1962 Color 90min
Starring: Richard Kiel, Marilyn Manning, and Arch Hall, Jr.
Directed by: Arch Hall, Sr. (Credited as Nicholas Merriwether)
For those of you who aren’t already familiar with Eegah, I suppose that I should give a brief synopsis of the plot before I get down to what I find to be really important about this film. So here goes.
Eegah is the story of a prehistoric caveman who comes across a young woman and, of course, falls madly in love with her. After she is rescued by her boyfriend, Eegah comes looking for her and terrorizes the town looking for his lost love. Lessons are learned and good times are had by all. The End.
Richard Kiel of James Bond fame plays Eegah , while the object of his amorous desires, Roxy, is played by Marilyn Manning. Manning is famous for starring in, well this movie, really. She was in most of the Fairway International Pictures films (The production company founded by Arch Hall, Sr.). Of course we can’t forget the real star, Tom, played by none other than the legendary Arch Hall, Jr.
I'll put $10 on the big guyArch Hall, Jr. seems to catch a lot of crap from everyone who watches this movie, but I will say a few words in his defense. It might not be saying much, but Arch Hall, Jr. easily gives the best performance in this movie. Actually, truth be told, with a little bit of refining I think that Arch could’ve been a pretty decent actor. A fact that he demonstrated in his convincing (if not a little over the top) performance as demented killer Charlie Tibbs, in 1963’s The Sadist. He probably should have passed on Eegah but lets be honest, if you were 19 years old and your father offered you the lead role in a movie you probably wouldn’t have turned it down either.
Getting back to our movie, Eegah has been reviewed and discussed by countless other b-movie enthusiasts over the years. Mystery Science Theater 3000 for example, expertly ripped the film and its star Arch Hall, Jr. to shreds. I suppose that I too could follow their lead and go over all of the plot holes in the film, or the seemingly never-ending scenes of Eegah fondling Roxy in front of her own father (Played by Arch Hall, Sr.). I too could rip in to one Arch Hall, Jr. and his musical performances which are scattered all throughout the picture.
I could go over all of these faults, and what’s more you’d probably expect me to, as well. It certainly would make for a lengthy and entertaining review, given all of this film’s flaws. However I think that I am going to talk about something from this film that really doesn’t seem to get the attention it rightly deserves. Something that really caught my eye: Arch’s kick-ass dune buggy.
Just take a look at this beauty. I've taken the liberty of highlighting some of its more prominent features for your benefit.
Beautiful, isn't it? Just look at how it’s been tricked out. With its sweet red spray paint exterior and groovy whitewall tires, you just know that the chicks have to go wild over it. Plus it has room for plenty of provisions, and it even has a bed. You’d never have to go home! Imagine all of the neat stuff that you could do with this bad boy. For example, you could…
Outrun angry giants…
Enjoy desert camp outs…
Scare the living hell out of your girlfriend…
Explore the “Forbidden Zone...”
Or just whiz out in the desert with your best girl.I hope that I have clearly illustrated to you just how cool Arch’s dune buggy really is. Just think, these are only a few of the activities that you could enjoy with this buggy, but I’ll leave the rest to your imagination. The possibilities are endless.
So that’s the review. Sure, you probably haven’t gleaned much information about the actual film itself from this particular review, but you have been introduced to one of the coolest dune buggies in existence, and you’re welcome.
Reviewed by Derek Miller
Posted 1/5/08
