Pages

Friday, November 26, 2010

KAIJU FRIDAY

KAIJU (怪獣, kaijū) n. Japanese word loosely translated as "strange beast". Often used in English to mean "monster".

An ad featuring giant monsters Godzilla and King Kong model kits from Aurora Plastics (1964)


Thursday, November 25, 2010

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Hope your bird isn't too much trouble.


Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Friday, November 19, 2010

KAIJU FRIDAY

KAIJU (怪獣, kaijū) n. Japanese word loosely translated as "strange beast". Often used in English to mean "monster".

Here's a Japanese film poster for Goijira (1954)

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

MOVIE REVIEW: NOT OF THIS EARTH (1986)


Jim Wynorski's films can never be taken seriously . . . not that there’s anything wrong with that. Whether he can or he won’t make a serious movie isn’t the question. The fact is people always talk about his films, albeit usually with a wry smile. And, when 19 year-old Traci Lords (she turned 20 that year on May 7, 1986) accepted the part of nurse Nadine Story in Wynorski’s remake of the sci-fi horror cult classic, NOT OF THIS EARTH, people really started to talk! Here was a girl who hadn’t previously acted in anything except for hours of underage video porn, having a go at a legitimate role.

The eyes of Traci Lords

Miss Lords says she “had a lot of fun” making NOT OF THIS EARTH, but was puzzled as to why the breakneck pace of filming was being employed by the oftentimes cantankerous director. Turns out Roger Corman agreed to let Wynorski remake his film and at the same time made him a bet that he couldn’t make his version quicker than the notoriously short schedules that Corman was famous for. Wynorski ended up beating Corman’s 12-day original shoot, which fully explains Lords’ comment of exasperation.

The movie is played with tongue planted somewhat firmly in cheek. As a result, it’s humorous but not really laugh-out-loud funny. The cleverest lines come usually from Our Man From Davanna, Arthur Roberts, who plays the character originally acted by Paul Birch in the 1957 AIP version. When Traci/Nadine shows up at “Mr. Johnson’s” house to be a live-in nurse, Johnson she’s he has a room ready for her. Nadine says, “I’m just dying to see it”. Johnson replies, in his steady, deadpan voice, “You’re not dying . . . I’m dying”, referring of course to his need for constant blood transfusions and the reason for Nadine’s professional services. In another scene, when the house butler tries to keep Nadine from bashing through an Earth/Davanna portal, Nadine intones, “I never screw around!” One can’t help but to chuckle at the irony.


Traci Lords in her best Fay Wray pose

The film stays somewhat close to the original, and views much more like a re-imagining rather than an outright homage. Miss Lords has never looked better, and her exotic, natural (wink! wink!) allure steals just about every scene she’s in. In the DVD special interview feature “Nadine’s Story”, Lords explains that right after NOT OF THIS EARTH she was asked to play a role (probably the one by the late Lana Clarkson) in THE HAUNTING OF MORELLA, but refused because Corman’s and Wynorski’s contracts always included obligatory nude scenes. Since she was at the time trying to break out of the near impossible situation of being a porn queen aspiring to be a “serious” actress, she (wisely) refused. The interview is enlightening in these respects. Now 42, but still showing some Hollywood chic and a bit of sass, Lords is quite articulate, as well as very self-aware of her perspective on acting and her goals. As a result, NOT OF THIS EARTH may be the last time we see Traci Lords “in the flesh” as it were. That’s okay, because she’s really a pretty good actress and funny to boot. The veteran Richards as Mr. Johnson is, at times, as good as Birch’s. The other cast members are competent in their roles, and by being so keep this movie above true schlock, and in the end, make it really entertaining viewing. NOT OF THIS EARTH floats close to the top of the froth in the B-Movie beer barrel, and arguably is one of Jim Wynorski’s best films.

Released by SHOUT! FACTORY as a part of the “Roger Corman’s Cult Classics” series, the DVD is an excellent print from film. The colors are all great and the sound is punchy. It is obvious that the folks at SHOUT! have a love for B-Movies and their steady string of quality re-issues are a testament to that. The packaging is first rate and it’s good to see the return of the DVD clamshell insert! Recommended viewing.


Arthur Roberts as "Mr. Johnson"


Traci Lords as the sassy nurse Nadine




Saturday, November 13, 2010

TRAILER: BLACK SWAN

Coming soon . . . a new psychological thriller starring Natalie Portman . . .

Friday, November 12, 2010

KAIJU FRIDAY

KAIJU (怪獣, kaijū) n. Japanese word loosely translated as "strange beast". Often used in English to mean "monster".

Meet THE MYSTERIANS from THE MONSTER TIMES #17, November 1973.


Tuesday, November 9, 2010

DOUBLE TROUBLE FROM SHOUT! FACTORY


In THE TERROR WITHIN, it's the post-apocalypse, and the world has been changed by a chemical warfare experiment gone awry leaving only a few remnants of the human race. Eight lab students work to create a vaccine before they are forced outside in search for food. It is then that they discover creatures mutated by the plague.

In DEAD SPACE, a space solder and a scientific community on another planet try to destroy an alien monster created by a series of out-of-control genetic experiments.

Both movies are available as a special 2-fer DVD from SHOUT! FACTORY.

NOTE: REVIEWS OF THESE MOVIES WILL BE HERE SOON AT MONSTER MOVIE WORLD.

Monday, November 8, 2010

NOT OF THIS EARTH REMAKE REDUX


An alien race dying from radiation sends an emissary to Earth to find out if transfusions of human plasma might be a cure for their affliction. If the plan is a success, the creatures intend to launch a full scale invasion to harvest people ... Full Descriptionfor their blood.

A tongue-in-cheek remake of Roger Corman's 1957 film of the same name. An alien comes to earth in search of food for its people. Unfortunately for us, these extraterrestrials depend upon blood -- human blood -- to survive. The creature takes on human form so nobody suspects anything. However, beautiful nurse Nadine Story figures out what the monster is up to and, with her cop boyfriend, tries to stop it...

In this remake of Roger Corman's 1957 sci-fi thriller now available from SHOUT! FACTORY, a woman discovers that her boss is a blood-sucking alien. She must fight to save the Earth from certain destruction.


NOTE: A REVIEW OF THIS MOVIE WILL BE APPEARING SOON AT THE MONSTER MOVIE WORLD BLOGSPOT.

Friday, November 5, 2010

KAIJU FRIDAY

KAIJU (怪獣, kaijū) n. Japanese word loosely translated as "strange beast". Often used in English to mean "monster".

Here's more Gojira for ya. From THE MONSTER TIMES #23 (June, 1973).







Thursday, November 4, 2010

VAMPIRELLA: SHE'S YOURS FOREVER FOR ONLY 300 BUCKS!


Due in March 2011 is the Vampirella "Comiquette", a stunning representation of the vampire huntress. Cast in heavyweight polystone, each piece is individually crafted and finished, each with its own unique quality and detail - the trademark of a handcrafted product. Capturing the raven-haired vamp herself, the Vampirella Comiquette is a stunning addition to any collection. Product Size: 18" H (457.2mm) x 14" W (355.6mm) x 16" L.









Tuesday, November 2, 2010

MONSTER TOY FEST: BORIS KARLOFF 12" ACTION FIGURE



Coming this November . . .
Probably as a tie-in to the recently released DVD Box Set of THRILLER, Boris Karloff "Icons of Horror & Sci-Fi Collection" Premium 12" Action Figure with 3 interchangeable heads that show Karloff during different stages of his career -- LIMITED EDITION OF ONLY 500 PIECES WORLDWIDE!