The Mole People (1956)

Let's be realistic.

brilliant actors, brilliant editing

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

Here we go with yet another 75 minute movie that has 30 minutes of people walking in silence.When they do talk, it just non-sense. It's a bad story that is quite boring.

This one is as corny as it gets but fun as all get-outs to me. An albino race of people living under the surface of the earth (way down inside a mountain top), still worshiping the Mesopotamian goddess Ishtar after the great flood, using the Mole People as slaves and easily destroyed by bright light - like the light of a flashlight! Archeologists go up the mountain, one falls in after getting way up there and the others go down to find him... there is a cave-in and they are now trapped inside with these strange Ishtar worshipers and the Mole People!! Can the group escape? Will they meet their fate in the fires of Ishtar?!! Yes this movie is bad but yes it's crazy fun to watch - if you are into silly 'B' creature features of the 1950s. I had a lot of fun watching this one and it's great to see it again after years of no see.7/10

It's so easy to make fun of low budget horror films. I refuse to do that. This is an imaginative look at a race of people who live under the earth. They have evolved to be lacking in pigment and their eyes have low tolerance for light. This parallels the non- human creatures who live in dark places. When scientist investigate these characters, they find there is an oppressive culture that has enslaved others. They are actually using ritual sacrifices, so things aren't much better below ground than above it. The use of light comes into the fray and a god, Ishtar, is seen as vengeful. The special effects are reasonable and the creatures are interesting. Take this for what it is and for what a task is accomplished.

Ah, yet another appearance by the great John of Agar. However, this is acceptable (this time) since the Mole People is one movie that I enjoyed a lot more after seeing it a few times. I think Hugh Beaumont as Dr. Jud Bellamin really threw me for a loop.Beaver:"Gee Wally, where's Dad?"Wally:"Aw, you know he's away on that archaeological trip in Asia." Beaver:"Boy, Mom sure does miss him."Without going too much into the story (oh, don't worry. John 'I have a line every minute' Agar will take care of that), the fun of this adventure is seeing how these poor dopes got into this fiasco in the first place! Ah, stock footage - the under-appreciated staple of any B movie recipe. You'll find that along with some matte paintings. Although, they do add to the grandeur of the underground dwellings. As the journey progresses, our pre-Indy archaeologists discover pasty faced minions, mushrooms galore, Nike worship, really goofy Sumerian chants, and much, much more. Special mention goes to Adad who provides top notch quality service. She is proof that being a marked one can be a good thing - RAWRRRRR!!What doesn't this movie have? You've got eccentric high priest Elinu played by Alan Napier (best known as stately Wayne Manor's Alfred). LaFarge never fails to cause chaos and hilarity. There's a guilty pleasure in seeing John Agar's failings in the movie...they don't occur often, so I relish those rare moments. The most memorable over-the-top award goes to Frank Baxter as the 'Down Down' Doctor who explains some (totally uninteresting) theories and proceeds to introduce the feature The Mole People as proof. This reminds me why I really don't miss college lectures.So, watch this one. Please, don't disturb Ishtar on the way out.