Don't Believe the Hype

Absolutely the worst movie.

Absolutely Fantastic

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

Director Peter Bogdanovich had to start somewhere; following second unit work on Roger Corman's "The Wild Angels," Corman allowed the hardworking novice an opportunity to do a feature film utilizing the exact same Russian stock footage used by Curtis Harrington for his 1965 "Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet," a 1962 entry titled "Planeta bur" (Planet of Storms). It's no stretch to assume that the first-time director just didn't have his heart in his work, as all of his newly shot footage features a dozen bikini-clad models not required to speak, everything narrated by Bogdanovich himself. There is no integration between the alien mermaids and the Russian characters, so the whole thing just sits there, aimlessly meandering from one crisis to another. Granted, I had just viewed Curtis Harrington's work on his "Voyage," so all the Soviet footage was already familiar to me, but at least Harrington had Basil Rathbone and Faith Domergue actually communicating with the Russian astronauts, their scenes already dubbed into English. The blame here simply lies with Roger Corman, who felt the need for another retread rather than something truly original. "Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women" carries a 1967 copyright, and at least Corman was satisfied enough to grant Bogdanovich the freedom to do a feature starring Boris Karloff, who supposedly owed Roger two days work on a previous contract; we can all be grateful that the result was the superlative "Targets," shot in Dec 1967, an achievement that even "The Last Picture Show" couldn't top (some may feel free to disagree). Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater aired "Prehistoric Planet" only 3 times, "Prehistoric Women" 4 times (maybe it was the bikinis), all from July 1969 to July 1972.

I will not further detract from the content of film, as other reviewers here have done so more than adequately. There is nothing in this film to indicate that Bogdoanovich would someday produce anything worth watching. A word about the story: we're supposed to believe that prehistoric women were telepathic; clever trick avoid the actresses having to memorize or recite any lines.I will devote my further remarks to the recording and the DVD medium.My DVD says it is the output of Estree Hill Entertainment, copyright 2010 Penwick Group Ltd., serial no. 763799. B&W, English only, no subtitles, no special features, no trailers.My first criticism is the sound track: very poor. One channel only; mono I don't mind, but through both speakers, please. Moreover, there is incessant noise in the background: rushing waves, crashing breakers on the shore, roaring rocket engines, beeping- whizzing-whirring machinery, howling wind--it is nervy and often obscures the dialog. Subtitles would have helped.Second criticism: the source film was badly scratched and blistered, none of which was 'digitally remastered' (not that I would have expected anyone to go to the trouble). I have seen better- preserved films from the 1930s.Third, many of the spliced-in shots of the Venusian mermaids were over- or under-exposed. Amateurish is the word.Don't pay more than a buck for this at a rummage sale. Maybe it looks better after three joints.

A group of astronauts travel to Venus where they discover the existence of a primitive civilisation (led by 50s pin-up Mamie Van Doren) that consists solely of telepathic peroxide blondes wearing hipster pants and seashell bras.I watched Voyage to the Planet of the Prehistoric Women knowing absolutely nothing about its origins, and was more than a little surprised at just how disjointed and clumsy it all was, even for a low-budget 60s B-movie. Now that I've read all about the film's history—how director Peter Bogdanovich created this movie by editing new footage into an old Russian sci-fi flick called Planeta Bur—this film's erratic nature is far easier to understand.However, despite its distinct lack of coherence (Bogdanovich's sexy sea Venusians never actually cross paths with the astronauts), I still had a reasonable time watching this film—the spacecraft/space station effects were impressive given their vintage, the flying car was fun (a bit like Luke Skywalker's land-speeder, only much, much slower), John the impractical robot is a hoot, and there are quite a few equally silly alien creatures, including a carnivorous plant, a flying reptile, and some man-sized swamp dinosaurs. That said, given that virtually everything I liked came from the original Russian film, I cannot bring myself to rate Voyage to the Planet of the Prehistoric Women very highly.

Although Planet Of Prehistoric Women's mother film Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet had some interesting aspects to it, this one is a total dud. Unless of course all you want to see is Mamie Van Doren and those scantily clad Venusian babes. All of them Playboy playmates or could qualify for same.Honestly if the earth people knew what was on Venus, they'd be rushing pell mell to get to the shrouded second planet.This film is a re-edited version of the first film with some added footage of Mamie and her clan. It seems as though the earth astronauts have killed the flying reptile the Venusians worship as a god. Causing a theological revolution on the place.Unless you like Mamie and those twin weapons of mass destruction she sports, I'd pass this one up.