Few things can be quite so entertaining as a bad 1950s horror movie. Then again, few things can be quite so paralyzing. The 1959 THE KILLER SHREWS is a bit of both, at time excruciatingly funny, at times, well, just plain excruciating.<br /><br />The story, such as it is, concerns a the captain of a small supply ship (James Best) who finds himself stranded on an island with a few nutty scientists, a blonde bombshell, and a bunch of dogs dressed up like killer shrews. They're all hankering to get away, of course, but wouldn't you know it, there's a hurricane a-blowing. While they wait for the weather to settle they drink a lot and worry about the dogs, er, shrews, which are trying to gnaw their way inside for lunch.<br /><br />It's hard to say what is more abominable about this film: the story, the script, or the human cast. On the other hand, the costumed canine cast is actually quite a bit of fun. Love those tails in particular! Even so, I still found the sixty-nine minutes of this film rough going. I mean, really, now: just how long can YOU be amused by dog costumes? Fans of this sort of thing will be impressed, but I was glad the DVD was inexpensive. The Alpha release seems to be the most commonly available; the picture isn't bad, but the sound is lousy. I give the whole thing three stars for the sake of fans, but I doubt I'll make any return trips to Shrew Island.<br /><br />GFT, Amazon Reviewer