A few thoughts: The last dinosaur movie Ray Harryhausen ever worked on, this western fantasy was originally conceived by Willis O'Brien [King Kong, The Lost World], and believe me when I say that makes total sense. This movie feels a lot like the King Kong story, minus a lot of the depth, charm, and ingenuity. That's not to say the animation isn't terrific, because it is (Harryhausen never disappointed), but story and character-wise this movie feels very unoriginal. The main attraction here is of course the dinomation, and the gimmicky joy of seeing a T-Rex walking around in a western setting, surrounded by people with cowboy hats and six-shooters. It's the most simplistic kind of pleasure, so it's no wonder this film has gained a following since its release. The acting is pretty bland, making the underwritten characters all the more uninteresting, but again this isn't the point or purpose of the movie. You're here to see cowboys share the screen with dinosaurs, and that's exactly what you get. It isn't mindblowing, but it's fun to watch in a disposable sort of way.
Fans of Harryhausen in particular should check this out. It isn't the best work he's ever done, but fits right in with a majority of his films, visually.
My grade: C
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