Secrets of the Phantom Caverns [What Waits Below] (1984, Robert Powell, Timothy Bottoms, Lisa Blount, Richard Johnson, Anne Heywood) – Classic Movie Review 10,805

Archaeologists open up a deep cavern in South America and get the shock of their lives when they uncover a lost race of albino aliens in carpet slippers, in the hilariously awful 1984 action horror film Secrets of the Phantom Caverns [What Waits Below].

Robert Powell heads a troupe of stalwart actors down on their luck, who include Lisa Blount, Richard Johnson, Anne Heywood and Timothy Bottoms. All carry on commendably with serious faces in this ludicrous fantasy thriller, valiantly directed by Don Sharp, who teamed up earlier with Powell for The 39 Steps.

But everyone is defeated when the monsters reveal themselves, breaking rule one in fantasy films: never show the monsters unless you’ve got a Spielberg-sized special effects budget.

The film is also known as What Waits Below.

The screenplay is by Christy Marx and Robert Vincent O’Neil, based on a story by Freddie Francis (as Ken Barnett).

It was shot at Cumberland Caverns, McMinnville, Tennessee, and Cathedral Caverns, Woodville, Alabama.

Star Lisa Blount died of a blood disorder at age 53 on 25 October 2010. She is remembered for An Officer and a Gentleman, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe, as well as Dead & Buried, What Waits Below, Prince of Darkness, Nightflyers, Needful Things, and Stalked.

© Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 10,805

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