adams, whose prior career was mostly made up of B-movie
westerns and who wasn't terribly enthusiastic about being the damsel in a sci-fi horror. She
would later remark that the filming of Creature from the Black Lagoon was surprisingly pleasant,
and it would become the movie she is most well-known for. One of her most famous scenes,
though, was actually performed by the model, swimmer, underwater performer, and "professional
mermaid" Ginger Stanley, who doubled for Adams in all of her character's underwater scenes.
Other notable actors include Richard Denning as the villainous Mark, the Spanish-born silent-era
director Antonio Moreno as Dr. Maia, and the great character actor Whit Bissel as Dr. Thompson.
As for the titular Gillman, he was played by two different men: actor Ben Chapman
on land and cave diver Ricou Browning in the water. Browning only got the role by chance,
as he was asked to give the filmmakers a tour of Wakulla Springs in Florida, where the underwater
scenes would later be filmed. During this tour, he showed off his skills as an underwater performer
during a camera test, and was subsequently offered the part based on his unique way of swimming.
The creature went through a few different iterations, all primarily designed by Milicent
Patrick. At Universal's request, Patrick did a publicity run where she showed off the final
model of the creature, but the lead make-up artist, Bud Westmore, took exception to anyone
else taking credit, and for decades, Milicent Patrick's work was downplayed by Universal.
The Gillman costumes were built mostly out of hand-carved foam rubber glued to body suits,
lovingly painted sea green due to initial plans to have the movie filmed in color,
and the carefully carved head provided challenges both above water and below the surface.
On land, tubes and air-bladders were inserted into the sides of the face to create
gill movements--which had to be carefully timed to sync up with Ben Chapman moving his jaw--and
the head was fitted with three different types of eyes,
each suited to different visibilities depending on how close the camera would be to the actor's face.
Chapman also had difficulty walking the way Jack Arnold wanted him to, and so ten pound weights
were added to his boots to force him to glide his feet awkwardly, like a fish out of water.
This lack of visibility and clumsy way of walking resulted in the film's only publicized accident,
where Chapman banged the head of actress Julie Adams against some plaster rocks.
Adams wasn't seriously injured, but Chapman was horrified,
leading to one of the most memorable behind the scenes moments where you
can see the creature looking on anxiously as a bandage is placed on Adams' forehead.
Underwater, visibility in the suit was an even bigger problem. They tried to use a diving mask,
but it wouldn't fit without making the creature's head cartoonishly large,
and they also tried swimming goggles, but Ricou Browning was unable to clear them when they would
inevitably get filled with water. Ultimately, they decided to go with nothing over his eyes,
but even though the Florida water was relatively clear,
the tiny holes of the head's eyes meant that Browning had an incredibly narrow field of view.
For all intents and purposes, he was rendered blind for the entirety of his performance.
This was uniquely problematic given how his underwater scenes were put together.
There was obviously no room in his suit for SCUBA gear, so every scene in which you see
the creature underwater, the actor is holding his breath. Between takes,
he would have to swim over to an off-screen tank and breathing hose,
which you can imagine is a tall order for someone who can't see anything.
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where you'll find written reviews of plenty more sci-fi classics in both film and literature.
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Filming took place in late 1953 on Universal soundstages, in the Sierra Canyon and the manmade
Park Lake on the Universal backlot, at the Hermosa Beach aquarium, at Will Rogers State Beach,
and at Portuguese Bend. The underwater sequences were all filmed by a second unit in Wakulla
Springs in Florida, under the direction of either James Curtis Havens or Charles "Scotty" Welbourne,
depending on who you believe, and doubles were used there for all the principle actors.
Universal decided against using Eastman color due to the expense,
but they still went ahead with plans to film it in 3-D,
requiring the creation of an underwater housing for the bulky 3-D cameras, as no feature film had
ever used 3-D in underwater before, something that was played up in the film's marketing.
"Startling beyond belief in the screen's first underwater 3-D thrill!"
Creature from the Black Lagoon premiered in February of 1954
for a wide release in March. It was a critical and popular success in its initial run,
earning roughly $1.3 million in rentals and becoming a bonafide cultural phenomenon.
A sequel was already planned before the film was even finished--which is why the creature's
fate is left ambiguous--and two sequels would be released in the next two years, earning the
Gillman a spot next to Dracula and Frankenstein as an iconic Universal Classic Monster.
Various remakes have been proposed over the years, with one nearly getting the greenlight with Jack
Arnold as producer, John Landis as director, and Rick Baker in charge of the makeup effects,
but Universal ultimately chose to go ahead with Jaws 3-D instead.
There were plans to include it in the now-defunct Dark Universe that started and
ended with 2017's The Mummy, and rumors of a current remake in the
wake of 2020's successful Invisible Man reboot have been floating around for over a year now.
It's also worth noting that the Oscar-winning Guillermo del Toro film The Shape of Water
was inspired by The Creature from the Black Lagoon, not to mention all the
other various ways the Gillman has appeared throughout pop culture.
In my opinion, Creature from the Black Lagoon could easily have been just another
by-the-numbers bit of sci-fi schlock. I don't mean to imply there's anything wrong
with sci-fi schlock, of course, but this is a film that has a surprising amount of depth.
It can be read in multiple ways. From the perspective of the Universal Classic Monsters,
the Gillman is a worthy addition that fits a familiar pattern:
a misunderstood beast that doesn't initiate the inevitable, bloody conflict.
The director, Jack Arnold, stated explicitly that he wanted the film to highlight man's inhumanity
and innate tribalism, to sneak in subtle messages about racism and prejudice that he wouldn't have
been able to state overtly. Not only is the Gillman a victim of the innate aggression of
human beings, he also represents the way we have historically treated the natural world.
The tragedy, then, isn't just what is done to the creature, but what is done to his environment.
While this theme is very real, I'm more interested in the sexual politics on display.
Kay, the female lead, despite being a learned scientist in her own right,
is treated as little more than an object for romantic conquest, first by David,
then by Mark, and finally by the creature. She is only really interested in David,
who hides deep insecurities about his worthiness of her affections, resisting marriage and having
trouble hiding his obvious jealousy of Mark. Mark, in turn, sees Kay as a trophy to be won, something
to take home as evidence of his superiority, much as he wishes to take home the creature.
As for the creature, he sees Kay in both lights. He longs for love in a way he knows is forbidden,
perhaps more on an instinctual level than on an intellectual one,
but he also tries to snatch her away, attacking any man in his path.
The story then proves that the men hunting the creature are driven by many of the same
base desires, that much of the conflict results from man's drive to claim everything for himself,
be it a woman, a piece of nature, or a creature whose only real sin is existing.
And that's all for today, my fellow Earthlings. What do you think of the Gillman? Let me know in
the comments, and while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe if you haven't already.
Thanks for watching, and until next time, when we'll lay our claim to space itself,
this is The Unapologetic Geek, telling you to never be ashamed of what you love,
as long as you're not hurting anybody.