In Search of Bigfoot (1976) Online

I enjoy watching documentaries on cryptids and had thought I'd seen them all. I discovered this through the site Vinegar Syndrome. A company that finds awesome prints of obscure films and release them on an unsuspecting public. Anyways, the main guy in this film Morgan and I look almost alike (When I was a few years younger anyways) so I immediately took a liking to the film. Morgan and his crew (A tracker, biologist, micro biologist,eye candy girl, etc...) do the usual, walk through the woods, look for broken branches, cast prints, and discuss the big guy. Sasquatch AKA: Bigfoot. Actually the film says the beast has 100's of names, but only lists off a few. But whatever, there probably are 100's "Hairy Dude, Giant Feral Human Ape, Moe all come to mind.

Morgan is very serious and passionate about the search and frequently over-acts and uses words like "hell" & "damn" a lot to make that clear. Example: Morgan at one point says "I'm mad as hell about it"... "It" being scientists lack of recognizing the big beast with the evidence they have so far. Which as far as I can figure based on what was shown is basically none. They also get some "locals" who tell their tales. These peoples tales could best be described as under- acting, and one of them kind of looked like a wife beater, but I digress. The film also contains some discussions with some of the most respected names in Bigfoot hunting mainly John Green and Rene Dahinden. When this was made it was less than a decade since the Patterson film had been released so I imagine interest in Bigfoot was still pretty high. John & Rene had been hunting bipedal creatures since the 50's!! The film was good so I was surprised I hadn't heard of it before. It doesn't resort to recreating anything, so you will never actually see shots of Bigfoot which was a bit of a bummer. But it was interesting and some of the "true story" dialog is entertaining. The fact that some TV star shows up for a quick visit at the end made me wonder just how remote the location was, since TV stars today aren't known for trekking weeks into the mountains. Oh yeah I mentioned this would contain a spoiler, so here it is. ***SPOILER**** They don't find Bigfoot.

Robert Morgan reigns supreme as perhaps the world's coolest authority on Bigfoot. Compact and bald, with a mustache and goatee that makes him resemble a more virile version of Donald Pleasence as Loomis in Halloween, this self-described "tough, hard driving" man's fiercely rugged personality and boundless determination when it comes to finding Sasquatch and confirming that the creature does indeed exist to a skeptical outside world makes for positively galvanizing viewing as Morgan leads an expedition into the Pacific Northwest wilderness in Washington state in search of the legendary forest-dwelling giant. Accompanied by a catchy banjo and harmonica bluegrass score and a loyal band of hippie-like fellow believers, Morgan braves intense heat and perils aplenty while embarking on his quest, but not even bruising his ribs is enough to stop Morgan from plugging away. Alas, a forest fire rains on everyone's parade, thereby leading to a simply devastating bummer ending. Boasting lots of breathtaking footage of the gorgeously verdant sylvan scenery as well as a plethora of fascinating information on Sasquatch, this documentary further benefits from its endearingly sincere and honest tone to its subject matter: The Bigfoot researchers are treated with utmost respect and there isn't even the faintest trace of any snarky cynicism to be found at any given moment. Essential viewing for Bigfoot buffs.

In Search of Bigfoot (1976)

** (out of 4)

This here is a mildly entertaining documentary that follows Bigfoot enthusiast Bob Morgan as he searches various locations including Mount Saint Helens in hopes of finding the legendary creature.

IN SEARCH OF BIGFOOT sounds like it might have been connected to the Leonard Nimoy series but it wasn't. This here was a stand-alone documentary that isn't the greatest film on the subject but at the same time I give it credit for being a serious look at the creature, the people who hunt it and as a document of those who have seen it.

I think the best thing this film has going for it is how it follows the believers as they search for the creature. Just look at Morgan's eyes at anytime during the picture when people are talking to him about what they have seen. There's just something in his eyes that shows the passion that he has for the subject as well as the desire to want to see for himself and track it down.

The film is best whenever we see Morgan simply talking about what he does and why he has such a need to find the creature. It should go without saying but we never get to see anything but I reckon that is to be expected. The film certainly feels a bit long at just 74-minutes but at the same time the characters are certainly interesting enough to make it worth watching.