Reptilicus - In Print

For the sake of completeness, I present the novelisation of the Danish/US monster movie Reptilicus (1961).   Adapted into print for Monarch Books by the prolific (not to mention frequently pseudonymous) Dean Owen, who was also responsible for the novelisation of Konga.  Like the contemporary Monarch Books novelisation of Gorgo, this uses a tinted still from the film as a cover illustration, rather than the fanciful painting used for Konga.  Also in common with these other two monster movie adaptations, the text strays somewhat from the actual film, adding in some dollops of titillating sexual innuendo.  I say it strays from the movie as filmed, but there are actually two versions of the film in existence, the Danish original and the somewhat shorter English-language US release version.  While I'm assuming that the novelisation is based on the latter version, it has to be said that the extra scenes in the Danish version don't include anything of a sexual nature.  They do, however, include some comic relief from a caretaker character, (played by a performer who, apparently, was very popular in Denmark at the time), and a musical number.

For many years, the only version available in the UK was the US release version - on the basis of viewing it, I came to the conclusion that this was one of the worst films ever made.  Reptilicus itself was truly pathetic, represented by an obvious - and not very good - puppet in most of its scenes.  But, having subsequently seen the deleted scenes from the Danish original, I was forced to revise my opinion, slightly.  The US version undoubtedly misrepresents the original, replacing much of the monster footage and cutting completely all the scenes of the creature flying and breathing fire.  I have to say that, compared to what was on display in the version I originally saw, these were quite good, with the monster not looking anywhere near as lame as it had previously.  That said, the comic relief and the song were a bit disconcerting.  Anyway, to return to the novelisation, this one seems to somewhat rarer than either Gorgo or Konga, perhaps reflecting the relative obscurity of the source movie.  But, if you are determined to read it, there is a 2015 Kindle edition available from Amazon.