Zaat (1971) User Reviews

Why not a 1?

[Gislef · 2/10 · 14 May 1999]

Yes, I gave it a 2, dammit. The underwater photography is tolerable and there are a couple of suspenseful attacking moments. Basically, however, this movie rambles on pointlessly, much like the "walking catfish" mutant and the government agent who tracks him in the last third of the movie.

The first 20 minutes of the movie is in (hilarious) voiceover, and you begin to wonder if they lost the soundtrack ala Creeping Terror and Beast of Yuca Flats. Then the characters actually start speaking on-screen and you wish they had lost the soundtrack. The dialogue seems to bear no resemblance to the onscreen goings-on. I suppose it establishes some plot points and clarifies things for the audience, but there are so many ramblings and offshoots that you just kinda of give up and give in.

The "monster" looks like an early draft of a Silurian costume from Doctor Who, with a fur neckpiece (??). The skinny, balding bad guy is on-screen for only a few minutes before undergoing his transformation, but imprints himself indelibly in our minds thanks to his stripping down, his hamhanded maneuvering himself into the transformation tank, and his omniscient voiceover narration.

And the fish! What is it with the fish? The opening narration dwells on them (giving us a good impression of Jacques Costeau as a Nazi gone bad), and at least one murder scene decides to insert random shots of fish in-between cuts. There seems to be some kind of implied ecological nature-takes-vengeance message here somewhere, but like everything else, it is lost entirely in the rambling dialogue.

Basically, the movie is pretty much a waste of celluloid. A few good moments, as I've seen far worse underwater cinematography. Watch it if you dare.

Zaat's not the way to do it.

[BA_Harrison · 1/10 · 4 June 2020]

Mad scientist Dr. Kurt Leopold (Marshall Grauer) uses his special formula, Zaat, to turn himself into a walking catfish (although he looks more like a mutant seahorse to me). After polluting a local pond with Zaat, the lumbering catfish man takes revenge on those who scoffed at his work, and then goes about trying to create a catfish woman to be his mate.

The first fifteen minutes of low budget Floridian monster movie Zaat (AKA The Blood Waters of Dr.Z) are enough to sort the men from the boys: anyone not seriously dedicated to Z-grade trash will surely soon fall by the wayside at the sheer banality of the opening scenes -- underwater wildlife footage with a monotonous voice-over, and tedious shots of scientist Dr. Leopold as he goes about his work. At the quarter-of-an-hour mark, things momentarily pick up when Leopold turns into catfish man (the creature played by Wade Popwell) and goes on the prowl, but it's still far from great, any amusement to be had at the shoddiness of the monster costume quickly wearing off.

The rest of the film is mostly long, drawn out scenes of badly lit and very boring 'action' as the monster roams the countryside and town while the authorities investigate, but, every so often, director Don Barton throws in something so bizarre that one can't help but sit up and take notice. A prime example is the hippie musical interlude in which a group of long-haired layabouts sit and sway while a man sings and plays guitar. The town's sheriff arrives and taps his hand appreciatively, before leading the hippies on a Pied Piper style procession to the town jail, where he locks up the youngsters for their own safety. It's a really weird scene that has zero bearing on the plot -- the hippies are never heard of or seen again.

Another head-scratching moment comes when the creature gets a headache and needs some aspirin (at least I think that is what happens): breaking into a pharmacy, it knocks back some meds (getting a little woozy in the process) and then trashes the place. Again, just a really incongruous scene that serves no real purpose other than to pad out the runtime (not that the film needed padding out, the finished mess clocking in at an excruciating 100 minutes).

Other bits that are notable for their eccentricity include the monster taking time out to draw a picture of sexy blonde INPIT Agent Martha Walsh (Sanna Ringhaver) -- he's actually not a bad artist for a fish -- and an unconvincing shot of a supposedly giant catfish destroying a miniature matchstick model of a fence, the only remnant of a Kaiju-catfish sequence cut from the final film on account of it looking so crap.

To be honest, I probably would have rated Zaat a rather generous 3/10 for chucking in these truly weird moments amid the deathly dull stuff, but the film commits a crime against trash cinema that is unforgivable: sexy Agent Walsh is about to undress when she is interrupted, zipping up her red jumpsuit just as things were getting interesting, and then she takes a shower without any nudity. Just what kind of cheap, exploitative, Z-grade monster movie is this? I'm left no other choice than to deduct a couple of points.

Hilariously awful

[Cujo108 · 12 May 2010]

An idiotic scientist decides to turn himself into a walking catfish monster. He also wants to create a new race of fellow walking catfish monsters. This is a horrible movie. It starts off with some laughable narration and an awful folk song. It only gets worse from there. That said, I was cracking up a lot throughout this thing. There's one golden moment shortly after the guy has changed into monster form. He's walking through a basement and clearly trips over something, perhaps the shitty monster costume itself. We're also privy to the long, drawn out process of him getting his machines, pulleys and other junk together for the mutation. This takes up about 20 minutes of screen time all by itself.

About halfway through the film, we get more awful singing from a bunch of hippies, followed by a march to the local jail. The so-called hero of the picture is a joke. He and his girlfriend also wear ridiculous red jumpsuits. They should have just stuck with the college guy and the sheriff, not that doing so would have saved the movie or anything. This is currently #10 on the IMDb bottom 100 list. There's no question that this is a bad movie, but I wouldn't rate it that low simply because of the amusement I got out of it.

How many titles will I hear this movie as?

[nhlgumby · 2/10 · 3 January 2002]

I first read about this movie as being called ZaAt. Then I actually watch it under the name "Attack of the Swamp Monsters." THEN I hear about it once again as The Blood Island of Dr. Z as showed on MST 3k. I have not seen the MST 3k version of this movie, but one has to admit, they would have a LOT to work with. The lighting of this movie was terrible, the kill scenes were very short, the mask! Well, the mask is very self explanatory.

One thing that boggled my mind was after the monster tipped the boat, there were two people floating in the water, while one scrambled to shore. One person in the water was still moving their hands even though it's my best guess that the catfish monster killed them. And then when the monster went up on the land to kill the other person, HE DIDN'T EVEN TOUCH THE PERSON!!! It looked like he just swept a bug off of her chest and she just went limp!!! What?!? I'm no corroner, but I know that somebody doesn't die from being brushed, even if it is by a catfish type monster. My biggest complaint as in every 70's movie, was the lighting. I have never seen worse lighting in my life. You could use the indiglo of a watch and see what was happening better than the lighting from this movie. But what was so bad about it was that there was bad lighting during scenes that looked like they were important, like the fight scene between the people of INPET (shoulda been named "INEPT") and the monster. That looked like it could have been a big scene, if only we could have seen what was going on. And how about those fresh water underwater scenes, you know, with the coral and tropical fish and currents and all. That must have seen some fresh water pond to house coral. Last time I checked, coral doesn't grow in fresh water, never mind that it grew in a pond.

Well, I'll let you watch to enjoy the rest of the movie, although I do suggest you go out and rent the non-MST 3k version, just because sometimes it's fun to enjoy a movie without someone telling you what's funny about it.

There's a reason Zaat begins with 'Z'...

[Nightman85 · 3/10 · 18 March 2009]

Crazy scientist living in the Florida swamps turns himself into a monstrous walking fish-man and proceeds to terrorize.

Another drive in low-budgeter that probably would have been more at home in the 1950's rather than the early 70's. It's weird and cheap schlock all the way! The big rubber monster of the film is quite cheesy looking as it teeters around the swamps and struggles to swim in underwater scenes. The zippers of the monster suit are "hidden" by patches of fur. Zaat seems to have all of the hokey B flick trappings - a silly storyline, lackluster acting, crude editing, and a folksy theme song. Also there's a bikini-wearing girl who gets kidnapped by the monster to cap it off.

Now ordinarily such campy qualities might be downright charming to a B horror fan such as myself, unfortunately Zaat is just too roughly-made and ultimately ridiculous for its own good. Not the worst of its kind, it certainly beats the similarly themed 1966 movie Curse of the Swamp Creature, but Zaat leaves much to be desired.

Then again, what other horror film is there where the monster robs a drugstore?

* 1/2 out of ****

Some things are better left at the bottom of the sea...

[paul_haakonsen · 3/10 · 3 October 2020]

Granted, I wasn't expecting much from this 1971 movie when I sat down to watch in here in 2020. But hey, I hadn't seen it before - nor even heard about it - and so I thought I would sit down to watch it, as it might actually be a good movie.

Well, turns out that the storyline in "Zaat" was rather generic and mundane, offering very little of great entertainment to the audience. The plot was fairly straight forward, for sure, but it just wasn't a particularly compelling or interesting storyline all together. It just amazes me that with four writers, that they couldn't come up with something more wholehearted than what this movie turned out to be.

The acting in the movie was adequate for most parts, aside from the dubious acting in the first part of the movie before the guy turned into the amphibious creature.

For a movie from 1971, then I will say that the special effects weren't all that impressive. Perhaps back in the day they were passable on the screen, but they have not withstood the test of time with grace. The creature design was fairly shoddy, and it was blatantly obvious that it was just a guy in a rubber suit walking and swimming about. And the design of the head for the amphibious creature was just abysmal, it looked horrible and distorted.

No wonder I had never heard about "Zaat" before I got the chance to sit down to watch it, and I hadn't been missing out on a particularly great or outstanding moment in cinema history.

I am rating "Zaat" a mere three out of ten stars, as the movie was watchable, albeit not entertaining. And "Zaat" is not a movie that warrants more than a single viewing, especially since just getting through the first viewing was something of an ordeal in itself.

Jacksonville, Fla Bomb

[TVBob · 1/10 · 5 May 1999]

Part of this was shot in Jacksonville, Florida. You talk about a putrid film. The plot drags on and on with no exposition except for a pathetic voice-over from the "villiain" who tells us all that they think he's mad, and "he'll show them someday".

Anyway, after about 20 minutes of showing us this bad guy playing around with all sorts of pseudo-Frankenstein lab stuff, he finally turns into a walking fish-man. Now look, the costume REALLY isn't that bad. It is kind of freaky looking, but you cannot make a film based on one kinda-cool outfit. Anyway, this bad guy swims around squirting lakes and other fish with a squirt bottle...for what purpose, we have NO idea, then he swims and attacks some old guy on a boat. Later we learn it is one of these guys who called him "mad". More swimming, some pathetic gawking at a woman painting and camping by the lake in a bikini, then back to the murder. Later monster boy tries to take the girl and turn HER into a "Mrs. Monster" but he fails. Oh, we see another 20 minutes or so of the monster piddling with the Frankenstein equipment...like we're so stupid we don't realize what he's trying to do. MST3K did this flick, and it was hard to enjoy even when THEY did it...this is bad on the MANOS, THE HANDS OF FATE kind of level. Watch if you REALLY want to go to sleep, but have to have the TV on anyway.

"The formula they all laughed at -- Z sub A, A sub T... ZaAt!"

[bensonmum2 · 2/10 · 29 August 2007]

Even though I watch a lot of bad movies, it's been awhile since I've seen a plot that made less sense than the one found in Blood Waters of Dr. Z. For reasons known only to him, Dr. Kurt Leopold decides the planet would be a better place if fish were to take over. After a rather lengthy voice-over soliloquy on the subject, he dunks himself into a tank and comes out transformed into some sort of poorly designed would-be fish-creature. With his handy spray bottle filled with I'm not sure what, he sets out on his mission to lead the catfish in a takeover of the Earth. Before you can say "carp", Dr. Leopold's plan seems to be forgotten in favor of finding a mate he can transform into a would-be fish-creature. (Actually, I'm of the opinion that getting laid was Dr. Leopold's goal the whole time. Forget about the nonsense of a master race of fish.) As the bodies start to pile up, old fish-boy soon has some scientists and the local sheriff on his tail. Can they put a stop to Dr. Leopold and his plans for world domination?

Whether you call the movie Blood Waters of Dr. Z or Zaat or ZaAt or Attack of the Swamp Creatures, it really doesn't matter. Crap by any name is still crap. The movie is Grade A bottom-of-the-barrel film-making. As I pointed out, the plot is ridiculous. The technical aspects of the films like lighting, sound, special effects, editing, etc. are beyond bad. The direction is amateurish at best. And as for the acting, I'm not in the least surprised to discover that no one involved ever did anything other than appear in this monstrosity (okay, one guy does have one other credit, but that's it). Quite honestly, my rating of a 2/10 is incredibly generous. I'm sure there's a reason I didn't give Blood Waters of Dr. Z the dreaded 1/10, but sitting here 12 hours after watching the movie, I can't come up with a valid explanation.

One of the comments on IMDb bemoans the fact that the majority of people rating and reviewing Blood Waters of Dr. Z have only seen the Mystery Science Theater 3000 version (that's how I saw it also). The comment states that the real movie has 30 or so minutes edited out by the MST3K crew and the movie shouldn't be judged unless someone has seen the whole thing. Well why in God's name would I want to see 30 more minutes of this trash! The time I've already devoted to Blood Waters of Dr. Z is above and beyond what it deserves. Just be glad more people haven't seen that additional footage as I'm guessing the rating would be even lower if they had.

The best ever first 20 minutes in a cheap horror movie.

[vonnoosh · 9/10 · 8 October 2021]

The opening is classic and there is no escaping that fact. It starts with stock footage of exotic predator fish and an insane sounding man doing narration over the scenes professing his adoration of them. Then it shows probably the least threatening looking man to ever be born staring at the water. As he shuffles slowly back to his lab, the credits role and they are bright yellow letters and have the kind of font you'd expect in a campy beach comedy/musical from the 60s. While they roll, an embarrassingly dramatic sounding folk song is playing. As the character slowly (he almost looks like he struggles) makes his way back to his lab, the lyrics "sashay through the sarcasm" and variations to that grab your attention. You have three genres colluding at once now all driving the viewer to think something different! Comedy, drama or horror? Never has a film done that!! Then the mad doctor is in his lab as the credits and folk music stop. The lab has all the usually goofy sounds and machines that look like they were broken pinball machines. The narration picks up again. He desires to be turned into a half man half walking catfish. Finally, he makes his preperations. You see this same unfortunate man unfortunately strip down to his boxer shorts, lay on a stretcher hooked up to a pully then dunk himself into a pool. The score by this time is heavy droning electronic music which adds to the, uh..mm, menace of it all. He transforms into a giant goofy looking monster and exclaims when seeing himself in the mirror "NOTHING AT ALL LIKE A CATFISH BUT ITS BEAUTIFUL!!" There is nothing like this opening. Thst alone gets it 9 stars. It is beyond classic.

After that, the movie slows way down and gets dull when it was supposed to be thrilling. I imagine this film sold really well in Europe because it has the kind of enigmatic ending their films are known for and perhaps that was always going to be the intended market. And of course that opening is......everything.

ZAAT so?

[ratebait · 7/10 · 8 May 2010]

The IMDb correctly discourages comments from referencing other comments, but since ZAAT has the honor of being one of the IMDb's lowest rated films, it's appropriate to pay a nod to one of the chief forces behind its low rating. This main reason ties in with the peculiarity of a rarely seen and relatively unavailable film getting as high as over 2,000 votes.

A reviewer from Tennessee got to the heart of this matter in his 2007 IMDb user's essay; he addressed another IMDb comment that bemoaned the majority of the reviewers having only seen ZAAT in its Mystery Science Theater 3000 dissection, which also happened to be the way the Tennessee reviewer saw the film. The MST3K crew cut out over a half-hour, so the IMDb reviewers who based their thoughts on the MST3K's put-down presentation didn't even see the whole film. "Why in God's name would I want to see 30 more minutes of this trash!" was the Tennessean's response.

It is patently unfair to review a film on a version the purpose of which was to poke fun at the film. It is as if a film is judged not by watching the film, but by reading the MAD Magazine satire of it. And it especially becomes unfair if the satirized version has been abridged -- that's like a book reviewer who reviews a book based on only some chapters.

Add to this formula the cynicism of a newer generation, who thinks it's "cool" to put down media-presented efforts; by doing so, such people think they are being smarter, and what a nice way to feel better.

Of course ZAAT is a "bad" movie. Amateurish and logically-challenged -- for example, why would the sheriff not have drawn his gun on the approaching monster? (But don't get me started on the many places this movie has gone wrong; at this writing, there are about 70 reviews you can read, most of which will happily point out the absurdities.)

Yet I entered into this debacle with exactly such low expectations. And yes, there were drawn-out scenes that were not easy to sit through. All in all, however, if you know what you're going to be in for, you accept the vehicle for what it is, and it is your attitude that is going to affect your judgment, and your ultimate enjoyment.

I can honestly say there are many uninspired and forgettable films that are far more polished and professional than ZAAT, but for all ZAAT's inanities, I could appreciate the effort that went into ZAAT. The producer obviously had a very low budget (I'd imagine his contacts with the Florida Marine facility might have inspired the "plot" -- without money, a film can be designed around the locations and other assets), yet still managed to come up with a stupidly imaginative film.

I appreciated the quality of the monster suit, for one thing -- given what must have been the restraints of the budget and the local special effects talent. Some of the dialogue was actually pretty clever. The fact that a black character was chosen as one of the heroes was admirable -- it was only a few years earlier that Romero's NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD had helped break the mold in this area, at least for horror movies. The director and/or editor also tried hard at times to add some excitement, for example with the insert shots during the attack on the scientist in his house. And the female victim was very beautiful. (With a movie like this, you've got to appreciate what you get.)

I'm giving the film a few undeserved stars as a reaction against the numerous IMDb snobs who don't even have the decency to watch the real thing. And for those who have taken in the real thing, what DO these people expect when they watch a locally made monster movie from the 1970s that defines the word "cheesy"? On that level, ZAAT delivers in spades.

I can only think of one film I have seen that is worse...and I've seen a lot of very bad films.

[planktonrules · 1/10 · 9 November 2009]

This film begins with what appears to be stock footage of undersea creatures during which completely irrelevant narration from Dr. Leopold intones loudly...and inanely. Then, after it finally finishes, the credits roll--and the audience is left completely baffled. Sadly, after the credits roll, the annoying narration continues with some prattle about 'walking fish'. Yeah, whatever. All I know is that this was really annoying and seemed to go on and on and on and make no sense. Finally, this is replaced by some loud and equally annoying whirring and old fashion computer sounds. The entire first 15-20 minutes of the film is nothing but that irritating and nonsensical sort of claptrap.

After all this annoyance and exposition, the doctor has now become some goofy sea monster--much like the ones you see in THE HORROR OF PARTY BEACH and other such 60s laughable crap. When my wife saw him, she began snickering. Thankfully, she knows me well enough that she didn't bother telling me what she thought of the film--she knew I had to get my horrible movie fix! In a brilliant move, once he transformed, now even MORE annoying sound effects are repeatedly thrown at the audience in an apparent attempt to drive them from the theaters for several more minutes. In fact, the sound track and sound effects for this film might just be the most annoying of any film in history. Also, inexplicably, the camera keeps jumping back and forth from the lame action to stock film of water animals--and it all seems so very irrelevant and cheap.

Apparently the plot has something to do with revenge or making a female creature like himself or something, but it's never very clear. What IS clear is that the film appears to have almost no script or direction. And, because of this, too often scenes are overplayed or repeated again and again without much regard to the story. It's really just a mess...a cheap and silly mess. Not surprisingly, this is writer/producer/director Don Barton's only film--it was just THAT bad! It is the most irritating film I have ever seen when it comes to the sound track and among the worst overall--with only MANOS HANDS OF FATE being the only film I can readily think of that is worse overall. That's saying a lot because I have seen most of the films of Al Adamson, Ed Wood, Ted Mikels, Larry Buchanan and many other of the worst film makers ever--and this one is WORSE. Clearly, it deserves its place as the current #8 worst film of all time on the IMDb list--though perhaps this is a bit too generous. This pile of crap at least gets my vote for most annoyingly loud film of all time.

Sheer horror... induced by BOREDOM that is...

[liverboyjoe179 · 1/10 · 17 February 2000]

After seeing this movie... I had... (sob, sob)... most disturbing... no, wait... BORING nightmares. This movie nearly put me to sleep! I was surprised I was actually able to stay awake through it. I found no real merit to watching this movie whatsoever. Summing up all that sucked, well: the acting was dry, the soundtrack was corny, the plot (or lacking thereof) was totally lame, and the monster looked pretty stupid. There is no reason at all anyone should watch this. In fact, there should be a warning from the surgeon general about his movie on the box.

Jaw-droppingly bad, but not the worst movie I've ever seen

[TheLittleSongbird · 1/10 · 26 June 2013]

A lot of people were exposed to Blood Waters of Dr Z through MST3K, myself included. The episode wasn't one of the classics, but it was funny and summed up very well what was wrong with the movie. The movie itself is one of the kind that makes your jaw drop just at the thought of it. The underwater photography is not so bad, beautiful is not how I describe it but it is the asset that is the least amateurish regarding Blood Waters of Dr Z. The rest is amateurish through and through, and the flaws are so numerous that the underwater photography is not enough to salvage. The rest of the camera work and editing though is nauseating, it hardly ever is still, and even for a genre movie the movie's colour scheme was much too drab. The monster was very non-threatening and looked ridiculous, not many movies I've seen recently have had a monster that looks like a man masquerading in a monster suit like he's at a fancy dress party but Blood Waters of Dr Z gives off that vibe in a painfully obvious way. The soundtrack is equally monotonous, with a song that is dull and really quite stupid, and it is one of those soundtracks that actually sounds as though it should be somewhere else. The dialogue is laughably cheesy and stilted, made even worse by the vapid and really annoying voice-overs, the attack scenes have no suspense or vitality(they are actually done so badly that I even couldn't deem them as unintentionally hilarious) and the story- the kind that is good concept-wise but badly executed- is senseless, filled with the brim with things left hanging there with no explanation and full of interminably plodding exposition and no sense of dread at all. The characters are annoying and undeveloped, often coming and going with no reason as to doing so, and the acting is just laughable from all involved. Overall, I've seen worse but that's saying a huge amount as Blood Waters of Dr Z is still terrible, one of the lamest monster movies almost certainly brought to celluloid. 1/10 for the underwater photography only. Bethany Cox

Just a cinematic tool for walking catfish

[jampbrid · 1/10 · 23 August 2000]

Just like Free Willy, The Bear, or any Pauly Shore movie, this flick was just a marketing ploy to get me to buy walking catfish t-shirts, catfish video games, and Popeil's Pocket Fisherman. This cute and cuddly creature, which walks like my aunt after her hip replacement surgery, will only be served blackened with red beans and rice in my home.

P.S...That Nazi-Fish guy was great! He really knew how to pick up women.

Better than some

[gmaigner · 3/10 · 10 October 2017]

This is a movie for sure. There is nothing to memorable about this, but let me try. This is a movie about a scientist who turns himself into a fish person to kill people. I'm no Bio Major, but this ain't adding up. The first five minutes is narrated stock footage of fish. I think Shark Exorcist stole this. The premise of the movie is stupid. If the guy wanted to kill people, why not just buy a gun. Also, why not test the serum on other people first? "Oh! I finished my serum. I'm boning to inject it in me with 0 testing. This will go perfectly." The fact that this was on the Fright Night app thing is so weird too. The only thing that works are the technical aspects.

So Bad It's Bad

[BingoT · 1/10 · 2 October 1998]

We videotaped this movie off a local UHF channel. A mad scientist creates a formula that changes him into a green lizard-like creature. He also carries around a spray bottle which when employed can turn people into catfish. Bad 70's clothing but nice string bikinis. Filmed in someone's backyard with limited equipment. Painful to sit through, and I would never do it again.

So bad you need to watch for yourself

[dwsjr · 1/10 · 13 February 2010]

The only reason I watched this (DVR'ed from Turner Classic Movies channel) was because I was a friend of Wade Popwell who played the monster. Wade passed away in 2006. We actually went scuba diving together once and I remember he had problems clearing his ears but since all of the underwater monster shots were in shallow water that shouldn't have been a problem.

But to the movie. Hippies, redneck sheriffs, strong southern accents, girls in bikinis, everything you would want in a movie. Lousy everything. I am sorry I never saw the MST3K version. Budget must have been at least $1000 and most of that went to the monster costume.

But if you are bored and you can find it (probably like me and recorded from a 1:00 AM cable showing) what the heck. I do think it is better than "Plan 9 from Outer Space".

By the way - the Switzerland mentioned in the credits is Switzerland Florida about 10 miles south of Jacksonville on the St. Johns river. I actually lived in Switzerland during my sophomore year in high school (and Wade was there too).

Cult Classic late night rubber suited monster flick!

[retromaster2000 · 8/10 · 24 December 2006]

I think this is one of the best rubber suited monster on the loose flicks of all time! A Cult Classic Sci-Fi / Horror / Thriller. It was made in Jacksonville, Florida in 1971. By Don Barton's new film company. He Produced & Directed the film. The film is about a crazy mad scientist type doctor named Leopold. That is experimenting with Catfish & other forms of Ocean Life. His fellow colleagues ridiculed him. He wants to turn himself into this catfish man type monster & wreak vengeance on those who ridiculed him. Also wants to find a female to transform & mate wit to starts a new aquatic race. It was aired on MST3K because it is one of the truly bad B Movies. A so bad it's good type. Not much more to say about the film. IMDb.com has 1975 as the release year which is wrong it was made in 1971 & released in theaters in 1972. First it was unofficially released on VHS in the U.S. in 1982 under the title "Attack Of The Swamp Creature" Hosted by Elvira, Mistress Of The Dark as part of the Thriller Video Series. The film only runs 96 mins. not including Elvira which she comes on before the movie starts also there is a middle spot & after the film is over she comes on one last time with her it runs about 105 mins. The actual movie run time is 99 mins. The Attack VHS version of the film has fake credits also missing scenes. Then in 1987 it was unofficially released again this time as "Hydra" on VHS in Canada. Which preserves the films entire 99 min. run time. The print is decent even though it is pretty scratchy with specs of dirt & blemishes. I did transfer both versions to DVD+R back in 2005. It would be nice to see it available on DVD some day. In 2000 the film was rescued from the ravages digitally remastered from original 35mm negative. Also released officially for the first time ever with no fake title & or credits. This was a 30th Anniversary Limited Edition Collector's VHS Video in Hi-Fi Stereo that was only available for a limited time. Besides the movie being digitally remastered it also includes exclusive bonus features. Including a Video Introduction by Producer/Director Don Barton, Original Theatrical Trailer, T.V. Spots, Still Gallery & last some Rare Outtake Footage. I am lucky enough to have a DVD-R copy on hand that I just got a few days ago. I hunted high & low for this for years. Which when it first came out in 2000 it was priced at $29.99. Which it was only available until 2002. Only 500 Copies were made also I believe. Sadly I never got a chance to get the actual VHS. Maybe some day I will find it. Even though the film is regarded as one of the worst B Movies ever made. Fans of rubber suited monsters movies will have a special place in their hearts for it & look on it as one of the best of the genre. A lot better then say "Bog" finished & supposed to be released in 1978 but wasn't released theatrically until 1983. Zaat also gained a huge cult following of devoted fans. Was one of Top Grossing Independent Films of 1972. The Collector's VHS is the best version that was available & the fans that own it are lucky enough to have it as I don't ever see a DVD release of it soon. It took long enough just to get it commercially available on VHS. Just in time for it's 30th Anniversary too! The film was also screened again at one or numerous theaters down in Jacksonville, Florida. Some of the cast & crew also gathered to meet eager fans & also a whole new younger generation of fans that learned of the film from their parents. It was a pretty big event down in Florida back in 2000. This is one of my favorite out of the Rubber Suited Monster Flicks of the 70's & of all time I give it 8 out of 10 for it's type!

Most People Who Have Reviewed ZAAT have Never Seen It!

[atucker909 · 7/10 · 23 April 2001]

Undoubtedly 95% of the people who have reviewed this film have only seen it on Mystery Science Theater 3000. I can be certain of this because I know for a fact it was never legally licensed for distribution on video or television and this includes the MST3K showings. I think it is unfair to review this film based on inferior prints and sloppy editing. Let's face it, the MST3K airings cut almost 30 minutes out of the film so their segments could be added and they talked through the whole movie. Regardless of how good or bad you think the film is, is it fair to judge the film at all in this form? This by no means the way the people who made it intended for it to be seen. I have seen the original version of the film and it makes a lot more sense and looks a lot better than the version MST3K altered considerably. I enjoyed the film because it comes across as a 1950's style horror film made in the 70's. Their is no nudity or profainity and the violence in minimal and not graphic. The creature is unique and it's background is interesting (when you get to see that part of the story). I also picked up on the similarities between the INPIT organization and today's concept of the X-Files. Overall when the fiolm is seen as intended I think it makes for a pretty entertaining viewing and isn't being entertained what films are all about?

Hook, line and stinker

[Doctor-32 · 1/10 · 10 June 1999]

I thought this might be a bit like the Roger Corman movie, Monsters - no such luck. The English video release is called 'Hydra'. There's nothing in this movie that you expect from a decent horror/sci-fi flick. The monster suit suxx. No nude women (despite a nude woman on the sleeve). Not scary. Just about the worst film ever made. Let's get it top of the worst 100! The only funny bit is when the ZZat creature goes ape and starts wrecking his scientific equipment in the lab. It looks like a guy attacking the juke-box when his selection doesn't come up. ZZzzzzat.

Great 70's Fun!

[librachild · 14 September 2005]

This film is a testament to the low budget, independent monster/horror flicks of the 60's and 70's. Man with a grudge, Dr. Kurt Leopold, transforms himself into a murderous "man fish" reeking revenge on all who have scorned him and anyone who gets in his way. Sure, the FX are non existent, the acting and dialogue amateurish, and the monster looks incredibly inane - a "man fish" with fur around the neck and back to hide the zipper! But that's what makes these films loads of fun to watch! You have to admire these independents who often invest their life savings to produce these gems. Lots of heart and soul fuse this genre. Today's excuses for cinema with bloated corporate budgets, over production, over paid prima donna actors, and excessive FX can't compare to the spirit and zeal of this genre. Cinamatic hacks such as Spielberg, Scorsese, Lucas, and Coppola who prostitute themselves on a consistent basis can learn a lot from the likes of The Blood Waters of Dr. Z.

Zaat on Turner Classics

[michaeljayklein · 2/10 · 8 May 2010]

I really did not expect much from a film with a title like that and I was right. I guess the best that could be said for it was that at times, the location scenery was very nice and the print we saw on Turner Movie Classics tonight did not deserve to look so clean and pristine (that alone stunned me). The sheriff leading the hippies to jail was the only good moment in the film--I thought it was turning into "Pippin" or something for a moment.

Of the monster, definitely a case where it should have stayed in the shadows but we get to see it for almost the entire film and in bright light and focus. It rather looked like a giant parakeet crossed with a wallet to me. Suspenseful music cues used at times when absolutely NOTHING suspenseful was going on and other gaffs and blunders that usually make these things entertaining, but not entertaining enough (if you ever have only an hour to live, watch this movie and you'll think you've lived another 9 days).

I'm rather surprised I had never heard of this one until recently!

The very definition of the word "amateur"

[Crow-70 · 1/10 · 28 April 1999]

But Bingo T. must have seen the Special Uncut Directors Version of this cinematic oil slick. No string bikinis or any evidence that the stuff doc was spraying was doing anything accept annoying the catfish to the point that they would rather squirm around on land than spend any more time around the rubber-suited ichthyophile Dr.Leopold. Two questions: 1.Who's Dr.Z? 2.What th'hell was that ending supposed to mean?

The print should have been dropped in the ocean!

[mhorg2018 · 1/10 · 30 June 2018]

Also known as the Blood Waters of Doctor Z, this incredibly bad, lame film about a mad scientist who turns himself into a Manphibian, is a 27th rate Creature from the Black Lagoon. Bad everything, they should have dropped the print into the ocean, but it would have left a ring around the planet!

Anyone who says that this is a good movie is not to be trusted... it may just be the worst movie ever made!!

[bellino-angelo2014 · 1/10 · 27 August 2019]

As someone might have noticed I occasionally watch bad movies because sometimes I can enjoy a bad movie for having a good laugh. There are movies like ROBOT MONSTER and PLAN 9 that are great fun to watch because of their camp value. Unfortunately not all bad movies are both bad and enjoyable, and ZAAT (known also as BLOOD WATERS OF DR Z) is one of them.

In the beginning we see underwater footage of sea creatures (scorpion fish, shark, stingray) narrated by Dr. Leopold, with an annoying voice that grates on the viewer's nerves where he talks of walking catfish. After these first 3 minutes we have a closeup of the main character and credits roll (during which Leopold walks home to his laboratory). Here, we have again annoying narration and weird laboratory sounds that make the viewer even more irritated.

After 15 minutes of this nonsense, the doctor transforms in a creepy looking water monster and he goes to the river for a swim, then he returns to his lab and he plans to kill the people that angered and laughed at him in the past. In this part the soundtrack is very annoying on a continuous loop and if this wasn't already enough, the camera from time to time jumps from the creature's actions to footage of water-dwelling animals to the people in the town that want to get rid of the creature. And even at 50 minutes in, to a group of hippies that ends in jail (while stalked by the creature).

Apparently the scientist transformed himself in a water creature for revenge or for making a creature similar to himself, but in the end, it's not that important because it's not even explained. The only thing that the viewer will notice is that the movie has no direction. In fact this movie is only a stupid and disastrous mess. And when it comes to badness the only movies that come close to this one are MANOS THE HANDS OF FATE and BEAST OF YUCCA FLATS. This is hardly a glowing endorsement, because I saw various B-movies from the 1950s and 1960s and with a few exceptions they are MUCH better compared to this mess. This movie truly deserved to be in the old Bottom 100 as it's the most lazy, dull and painful to watch movie that I have ever seen. Though, I have to admit it, its score of 2,5 is perhaps a bit too generous!