Kattiera Nana I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Dirtylogy It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Ogosmith Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Lela The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

Carolyn Paetow This odd little film is--oddly enough--good because it is so badly done. For starters, it concerns some sort of South Seas witchcraft instead of voodoo. And many viewers probably feel bewitched while trying to figure out all the confusing plot devices and glaring gaps in the storyline. One can easily get the impression that minimal direction has allowed the players to conjure their own magic in regard to their individual roles. Some ring as hollow as a dried-out gourd, like those of Boris Karloff and Elisha Cook, Jr., actors who certainly knew how to move the spirit in melodramas. Rhodes Reason, on the other hand, puts yeoman effort into his boat-captain portrayal, struggling at times to make schmaltzy lines sound serious. Beverly Tyler, as Karloff's all-business assistant, lays it on thick as a prissy prig, high-mindedly brushing off the attentions of Reason and Jean Engstrom, who, as elegant decorator Miss Winters, delivers a subtle but nonetheless obvious portrayal of a lesbian. In such a lightweight, run-of-the-mill script, Engstrom's character probably could have emerged as merely a sophisticate trying to glamorize Tyler's dowdy Sarah Adams and rebuff Reason's rough-hewn Matthew Gunn. But Engstrom intricately weaves a fascinating, on-the-QT characterization that steals every scene she is in. Both women have to contend with predatory phallic-looking plants as well as the macho ministrations of Reason. And there are threats posed by hexing island natives and their oddly Anglo chief. All in all, a fun flick to be marooned in for an hour or so!

MartinHafer The film begins with a rich guy hiring Boris Karloff to get to the bottom of a zombie-like trance one of his employees is experiencing. Karloff is apparently a world-famous occult debunker and he assures everyone that the man is NOT a zombie and the island this man recently visited it NOT endowed with evil powers. So, Karloff and a motley crew arrive on the island--only to find that the place is even worse than Newark. In fact, it's filled with man-eating plants and voodoo.Oddly, in the midst of all this silly carnage and occult, two characters fall in love and share some passionate moments. I don't know about you, but being stranded on a homicidal island and seeing my associates eaten or killed is NOT an aphrodisiac and this is the definite low-point of this silly and rather pointless film. Technically, this isn't a horrible film like PLAN 9 or THEY SAVED HITLER'S BRAIN. The acting is just tolerable enough that the film manages to eke out a score of 3--though the terribly dull and silly script was just too much to allow the film to achieve a rating higher than 3. Imagine the work it took to put Boris Karloff in a film and STILL make it dull and tedious! Unless you are a die-hard fan of Karloff or like watching bad films, then I'd avoid this one. Sadly, it's bad but just not silly enough to make it fun to watch and make fun of it.

Neil Doyle "Zombies and chomping plants greet an expedition led by a debunker of the occult." That's the description of VOODOO ISLAND given by TCM and it hits the mark. But the only real reason for watching is the presence of BORIS KARLOFF as the debunker. Others in the cast do little to help the project, but include BEVERLY TYLER as a frigid assistant to Karloff and RHODES REASON as the stalwart leader of the group. His romance with Tyler gets off to a bad start but heats up before the final reel.The special effects are unintentionally funny, especially a scene where one of the young ladies is attacked by a carnivorous plant. Les Baxter's score is a major asset though, accenting whatever danger is indicated by the script.But overall, the film is a distinct letdown for anyone expecting a good zombie movie. Most of the action takes place in bright sunlight amid sets that look like leftovers from Fantasy Island.Summing up: Karloff admirers won't mind watching him here, but no one is likely to be impressed by the lame storyline.

nellybly-3 I've seen worse programmers. Boris Karloff brings class to anything he works in. It's fun just to watch him. His ill-health hadn't yet slowed him down and he was a real presence. Elisha Cook also gives an excellent performance.I think I know how the lesbian undertones between the two women got by (though the tones weren't that "under"). If it had been a big budget picture, the censors would have been on it like white on rice. As a low-budget picture it came in under the radar.Several of the actors do rise above the material. Actually it reminds me of some of the TV shows being churned out about the same time. They, too, didn't have much of a budget. What adds to the TV feeling are some of the actors, such as Rhodes Reason and Mervyn Vye, who were mainstays of '50s television.