Curse of the Komodo: Review

Jim Wynorski's film, Curse of the Komodo, was released in 2004 and made it to my living room earlier this month. I was craving a dinosaur creature feature, and this was the closest thing available to me. I hit "play" with moderate expectations, and was pleasantly surprised.

Curse of the Komodo is rated R, and you soon know why. A swimming scene provides some gratuitous nudity and is reminiscent of a similar scene in Creature from the Hillbilly Lagoon. There is an understandable amount of cursing alongside the inevitable violence. However, I've seen far less family-friendly films. In my opinion, teens would emerge from this movie with their psyches intact.

The plot of Curse borrows from Attack of the Killer Shrews. An island-based super-sizing project goes awry and must be shut down. The researchers had intended to use their science to grow food for the hungry, but their military benefactor had always intended to create monsters. It's only a matter of time before the subjects - Komodo dragons - become uncontrollable. They grow so large that they begin to feed on one another and seek out the buffet of scientists. A group of criminals crash-land on the island just before the power goes out. Without the laser shield, they are all defenseless. (I have to say that the shield was one aspect with which I was impressed. It was signified by poles with lights that flashed in sequence. I totally believed that invisible lasers were strung between them.)

The dragon itself is a laughable attempt at CGI. It does not, in any way, resemble an actual Komodo dragon. It's more like the Crystal Palace "Iguanadons." Shooting it in the face and mouth doesn't deter it. But that doesn't keep the characters from trying. Attack scenes end when the monster is sated with a snack, or when it is outrun. Fortunately, it's the last of it's kind, having eaten the rest.

Komodos have a nasty bite, and many believe that they are venomous. Curse takes this to the next level. The saliva of the beast infects victims with something like zombie-itis. They become pale with dark patches and try to take bites out of their compadres. The disease is so easily spread that one man is contaminated by a smudge of spit on a plant. However, the amount of time between exposure and full-on zombiehood varies. One character makes it most of a day with only a limp to remind us of his infection.

Though the acting is imperfect, the film moves at a comfortable pace. There is a hidden plot - the military is weighing its options before deciding to bomb the island, researchers and all, at sunrise. Fortunately, the cuts to the military base don't feel like awkward interruptions. They actually move things along.

This is what I would call a beer-and-popcorn movie. The film crew had a good camera and the sound department came through. The actors are B-list, but not painful to watch. It is a little lacking in the blood-and-guts category... Still, I really enjoyed laughing my way through their escape attempt. The shark jumps made it all worthwhile (spoiler alert: exploding giant lizard). If you're looking to spend a lighthearted night at home, Curse of the Komodo will deliver.

Additional Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komodo_dragon#Saliva, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_Palace_Dinosaurs