Ivan Marx - The Legend of Bigfoot (1976)

I have realized over the week that my Cryptozoology Week should be renamed Bigfoot Week. It definitely appears that there is very little to watch in the arena of true Cryptozoology. With that knowledge in hand, I went into my Drive-In Classics 50 Movie Pack for the Ivan Marx documentary The Legend of Bigfoot.

Plot/ This is a documentary following famed researcher Ivan Marx about the legendary creature, Bigfoot, with emphasis on him being the missing link.

I am not sure how I feel about this movie considering it is not quite a true documentary, but it is not a movie either. Honestly, there were some interesting moments, unfortunately, there is not much more than stock nature footage and narration. Yes, Bigfoot does show up (at least a man in a hairy suit), but it really does not add much to the film other than a good laugh. In the end, there is really nothing here to warrant watching it again, it does not offer anything in the way of entertainment or evidence and should be ignored by Bigfoot fans or researchers.

Sasquatch: The Legend of Bigfoot (1977)

I decided to change things up today and move away from the typical horror movies that I have been watching. So, once I got back from picking up a couple of potential curiosity cabinet items, I decided to revisit my youth (and one of my inspirations for Searching the Abyss) and watch the 1977 docudrama Sasquatch: the Legend of Bigfoot.

Plot/ Scientists mount an expedition to find a Bigfoot-type creature.

It has been a long time since I have watched this one; it was one of the first movies (along with the Legend of Boggy Creek) that got me into the Bigfoot phenomena. Watching it again today brought back so many memories. A fictional docudrama / mystery, there were some very interesting moments. Yes, it was low budget and the B movie actors were had some rough moments, but the creepy atmosphere still holds up after all these years. While not perfect, it is an interesting look at the possible existence of one of the most famous cryptids in the world. Not for everyone, but I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in Cryptozoology or the legendary Squatch..

Please don't let someone remake this film

As a boy growing up in South Western Pennsylvania, it was easy to develop an interest in the unexplained. Everywhere you looked, it seemed like something strange as being seen or experienced. Since that time, I have had an interest in Bigfoot and the other creatures that wander our countryside. One of my first experiences was when my parents took me to the drive-in to see The Legend of Boggy Creek .That really may be the only movie that actually scared me. The visuals took me to my home, a small wooden farmhouse in a valley on a desolate highway between Uniontown and Masontown. Even worse, the dreaded woods surrounded our house making it easy access for any creatures that wanted to straggle in.

 

Looking at the movie today, it is a stretch to call the film a work of art or cinematic masterpiece. In fact, it has many flaws in the script, in the effects and in the filming. Yet, when you consider that the 1972 movie was made for roughly $100,000, it can be considered a work of genius for that day in age. Many of the shaky, grainy hand cam movies (Blair Witch, Paranormal Activity) should thank them for conditioning society to viewing that type of film. Besides the camera work, the documentary-like script, mixing staged interviews with some local residents who claim to have encountered the creature, along with fictitious reenactments of said encounters made it feel like the monster did live and survive in the swamps, waiting to terrorize its next victim.

I know now, some 30-plus years later, that a man in a cheesy monster costume portrayed the creature in the movie, but at that time, it scared the crap out of me. Ironically, like many other groundbreaking films of a genre, The Legend of Boggy Creek started a run on similar creature features (The Legend of Bigfoot or Snowbeast for example) and docudramas, but this one is the classic!

There was something about the movie that just craws under your skin, creeping in and staying there. That is one of the reasons that the rumored remake was taken so hard by rabid fans, this movie should never be remade, flaws and all, LEAVE IT ALONE! Fortunately, as it turns out, the remake may share a name, but, it will be a very different endeavor, possible more gruesome and a draw for hardcore horror fans.

One thing is certain though, the new movie definitely will fail to capture the cult following of the original. Many people like me pay more attention when they are in the wild because of that film. I know, when I am in the woods searching for the Jersey Devil, thoughts of the Fouke Monster always run through my mind, and I look, hoping to survive the afternoon, praying that I am not the next meal!