Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

It Came From Beneath the Sea

Play trailer Poster for It Came From Beneath the Sea 1955 1h 20m Sci-Fi Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
60% Tomatometer 10 Reviews 39% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
While on a routine mission, Cmdr. Pete Mathews (Kenneth Tobey) runs into trouble when his submarine is nearly sunk by an unknown creature. Back at base in Pearl Harbor, Dr. John Carter (Donald Curtis) and Professor Lesley Joyce (Faith Domergue) identify the beast as a giant octopus from the nether reaches of Mindanao Deep, which has been awakened by nearby nuclear testing. Radioactive and monstrously huge, the rampaging leviathan is heading toward the North American Pacific Coast.
Watch on Fandango at Home Stream Now

Where to Watch

It Came From Beneath the Sea

Critics Reviews

View More (10)
Matt Brunson Film Frenzy While the low budget dictated that Harryhausen's octopus only be constructed with six rather than eight tentacles, only a major-league dweeb would spend time trying to count them instead of enjoying the top-notch entertainment. Rated: 3/4 Mar 13, 2023 Full Review Mike Massie Gone With The Twins Harryhausen's many-armed gargantuan (for budgetary reasons, it actually only possessed six appendages) is easily the best reason to watch this production. Rated: 5/10 Aug 23, 2020 Full Review Tim Brayton Antagony & Ecstasy Given the number of movies like this that DIDN'T pay off with such a top-notch monster, it is easier to forgive the various narrative, cinematic, and psychological failings. Rated: 6/10 May 18, 2013 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Harryhausen wasn't yet on top of his game, but the special effects still were the feeble film's best feature. Rated: C Mar 30, 2008 Full Review Mark Bourne DVDJournal.com Of course, in perspective it's all a fun kind of bad and any Cahiers du Cinema critique dissolves on contact. Apr 6, 2006 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 2/5 Jun 14, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More (113)
Blu B It's ok. It's as mediocre all around as you can get for a 50's creature feature. It hits all the beats needed that all these films share. The military fighting back, the slow start, the forced romance, the destruction, it's all here and makes perfect sense. Nothing broken at all. But it has zero character or charm. Everyone just says plot expose in that 50's news anchor style that feels like your watching a documentary or news release. The special effects are alright but they look cheap. It's clear they were done well but the low budget shows. The direction is nothing special either and the set design just looks cheap. The giant octopus/squid is super forgettable as well. Lack of memorable monster, direction, production value, soundtrack, or most important characters is the biggest problems. This really has nothing going for it. Skip it. Just very forgettable. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 11/10/25 Full Review Stephen C Success in 1 hour and 20 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dubbed and subtitled in worldwide studios!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Filmed in 1955 in color and black and white versions!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/30/25 Full Review Claudio C It Came from Beneath the Sea (1955) The Abyssal Octopus (11,636 - 15 Jul 2015 / 22 Apr 2025 – by Claudio Carvalho) The state-of-the-art atomic submarine under the command of Commander Pete Mathews (Kenneth Tobey) is hold back by something weird in the sea. Pete reports to the Admiral and contacts the prominent scientists Prof. Lesley Joyce (Faith Domergue) and Dr. John Carter (Donald Curtis) to investigate. They conclude that the submarine was attacked by a giant radioactive octopus developed from bombing tests in the Pacific Ocean that would threaten the oceans. The Navy Command does not accept the explanation, but when a ship is sunk by the octopus, they realize the menace. Cmdr. Mathews teams up with Carter and Joyce and has a love affair with her. But soon the monster attacks San Francisco and the trio is the only chance to stop the creature. "It Came from Beneath the Sea" (1955) is a weak sci-fi about an abyssal octopus, fruit of bomb tests in the ocean. I am a big fan of Sci-Fi's from the 50 's, but this one is too dated, military and lame. The story takes place after WWII and during the Cold War in a period when the military people were in the summit of their careers; but there are many others good movies from this period. The greatest problem is the lack of action, with the romance without any chemistry between Pete and Joyce with John Carter with them all the time in total waste of time. The period of research is also too long. The stop-motion effects are OK for a 1955 film. The good point is Prof. Lesley Joyce, a woman ahead of time with her independence and not fainting or screaming like most of the heroins from the 50's and 60's movies. My vote is five. Title (Brazil): "O Monstro do Mar Revolto" ("The Monster from the Choppy Sea") My Blog: https://maniacosporfilme.wordpress.com/ Rated 2 out of 5 stars 04/23/25 Full Review CodyZamboni Z Above average 1950's giant atomic monster drive in fodder, Benefits from top notch Harryhausen tentacle fx destruction, And attractive female lead, Big demerit - unnecessary romantic subplot between sub captain and scientist in charge, Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 08/19/24 Full Review Liam D Definitely not one of the best monster movies or in Ray Harryhausen (Mysterious Island, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad) filmography but it’s an highly entertaining sci-fi B movie that’s rightfully cheesy Rated 4 out of 5 stars 06/06/24 Full Review Blobbo X It tries pretty hard! Thumbs up for effort. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/13/24 Full Review Read all reviews
It Came From Beneath the Sea

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW
20 Million Miles to Earth 75% 55% 20 Million Miles to Earth Watchlist The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms 91% 68% The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms Watchlist Them! 93% 77% Them! Watchlist Forbidden Planet 92% 85% Forbidden Planet Watchlist This Island Earth 75% 45% This Island Earth Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis While on a routine mission, Cmdr. Pete Mathews (Kenneth Tobey) runs into trouble when his submarine is nearly sunk by an unknown creature. Back at base in Pearl Harbor, Dr. John Carter (Donald Curtis) and Professor Lesley Joyce (Faith Domergue) identify the beast as a giant octopus from the nether reaches of Mindanao Deep, which has been awakened by nearby nuclear testing. Radioactive and monstrously huge, the rampaging leviathan is heading toward the North American Pacific Coast.
Director
Robert Gordon
Producer
Charles H. Schneer
Production Co
Clover Productions
Genre
Sci-Fi
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 9, 1955, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 16, 2012
Runtime
1h 20m
Most Popular at Home Now