If you keep in mind that the majority of the cast aren’t really actors and the film was made for next to nothing, you’re in for a Southern style treat.
1972’s The Legend of Boggy Creek is one of the first movies that really scared me. I don’t mean a momentary cheap shock. I’m talking down-to-the-bone frightened for years. Since it was G-rated, I was five or six-years-old when my parents took me to see it. Although it seems quaint now, there’s a scene near the end of the film that made me afraid to look out any window during the dark of night. That irrational fear lasts to this day.
Charles B. Pierce (The Town That Dreaded Sundown) directed this tale of the Fouke Monster, a Bigfoot-like creature that reportedly prowls the area surrounding Fouke, Arkansas. Told in a docu-drama style, the movie dramatizes several notable sightings made by residents between the 1960s and early 1970s. In fact, Pierce cast some people who were involved in the sightings to portray themselves in the film.
Pierce, who also served as cinematographer, creates palpable tension in the scenes featuring the creature. Working with an admittedly limited budget (less than $200,000), Pierce always keeps the monster in shadow or out-of-focus. This helps give the scenes a menacing quality as well as hiding the fact that we’re seeing a man in a monkey suit. (Something that the numerous Bigfoot films inspired by this one should have done more often.)
Since the cast is largely made up of people who’d never been in front of a camera before, Pierce puts the storytelling into the hands of Vern Stierman, who narrates the film as “Jim.” Jim grew up near Fouke and encountered the creature as a young boy. Jim introduces all of the major witnesses as well as the two main cycles of sightings. The first batch are relatively harmless encounters in the woods. After a group of hunters allegedly wound the creature, it disappears for eight years. When it returns, it’s much more aggressive and, in one case, violent.
The Legend of Boggy Creek excels when it’s focused on the creature or the townsfolk’s reactions to it. Pierce is a very skilled nature photographer and does a fantastic job highlighting the diverse Arkansas wildlife. Unfortunately, he tends to lean on the nature footage as a way to pad the film’s already meager running time.
There’s also a time-wasting detour that highlights a trip that Travis Crabtree, a local teenager, takes to visit Herb Jones, a crusty old man who lives alone in the swamp. Although Jones provides the movie’s only dissenting opinion on the creature, the encounter really doesn’t serve much purpose. (And the folk song that accompanies Crabtree’s journey is downright cringe-worthy.)
If viewed as a straight horror movie, The Legend of Boggy Creek is not really all that scary. (That is, as long as you’re not five years old.) Its G-rating is a bit misleading as some of the monster scenes can be intense for younger viewers. If you’re interested in seeing the film responsible for the 1970s Bigfoot craze, the film is immensely watchable. I found its depiction of the simple, uncomplicated life around Fouke, Arkansas (albeit 40 years ago) to be fascinating. If you keep in mind that the majority of the cast aren’t really actors and the film was made for next to nothing, you’re in for a Southern style treat.
The Legend of Boggy Creek was recently released on Blu-ray in an official, newly restored edition. This version is, by far, the recommended way to watch the movie. Earlier DVD releases were culled from poor quality prints and remove the film’s original widescreen aspect ratio. The new Blu-ray is nearly pristine and looks fantastic in its proper widescreen presentation. If you’re a fan, it’s definitely worth the purchase price.
3.5 out of 5.0 stars
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