B-movie makers have always liked bloody sharks. Sometimes, however, they too need a change. That’s when the oversized animals come into play. And if that’s not enough? Then it’s time for the dinosaurs! Carnosaur is one example of this type of surgery .
What am I doing here?
Carnosaur premiered on May 14, 1993. However, it never hit theaters. It was only available on VHS tapes. Its director and screenwriter is Adam Simon. He was assisted by John Brosnan, who is also the author of the book of the same title. However, the film is a very loose adaptation of the short story and we do not find too many common features between them. Of course, it was known in advance that we would not be dealing with outstanding cinema. Therefore, the cast may wonder. Familiar names are rarely downloaded to the B-class cinema. In the main roles, you can see Raphael Sbarge, who only after Carnosaurus played episodic roles in Independence Day , Pearl Harbor or Dexter, Jennifer Runyon, dla której szczytowymi okazały się role studentki w Pogromcach Duchów czy występ w jednym odcinku Magnum, Harrison Page, którego kojarzyć mogą fani Kojaka, Ally McBeal i Ostrego Dyżuru, czy Ned Bellamy, który po latach wcielił się w postać Waylona Forge’a w Zmierzchu. Jednym z bardziej znanych aktorów, którego zobaczyć możemy na ekranie, jest Clint Howard, który w swoim bogatym CV ma występy w takich produkcjach, jak Star Trek czy Apollo 13. Na ich tle wyróżnia się natomiast Diane Ladd. Aktorka zdobyła trzy nominacje do Oscara, a także otrzymała nagrody BAFTA i Złotego Globa. Kojarzyć ją możecie chociażby z Alicja does not live here anymore , In the Crooked Mirror: Hello, Santa Claus , Wild at Heart or The Story of Rose . Looking at the other names, it is really puzzling to have a Hollywood star on this film crew.
Dinosaurs, excavators and chickens?
Our adventure with Carnosaurit starts at a poultry farm where one of the chickens sacrifices her life to lay a dinosaur egg! The facts soon come to light that the Eunice Corporation, led by Dr. Jane Tiptree, intentionally modified chicken DNA. Their goal is to get rid of humanity and allow the dinosaurs to take over the Earth again. Antediluvian reptiles very quickly begin their mission. More people fall victim to them and die from sharp teeth. Meanwhile, in a nearby quarry, night watchman Doc Smith comes into conflict with a local group of ecologists chained to excavators. Almost all of the “greens”, however, are devoured by dinosaurs and only Doc and a certain Ann come out of it alive. A feeling quickly develops between them, but the girl falls ill with a mysterious flu-like illness. At the hospital, it turns out that she is not the only one. The entire waiting room is full of women with similar symptoms. Soon they start giving birth to dinosaurs! The main character goes to the office of a mysterious corporation to solve the case and find a cure. He will also meet T-Rex there and then fight him! The government is also becoming interested in the local issue. And all this in just three days!
Are you looking for meaning in this?
Carnosaurlike many other films in our series, it is devoid of logic. His script is like a sieve and lacks coherence. The viewer has to figure out many things for himself. Because we don’t really know how women suddenly get pregnant and give birth to dinosaurs on their own. In the case of chickens, there is some mention of interference by the Eunice Corporation, but there is no mention of humans. Everything indicates that it is windproof here. For there is no other explanation. Another question we won’t get an answer to is, for example, where did Dr. Tiptree get the tyrannosaurus from? The creators, however, did not worry about such things. After all, the action takes place over the course of three days, so one should press forward without restraint. For this reason, the writers do not even have time to introduce the characters. And they don’t even talk about the past of the main characters, let’s not demand miracles. And Ann, who is one of the most important people in the film, is not even introduced by name! In other, less important characters, we don’t even know their names. But are they really needed? And so most of them are only snacks for the great reptiles. Of course, there are also mishaps on the set. An example may be the bodies of ecologists scattered around the quarry, which in the next scene simply disappear, or the colonel sent to the site by the government, who is once presented as Wren, and then as Foster (the mishap is probably due to the fact that the actor playing this role is actually in the name of Foster). she is not even introduced by name! In other, less important characters, we don’t even know their names. But are they really needed? And so most of them are only snacks for the great reptiles. Of course, there are also mishaps on the set. An example may be the bodies of ecologists scattered around the quarry, which in the next scene simply disappear, or the colonel sent to the site by the government, who is once presented as Wren, and then as Foster (the mishap is probably due to the fact that the actor playing this role is actually in the name of Foster). she is not even introduced by name! In other, less important characters, we don’t even know their names. But are they really needed? And so most of them are only snacks for the great reptiles. Of course, there are also mishaps on the set. An example may be the bodies of ecologists scattered around the quarry, which in the next scene simply disappear, or a colonel sent to the site by the government, who is presented once as Wren, and then as Foster (the mishap is probably due to the fact that the actor playing this role is actually in the name of Foster).
In addition to a bad script and terrible acting, we also get terrible special effects. Initially, most of the dinosaur scenes are shown at night or in dark places, so that we can’t accidentally see the reptiles and their murderous behavior. Over time, however, more and more can be seen on the screen, including T-Rex, which is far from the Jurassic Park. The mere movement of the creatures may not be the worst, but their appearance already makes us pity. Rubber toys and puppets will not fool anyone for a moment and will not convince you that we are dealing with real animals. The sounds they make are strange screeching birds, not snarls or roars. In addition, their size is also not impressive. Most are the size of a human, and the tyrannosaur is not much bigger than an excavator. John Carl Buechler, the special effects man, followed in the footsteps of the rest of the team and didn’t really do his job.
Finally, one more detail that seems illogical. Carnosaur’s budget was over $ 800,000. So it’s hard to expect miracles for that amount, but you could certainly spend it better and give viewers a much better film. It is surprising, however, that the title earned nearly $ 2 million! How did it come about? I do not know…
Welcome to the Carnosaurus club!
Carnosaur is a movie for which the B-category is far too high. The nonsensical script and plot holes are the main sins of this title. In addition, there is the bottom acting game, which even the winner of the Golden Globe does not try to improve. No wonder. Everyone on the team was obviously sure that the movie would be a flop and we wouldn’t find anyone here to try. If we add terrible special effects to it, we will produce a production worthy of joining our elite group of films so bad, they are good! Because despite all the disadvantages, you can have fun with it. More than once or twice, you will laugh at him, look with pity and remember him to your friends. And in a larger group you will have something to comment on. That’s why I recommend Carnosaur to you. Who knows, maybe you will love it enough to reach for the second part as well. And even a third. After all, the first one was so brilliant that the next parts had to be created!