A Professor (Manolo Fábregas) has been doing extensive research on the lost city of Atlantis. He is convinced that it existed and that there may still be remnants of it in the form of an island somewhere in the Atlantic. He wants to launch an expedition to find it. He convinces former students, mineralogist, Laura (Alma Delia Fuentes), chemist, Esther (Elsa Cardenas) and zoologist, Pablo (Genaro Moreno) to join him in his search. They load up a small plane with gear and provisions and set out over the Atlantic looking for proof of his theory.
The group gets caught in a storm and the plane crashes on an unknown island. The storm sent them off course and damaged the instruments so they have no idea where they are. The Professor thinks that the plane can be repaired so while they are there they will set up camp and get some samples for study. Pablo finds a river nearby so they will be able to have fresh water. After investigating some of the island they determine that it is prehistoric.
On another part of the island lives a clan of cave dwelling prehistoric humans. Molo (Armando Silvestre) is the leader of the clan. After a day of hunting the men return to the cave to eat. Molo eats first, then the other men, then the women and children. They lead primitive lives among the dinosaurs that inhabit the island.
Later, when another caveman attempts to steal some of Molo’s food, a fight ensues. Molo is beaten and the other caveman takes over the clan. Molo wanders away. He is chased by a Mammoth and falls unconscious over a cliff, into the river and onto a floating bed of reeds. When he comes to he finds Laura swimming in the river.
“Island of the Dinosaurs” AKA “La isla de los dinosaurios” was released in 1967 and was directed by Rafael Portillo. It is a Mexican science fiction fantasy film.
The sixties was an important time for dinosaur movies, “Mysterious Island” 1961, “The Lost World” 1961, “Gorgo” 1961, “Dinosaurus!” 1960, “One Million Years B C” 1966, and several Godzilla movies, to name a few. Mexico didn’t get into the dinosaur craze but did produce a couple films. “The Beast of Hollow Mountain” 1956 for example. Then there is the lesser know “Island of the Dinosaurs”.
The movie is basically the Mexican version of “One Million B C” 1940, including much of the stock footage from it. That’s not either good or bad. There is a whole list of movies that incorporated those long dead lizards and baby alligators. Here, however, you have at least half of the movie culled from it and the story added to it is similar, only instead of Carole Landis from the Shell People you have a modern Mexican woman. If you liked “One Million BC”, than this will be very nostalgic for you.
Director Portillo has become the unofficial cult director of Mexican science fiction and horror having directed the “Aztec Mummy” trilogy, which begot “Face of the Screaming Werewolf” 1964 and “Attack of the Mayan Mummy” 1964, as well as the titillating “Narco Satanico” 1968. The film was written by Alfredo Salazar, the brother of actor, producer, and director Abel Salazar. Alfredo wrote a lot of Mexican horror and science fiction stories and screenplays including the “Aztec Mummy” films and several movies from the subgenre of luchador films.