Classic Horrors Club

If you’re of a certain age, and perhaps from a particular area of the United States, you may be familiar with the “nature documentaries” that were prevalent in the 1970s. I grew up with them as they were frequently shown at the Esquire Theater in downtown Enid, Oklahoma. Boy, they could sure pack a crowd! I don’t know how many of them could also be called “pseudo-documentaries,” which added scripted and fictional elements to the documentary format, but I’ve got one for you today: Sasquatch, The Legend of Bigfoot (1976), not to be confused with The Legend of Bigfoot which came later the same year. 

This one is a little different in that it leans more on the fictional aspects; there are no on-screen interviews with people claiming to have seen the mysterious cryptid. Instead, it features two campfire tale flashbacks of past Bigfoot sightings. In the day and age of the found footage film, Sasquatch feels a little odd. There’s narration that depicts a fictional hunt for the creature, told in the style of a nature documentary, yet has no character filming the experience. Therefore, it’s obviously fake, but not fake enough to be a typical adventure, horror, or nature gone wild movie.

There’s wildlife galore, and lingering shots of it that account for a large percentage of the overlong 95-minute running time. While the scratchy, grainy presentation of the transfer I watched on Tubi evokes memories of mid-1970s Enid, Oklahoma, I can’t decide if it adds or detracts from the modern viewing experience. I’ll opt for it adding, since it gives the film some otherwise missing character. I probably would have enjoyed it less if it was in pristine condition. Contradictorily, I suppose that does add to the authenticity. A crisp, clean picture would contribute more to its artificiality.

Still, watching Sasquatch is not a horrible experience. I had high hopes at the beginning. Periodically interrupting the peaceful fauna of the Pacific northwest is POV footage of someone… something… moving through the woods. Accompanying these interruptions is music sounding like the themes from Jaws and Batman (1966) tossed in a blender. Wow, even movies like this were borrowing from Jaws! As we move closer to the clearing, the animals become aware of someone… something… and, after looking around to see what it might be, run for safety.

The movie has peaked early, although the subsequent setup for the narrative is compelling. Over the wire comes a printout:

Dateline Eugene, Oregon . . . . . .

North American Wildlife Research is launching a major expedition into a remote area of British Columbia. Documented sightings lead scientists to believe this area to be the habitat of Sasquatch.

There’s some interesting, if dated, research behind the expedition. Giant computers of the time have crunched the data and identified the area where Sasquatch resides.

Although we are told only surface level information about the characters, we can at least put names to faces. Chuck Evans (George Lauris) leads the expedition, accompanied by Dr. Paul Markham (William Emmons) and others. The grumpy non-believer, wildlife photographer Bob Vernon (Lou Salerni), provides reason for Evans to complain about attitude, but it’s a given that Vernon will have an experience that changes his mind. Providing comic relief that’s not needed is the camp cook, Barney Snipe (Jim Bradford), whose antics would be bearable if not accompanied by wacky music.

As for the creatures themselves (yes, there are many), Sasquatch at least reduces opportunities for them look silly. Some of the long shots are effective, but less so when all they do is throw boulders down the hill. I suppose they might do that, but attacks like those have never seemed all that threatening to me. In one close-up shot, a Bigfoot resembles Chewbacca. So, it not only borrows from Jaws, but also Star Wars. Wait, that was 1977… could it be Star Wars borrowed from Sasquach?!? Nah, I don’t recall any stories of George Lucas being into nature documentaries, real or imagined.

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