'70s Trash: Bog (1979)

I guess the term 'bog standard' isn't a compliment based on this Film.  This is Bog, a 1979 Horror Film that was one of the many Creature Features of this time.  Thanks for reviving the Subgenre, Jaws!   Yes, after that all-time Classic, we got alot of Films about giant Monsters, the likes of which hadn't been so popular since the 1950s.  It is fitting then that this Film feels like a throwback to those Films in all but the positive ways.  There's a charm to those Movies.  They talk about nonsense like it means something.  There's always exactly ONE Lady Scientist, who usually ends up more in peril than in control.  There's a big showdown with the creature.  The creature almost undoubtedly looks silly- unless Ray Harryhausen was involved- and it is vanquished...or is it?  You get most of that with this Movie.  Why does it feel so old for its time, but also outdated in 2020?  With all of the '50s trappings, the Film feels very '70s.  You have macho men with mustaches, big-ass cars and lots of drunk hillbillies/rednecks.  Bog comes to us from Don Keeslar- who just died in August at age 90- and it is about the only thing he did in Hollywood it seems.  His only other Directing Credit comes from a 1982 TV Movie featuring Grizzly Adams- i'll probably skip that one.  If you want Star Power, you get...Aldo Ray.  Woo-hoo?  All jokes aside, this could be trashy fun?  Is it?  Let's see...

In a Cold Open, a guy fishing with Dynamite is killed by a creature.  No...stop...don't.

After that, a pair of guys drag their wives down to watch them fish.
Said creature attacks again and kills...one of the wives?

Huh?

I thought for sure the guy would get it.

Now the other Wife gets it, in a shot that implies the creature is some sort of giant.
It's not.

The Sheriff- Ray- is tasked with stopping the deaths, but he's wary of this monster business.

Naturally, in Film Cliche #27, the Town is all-in from the get-go.

The Husbands are met by a local weirdo who tells them who to speak to- the old crone in the Forest.  Naturally!

She is undisturbed by the creature, who suddenly shows up, but the weirdo runs outside immediately to die.  Dumbass.

Now the Husbands know that the creature is dangerous and that they can stop it.

Yeah, they both die not long after that.

You thought the people we built up in Act 1 were the Heroes?  Ha!

Carl Kitt only wrote 2 Movies, so this might be one of the reasons why.

No, the actual Heroes are this Doctor- left- and this Scientist- right- who have to solve the mystery.  They are about as exciting as the pair in The Giant Spider Invasion.

Unlike that Film, we get precious Screen Time wasted on their love story, complete with Theme Song.

After enough people get killed, they call in two Divers.  In the vein of Bermuda Triangle, we get people we don't want to see in wetsuits get squeezed into wetsuits.

They find...a bunch of bottles melted together?

Oh, it is supposed to be an egg cluster.

They eventually figure out how to subdue the creature with some sort of foam.  Way to make it look dirty, Film.

In a curious decision, they first kill off Ray during this bit.  Weird.

Secondly, the creature escapes and we learn that it used a female as a Host to help it lay eggs.  That was the crone, but she's dead.

They save the lady Scientist- see what I said earlier- and the day is saved.  Or is it?!?

It's been 41 years, so I'm leaning towards 'yes.'

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It is a fun Film...to make fun of.  Is it good?  Not really.  It tries at times.  They clearly spent some time thinking up some theoretically-interesting ideas for the creature.  'What if it had a needle for its hand?'  That does lead to my favorite line- 'This may sound crazy, but could we have a Dracula out there?'  Someone wrote that, folks!  I should note that one of the Actors- Leo Gordon- has 34 Writing Credits, as opposed to Carl Kitt's 2.  He wrote The Wasp Woman, Attack of the Giant Leeches and The Terror.  I'm not sure why he wrote so many Public Domain Films.  The whole thing looks and feels pretty cheap.  You don't see the Monster outside of POV until the big moment where they hose it down like a dirty car.  In their defense, the Monster looks ridiculous, so they made the right call.  Stuck with a bad Suit- don't show it.  You could try to make it look better, but...nah.  I do love the part where the Deputy stops people from trying to catch the Monster.  I'm glad we get that Scene at least 3x.  Bog is not a good Film.  It can be fun to watch as a 'So Bad It's Good' Movie if one was so inclined.  I'll leave you with the double whammy of the '?' Ending and the Disney Font...

Next up, I dig into a trio of Creature Features.  What has 8 legs and 2 Sequels?  Stay tuned...