6/10
Overlooked b-gem from Corman and Co.
1 March 2004
Warning: Spoilers
This film, whose true name is not "Teenage Cave Man" but rather "The Prehistoric World", was released by AIP under said name to exploit the success of its own "I Was a Teenage...." series of films (which were actually produced by Herman Cohen in England). Viewed entirely on its own merits, this little film has a lot to offer, even beyond some of the obvious camp humor.

There is some intriguing sci-fi here, most of which I won't give away for fear of *****SPOILERS***** giving away too much, but some of which definately predate and prefigure "Planet of the Apes" as Corman himself points out in his autobio.

Robert Vaughn does a good job here, once more showing the strength of performance that should have made him another Robert Stack, rather than another John Saxon.

There is a strong anti-establishment subtext in the film which definately places it just ahead of its time in prefiguring the political "message" sci-fi of the late 60s. Ignoring the cheap effects and some of the less accomplished actors in the film may result in a less entertaining viewing, but may reveal a film of greater depth than your typical saturday morning b.
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