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Showing posts from March, 2014

Bride of the Gorilla (1951)

Werewolves are a staple of the Horror genre- but human transformation isn't restricted to wolves.  There have been human to spider transformation movies , human to wasp transformation movies , and human to ape ones. After Barney Chavez murders his employer and seduces his wife, a series of strange animal killings begin.  His new wife, Dina begins to suspect that Barney's odd behaviour is connected to the events going on.  Soon she and police chief Taro close in on the truth... and find Barney's a changed man... " Bride of the Gorilla " is a bit of a silly movie, but suitable for a night of B-movie guilty pleasures.  The story is an interesting twist on the classic werewolf tale.  There are some nice little threads put together to weave a decent little plot- though it the movie relies heavily on Raymond Burr's acting chops. Other than Chavez, the characters are somewhat laughable and shallow.  Chavez is the only one that has any real depth for someone y

Kong Island (1968)

What can be more terrifying that gorillas going on a rampage?  How about gorillas going on a rampage because of implants in their brains?  How about it happening on King Kong's Island? When Diana is kidnapped by gorillas during a safari, Burt Dawson sets off into the deep jungle to find her.  He soon encounters a jungle girl, a mad scientist, and a band of mind controlled gorillas... Despite the title, " Kong Island ", there is no island... and no King Kong.  In fact, the original Italian title, "Eve, The Wild Woman " is in reference to the jungle girl Dawson meets.  One can only assume that American distributors felt that it would do better if they inferred a connection to the popular big ape. The concept is perfect for a low budget B-movie.  Mix together a mad scientist, a mercenary, a beautiful kidnapped woman, a beautiful jungle woman, and a bunch of mind controlled gorillas.  The story is actually, decent enough for a night of popcorn and relaxing.

The Wasp Woman (1960)

I enjoy movies that subtly include social issues in the story, and use social fears as the basis for the plot.  " The Wasp Woman " by Roger Corman does this. Janice Starlin is desperate to save her cosmetic company, whose sales have dropped since customers have noticed that she's aging.  How far would she go to regain her youthful appearance... and at what cost? Roger Corman's " The Wasp Woman " is not one of his better films.  There is the obvious influence of the classic movie, " The Fly ", which only came out two years before.  While the concept isn't original, the story takes a different route, and offers up a lot of potential to include social commentary on the cosmetics industry, and humanity's fear of aging as well as its need to be beautiful.  While those are touched on (the fear of aging more so than the others), this movie misses some nice opportunities to bring even more depth to the story- and the characters at the same ti

Horrors of Spider Island (1962)

There is something to be said about horror movies that feature a group of scantily clad women being terrorized by an unknown killer.  Some of those things are good... others, not so good. After Gary and several female dancers crash land near an apparently deserted island, the group begin planning how to escape the island.  When Gary disappears, the women begin to be killed one by one. .. " Horrors of Spider Island " is a horror movie from West Germany, whose apparently reason for existance was to display beautiful women in bikini's being terrorized by a monster.  Nothing more, nothing less. The title gives an expectation of an " Arachnophobia " type of movie.  Too bad, there's only one spider- and a really cheesy, cheap one at that.  When it bites Gary, you're given the expectation of possibly a cool spider transformation of Gary.  Too bad, the make-up on him looks NOTHING like a spider.  There was so much potential here for a decent story, but i

The Atomic Brain (1964)

One of the staples of horror movies from the 1950's and 1960's was the use of atomic power.  Whether it's the accidental creation of mutated animals through atomic tests, or the use of it in experiments by mad scientists, you will find a plethora of such movies during that time.  " The Atomic Brain " is one of them. The rich and elderly Mrs. March has hired Dr. Frank to perform an experimental medical procedure that that would extend her lifespan... by implanting her brain in the body of one of three beautiful women, she's hired as domestic servants ... " The Atomic Brain " had some real potential for genuine eerie and creepy moments- but failed to meet that potential.  The concept was interesting, if not wholly original.  The story moves at an unfortunately plodding pace, and lacks any real suspense or tension. The characters were rather flat, and seemed to rely mostly on the beauty of the female leads.  Mrs. March was suitably malevolent, b

Creepshow (1982)

Growing up, I loved reading horror comics and magazine- " Vampirella ", " Weird War Tales ", and EC's " Vault of Horror , " Tales From the Crypt ," and " The Haunt of Fear ".  I also loved watching horror anthology shows like " The Twilight Zone ".  This means I also enjoy horror anthology movies. " Creepshow " features five short horror stories present to us as stories from a comic book being read by a young teenager: " Father's Day ":  During the annual family get together, a family's deceased patriarch decides to drop in for cake; " The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill ":  After finding a crashed meteorite, Jordy Verrill watches as his farm- and himself, go through some changes; " Something to Tide You Over ":  There are some people you never get on the wrong side of, because you'll wind up to your neck in deep water.  Of course... there are some people you never ta

Galaxy Invader (1985)

Sometimes, there comes along a movie that just fills you with amazement, awe, and wonder.  " Galaxy Invader " is one of those films. After a strange object crashes in the backwoods of a small American town, a young man and a scientist embark attempt to reach it- and it's alien occupant... before a money seeking posse gets there first. .. This movie filled me with amazement.  Amazement that it EVER got a green light to be made (even if it WAS direct to video).  It filled me with awe.  Awe that even a low budget movie could have such horrible acting.  It filled me with wonder.  Wonder at the fact that this movie still exists on DVD. I mean it.  It's just a horrible movie.  The special effects are crap- even for a cheesy 1980's movie.  The acting was just outlandish.  The camera work was pitiful- though I do like the shot at the top of this article.  The characters were just inane, and didn't induce any feelings other than, "kill them, Galaxy Invader