When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1970)

[Akijama]

Coming, February 2017!
WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH (1969)
NEW 2017 1080p HD REMASTER
BD50
COLOR - 100 Minutes
ORIGINAL ASPECT RATIO - 1.85:1, 16 X 9 WIDESCREEN
DTS HD-Master English 2.0 Mono
English SDH

Theatrical Trailer (HD)

ADVISORY: This edition of WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH is the original International Theatrical release version which contains nudity.

After Raquel Welch conquered the screen in One Million Years B.C., Hammer Studios followed up with When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth, written and directed by Val Guest (The Quatermass Xperiment) and based on a story by J.G. Ballard (Crash). Victoria Vetri stars as Sanna, rescued from ritual sacrifice by Tara (Robin Hawdon), a member of a rival tribe. Her survival coincides with the mysterious formation of a new “fire” in the sky: the moon! Sanna’s old tribe blames her for this affront to the sun; Sanna flees their wrath and Tara follows. Their shared adventures loom as large as the giants who once ruled the earth!

[lilboyblu]

Originally Posted by Akijama

Just announced on their Fb. Coming in February https://mobile.twitter.com/WarnerArc...36954274922496

In SuperDynamImitation! Great to see this get a release nevertheless.

[BarnDoor]

I didn't expect to see this released before Valley of the Gwangi, but still, nice to see Warner putting out more Hammer titles. I guess the remaining Frankenstein and Dracula ones are more likely to get WHV releases.

[JupiterMission]

I've never seen this film, but I'm considering picking it up for the cover alone. What's the movie like?

[cakefactory]

It's like a slightly lower-budget, slightly skeevier (the lead is a playboy centerfold, and it has a couple nude scenes) One Million Years BC. It's sometimes mislabelled a sequel to it, in fact. A cavebabe is part of a mostly brown-haired tribe that sacrifices all its blonde women to the sun, and then she escapes during some freak storm (which is explained at the end very stupidly). Some scrawny brown-haired dude falls for her, and follows her around as she has misadventures with dinosaurs, while the tribe chases them around trying to kill her to appease the sun. There's some nudity, so it's skeevier (assuming this is that unrated version they briefly released on DVD). The two leads also have less screen presence, and the dinosaur scenes aren't as exciting. I still like it quite a bit, and the stop-motion effects are very good. There IS a lizard with a fake frill, but One Million Years BC had an enlarged lizard at the beginning too.

Basically, if you really like One Million Years BC, you will almost definitely like this. And it's required viewing for any big stop-motion fans. The effects are almost better than Harryhausen's, they just lack anything as ambitious and exciting as say, the Allosaur attack.

I'm VERY surprised WAC is releasing it. Especially before Gwangi. It's great news, though! After the DVD got yanked, I sorta thought it must have something to do with them labeling the nudie version PG. Glad to see they're being upfront about it being that version, so we won't have that problem again!

[javi92]

Will probably pick up. Looks like a cash in on One Million Years BC.

[AKORIS]

I've never seen this but always wanted to...

thanks Warner Archive!!

they've been releasing lots of great stuff this last year or so

[TravelSteveR]

WDRTE has some amazing effects. The mother and baby dinosaurs, the giant crabs, the plesiosaur--all are top-notch creations by Jim Danforth and his team. The film was nominated for an Oscar for its effects, losing to BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS (and IMHO wrongly so). This is the unrated version that was mistakenly released on DVD with a G-rating a few years back. The laserdisc was also the unrated version.

[schlock]

Originally Posted by cakefactory

I'm VERY surprised WAC is releasing it. Especially before Gwangi. It's great news, though! After the DVD got yanked, I sorta thought it must have something to do with them labeling the nudie version PG. Glad to see they're being upfront about it being that version, so we won't have that problem again!

Actually, the edited US theatrical version of WDRTE was Rated G and all nudity was trimmed out of that cut, and WB had the G rating on the back of the DVD case, but their master was accidentally and thankfully the uncut version. When word got out that it was the international version with nudity but had a G rating, WB pulled the DVD from release (it was a Best Buy exclusive) and never reissued it with a corrected rating. Now, they are making it quite clear that it's uncut - just make sure they leave off the G.

Anyway, this is GREAT news - cannot wait!

[cakefactory]

Originally Posted by schlock

Actually, the edited US theatrical version of WDRTE was Rated G and all nudity was trimmed out of that cut, and WB had the G rating on the back of the DVD case, but their master was accidentally and thankfully the uncut version. When word got out that it was the international version with nudity but had a G rating, WB pulled the DVD from release (it was a Best Buy exclusive) and never reissued it with a corrected rating. Now, they are making it quite clear that it's uncut - just make sure they leave off the G.

Anyway, this is GREAT news - cannot wait!

Oh jeez, I didn't realize it was G instead of PG! The movie has implied sex, constant bouncing boobs, and is so violent that I just assumed PG. I bet the ratings board saw it had dinosaurs and went KID'S MOVIE! G! without watching itl.

[schlock]

Originally Posted by cakefactory

Oh jeez, I didn't realize it was G instead of PG! The movie has implied sex, constant bouncing boobs, and is so violent that I just assumed PG. I bet the ratings board saw it had dinosaurs and went KID'S MOVIE! G! without watching itl.

LOL, true! But even G back in those days could have some adult material. 2001, Planet of the Apes (violence, nudity, lobotomy, etc.), and later Star Trek TMP had some curse words.

[cakefactory]

Originally Posted by schlock

LOL, true! But even G back in those days could have some adult material. 2001, Planet of the Apes (violence, nudity, lobotomy, etc.), and later Star Trek TMP had some curse words.

I know that there was a brief period after the introduction of that rating where they just threw G at all "monster movies" indiscriminately. So, we had anomalies like Dracula Has Risen from the Grave, which is very bloody and has some truly nasty material in it getting a G, while the sequel to it a couple years later after they figured out what ratings were for got a GP! Not to mention, in 2004 they re-examined them and now video copies in the US are both R

[babybreese]

The R rated TASTE on Blu / DVD has several minutes restored that were cut for it's US theatrical GP release, so there is a reason there.

HAS RISEN was never re rated, there is a big G on the back of the Blu.

[RalphoR]

Wow! Very happy to see this. I'll definitely get this day one. For a moment there I thought they finally released The Valley of Gwangi and was about to stroke out. At least I have a lot more faith Gwangi is coming.

[StingingVelvet]

F**k yes.

[cakefactory]

Originally Posted by patnovak4hire

Love the fake cave language of When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth. It actually starts to make sense about midway through the movie.

I wonder if Prehistoric Women (aka Slave Girls), also from Hammer, will ever make it to blu.

I doubt it, that one's Studiocanal and probably at the bottom of the list of the 12 or so they're sitting on (and rightly so, it's AWFUL).

[RalphoR]

Does Hammer own the copyright to the word "akita"? I swear every cave chick says it.

[cakefactory]

Originally Posted by babybreese

HAS RISEN was never re rated, there is a big G on the back of the Blu.

You mean imdb is lying to me?! That never happens!

[The Great Owl]

This is so going to be mine that it's not even funny.

[Partyslammer]

Day one purchase for me. Glad I can finally retire the old flipper dvd w/Moon Zero Two.

I like this movie but it lacks the iconic imagery and kind of nasty edge One Million Years BC had. The bit with the cave girl and the baby dinosaur doesn't really go anywhere and the giant crab attack while nicely animated and filmed, is kind of anti-climactic. The only spfx scene that really stands out is the Plesiosaurus attack.

That said, some scenes the animation and compositions are actually better and more technically accomplished then what Harryhausen was doing at the time.