... bad. Really, really, REALLY BAD. The story revolves around our hero's attempt to find out what sort of mysterious creature that it is haunting the woods around a small town.
During a portion of the movie, there is a "reenactment" of past events, shown in black and white. In this reenactment of past events, a group of scientists are camping in the woods searching for a substance with miraculous healing powers. Now, even though the scientists are camping in old-fashioned canvas tents, out-of-doors, they're dressed in business suits, shirts and ties, overcoats, and wingtips. This is supposed to be many years in the past, and at least one of the scientists is wearing modern clothes and glasses, and has a modern haircut. Oh, and it is the dead of winter. Everyone knows that you rough it in the woods wearing Wall Street attire in the dead of winter.
While our nattily attired scientists are trying to find this mystery substance, they are warned to move away by what is supposed to be a Native American Woman. Great casting there. She looked like someone went to the local Denny's and hired the first woman that they found there with dark hair and features. Of course, our stalwart scientists don't listen, and they are killed one by one by a mysterious creature. At one point, the creature is in one of the tents attacking someone, and one of the scientists shoots at it. It is truly as astounding gun, either that, or the scientist firing it is the worst shot in the history of the cinema. He is shooting at the creature, though the side of the tent, from eight to ten feet away. He empties the revolver, which looks like it was bought from the $.99 clearance bin at Toys 'R' Us, but there are no holes punched into the side of the tent, where the shooter was aiming... from eight feet away.
Oh, and our creature! Go to a local nail salon, and take photographs of the worst case of toenail fungus that you can find. Develop the photographs, then tear them up and glue them to a Playtex dishwashing glove. There's your monster's hand and claws.
Later in the movie, many years later, the same Denny's waitress Native American woman who tried to warn off the scientists shows up to warm off one of their sons, who somehow inherited this land. She looks exactly the same way that she did decades before. She literally did not appear to have aged so much as a single day in 30 or so years. No wrinkles, no strands of gray accumulated in three decades.
How can I put this as delicately as possible, bearing in mind the stellar quality of this film. Ah. I've had contentious, abrasive, difficult bowel movements that were more enjoyable.. and better made... than this film.
Avoid "American Beast" at all costs.
