We start with a couple of do-gooders, crusading journalist Jane (Marina Giulia Cavalli) and cameraman Lee (Robert Marius), trying to get to an island where nuclear waste is being dumped into an active volcano. They get machine-gunned from the air.
They survive and reach the island. There’s a mad scientist, Dr Geoffrey (Luciano Pigozzi), but the guy who’s really in charge of the E-Chem facility is much scarier. That’s Colonel Kovacks (Charles Napier). He’s head of security and knows nothing of nuclear physics but the E-Chem head office lets him make the scientific decisions because they’re like totally evil and he can be relied on to maximise profits. Lee has taken incriminating video footage. He gets captured and tortured.
Jane escapes. She is rescued by a nerdy snake-hunter, Bob (Daniel Bosch). They’re pursued through the jungle by the E-Chem security guards. The guards are armed with automatic weapons but Bob has his trusty snakes as allies. Every snake on the island is deadly and there are lots of them.
Narrow escapes and plenty of mayhem follow before he gets her to his jungle hideaway and introduces her to his snakes. She is not impressed.
She is also not impressed that he doesn’t want to join her crusade against E-Chem and rescue her cameraman buddy.
But he changes his mind because Jane is a pain in the ass but she’s kinda cute.
The whole facility seems like it’s become a huge nuclear bomb about to explode.
That’s when the alien spaceship lands! We later find out that the aliens have been attracted by all the radiation. Aliens just love radiation.
This is one mean nasty alien. It’s not just the huge jaw-like chopper things. He can also slime you to death.
Colonel Kovacks has to figure out how to kill the alien. Jane just wants to get that videotape back. Bob just wants to get into Jane’s pants but he’s not having much luck.
The plant is getting closer to meltdown, the volcano could blow at any moment and the alien has embarked on a killing rampage. He’s one of those unstoppable monsters. Shooting him just annoys him.
I believe Margheriti was disappointed by the monster but I think he’s rather cool.
There are lots of gunfights and countless explosions. Lots of guys get chomped or slimed by the monster. This is what cinema is all about!
The acting is mostly adequate for the kinds of movie this is. Luciano Pigozzi is fun as the cynical disillusioned mad scientist who isn’t as evil or mad as he appears to be.
And of course there’s Charles Napier being Charles Napier and he’s huge amounts of fun to watch.
It goes without saying that this was a low-budget movie (shot in the Phillipines) but Margheriti always knew how to make a low budget go a long way. And he keeps things powering along. If the action slows down for a minute or so, add more explosions.
This is a remarkably tame movie on the sex and nudity front. There is zero nudity and zero sex. Despite Bob’s best efforts. Jane is not going to come across because she has a Cause and that means more to her than a man.
There is naturally a great deal of silliness and goofiness but there’s adventure and excitement and an unstoppable slimy monster. And deadly snakes. And explosions.
Margheriti could handle most genres and he does a solid job here.
Alien from the Abyss (also released as Alien from the Deep) is not a movie you want to take the least bit seriously but it’s fine entertainment. Highly recommended.
Severin’s Blu-Ray release looks very nice indeed and there are some extras.
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