Snails Unmade: THE SHORT VERSION

Okay...So I REALLY went overboard in my last article dealing with the unproduced 1979 film "Snails".

But I honestly had to, in order to give this obscure project a sort of online history and 'links of origin', to prove that it was real to begin with, despite coming from outdated and broken sources across the internet. But there's some people who just want to get to the point, which is what this reduced revision is all about.

Concept art for the unproduced 1979 film "Snails"

"Snails" was an unrealized 1979 American production (possibly independent) that would have involved a group of people stranded on an island in the Bahamas, being attacked by thirty-foot tall sea snails, brought to cinematic life through stop motion.

A filmed test reel was supposedly created, with animators Phil Tippen (Tippet?) and Tom St. Amand in character roles, however this footage has yet to materialize.

All that currently remains from the planned production is one lone piece of concept art, featuring a giant sea snails being harpooned by the human protagonists, as a lighthouse shines in the night-covered distance.

ENSHOHMA'S TAKE on "Snails" (version 2):

I often imagine what certain unmade film productions (monster or otherwise) would have ended up like, if they were filmed to begin with of course. But there's so little information currently available on "Snails" that the only thing I can do is admire the gorgeous and atmospheric concept art, and hope more details will come to light in the near future.


As for the thought of snails being horrific killers; I'm use to such gastropod-based characters in Japanese monster movies and fantasy television, many of which actually being quite fun and nifty-looking antagonists. But are far from the intimidating types, with the possible exception of the murderous Kraken Sea Snails from the 1957 American feature "The Monster That Challenged the World".

That was until fellow artist and Kaiju fan Bracey100 shared with me a pair of videos (one about the Cone Snail, and another with this unfortunate fish) showing that sea snails at such enlarged sizes could pose a pretty nasty, if not nightmarish threat.