Before Burt Reynolds became a household name and an international icon he was working as an actor under contract for Universal Studios. He was just beginning to make a name for himself when he ended up in a movie called SKULLDUGGERY. I can remember seeing the ads in the newspaper for the film. We were two years past PLANET OF THE APES and the creatures in this one looked similar. Of course I was hyped to see the movie. Unfortunately it didn’t happen. Which is why I was excited to see that Kino Lorber saved the film from obscurity.
Before jumping into a description of what the film is about let me preface by saying it is about any and all things. This movie jumps from one concept to another with alarming speed. The end result is a movie that’s a bit whacky, a bit unusual and a load of fun. Okay moving forward.
Reynolds stars as Doug Temple, a down on his luck adventurer in Papua New Guinea. Along with his cohort Otto Kreps (Roger C. Carmel) he finds an opportunity to make a potential fortune. An anthropological group headed by Dr. Sybil Greame (Susan Clark) is making their way into the jungle. In this same area is a load of phosphorous that Kreps knows can make them rich if they get the land rights first. The duo worm their way into the expedition and off they go.
Eventually arriving in the area they both find what they were looking for but come across something else as well. Living in the area are small half man/half ape creatures they name the Tropi. The creatures are the missing link that man has sought for years. Docile and friendly it isn’t long before they are welcomed to the group and each one is named.
This is where the first hard right takes place. Seeing them as a form of cheap labor Doug has the Tropi go to work for him harvesting the minerals he needs to make his fortune. He isn’t bad to them but he pays them in canned ham. But this isn’t the major abuse the Tropi suffer. The backer for the expedition was a man named Vancruysen (Paul Hubschmid), Greame’s fiancé. A wealthy entrepreneur he too sees the Tropi as cheap labor. But he doesn’t view them as people but more as cattle. So much so that he also sees them as a food source as well.
The human being inside Doug doesn’t take kindly to this concept. Neither does Kreps who has become fond of one of the Tropi. So now the film takes a hard left. We find out that Kreps may have impregnated the Tropi he’s become close to. If they can successfully breed with a human then this proves they are indeed the missing link and more human than animal.
Now a hard right and a SPOILER ALERT. The baby is born and dies and Doug claims that he killed the baby. Now the movie becomes a courtroom drama where the legal ramifications are considered. Are the Tropi human or not? Toss in claims of racism against the Tropi, a Black Panther type group that shows up and you have one heck of a mixed up movie.
Directed by Gordon Douglas whose career dated back to the 30s and who was known for films like THE GREAT GILDERSLEEVE, THEM!, UP PERISCOPE, YELLOWSTONE KELLY, IN LIKE FLINT, TONY ROME and more I’m sure the actors thought they were going into a potential hit. The fact is that Douglas no doubt elevated this movie from a low budget B flick to a major studio release. But the studio had no clue how to market the movie. That’s easy to understand after watching and not being sure what kind of movie it intended to be.
Everyone involved gives the movie their best efforts though and it shows. The acting on display from everyone here is flawless and that includes the actors in makeup as the Tropi. Reynolds is his usual cocky wise cracker when need be and serious savior later in the film. Clark never gave a bad performance. Carmel had a way of making a strange character loveable and he does so here.
The end result is a movie that will have you entertained and laughing even if that wasn’t the original intent. Thank goodness Kino Lorber saved this one. They’re presenting the film in a brand new 2k master and extras include an audio commentary track by film historians Howard S. Berger, C. Courtney Joyner and Sergio Mims and a collection of theatrical trailers. If you’re looking for something different and something fun then give this one a watch.
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