Line #6 Film/BloodWatersOfDrZ


1	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/zaat_poster_02.jpg]]
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3	->''"Sargassum -- the weed of deceit."''\
4	''"Sargassum fish -- mighty hunter of the deep. What an inspiration you have been in my plot."''
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6	''Blood Waters of Dr. Z'', also known as ''[=ZaAt=]'', is a 1971 SciFiHorror film directed by Don Barton.
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8	It's about Dr. Kurt Leopold, a {{mad scientist}} who wants to get revenge on all those who thought he was silly for wanting to make a half-man, half fish. Using a chemical of his creation (the titular "[=ZaAt=]")[[note]] Z-sub-A and A-sub-T [[/note]], he makes himself into his first test subject, and turns the local catfish huge and man-eating. Next steps: kill those who wronged him, and find a mate to breed the new race, and then [[TakeOverTheWorld conquer the universe]].
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10	Shot on location in, of course, [[OnlyInFlorida Florida]].
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12	For the ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' version, please go to the [[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S10E05BloodWatersOfDrZ episode recap page]]. WebVideo/RedLetterMedia [[http://redlettermedia.com/half-in-the-bag-zaat/ reviewed]] it as well, as did New York Daily News' Phantom of the Movies, a decade later in 1984. (It took that long for the film to reach the Times Square grindhouse theaters.)
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14	!!Tropes present in ''The Blood Waters of Dr. Z'' include:
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16	* AliensInCardiff: The world is threatened by a mutant in Green Cove Springs, Silver Springs and Switzerland (no, not ''[[UsefulNotes/{{Switzerland}} that]]'' [[UsefulNotes/{{Switzerland}} one]]), all towns in Florida.
17	* TheBadGuyWins: ...Sort of. It's probably more accurate to say The Bad Guy Manages To Pull A No Score Draw.
18	** If getting the canisters to the ocean will mutate all sea-life then he did indeed succeed. We don't know if the bullets killed him, and also he got the girl... kind of.
19	* BlessedWithSuck: Being turned into a fish probably wasn't worth the constant, wracking agony.
20	* DeepSouth: Especially the Sheriff.
21	* DiesWideOpen: The girl that Dr. Leopold, er, "punches" to death dies with her eyes open.
22	* FaintInShock: Possibly the most egregiously unrealistic faint in cinema history: Near the end, the heroine faints when Dr. Leopold breaks into the cabin where they've set up shop. She manages to remain unconscious while being roughly carried through a hot, noisy, fetid swamp for ''several miles.'' ''Mystery Science Theater 3000's'' take on this:
23	-->'''Crow:''' Apparently women are devoid of the "fight-or-flight" reflex.
24	* GainaxEnding:
25	--> '''Servo''': This film was the winner of Canne's Palme de Huh? award.
26	* HeroicBSOD: Martha gets kidnapped by the mad doctor, gets injected by the formula, narrowly avoids getting transformed into a fish-woman, and then afterwards she's not quite the same -- zombielike, she follows the doctor into the ocean at the end.
27	* LargeHam: Dr. Leopold, at least before he becomes the fish-monster. Unfortunately, everyone else in the movie is the [[DullSurprise exact opposite.]]
28	* LeaveTheCameraRunning: [[Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000 MST3K]] fans were lucky in that the televised version used for the show cut the first 15-20 minutes, which was nothing but Dr. Leopold ''walking around'', ''checking equipment'', and ''reading notes'', and ''nothing else''.
29	* LyricalDissonance: "I'm planning revenge on your friends..."
30	* MissingStepsPlan: Step One: Turn self into fish. Step two: Find lady on which to repeat the process so I can have a mate. Step three: ''Conquer the entire universe.''
31	* NoEnding: The movie just... ends ambiguously.
32	* NobleBigotWithABadge: The sheriff can be viewed this way, as he calls his assistant Ben "boy." However, [[RaceLift Ben was originally written for a white actor]], and the sheriff takes a fatherly attitude (addressing white characters as "boy" too). It's evident that "boy" was written with the characters' relationship in mind, regardless of skin color, but YMMV on how uncomfortable the end result is.
33	* NonIndicativeName: There is no Dr. Z. It could have been a mistaken case of the distributor thinking "[=ZaAt=]" was Dr. Leopard's name.
34	* OneBookAuthor: This is the only feature film made by director/writer Don Barton.
35	* PanAndScan: The film was never intended to be viewed in 4:3, so television prints show that the walking-catfish Leopold ''is wearing sneakers''.
36	* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: Two of Leopold's victims are men who denied him permission to do his unethical experiments.
37	* RoomFullOfCrazy: Dr. Leopold's huge chart showing each phase of the years he spent on his EvilPlan to turn himself into a half-catfish hybrid.
38	* ScheduleFanatic: Say what you want about Doctor Leopold, he's meticulous and has EVERYTHING planned out on a huge chart on his wall. Almost makes you believe that he could conquer the universe through transforming himself into a fish. ''Almost''. Can't stress that enough. ([[DownerEnding Or did he?]])
39	* SoundtrackDissonance: "World War Two Boy," sung over the beginning which is upbeat and catchy in contrast to the doughy, unimpressive evil scientist.
40	* TakeOverTheWorld: Through mutated walking catfish no less.
41	* TheyCalledMeMad: "They think I'm insane... [[NoYou they're the ones who are insane!]]"
42	* ThoseWackyNazis: Leopold is an ex-Nazi, despite being obviously too young for it.
43	* TodayXTomorrowTheWorld: Emphasized when Catfish!Leopold emphatically marks Florida with an "X" after infecting the water.
44	* TranshumanTreachery: Well, strictly speaking he was plotting against humanity before becoming transhuman.
45	%%* WhosLaughingNow

Context Film / BloodWatersOfDrZ