For lovers of movies from the silent era to modern day with an emphasis on horror, sci-fi, exploitation, WIP, westerns and anything of the fantastic and bizarre. THIS SITE IS DEDICATED TO BOB WILKINS, GEORGE ROMERO, ALAN FREED, ROGER CORMAN, HELGA LINE, CAROLINE MUNRO, JOHN FREDRIKSEN, JOHN ZACHERLE, CLEO MOORE , ROSALBA NERI, ERIKA BLANC, FEMI BENUSSI, SHIRLEY CORRIGAN, ROSANNA YANNI, MIRTA MILLER, KARIN DOR, BARBARA BOUCHET, MAMIE VAN DOREN, BARBARA STEELE and, of course, CASEY KASEM.
Saturday, March 7, 2015
Friday, March 6, 2015
GAMERA VS. GUIRON 1969 (MILLCREEK)
On March 21, 1969 this was unleashed on the world when it was released in Japan.
Good God almighty!!! Gamera follows two kidnapped children to a distant planet where they have been taken by evil alien women.
The women want to eat the brains of the children and nobody back on Earth will believe a little girl who saw the boys kidnapped. Gamera arrives on the planet an fights outer space Gyaos. After dispatching him the aliens attack Gamera with Guiron, a monster that looks like a knife with hands and feet!!
Gamera does some gymnastics while fighting the monster and then kills Guiron and the aliens. he then brings the children back to Earth!! All I can say is OH MY GOD!
Not the worst, but certainly not the best of the series. The children are annoying as usual, but I did find the little girl to be quite cute as she tries to convince people of the alien abduction. This is also known as ATTACK OF THE MONSTERS. The Mill Creek print is flawless, in widescreen and subtitled.
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Thursday, March 5, 2015
LIGHTNING BOLT 1966 (MILL CREEK)
Pretty good little spy film.
Anthony Eisley stars as Harry Sennet, a super spy who is sent to fight an evil genius from destroying a NASA moon base.
The always gorgeous Diana Lorys is his partner, Patricia Flannagan. Sennet goes thru a lot of obstacles in order to find the madman who hies in an underwater complex.
This is an obvious attempt to emulate the James Bond film and the film does a very good job. There is plenty of action, adventure and beautiful babes. Sennet does get himself into a lot of trouble with his smugness, which is something Bond would never do.
if you get a chance, and this is your bag, check it out.
BATMAN THE ORIGINAL SERIES SEASON 2 VOL. 1 (WARNER)
Finally we get season 2, or to be more precise, the first half.
30 episodes make up this set. We get a gaggle of different villains in this set including The Archer (Art Carney), Catwoman (Julie Newmar), The Minstrel (Van Johnson), King Tut (Victor Buono), Ma Parker (Shelley Winters), Clock King (Walter Slezak), Egghead (Vincent Price), Chandell (Liberace), Penguin (Burgess Meridith), Mr. Freeze (Otto Preminger), The Joker (Caesar Romero), Marsha Queen Of Diamonds (Carolyn Jones),and Shame (Cliff Robertson).
These villains are an odd lot, but it makes for a fun show. I hadn't seen these in so many years I forgot how many stunningly attractive women appeared in various episodes. Some of the women include Marilyn Hanold, Edy Williams, Gail Hire, Tisha Sterling, Marianna Hill, and Barbara Nichols to name just a few.
This is, in my opinion, quality TV from a very wonderful era and any fan should have this in their collection. There have been people complaining about the fact that season two is being cut into two volumes, but what the hell. It's just nice to finally have them on DVD.
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
GAMERA VS. VIRAS 1968 (MILLCREEK)
AKA DESTROY ALL PLANETS...and probably one of the silliest of the series.
In this outing Gamera battles Viras, a strange squid-like monster as well as aliens who want to conquer the earth.
Two boy scouts are kidnapped by the aliens and the entire Earth vows to surrender!! I found this plot point to be simply unbelievable, not that any Gamera film is believable, but I can only suspend disbelief so much.
This is probably my least favorite film in the series. The kids get on my nerves. This could have been a great little monster bash if not for the child angle. Mill Creek has a near perfect print from Japan. Watch it if you dare.
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Tuesday, March 3, 2015
SHORT TAKES....
Re-watched a couple of classics this weekend.
The first was THE HAUNTED PALACE (1963) starring Vincent Price and the gorgeous Debra Paget. In this film Price plays Charles Dexter Ward, a man who has inherited a castle from his ancient ancestor Joseph Curwan.
Price is slowly taken over by the spirit of his evil ancestor and he begins a bloody trail of revenge against those whose families had him, burned at the stake over 100 years ago. This Roger Corman production is lavish and I have always liked the colors.
The cast also includes Leo Gordon, Elisha Cook, Jr., Frank Maxwell and of course Lon Chaney, Jr. The film is based on a story from H. P. Lovecraft.
I also watched TARGET EARTH (1954). This star Richard Denning and Kathleen Crowley as two of the last people remaining in Chicago after the city has been evacuated following an alien invasion of robots.
This is one of my favorite films and always a joy to watch. The robots are weird and clunky, but for 50's sci-fi lovers they fill the bill just fine.
This is the film that started a very long and dear friendship between myself and the late John Fredriksen. it means even more to me now.
Sherman Rose directed this film and the rest of the cast includes Whit Bissell, Virginia Grey, and Arthur Space. If you like harmless 50's films, this is one I can really recommend.
Monday, March 2, 2015
GAMERA VS. GYAOS 1967 (MILLCREEK)
This is the third film featuring the flying turtle.
In this outing Gamera fights a giant bat-like creature called Gyaos. The monster proves to be pretty indestructible and shoots laser beams out of it's mouth.
A child develops an emotional link to Gamera and they both help him defeat the monster. The kid isn't prominent as they made children in the later films, but it still gets a little annoying. The battle scenes are pretty well staged and it soon become apparent that Gyaos cannot stand the sunlight.
Gamera bleeds a lot in the film, but it's green blood, but that does not mean he comes from Blood Island. If you like giant monster bashes, this film is for you. The series would get even more juvenile in the next film.
HANG EM HIGH 1968 (MGM)
Clint Eastwood stars in one of the best westerns ever made.
Eastwood is Jed Cooper, a man who is almost lynched by a group of vigilantes who think he is a cattle thief.
He eventually gets out of jail and is invited to be a town marshal. He accepts the offer and vows to bring each vigilante to justice, which he does.
Pat Hingle is Judge Fenton, a man who believes in the law so much he will kill innocent people just to have justice. Charles McGraw is a Sheriff who really doesn't want to round up any vigilantes as they are mostly his friends.
The movie moves along briskly and never fails to entertain. Eastwood is the only one who could have played this role and given it the impact it has. The rest of the cast includes Alan Hale, Inger Stevens, Ed Begley, Bruce Dern, Dennis Hopper, Arlene Golonka, L. Q. Jones, and Joseph Sirola.
Sunday, March 1, 2015
RIP RICHARD BAKALYAN 1931-2015
One of the most recognized character actors in film has passed away.
Bakalyan starred in literally hundreds of TV shows and movies during his very long career. He often played hoodlums and criminals.
His most notable appearances for me include "H.O.T.S.", "St. Valentines Day Massacre", "Bonnie Parker Story", "Cool and The Crazy", and "Panic In Year Zero".His TV appearances included everything from "The Night Stalker" to "Emergency" and many, many more. He was 84.
GAMERA VS. BARUGON 1966 (MILL CREEK)
This is the second Gamera film, and what a wild one.
This one is shot in color and features out monster turtle coming back to earth after the rocket from the previous movie was hit by a meteor.
A new monster appears named Barugon who shoots freezing chemicals out of his tongue and can also shoot out a destructive rainbow out of his back! All this is well and good, but this is also the film in which Gamera became a friend of children. Why this move was made always has mystified me.
The basic story revolves around Barugon hatching from what thieves believe to be an Opal. The special effects are pretty good and even though I said this was the turning point in Gamera films, this is actually the ONLY film of the original series to not star a child. Gamera saves a child, but that is it, and I think after that....well that is another story for another review.
I could recommend this film for any Japanese monster movie fan as it isn't too bad. Barugon is pretty cool as well. Again, this is presented in the correct widescreen ratio and in original Japanese language with English subs.
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