From Hell It Came

An oft-derided entry from the vaults of hoary 1950s creature features (and subject of an infamous six-word review: “And to Hell it can go.”), Dan Milner's 1957 South Seas-shocker is high in kitsch elements but noticeably low in suspense. After Prince Kimo uncovers a plot hatched by three evil members of his island tribe to poison and overthrow Kimo's father, the intrepid lad is denounced as a heretic by the corrupt medicine man and sentenced to death via wooden stake. In true horror film fashion, Kimo swears vengeance and places a curse on the heads of his persecutors. His vengeance takes an odd and rather knobby form: Kimo, resurrected as a scowling tree-monster named Tabonga, is unearthed from the prince's grave by a group of dull and too-curious American scientists—including star Tod Andrews—who decide that the best course of action is to resuscitate the living vegetable. Soon, the island residents discover that Tabonga's bark is just as bad as his bite as the stomping stump wreaks havoc by hugging all of his poor victims to death. Milner and his cast play all of this with a commendably straight face and the film passes by in breezy fashion at just over an hour. But with a central monster that looks just as petrified in front of the camera as its victims, this can only be of interest to drive-in flick completists. Optional. (J. Cruz)