Mammoth (2006 film)
An alien-possessed woolly mammoth rampages through a Louisiana town.
Mammoth is a 2006 American made-for-television film blending science fiction, comedy, and horror. Tim Cox directed, co-wrote, and co-executive produced the project. The cast includes Vincent Ventresca, Summer Glau, Leila Arcieri, Cole Williams, and Tom Skerritt.
In the town of Blackwater, Louisiana, Frank Abernathy runs the natural history museum. A widower, he struggles to find time for his daughter, Jack. Frank’s father, Simon, is a B-movie fan who believes in aliens and screens his favorite films at the local theater. One night, a citywide blackout occurs just as Simon, Jack, and her boyfriend Squirrelly leave the theater. They see an object streak across the sky and crash into the museum. Initially thought to be a meteorite, it turns out to be a spacecraft carrying an alien lifeform. To adapt to Earth’s atmosphere, the creature attaches itself to the first living thing it encounters: the museum’s main attraction, a frozen woolly mammoth.
A security guard witnesses the prehistoric elephant come back to life and is killed by it. As the beast escapes, two government agents, Powers and Whitaker, track down Frank. While the agents and Frank try to figure out what is happening, the mammoth moves into the forest, killing everyone it meets. Its path eventually leads to a large party attended by Jack and Squirrelly. They survive the attack and reunite with Frank and the agents. The mammoth suddenly appears, kills Agent Whitaker, and the remaining group—Agent Powers, Frank, Jack, and Squirrelly—flee. As the mammoth rampages through town, the government prepares to detonate a nuclear bomb on the alien-possessed elephant. The group must stop the creature without destroying their town.
They devise a plan to encase the mammoth in ice again. Frank, Powers, Jack, and Squirrelly are joined by Simon and Sheriff Marion Morrison at a local factory. On the way, Squirrelly is killed by the mammoth, but the plan continues. The mammoth arrives at the factory and is doused in molten steel, but the liquid metal fails to stop it, and the sheriff is killed offscreen. They realize liquid nitrogen is the only way to freeze the beast permanently. The mammoth is lured into a liquid nitrogen trap. Frank, Jack, and Powers escape, but Simon sacrifices himself by pulling the release valve and smashing the controls, causing the nitrogen to spray out and freeze both Simon and the mammoth.
- Release year
- 2006
- Country
- United States
- Genre
- Science fiction comedy horror
- Director
- Tim Cox
- Notable cast
- Vincent Ventresca, Summer Glau, Tom Skerritt
Lore & Background
The film follows Frank Abernathy, curator of a natural history museum in Blackwater, Louisiana, who is a widower struggling to connect with his daughter Jack. Frank's father Simon, a B-movie enthusiast who believes in extraterrestrials, shows films at the local theater. After a power outage, Simon, Jack, and her boyfriend Squirrelly witness an object crash into the museum. Thought to be a meteorite, it is actually a craft containing an alien lifeform that latches onto the museum's frozen woolly mammoth exhibit, reviving it.
The revived mammoth kills a security guard and goes on a rampage through the forest and town, killing anyone it encounters. Two government agents, Powers and Whitaker, track Frank down to help deal with the creature. The mammoth kills Agent Whitaker and later Squirrelly, while the group devises a plan to refreeze the beast using liquid nitrogen at a local factory. Simon sacrifices himself to trigger the release valve, freezing both himself and the mammoth. The film ends with Simon's frozen body in government hands and the mammoth returned to display.
Reader's Guide
Mammoth is a television film that blends science fiction, comedy, and horror, typical of low-budget made-for-TV genre fare from the mid-2000s. Directed by Tim Cox, the film features a cast including Summer Glau, known for her later work in science fiction television, and Tom Skerritt, a veteran actor. The plot combines alien invasion tropes with a prehistoric creature, resulting in a monster movie that relies on practical effects and a straightforward narrative. The film's significance lies in its representation of the direct-to-television market for genre films, often overlooked in mainstream cinema but popular among niche audiences. Its legacy is modest, remembered primarily by fans of B-movie and creature features, and it serves as an example of the period's television movie production.
Did You Know?
- The film was directed, co-written, and co-executive produced by Tim Cox.
- The alien lifeform latches onto a frozen woolly mammoth exhibit at a natural history museum.
- The character Simon Abernathy is a B-movie enthusiast who believes in extraterrestrials.
- The mammoth is ultimately refrozen using liquid nitrogen, with Simon sacrificing himself to trigger the release.
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