What It’s About: Joseph Javorsky (Tor Johnson) is a Russian scientist who attempts to defect to the United States, but is instead cornered by KGB agents at Yucca Flats, right before an H-Bomb test.  When the bomb goes off, the only Javorsky survives.  Hideously burned, he wanders into the surrounding countryside.  After he kills a couple of motorists, the cops begin an ineffectual pursuit of “The Beast of Yucca Flats”.

Why Watch it Today?: The director of this film, Coleman Francis, died today in 1973, but before doing so he directed just three films.  All three appeared on Mystery Science Theater 3000, which gives you an idea of the level of “quality” one can expect from Francis.  The Beast of Yucca Flats is worth seeing just for the Francis’s stream-of-consciousness narration, which includes gems like “Boys from the city. Not yet caught by the whirlwind of Progress. Feed soda pop to the thirsty pigs.”

Where to Get It:  Watch the Mystery Science Theater 3000 version at Netflix or Amazon

The Trailer: