Dinosaur Island Reviews

This collaboration of ultimate cheapo filmmaker Fred Olen Ray and Roger Corman's exploitation henchman Jim Wynorski results in schlock squared. Despite some evidence of satiric intent, the direct-to-video title is insufferable unless one watches strictly for the main attraction(s). On an uncharted tropical island, somehow fixed in prehistory, mighty giants can be found. These awesome behemoths are barely contained by the animal-skin bikini tops lashing them to the torsos of the local cavegirls, and more than once the pendulous colossi break free of their restraints to overwhelm the island's modern-day visitors, a crashed planeload of stereotyped GIs. There are dinosaurs too, but they don't get nearly as much screen time. Morganna (Toni Naples), queen of the lusty, busty amazons (the absence of male tribespersons goes unexplained) has particular trouble with a big reptile called "The Great One" ("Jackie Gleason?" asks a soldier, in the movie's funniest line). She makes a deal with by-the-book Captain Jason Briggs (Ross Hagen) to help the men escape if they destroy the scaly scourge. The Great One turns out to be the animatronic beast used in Corman's 1993 JURASSIC PARK ripoff CARNOSAUR. Even phonier-looking in broad daylight, the tottering prop seems to intimidate our heroes mainly by threatening to fall on them, but they explode it with minimal fuss. Even so, "Rex the Wonder Carnosaur" (yes, that's what the credits say) is more impressive than the other dinosaurs, cut-rate stop-motion model animation and lame sock puppets crafted by the normally reliable John Buechler. In the end, each guy pairs off with the cavegirl of his dreams, and even Briggs decides to stay. The possibility of a "Return to Dinosaur Island" sometime in the future retroactively puts the pic into the horror category. (Extensive nudity, sex, profanity, violence.)