History Film / TheIslandOfDrMoreau1977

* TooDumbToLive: [[spoiler:After realizing how dangerous Moreau had become, mercenary Montgomery really shouldn't have turned his back on him when he knew Moreau usually kept a gun.]]

* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: M'Ling dies differently in every single version of the story. In the film, he remains coherent and on the side of Braddock and Maria. Part of their escape party, he is sadly ambushed by a lion and they fall into a pit trap with M'Ling's friends helpless to save him. In the novelization, he goes feral and joins the beast folk. After stalking Braddock and Maria, he attempts to attack them on the beach during their getaway and is killed by them in self defense. In the Marvel Comics adaptation, he remains benevolent and loyal as in the film and has a DyingMomentOfAwesome heroically saving his friends from an attacking tiger, while the role of the beast man who attacks the heroes on the beach is given to the hyena-swine.

* HumansAreTheRealMonsters: The monstrous animal creatures created by Doctor Moreau are depicted as sympathetic victims of Moreau's cruelty (albeit in many cases with beastly savage behavior, but due to instincts and no malice) showing Moreau as the real monster instead.

* MoralMyopia: Moreau forces the animal-men to follow the Law, but only to control them and he doesn't practice what he preaches at all when they're not around to see it. [[spoiler:The instant the beast-men realize this is the instant Moreau irrevocably loses control of them, as they rather understandably object to being punished for the same things Moreau does.]]

** Montgomery gets one [[spoiler:when he finds Moreau experimenting on Braddock and realizes the doctor has flipped his lid.]]

* {{Fanservice}}: The lovely Creator/BarbaraCarrera goes topless in one scene. She actually is a complete fanservice character, as she doesn't exist at all in Wells' novel.

* AdaptationalHeroism: While not an enemy in the novel, Montgomery is a lot more proactive in helping Braddock, largely due to Moreau being made an outright villain. This is most prevalent in [[spoiler: the third act after Moreau decides to experiment on Braddock. As soon as Montgomery realizes what Moreau is up to, he holds him at gunpoint and insists Braddock be released. Unfortunately, Moreau outwits him and shoots him to death.]]
* AdaptationalVillainy: Moreau [[spoiler: is essentially turned into a control freak and mad scientist. After Braddock starts sleeping with Maria, he drugs Braddock and attempts to transform him into a beast man. This is completely different from the novel, where Moreau isn’t thrilled Braddock (Prendick) is there, but explains how the lab works, and his experiments, and only asks that Braddock (Prendick) not interfere with what he’s doing and keep out of certain areas of Moreau's complex.]]
* AdaptationDeviation: Plentiful. [[spoiler: Some of the biggest include the entire character of Maria being added to the plot, Moreau becoming an outright mad scientist who ends up experimenting on Braddock, and Moreau murdering Montgomery. In the novel, Moreau dies from a failed experiment, and Montgomery dies in a skirmish with some revolting beast men.]]

* ArtificialAnimalPeople: Though the film is set in the period when the book was written, it updates the methods Moreau uses to create his animal-people, replacing the surgical method of the original novel with a combination of surgery and gene therapy. Moreau also attempts to change Braddock into an animal in a reversal of his usual methods, which results in yet another BeastMan.

* CatGirl: [[spoiler: Maria. Though it’s only explicit in the movie’s novelization and Marvel Comics adaptation.]]
* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: M'Ling dies differently in every single version of the story. In the film, he remains coherent and on the side of Braddock and Maria. Part of their escape party, he is sadly ambushed by a lion and they fall into a pit trap with M'Ling's friends helpless to save him. In the novelization, he goes feral and joins the beast folk. After stalking Braddock and Maria, he attempts to attack them on the beach during their getaway and is killed by them in self defense. In the Marvel Comics adaptation, he remains benevolent and loyal as in the film and has a DyingMomentOfAwesome heroically saving his friends from an attacking tiger.
** Also, [[spoiler: Montgomery. In the novel, he snaps after Moreau's death and goes on a drinking binge with the nicer of the beast men. Montgomery and the beast men destroy the boats, and Montgomery is mortally wounded when the party is attacked by a different, more aggressive faction of the beast men. In the film, he turns on Moreau completely once he sees Moreau is experimenting on Braddock, and when he turns his back on Moreau to get the keys to unlock Braddock's straps, Moreau shoots him to death.]]
** Finally, [[spoiler: Moreau himself. In the novel, he's killed before Montgomery, trying to chase down a half-completed experiment that kills him as he kills it in return. In the film, Moreau makes the blood lust decision to murder Montgomery. When the beast folk get a hold of Montgomery's corpse, it not only tells them that Moreau is a mortal, but it shows that Moreau isn't following the rules about not killing that he's imposed on the beast folk. They confront him towards the end, and mortally wound him.]]
* DownerEnding: In the novelization only. [[spoiler: The ending reveals that Maria was actually converted from some sort of feline animal, possibly a panther. After spending a few days in the lifeboat, she begins to revert to her former form (unseen by Braddock.) In the novel's last page, after he celebrates seeing a ship, she raises her head, revealing her fangs, to Braddock's horror, and the final sentences hint that she mauls him to death.]]
* EvilutionaryBiologist: Moreau.

* ForcedTransformation: Moreau attempts to animalize Braddock as a reverse form of his experiments.

* LittleBitBeastly: [[spoiler: The cat girl's nature is only subtly hinted at until she de-evolves at the end. Still, it’s very subtle and is only made explicitly clear in the movie’s novelization.]]

* MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: Maria. [[spoiler: Subverted in the novelization, when we find out that while Moreau CLAIMS she's an adoptive daughter, in actuality, she was a successful experiment from a panther. In the novelization, she reveals her partial reversion back to her true form, and it's implied she mauls Braddock to death.]]

* OhCrap: Braddock [[spoiler:during one of his nightly visits to Maria where Moreau is waiting and drugs him, and later, when he sees what Moreau has done to him.]]
** Montgomery gets one [[spoiler: when he finds Moreau experimenting on Braddock and realizes the doctor has flipped his lid.]]

* TooDumbToLive: [[spoiler: After realizing how dangerous Moreau had become, mercenary Montgomery really shouldn't have turned his back on him when he knew Moreau usually kept a gun.]]
** [[spoiler: Moreau also. After convincing the beast men that he and Montgomery are gods, he shoots the latter when Montgomery interferes, and makes minimal effort to hide the body. The beast folk get their hands on it, and they revolt on him because he's not a god, and he broke his own law.]]

* WhiteShirtOfDeath: [[spoiler: Moreau’s main outfit is a white suit which gets dirty and blood soaked when the beast men maul him to death. ]]

''The Island of Dr. Moreau'' is a 1977 film adaptation of the novel ''Literature/TheIslandOfDoctorMoreau''. It stars Creator/BurtLancaster as Moreau, Creator/MichaelYork as Andrew Braddock, Nigel Davenport as Montgomery, and Creator/BarbaraCarrera as Maria.

* TropicalIslandAdventure

* OhCrap: Braddock [[during one of his nightly visits to Maria where Moreau is waiting and drugs him, and later, when he sees what Moreau has done to him.]]

* DoesNotLikeShoes: Maria, for the most part.

** [[spoiler: After convincing the beast men that he and Montgomery are gods, he shoots the latter when Montgomery interferes, and makes minimal effort to hide the body. The beast folk get their hands on it, and they revolt on him because he's not a god, and he broke his own law.]]

* LittleBitBeastly: The cat girl's nature is only subtly hinted at until she de-evolves at the end. Still, it’s very subtle and is only made explicitly clear in the movie’s novelization.

* MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: Maria. [[spoiler: Subverted in the novelization, when we find out that while Moreau CLAIMS she's an adoptive daughter, in actuality, she was a successful experiment from a panther. In the novelization, she reveals her partial reversion back to her true form, and it's implied she mauls Braddock to death.

* AdaptationalVillainy: Moreau [[spoiler: is essentially turned into a control freak and mad scientist. After Braddock starts sleeping with Maria, he drugs Braddock and attempts to transform him into a beast man. This is completely different from the novel, where Moreau isn’t thrilled Braddock is there, but only asks that Braddock not interfere with what he’s doing.]]

* CatGirl: Maria. Though it’s only explicit in the movie’s novelization and Marvel Comics adaptation.

* HoistByHisOwnPetard: The rampaging animal-men are largely killed in the climax by the fire they started and wild animals they unleashed attacking them.
** Because Moreau [[spoiler: kills Montgomery when Montgomery tries to stop him from experimenting on Braddock, the beast men get ahold of Montgomery’s corpse. This becomes vastly important, as Moreau kept the beast men at bay by following a law against killing, and setting him and Montgomery up as unkillable gods. The beast men not only realize that Moreau CAN be killed, but they also don’t take kindly to Moreau violating his own law about not killing, and having been tortured for violating laws that Moreau himself isn’t following, leading all of them to turn against him.]]

* MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: Maria.

* DiesDifferentlyInAdaptation: M'Ling dies differently in every single version of the story. In the film, he remains coherent and on the side of Braddock and Maria. Part of their escape party, he is sadly ambushed by a lion and falls into a pit trap with the cat with his friends helpless to save him. In the novelization, he goes feral and joins the beast folk. After stalking Braddock and Maria, he attempts to attack them on the beach during their getaway and is killed by them in self defense. In the Marvel Comics adaptation, he remains benevolent and loyal as in the film and has a DyingMomentOfAwesome heroically saving his friends from an attacking tiger.

* CatGirl: Maria. Though it’s only explicit in the movie’s novelization.

* BalefulPolymorph: Moreau attempts to animalize Braddock as a reverse form of his experiments.

Andrew Braddock (York) finds himself stranded on an island inhabited by Dr. Moreau (Lancaster), who oversees a compound alongside his associate Montgomery (Davenport), the doctor's servant M'Ling, and the beautiful Maria (Carrera).

Andrew Braddock (York) finds himself on an island inhabited by Dr. Moreau (Lancaster), who oversees a compound alongside his associate Montgomery (Davenport), the doctor's servant M'Ling, and the beautiful Maria (Carrera).

* BalefulPolymorph: Moreau attempts to animalise Braddock as a reverse form of his experiments.

* AdaptationalHeroism: While not an enemy on the novel, Montgomery is a lot more proactive in helping Braddock, largely due to Moreau being made an outright villain. This is most prevalent in [[spoiler: the third act after Moreau decides to experiment on Braddock. As soon as Montgomery realizes what Moreau is up to, he holds him at gunpoint and insists Braddock be released. Unfortunately, Moreau outwits him and shoots him to death.]]
* AdaptationalVillainy: Moreau [[spoiler: Is essentially turned into a control freak and mad scientist. After Braddock starts sleeping with Maria, he drugs Braddock and attempts to transform him into a beast man. This is completely different from the novel, where Moreau isn’t thrilled Braddock is there, but only asks that Braddock not interfere with what he’s doing. ]]

* Fanservice: The lovely Creator/BarbaraCarrera goes topless in one scene. She actually is a complete fanservice character, as she doesn’t exist at all in Wells’ novel.

** Because Moreau [[spoiler: kills Montgomery when Montgomery tries to stop him from experimenting on Braddock, the beast men get ahold of Montgomery’s corpse. This becomes vastly important, as Moreau kept the beast men at bay by following a law against killing, and setting him and Montgomery up as unkillable gods, the beast men not only realize that Moreau CAN be killed, but they also don’t take kindly to Moreau violating his own law about not killing, and having been tortured for violating laws that Moreau himself isn’t following, leading all of them to turn against him.]]

* Fanservice: The lovely Creator/BarbaraCarerra goes topless in one scene. She actually is a complete fanservice character, as she doesn’t exist at all in Wells’ novel.

* HighFunctioningAlcoholic: Montgomery drinks constantly, but it doesn’t affect his duties on the island.

* AdaptationalVillainy: Moreau [spoiler: Is essentially turned into a control freak and mad scientist. After Braddock starts sleeping with Maria, he drugs Braddock and attempts to transform him into a beast man. This is completely different from the novel, where Moreau isn’t thrilled Braddock is there, but only asks that Braddock not interfere with what he’s doing. ]]

* CatGirl: Maria.

* LittleBitBeastly: The cat girl's nature is only subtly hinted at until she de-evolves at the end.

* TurnedAgainstTheirMasters: The animal creatures created by Doctor Moreau and kept under submission by means of fear and torture rise against him at the end.

Andrew Braddock (York) finds himself on an island inhabited by Dr. Moreau (Lancaster), who oversees a compound alongside his associate Montgomery, the doctor's servant M'Ling, and the beautiful Maria.

* TokenGoodTeammate: Mi'ling and the servant women are all beast folk, but never turn on the humans, and aid in their escape.

''The Island of Dr. Moreau'' is a 1977 film adaptation of the novel ''Literature/TheIslandOfDoctorMoreau''. It stars Creator/BurtLancaster as Moreau, Creator/MichaelYork as Andrew Braddock, Nigel Davenport as Montgomery, and Barbara Carrera as Maria.