A Masterpiece!

A different way of telling a story

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

While I'm the first to admit that I love the majority of Ray Harryhausen's movies, I'll also say that THE VALLEY OF GWANGI left me cold. I'm not criticising the special effects work, which after all is the main reason to watch his movies; instead, I take issue with the script, which is slow and ponderous and rips off the far better (and earlier) Mexican movie, THE BEAST FROM HOLLOW MOUNTAIN. It takes an age before we get to see any of Harryhausen's creations here, and until then we're stuck with a bunch of rather uninteresting stock characters: the blond, square-jawed hero; the beautiful love interest; the precocious boy; the flustered scientist.It also hurts that a rather good cast is stuck with this stiff stereotypes. I've always liked James Franciscus, but he's given less here to work with than in any other film I've seen him in. Gila Golan is wooden and CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON's Richard Carlson is wasted as a supporting character. Laurence Naismith has a little fun as the irritable scientist, but again, it's a character we've seen a hundred times in these kinds of film – and the same goes for the witchy type character that Freda Jackson plays. The plot is a straight re-run of KING KONG, with the dinosaurs moved to a remote desert valley. There's some fun to be had with a cute miniature horse and a briefly-seen pterodactyl, but most of the action involves Gwangi – a tyrannosaur-type monster that reminds me of a plastic toy I had as a kid. Inevitably, this beast is captured, put on show and then escapes, and aside from a brief bout with an equally stop-motioned elephant, the finale just isn't very exciting, and his ultimate end a rather cruel one.I just feel like this is a film out of time. The late '60s were an era of change in cinema, and this would have worked far better as a black-and-white '50s outing. Stick with BEAST OF HOLLOW MOUNTAIN for the real deal.

James Franciscus plays Tuck, an amiable hustler who comes back into the life of T.J. (lovely Gila Golan). T.J. is one of the participants in a Wild West show that is not doing so well at the moment. However, one of their people, Carlos (Gustavo Rojo) has ventured into a Mexican location known as the "Forbidden Valley" and come back with a prize: an adorable "Eohippus", or miniature prehistoric horse. Circumstances lead Tuck and others to head into the valley, where they encounter other ancient animals, such as a Styracosaurus and a very aggressive Allosaurus.In the well loved tradition of "King Kong", T.J. and her friends, including Champ (Richard Carlson), get the bright idea to introduce the Allosaurus - who gets christened Gwangi - to their show. Havoc predictably ensues.There may be viewers who will grow impatient with the pacing at first. "The Valley of Gwangi" runs longer than previous Ray Harryhausen - Charles H. Schneer productions at 96 minutes, and it's not until the movies' second half that we get to see any dinosaurs. But the little Eohippus is sure to charm people, not just children, and the story is very engaging.It helps that the actors are so sincere. The handsome Franciscus is good in the starring role, with fine support from Ms. Golan and Mr. Carlson. Young Curtis Arden is appealing in the role of Lope the child, who had to fend for himself from an early age and who is clearly eager to make a buck. Freda Jackson is amusing in the somewhat annoying, clichéd role of the wise old doomsayer who rants about the consequences of individuals going into the valley and bringing back "evil" specimens.As expected, Harryhausen's special effects are excellent. They're especially impressive in the movies' major set piece, when Tuck, Champ and others work overtime to try to lasso Gwangi. And once the action kicks into gear in this thing, a real fever pitch is reached and then maintained until the absolute end, with an exciting rampage.Mostly lighthearted entertainment, but G ratings weren't always what they are now: a few people do fall victim to the jaws and teeth of Gwangi.Very well directed by Jim O'Connolly ("Crooks and Coronets", "Tower of Evil").Seven out of 10.

It only takes creativity and imagination to make a film like this work.The Valley Of Gwangi takes two childhood favorites and mix them together into one. Every child loves Dinosaurs and many love westerns so having a mix of the two actually works out.For a film in the 1960s it had some very good stop motion work with the Dinosaurs in the film every frame has been timed to make it work where the actors are actually in the same frame.The setting for the film does feel like a old time western but with Dinosaurs added to the mix how could you go wrong?The cast and crew does a good job with helping with the story along with some very good music in the film to help express the emotion during the film. It is a shame that this film is not given much respect for being creative at the time of it release The Valley of Gwangi is one of the few films that truly original in terms of story mixing dinosaurs with Cowboys. While it may not get much attention today as it did back in the day it is still a film that worth watching if you love Dinosaurs.I give The Valley of Gwangi an 7 out of 10

One of Ray Harryhausen's most famous films, The Valley of Gwangi is an all-time dinosaur classic that has inspired future dinosaur films such as "Jurassic Park." It really pushed Ray to make the interactions between the cowboys and the prehistoric beasts convincing, which for the most part he was successful.Plot: The discovery of a living Eohippus (a three-toed, tiny ancestor of the horse) causes cowboys, circus performers, and scientists alike to visit the land where it came from: a prehistoric valley untouched by time and the modern world until now. The valley's inhabitants, ruled by the fearsome carnosaur Gwangi, don't seem to be pleased to see these outsiders and would like nothing more than to tear them apart.The story was originally created by Ray's mentor Willis O'Brien (who did the effects for King Kong), who couldn't make it after writing the original script, so it's only fitting that his successor would finish it for him. And boy did he finish it well. This movie has all the spectacle of a true sci-fi action/adventure film. The action scenes are great and the music is wonderful and fits perfectly with the tone of the film. Many creature scenes that were done by Ray are fantastic, such as the roping of Gwangi and Gwangi's battle with a styracosaur, all done seamlessly.Overall, I consider this movie over "Cowboys and Aliens." Greatly done and definitely one of Ray Harryhausen's best works. Check it out.