The Killer Shrews (1959) on Netflix
Captain Thorne Sherman brings supplies by ship to an island research station as a hurricane approaches. The scientist there, Marlowe Craigis, has bred mutant shrews the size of wolves.
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Trailer
Plot summary
Captain Thorne Sherman sails supplies to an island compound. The residents want the ship unloaded and gone before a hurricane arrives, but Thorne decides the storm is too severe to risk leaving that night, so he stays ashore while his first mate, Rook Griswold, remains with the boat. The scientist Marlowe Craigis explains his aim: by isolating the genes that govern growth and metabolism, he hopes to shrink humans to half their size and lessen the strain of overpopulation. He chose shrews as test animals because they live briefly, letting him track results across generations. Ann Craigis then tells Thorne what the work has produced: a batch of mutant shrews, the size of wolves, that got loose and are breeding in the wild. Each evening the group seals itself inside the compound, because the creatures feed at night.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Killer Shrews (1959)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Ray Kellogg, directing his first film after running 20th Century Fox's special effects department, had the shrew close-ups shot with hand puppets, while the wider shots used coonhounds dressed up as the shrews.
