Absolutely Fantastic

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Ewald André Dupont, an absolutely unknown name in the film business. However, Dupont was a very prolific filmmaker, working in Germany, United Kingdom, Hollywood. As a director, Ewald André Dupont worked also with big names like Charles Laughton, Ronald Reagan, etc. Here are some unknown but very good, very convincing actors. The story is ridiculous, but the quality of the direction and the actors make the movie worthy of being seen. Beverly Garland and Richard Crane they worked together in a much better Horror, Sci-Fi, "The Alligator People" (1959).

Cranky scientist experimenting on transforming animals and people into their prehistoric selves (sorta), tries it out on himself and becomes a Mr. Hyde-type Neanderthal. Robert Shayne (Inspector Henderson from The Adventures of Superman) plays the would-be Jekyll and he's great fun. His character gets upset with everyone and insults them at the slightest provocation. He's a real bitch and I love it! The rest of the cast is solid, with some interesting character actors like Robert Long and Dick Rich helping to keep things moving. The script doesn't give them a lot to work with but they bring their lines to life with conviction. Richard Crane is a bit annoying as the stiff protagonist and just about every woman in the movie is insufferable, save for the great Beverly Garland in a minor role. Working with an obviously limited budget, director E.A. Dupont and cinematographer Stanley Cortez craft a pretty polished-looking B picture. Of course only so much can be done special effects-wise on a small budget but there is some nice camera-work and a decent level of atmosphere in some of the night scenes. Better than some of the other reviewers are giving it credit for but nowhere near a classic. Worth a look for fans of '50s B horror and sci-fi.

"The Neanderthal Man" is a very, very bad film. But it's also very campy and kitschy...and is fun to watch, albeit very, very stupid! It's a variation on "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"...but a very badly made one.A very strange and enormous cat-like creature has been spotted in the Sierras in California. It's mostly strange because for most of the shots, you see a normal everyday tiger...but in closeups it's got a silly fake head with enormous Sabre-tooth Tiger-like fangs. But it's hilarious that in many scenes you don't see the fangs at all and in others they are there. This special effect must have cost at least $4! Eventually, it's difficult to deny that something is out there...but despite more and more evidence, Professor Groves acts angrier and angrier. He's also fond of telling everyone (particularly the other professors) how stupid and short-sighted they are for not agreeing 100% with him and his wacky theories--though he's offered zero proof! Could this nutty professor (and not of the Jerry Lewis variety) have something to do with the strange sightings as well as a murderous caveman that soon appears as well?The Sabre-tooth Tiger is hilariously bad...as is the getup the Neanderthal guy sports. But, despite being really, really stupid the film is fun to watch because Robert Shayne is wonderfully silly as Professor Groves. He is obviously imbalanced...and hilariously so. Heck, he makes Dr. Strangelove look totally normal by comparison! By the way, fans of 1950s TV will likely recognize Shayne as the Inspector from "The Adventures of Superman". Also, while the sign language they use in the film isn't perfect, it's not too bad...better than most you see in films. And, I should know as we use sign language regularly in my home.

THE NEANDERTHAL MAN is about as Formula as they come- which isn't necessarily a BAD thing: there are times when Familiarity is perfectly acceptable, when the Tropes of the genre(s) are to be respected (see MARK OF THE VAMPIRE for perhaps the Last Word on Tropes). The Mad Scientist (Professor Groves) berates his thick-headed but thin-skinned fellow (Mad?) scientists in THE NEANDERTHAL MAN: "Stupidity's contagious!" Like TEENAGE MONSTER, THE NEANDERTHAL MAN takes place in a rustic setting, where most of the players are dressed more or less like cowboys and sporting cowboy hats (in TEENAGE MONSTER, the setting is actually The Old West); a number of these type of movies take place or end up in rustic environs (despite its title, MONSTER ON THE CAMPUS also ends in the mountains, and THE MAD MONSTER is set in a backward community in a swamp), all the way up to (DOWN to...?) TROG (which ends in an underground cave). Beautiful Beverly Garland is menaced by THE NEANDERTHAL MAN, as well, although the first 40 minutes or so of the movie are kinda sorta wasted hunting saber-toothed tigers ("kinda, sorta," because all things balance out in the end). With all due respect to Lon Chaney, Jr., and Jack Pierce, I'D like to see some of these unheralded Creatures made available in model kits (or, better yet, action figures like the Universal Monsters series). Start with MONSTER ON THE CAMPUS, TEENAGE MONSTER, THE MAD MONSTER, THE NEANDERTHAL MAN and TROG. Not a bad starting lineup, eh...?