It doesn’t break any new ground but it does rearrange the typical elements found in American movies of its ilk in such a way that it at least feels fresh.
Caltiki: The Immortal Monster opens with a narrator explaining the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the Mayan civilization. In 607 A.D., the Mayan people left their advanced cities en masse and traveled north and disappeared without a trace. No one knows why.
In the present day, a group of archeologists, led by Professor John Fielding (John Merivale,) are exploring some Mayan ruins close to Mexico City. After finding a nearby cave, one of the scientists (Arturo Dominici) stumbles back to base camp repeating the word “Caltiki” before collapsing. The natives under the scientists’ employ recognize the word as the name of an ancient Mayan goddess.
Professor Fielding and his men travel back to the cave to look for another scientist that didn’t return to camp. While there, they discover a pool that may have been used in human sacrifices to Caltiki. One of the scientists, Bob (Daniele Vargas), dives into the pool and is attacked by something that melts the skin off his face. A large, amorphous blob emerges from the pool and attacks Max (Gerard Haerter). It attaches to his arm and tries to pull him into its body. Professor Fielding uses a small axe to free Max along with a small amount of the creature clinging to his arm. After they escape, Fielding steers a truck loaded with gasoline barrels into the mouth of the cave — killing the monstrous blob.
Back in Mexico City, a doctor removes the creature from Max’s arm. It has dissolved his skin down to the bone. The doctor is concerned as it has injected a poison into Max’s body that will soon reach his brain.
Fielding and a local professor examine the blob and discover that it is a prehistoric unicellular organism that’s been alive for 20 million years. It has a hunger for any living material it can touch. And, apparently, it can be revived with radioactivity.
Prior to viewing it today, I had never heard of Caltiki: The Immortal Monster. Obviously inspired by 1958’s The Blob, it doesn’t come close to being as entertaining as that classic but it does add a few fresh elements of its own. I found the Mayan backstory interesting and the cinematography extremely well done. It turns out that this Italian B-movie features plenty of behind-the-camera work and uncredited direction by genre master Mario Bava (Black Sunday).
The credited director, Riccardo Freda (Lust of the Vampire), also co-wrote the screenplay. Although there’s an oddly sexual (but integral) subplot involving Max, his girlfriend, Linda (Daniela Rocca,) and Fielding’s wife, Ellen (Didi Sullivan,) that unravels awkwardly, the overall story is entertaining. Sadly, the script runs out of ideas before it stumbles towards a ridiculously simplistic conclusion.
Even though the practical makeup effects are surprisingly good, the “monster” ends up looking like a soapy dish towel most of the time. But it’s the miniature work towards the end of the film that really makes the film look cheap.
Still, overall, I found Caltiki: The Immortal Monster unusually fun (and unusually gruesome) for a 1950s B-movie. It doesn’t break any new ground but it does rearrange the typical tropes found in American movies of its ilk in such a way that it at least feels fresh. I’d also like to add that I watched the film in Italian with English subtitles. A English dub does exist but I’ve heard that the voice acting is horrible. Try to see it in the original language if you can.
3.0 out of 5.0 stars
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