Roger Corman Ate My Baby (Primal Species (DVD))

Member Name: The Polar One

Product:	Primal Species (DVD)
Date:	08/05/09 (85 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheesy B-movie

Disadvantages: Plot holes, bad acting, drags at the end

70. Primal Species (1996)

First of all, let's get the subject of deceptive marketing out in the open. A quick show of hands should illustrate the point. How many of you would watch a film called Primal Species? And how many would watch a film called Carnosaur 3? Exactly the reason they opted for the former title. Sadly they only thought far enough ahead to change the title of the movie and not the content.

Despite that deception, Carnosaur 3: Primal Species has managed to restore my faith of the bottom 100's ability to throw up unexpectedly amusing films. Right from the blurb on the back of the box I knew this would be a hoot. "Terrorists thought they had stolen a cargo of uranium, but find it's a man-eating species presumed extinct." Schoolboy error that one, but the look on their faces as they were torn limb from limb was priceless.

Having recently watched Alone in the Dark I was quite struck by the similarities between these two films. It is more the sequence of events than the actual plot, as both movies go through the motions of letting loose some horrific beasties, discovering their abilities and origins, then dropping some quasi-military force in to wipe them out. We see here an earlier version of the instant intelligence kit for women. The expert on Carnosaurs, Dr Hodges (Janet Gunn), is a bold blonde with glasses, pinned up hair, and a suit jacket with shoulder pads to be reckoned with. You know that before the end of the movie she'll lose the jacket and let down that hair so it gets ruffled like just after having... I digress. She also has a pencil. It may not sound significant, but it's all part of the kit, and she won't go anywhere without it. For emergency equations and the like. And if that doesn't convince you of her credentials she even conducts a slide projector talk.

Speaking of shoulder pads, it may say 1996 on the box but it feels 80s all the way. Perhaps because much of what is being ripped off originated in the 80s. Aliens is an obvious inspiration to the point that they even have the now token beefy female soldier. The low budget doesn't help, using stiff rubbery carnosaurs on wheels. With a moment where you can actually see the supports. Then there's the quaint representation of the army, where troubled Generals would swig bourbon from their desk drawer. It's a B-movie staple that got old after Airplane so successfully sent it up. Another favourite was the bluesy guitar soundtrack in the style of Lethal Weapon, but more the calibre of Midnight Caller.

During my torrid love affair with less reputable movies I've learned to live in fear and wonder of the name Roger Corman. A man with more movie credits than logic dictates. A movie industry in himself, knocking out low budget films in less than a week. You can have any flavour you want, so long as it's cheese. It's hardly surprising that Carnosaur 3 is one of his productions. Teamed up with the director that brought us Excessive Force 2: Force on Force, and Bloodfist VII: Manhunt. And the writer that brought us Bloodfist IV, V, VI and VII, and Adams Family Reunion. It's confusing when you stumble on a seven part action series you've never heard of before.

But I don't want to be too down on Primal Species. I've given it an objective 2 stars, but I was tempted to give it a third for comedy value. It kept us chuckling for the most part. There was the mystery of working out what the heck was going on in the confusingly edited scenes of the 'uranium' robbery and a war games exercise. It was strange enough that we are to accept some carnosaurs are being transported around in a film called Primal Species with little backstory other than 'a scientist made them'. There are some spurious claims that it will help cure cancer or some something equally Plan 9. There is an unhealthy dose of men grimacing, and sadly the final act does drag a bit as it's so predictable. Yet despite all this Alone in the Dark still wishes it was half as entertaining as Primal Species.

Also, an interesting little discovery I made. Later the Carnosaur trilogy was, along with two other even older monster films, cut and spliced into an entirely new film called Raptor. No small feat with an ever changing cast and crew, with some new scenes filmed to try and link together the unconnected material. Corman - go look up the definition of 'shame' and have a long think about it.

Rated: UK:18 / US:R
Running Time: 96 mins

Trivia: On 24th November 2008 Primal Species charted at number 70 on the IMDB's bottom 100 films list. Scoring 2.2 out of 10, from 815 votes.
(I'm catching up, honest)

Series:
Carnosaur (1993)
Carnosaur 2 (1995)
Canrnosaur 3: Primal Species (1996)

Edited into:
Raptor (2001)

Summary: "You call this uranium?"