ROBOT MONSTER 1953 (IMAGE)

You all know this film, and I have talked about it and mentioned it numerous times over the years. Well here we go again.

I write this little review because I finally attained the Image DVD of the movie and it's the best quality I have seen, period.

The movie starts with two children, Johnny (Gregory Moffett) and his sister Carla (Pamela Paulson), playing "spaceman" in Bronson canyon. They meet two scientists in a cave. Roy (George Nader) and The Professor (John Mylong) keep the children busy until their mother (Selena Royle) older sister Alice (Claudia Barrett) find them.

After a picnic they all sleep but little Johnny runs off and before you know it Ro-Man has arrived on Earth and all human life has been wiped out except for 8 people.

Ro-Man plans to wipe out the last of the human race, but the family proves difficult to kill. You will probably guess that this is just a dream Johnny is having as we see all of the characters as members of one family.

There are just too many great scenes in the film that runs a scant 63 minutes, but there are a few I simply must bring to your attention if you haven't ever seen this movie.

You first have the inexplicable scene of dinosaurs fighting at the beginning of the movie, which was lifted from the 1940 film "One Million B.C.". Next we have numerous scenes of Alice in bondage..after an argument with Roy and her family and later when she is kidnapped by Ro-Man. The silent love scene between Alice and Roy. The killing of Carla and later Johnny (They never did that in movies from big studios), or how about the confrontation between Johnny and Ro-Man and you can see a woman in her bathrobe standing on a hill watching the scene unfold. Yes, there is so much more.

The dialogue is a highlight as well, especially when Johnny tells Ro-Man he "looks like a pooped out pinwheel" or when the Professor is upset he exclaims "What a family I have!!!". Great stuff indeed. This gem was directed by Phil Tucker and I think he deserves much more attention than the usual crap about the film. Underneath the story is a very cruel sub-text involving things like race extermination and the killing of children.

My future wife Ginger Greene bought this for me on E-bay for a few pennies and it is now a treasured DVD in my collection. This is the movie that cemented my friendship with the late John C. Fredriksen. We were the best of friends and I know he was looking down from Heaven watching this with Ginger and I.

People can make fun of this film all they want, but it is one of my favorites of all time and it always makes me think of John and all the fun we had acting out scenes from the film in public places.

If you haven't seen the film I suggest you do, and as soon as possible. There has never been a film like it, and there never will be. Ginger, I love you, John Fredriksen I love you too and miss you, and Ro-Man...well hell I worship the ground you walk on.

In conclusion all I can say is "At what point on the graph do must and cannot meet?" VERY, VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!