Warlords of Atlantis (1978)

Plot
Professor Aitken, his son Charles and family friend Greg Collinson are on an expedition to search for Atlantis. During one of their deep sea missions, a giant octopus attacks their boat and drags them and the crew to the bottom of the sea where they are taken to one of the five remaining of the seven sunken cities of Atlantis. The others are thrown in with the slaves but the Atlanteans are interested in Charles and the intellect he possesses. As they attempt to recruit him to their cause, Greg and the crew try to find a way to escape before it's too late.

Review
During the 70s, British company Amicus made a quartet of cheep and cheerful fantasy films which all featured Doug McClure and were directed by Kevin Connor. Encouraged by their success with The Land That Time Forgot, the studio forged ahead and made a couple of like-minded films which were based on Edgar Rice Burroughs books and then this last outing, which is not based on a Burroughs book. However it's easy to see where it's inspiration comes from as it follows the same formula with Victorian-era scientists journeying into a mysterious world of monsters. It's rainy Sunday afternoons for which the likes of Warlords of Atlantis were made.

Warlords of Atlantis has visions above and beyond it's budget which is a real pity because it's contains the most challenging themes of these Amicus films with an obvious socio-political tone running through the film. The Atlanteans are not human but in fact come from Mars and intend to manipulate humanity to their own ends. Their world is seemingly that of a Utopian society. All is not as it seems as there is a slave element to this world with undesirable humans being forced to defend the cities from the ever-present threat of giant mutated monsters. Echoes of a totalitarian regime ring true when Charles is subject to a glimpse of 'the future' with footage then being shown of the upcoming world wars and then token footage of the Nazis and Hitler - these guys always crop up in this sort of mind-erasing/mind-reading scene (see Flash Gordon, A Clockwork Orange, etc). I'm giving it way more credit than it's due. Intentions may be one thing but actually getting them onto the screen in an entertaining and interesting way is another. The script half-heartedly attempts to give the whole thing some structure but it's basically a series of set pieces linked together with the flimsiest of story. I mean by the time the characters arrive at Atlantis and find out what the deal is with the situation, it's time for them to escape and head back to their ship. I mean look at the easy way that the crew finally manage to make it out of Atlantis. The film states on a few occasions that it's dangerous beyond the city walls but our main characters seem to have no trouble in crossing a swamp and making it back to their ship as if they were popping out to walk the dog. Atlantis itself is simply a couple of ropey-looking matte paintings and the special effects for the monsters look ridiculous nowadays but they've got some low budget charm to them. There's some cheesy rubber eels, some plastic piranhas which stage hands look to be throwing in the direction of the cast and some very slow-moving lizard/mutant things. It's a wonder they ever manage to eat anyone because they move so slowly that you'd need to be tied to the spot to get in harm's way. The rear projection is obvious a mile away but at least the cast try and make the best of the situation. Doug McClure is always a good sport for reacting to things that aren't there.