Beyond Atlantis
The tropical island of Artouri believed by most to be uninhabited, only a few know that is home to a reclusive tribe ruled over by the high priest Nereus, his beautiful daughter travelling incognito to the Philippines every few weeks to obtain provisions which cannot be grown on the island, her payment to boatman Manuel precious pearls which he sells for cash to unscrupulous East Eddie.
Having taken over that side of the waterfront, Eddie is curious about the origin of the pearls; Logan a diver who is in debt to him, he is recruited, as is Vic Mathias, another diver who has a boat, and overhearing the conversation Doctor Katherine Vernon is also interested, not for the value of the pearls but for their historic interest, believing them to be Tuscarora pearls, similar to those used by the Minoans to decorate a mask found in Crete dating to 2000BC.
Directed by the prolific Eddie Romero, Beyond Atlantis, also known variously as Sea Creatures or Sea People, has aspirations towards being a science fiction horror, but its only success is in being dull, a combination of beaches, sand, fish, coral, scuba gear and endless though admittedly spectacular underwater photography, a thriller with no thrills and an adventure which forgot to pack excitement even by the modest standards of 1973.
Starring Leigh Christian as the mysterious Syrene, the visitors considering that perhaps her name is a corruption of the sirens who in legend seduced sailors, her father Nereus (George Nader) states “It is your destiny to mate with an outsider, not to love him,” but since it has already been demonstrated that all intruders are to be summarily executed this would seem to present a quandary, though Charles Johnson’s script seems scarcely bothered by logic or continuity.
With Patrick Wayne as Vic, John Ashley as Logan, Sid Haig as Eddie and Lenore Stevens as Katherine, her new outfit in every scene justifying her heavy luggage, for a film set on the shore Beyond Atlantis never strays beyond the shallows, more in love with extended footage of scantily clad synchronised swimmers accompanied by intricate classical piano or ethereal electronica than the equally threadbare plot of the endless greed of men, which is understandable.
At best a tedious travelogue of stunning locations, the natives of Artouri beautiful people and excellent swimmers with strangely big eyes, the question of why is asked but with no conclusion drawn and no explanation forthcoming and given that it serves no purpose in the plot and looks ridiculous a better question would be why the production bothered wasting the time and money; released five years later, the similarly titled Warlords of Atlantis is vastly more entertaining.
Beyond Atlantis will be streaming on the Arrow platform from Friday 19th September
