concept of a giant monster after a successful theatrical re-release of King Kong. In turn, this craze included Them! the following year about a colony of giant ants (the first of the "big bug" films of the 1950s), the Godzilla series from Japan that has spawned films from 1954 to the present day, and two British features directed by Beast director Eugène Lourié, Behemoth, the Sea Monster (U.K. 1959, U.S. release retitled The Giant Behemoth) and Gorgo (U.K. 1961). Harryhausen himself admitted the extensive similarities with his work and Godzilla in an interview regarding Peter Jackson's King Kong in 2005 and expressed a bitterness towards the Japanese series. Harryhausen would later reuse the Rhedosaurus model to portray the dragon in the 1958 film The 7th Voyage of Sinbad. Additionally, Harryhausen's baby Allosaurus within the 1966 movie One Million Years B.C. was followed by Toho's Gorosaurus in the 1967 movie King Kong Escapes where both theropods were grey-blue colored man-eaters and surviving descendants of Allosaurus, and giant snakes and apes or ape-men appeared in both films. The movie Cloverfield (2008), which also involves a giant monster terrorizing New York City, inserts a frame from The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (along with frames from King Kong and Them!) into the hand-held camera footage used throughout the film. The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms was nominated for AFI's Top 10 Science Fiction Films list. See also The Arctic Giant (another case of similar monster film predating Toho's Godzilla) The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (parts of the Rhedosaurus's model was reused for the dragon which appears in the film) List of American films of 1953 List of stop-motion films List of films featuring giant monsters References Notes Bibliography Warren, Bill. Keep Watching the Skies! American Science Fiction Films of the Fifties: 21st Century Edition. 2009. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company (first editions Vol. 1, 1982, Vol. 2, 1986). . External links Rerecording of The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms soundtrack 1953 films 1950s fantasy films 1950s monster movies 1950s science fiction horror films American black-and-white films American monster movies Films based on works by Ray Bradbury American natural horror films 1950s English-language films Films about dinosaurs Giant monster films Films based on science fiction short stories Films directed by Eugène Lourié Films scored by David Buttolph Films set in amusement parks Films set in New York City Films shot in New York City Films shot