Often grouped in with the classic Universal monsters, though this Creature surfaced almost a decade after the others were punchlines for Abbott and Costello. I got re-interested in this when the many podcasts were discussing it alongside The Shape of Water. It’s almost the stereotype of creature feature horror, where the monster’s movements are not logical but more for the entertainment of the audience. (So many times he almost touches a person or waves his webbed hands towards the camera.) I like the breathing with the expanding/collapsing gills and the performer doing that much skilled diving work while in a rubber suit and without an oxygen tank is really impressive. Which makes the non-moving eyes look even more fake. There’s also a blurred morality to the film. At times, I think we’re meant to feel sorry for the creature, but he’s committing a lot of murder.
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