This strange, romantic film might be Russia’s answer to The Creature From The Black Lagoon. In The Amphibian Man, a “sea-devil” haunts the ocean waters of the South American coast, disrupting the activities of greedy pearl divers – the greediest of whom vows to hunt the aquatic beast to death. However, it turns out this “devil” is actually the son of a mad scientist bent on creating a new underwater society, starting with his own child, who he’s given shark lungs. Making things even more complicated, the titular amphibian man ends up falling in love with the daughter of the greedy pearl diver. But hey: What is the search for love when one is king of the sea? This new wave sci-fi adventure is both stirringly romantic and wildly experimental; a hidden, ahem, pearl to be treasured by those above (and below) the sea.
