This listing is for the standard edition Blu-ray. The limited edition slipcover (designed by Earl Kessler Jr.) was limited to 4,000 units and is sold out. The two versions are identical, aside from the slipcover.
Welcome Vinegar Syndrome Labs (VSL) to the VS Sub-Label family! As with each of our sub-labels we are hoping to expand and defy expectations with the diversity of films we restore and release. As the name implies, VSL will serve as a kind of testing area for releasing genres and eras of film that one might not immediately expect to come from VS. The ultimate objective of VSL will be to see if these types of films will find an audience, and if so, pursue and release more of them…and even if not, still serve as a means of restoring more of the weird, rare, and unusual movies you might not expect from Vinegar Syndrome.
When reports of a clawed beast cause hundreds of natives to flee their Brazilian plantation jobs, the landowners send a macho trouble-shooter aptly named Rock Dean and cancer-researching doctor Andrea Romar deep into the rainforest for a steamy odyssey of dance numbers, headhunters, blowguns, grope-happy savages and one of the most infamous monsters in horror history!
From famed writer/director Curt Siodmak – scribe of THE WOLF MAN, I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE and DONOVAN’S BRAIN – comes perhaps the most notorious jungle shocker of the 50s: CURUCU, BEAST OF THE AMAZON! Starring 50s B-movie legend John Bromfield (REVENGE OF THE CREATURE), cult movie icon, Beverly Garland (IT CONQUERED THE WORLD), alongside Tom Payne (LOVE SLAVES OF THE AMAZON), Vinegar Syndrome Labs offers this criminally overlooked studio produced shocker on Blu-ray for the first time, newly restored in 2K from its completely uncensored 35mm dupe negative.
directed by: Curt Siodmak
starring: John Bromfield, Beverly Garland, Tom Payne, Harvey Chalk, Larri Thomas, Wilson Vianna, Andrea Bayard
1956 / 75 min / 2.00:1 / English Mono
Additional info:
Overall rating: 4.197232 / 5 from 289 reviews.
This limited edition Blu-ray of 'Curucu, Beast of the Amazon' offers an incredible restoration, great product quality, and fantastic special features. The film itself is highly recommended, with a wonderful transfer and a cool monster. The release is praised for its beauty and uniqueness.
Review topics: [colors, quality, looks, work, packaging, design, value, set, effort, sound, movie, film, features, transfer, release, monster, flick, slipcover, restoration, interviews, presentation, art, scenery, fan, curucu, picture, adventure, commentary, effects, acting].
"FUN RETRO CREATURE FEATURE WITH VODOO & MAJESTIC VIBES. SPECTACULAR COLORS & BEAUTIFUL JUNGLE & TRIBAL LOCATIONS! DON'T EXPECT A FAST PACE GODZILLA LIKE HORROR, IT'S A SLOWER PACE AMAZONIAN FABEL THRILLER/DRAMA! EXCELLENT PERFORMANCES, WELL EDITED AND DIRECTED."
"Fun, light romp of a film. Nice slipcover as well."
"A monster that looks suspiciously like a man in a diseased dodo bird suit kills off a couple of workers on a plantation in Brazil. Enter Rock Dean, the son of the owner of the plantation, who gets the idea to head up to the Curucu Falls to try to figure out if this monster is real or not. He takes along doctor Andrea Romar, cancer researcher, at her request and against his wishes because the jungle is no place for a woman and, in the end, this turns out to be true (this film has, predictably, some old-fashioned views on the role of women in society). An advantage of this film is that it was actually shot in Brazil which gives this film some production value. It also gives the film, even though it's an US B-movie adventure, a bit more of a grounded-in-reality and grim shine. It would be too much to compare this to the '70s Italian cannibal films (this is way more tame in about every way) yet it comes off as a precursor to that type of jungle adventure. At least this contains some (stock) footage of all kinds of annimals and even a bit of animal cruelty (a snake strangling a mongoose). Watch out for the hilarious footage of a herd of stampeding buffalo's! The photography is colorful, the actor playing Rock Dean (John Bromfield) has a slight Rod Taylor-look to him and it turns out that the monster is indeed a guy in a daft suit (though that makes you wonder how anyone in real life would think it could be a genuine creature). It's a superficial jungle adventure with some confusing elements and character motivations (Andrea cures a tribesman, which in turn makes him her slave, and then a couple of seconds later the tribesman leaves her, with someone telling her "she can't do anything about it", huh?). The running time of 75 minutes is generous for this kind of thing."
"Great scenery in this 50s jungle horror/adventure. Highly recommended for fans of this era. 4/5 stars!"
"A doctor and an adventurer journey to the Amazon, where they encounter a man in a bizarre bird costume terrorizing the local indigenous population."
"Amazon horror, and it looks fantastic."
"Nice colors!"
"Excellent packaging and artwork!"
"Fun classic release with a nice presentation. The disc and packaging arrived in excellent condition."
"Great early monster movie - if you're into this genre - buy it."
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