Movie Review: 100 Million BC

100 Million BC a.k.a Prehistoric a.k.a Jurassic Commando 

Starring:  Michael Gross, Christopher Atkins, Greg Evigan, Marie Westbrook, Phil Burke, Wendy Carter, Geoff Meed, Stephen Blackehart, Dean Kreyling, Daniel Ponsky, Nick McCallum, Dustin Harnish, Jeff Bornstein, Eric Spudic, Aaron Stigger, James Vieira, Prince Pheenix Wade, Michelle Dickson, Kit Martineau

Director: Griff Furst 

The Asylum, USA, 2008.

This movie is part of Master of Disaster collection containing nine films from The Asylum (published by Great Movies GMBH).

Navy scientist Frank Reno (Michael Gross, known from Tremors-movies) is experimenting with time travel. One of the failed tests was was the Philadelphia Experiment in 1943. In 1949 a group of scientists and Frank's brother Erik (Christopher Atkins, known from Blue Lagoon) were sent back in time to the year 70 Million years BC. Two archeologists (Michelle Dickson and Kit Martineau) find cave paintings with messages to Frank.

Archaelogist Michelle

LCDR Dorn(Greg Evigan) and Frank Reno

Frank collects a Navy SEAL rescue team commanded by tough Lt. Peet (Stephen Blackehart) to save the lost expedition. First Frank teaches the soldiers some basic quantum physics. The soldiers travel through time using a Rainbow-device which looks and works like the Stargate.

Rainbow-device

Usual military grunts

Lt. Peet

The time travel technology has fatal side-effects if the traveller is teleported to a location having an obstacle such as tree. In the jungle the soldiers meet dinosaurs and killer plants. The soldiers start get eaten, and the rest are saved by group of cavemen, i.e. the lost expedition. Their leader is Bud Stark (Dean Kreyling). Other surviving scientists are Betty (Wendy Carter) and Ruth (Marie Westbrook). Ruth is actually Frank's old girlfriend.

Erik Reno

Stubbs and Bud

Ruth and Betty

Prehistoric Earth is a dangerous neighbourhood so the heroes decide to return to more hospitable times. The survivors arrive in modern time Los Angeles but also a Carcharodontosaurus named Big Red follows. After that the movie puts on Godzilla gear. Dinosaur runs around the city munching citizens and soldiers try to stop it.

Nasty plants

Dinosaur attack

Big Red goes to town

Some of the action-scenes look shaky and messy, it is difficult to see what is attacking. Probably that saved some of the special effect budget. As a scifi B-movie this is not so bad but fun to watch. Also the plot is above par usual Asylum efforts, although it creates some big time paradoxes in the end. It has some beautiful location scenery filmed in Belize, and acceptable although uneven production values. Just remember that this is not big budget movie like Jurassic Park. The soldiers are usual military grunts, exhibiting standard acts of bravery and throwing amusing one -liners like "Time travel's a bitch, ain't it?" and "What?! Civilians? You mean snacks!" The lost scientists are a more colourful group. My favourite was Dean Kreyling's character Bud who painted funny prehistoric graffiti.

Oh, just messing around.

Rating: Good (as a low budget film) or Average (as a regular movie)