Sting of Death

Reader “Robin” suggested that Sting of Death (SoD) might be a good addition to this sci-fi collections. Admittedly, SoD was passed over when this study was viewing through films of the 60s as most sources classified it as horror. Upon deeper examination, SoD does have a hint of sci-fi and turns out to be a fitting follow-up to the two recently reviewed films from the 40s, The Bat (’40) and The Flying Serpent (’46). All three films feature a ‘mad’ scientist using his creation to kill off people he does not like. This similarity does not make SoD a good film. It’s relative obscurity is not undeserved. It does, however, deserve inclusion.

Quick Plot Synopsis

A slimy, rubbery hand of the “monster” sabotages a two-way radio. The monster then pulls under the water, and drowns a blonde sunbather. Under the title and credits, the mostly-hidden monster ferries the dead blonde to an underwater lair. When Dr. Richardson, his adult daughter Karen and Dr. John Hoyt return to their island compound in the everglades, Ruth’s absence is noted, but of much concern. Egon is the slightly disfigured, but otherwise normal assistant to Doc. Egon is smitten with Karen and professionally jealous that the hunky Dr. John replaced him as Doc’s assistant. A boat load of rowdy young adults (classmates/friends of Karen) come to the island to spend spring break helping Doc do his research on sea life and evolution (?). The visitors are rude and insensitive to Egon: teasing, chasing, laughing. The youth proceed to dance around the pool to a peculiar pop tune by Neil Sedaka: “The Jellyfish”. The monster lurks in the pool and attacks Louise (one of the taunters of Egon). She is pulled out, but the monster then attacks the young man who taunted Egon. Both suffer from ‘horrible’ stings, but are not dead. Most of the youth take the injured man to the hospital in Doc’s big boat. The monster damaged the boat, so it stalls and founders. A ‘swarm’(?) of regular jellyfish (plastic bags floating on the water) “attack” the sinking boat. Much panic, flailing and screaming ensues and drags on too long. Eventually, all the youth are dead in the water. Back on the island, the other youth are stalked and killed one by one. Eventually, Egon captures Karen after professing his love for her. She faints. He absconds with her via his airboat. Doc and John pursue in their airboat. A long chase through vast tracts of everglades grasses ensues. Engine trouble for Doc’s boat gives Egon time to get to his underwater entrance to his secret ‘cave’ lab. He takes Karen there and professes his great love for her. She rebuffs his creepy mauling form of love. Perhaps in an effort to persuade Karen of his merits, Egon monologues about his ‘genius’. He was able to grow giant (20”) jellyfish when everyone said he could not. His secret was: seawater, electricity and human blood. Breathing deeply from the fumes thus created, is what turns Egon into the jellyfish-man-creature. He transforms. John appears with an underwater flare. They spar and wrestle and dance around in the cave while Karen looks passive and sick in the background. John drops his flare in the big aquarium tank with the ‘giant’ jellyfish. This somehow throws off the magic of Egon’s “science”, causing the jellyfish monster to swoon and all his sparky electrical equipment to smoke. Sensing an immanent explosion, John tries to get Karen to flee. She’s worried about Egon, who has partially un-transformed. In a last ditch show of humanity, Egon-monster tells John to save Karen from the impending explosion. John and Karen swim away. Once on Doc’s airboat, the undersea cave ‘explodes’ (makes a lot of bubbles). The three ride off into the everglade distance. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
For those who love ‘so-bad-it’s-good’ films, SoD has a lot to offer. The monster costume is bad enough to bring a smile. On the plus side, Grefe and Fink did fill the cast with some pretty young women, if 60s styles don’t bother you.

Cultural Context
Indie Club — Southern California had a virtual lock on film production, even in the low-B grade films. Cheap and quick as they were, the Poverty Row studios were still in California. That did not stop some people from trying to spark alternate movie industry hubs. William Grefe was a south Florida director/writer who thought Florida could be the new Hollywood. Grefe, along with producer Joseph Fink and a handful of others, created several B films in the mid-60s. They had a crowd of regulars for workers and actors. None of their films even approached the work of Poverty Row, but that did not stop them from trying. They were a group making movies!

Notes
Low B — SoD was born with low expectations. Grefe had written and directed Death Curse of Tartu in 1966. (Fink was the producer). Tartu was a low-B film itself. Grefe and Fink needed to create an even cheaper film so Tartu could be released as a double feature. William Kerwin was a busy third-tier actor and jack-of-all-trades (production manager, sound man, camera man, writer, etc.) Kerwin provided a screenplay (with Al Dempsey another bit actor) for a monster movie that was a mishmash of traditional tropes. Kerwin’s story might have made for a less risible film with a bigger budget (better monster costume) and more time, but SoD was born to be the B film for an already low-B first feature.

Trope Sampler — Some see in SoD, a low-budget knock off of Creature From The Black Lagoon (’54), though the parallels are few. Both were set in “wet” tropical settings. Both featured some underwater footage. There was also an ‘attraction’ between the monster and the “good” girl. But, there are as many differences between SoD and CFBL as there are similarities. SoD has a hint of Dr. Jekyll to it, as Egon’s experiments appear to have inadvertently turned HIM into the monster. There are hints of The Bat in that the mad scientist uses his creation to kill off his enemies. There is also a touch of The Hunchback of Notre Dame in the disfigured Egon being in love with the fair Karen, including the abduction. No doubt, other plot parallels can be found too.

Senseless Killings? — Being a low-B horror film, audiences expected random people to be killed for no particularly good reason. SoD delivers the expected, but actually tried to provide a motive for the murders. During his cave monologue, Egon explained that his experiments to grow really big jellyfish required: 1, sea water. (easy, they’re in Florida), 2, electricity (that magic ingredient since Frankenstein) and 3, human blood. That’s why the “missing” fishermen were missing and why the monster drown the sunbather, then swam her body down to his secret cave. He wanted their blood for his jellyfish experiments. This was very poorly developed in the screenplay, but then, the purpose of the film was more simple — gratuitous violence to sell tickets.

Man or Beast? — The costume for the monster was so cheaply done that viewers could be excused for no knowing if the killer was really supposed to be a freakish beast, or just Egon dressing up as a jellyfish. After all, the beast appeared to be just a guy in a black wetsuit with a plastic bubble on his head and some limp ‘tentacles.’ At times, the actor’s ankles showed between wetsuit legs and flippers. At times, the actor’s face/head were fairly visible within the painted plastic bag ‘head’. Was it really a beast, or just Egon? The answer is easily missed, but lies in the poorly done transformation scene. After his monologue in the cave, Egon fires up his sparky machines. The aquarium bubbles and makes dry ice fog. Egon breathes in the fog. Some slimy lumps develop on his face. Then, suddenly, he is fully beast. As a sentient were-jelly, the beast retains Egon’s mind, but now with deadly stinging power.

Sudden Demise — Another spot where the production did not bother, was making it clear just what killed the beast. Grefe spent a lot of time and footage on agonizingly slow stalk attacks and airboat chases, but only a few feet of film on the turning point. Viewers could be excused for missing it. During the standoff “fight” between John and the beast, John drops his underwater flare into the aquarium tank. The flare, apparently kills the big jelly fish Egon had grown. Apparently, the Egon/Beast was an extension of this ‘murderous creature’. So, when the tank jelly died, the Egon/Beast would too. Why all this would make Egon’s equipment short out, was not explained. Nor why said equipment should explode. Details. Grefe had enough film for a second-feature movie, so just needed to wrap it all up quickly. So he did.

Lite Voyeur — A regular feature in Grefe’s mid-60s B films was a segment in which several youth dance (60s dance moves) to some lite pop music. Grefe would then zoom in close to catch the jiggle of the young ladies backsides and upstairs. These dance scenes did not advance the plot so much as it provided the young male movie-goer with some extra-soft voyeurism.

Bottom line? SoD is a marginal film that suffers from the usual problems of weak acting, poor effects and numerous plot problems. Even as a “horror” film, it is scant horror. There is barely any sci-fi to it, but diligent viewers will find a little bit of the classic tropes in the final reel. For fans of so-bad-it’s-good films, SoD can be entertaining. For viewers who expect believable effects, good acting and a logical plot, SoD will probably be annoying.

The Alien Factor

Baltimore’s amateur/indie filmmaker, Don Dohler, wrote, produced and directed this obscure sci-fi film. The Alien Factor (TAF) was Dohler’s first feature film project. It was shot locally, with a mostly local amateur cast. Wikipedia states that TAF had a budget of only $3,800, which seems much too low. The monster costumes alone could have cost that much. Yet, there is no denying that TAF was a very low budget film. Don would go on to create several low-B grade indie horror films in the early 80s, developing something of a cult following. TAF was his first major film project.

Quick Plot Synopsis
An alien craft crashes on earth, outside of Perry Hall, Maryland. A young couple out ‘parking’ in the woods are attacked by an insect-man-creature. Rex is killed, but MaryJane screams a lot and escapes. Sheriff Jack (modeled after Dennis Weaver’s McCloud) and Doc Sherman think it must have been a bear or bobcat. A different alien takes on human form (sort of). Another couple in the woods separate when she spurns his advances. She stumbles upon a lumpy space ship and the semi-human alien. She runs and badly injures herself, but the semi-human heals her. Three restless young men decide to hunt the killer animal. (Side note: Dohler himself plays one of the doomed youth: Ernie. He’s the one with the white-guy afro.) They are attacked and killed by the insectoid too. Only the girl escapes. (we’re told later that high-pitched noises hurt the insectoid, so screaming girls repel it.) Cut to a low-rent bar with a generic rock band (Atlantis) taking their one shot at the big time, which did not pan out. A man leaves the bar, goes home, and gets killed in his basement by a tall hairy monster. Another man is attacked outside his home by an invisible monster. Some children find him, a dried up mummy-corpse. Sheriff Jack wants to call in the State Police over the murders. Mayor Bert wants to keep the bad news under wraps, lest it scuttle his pending “deal” for an amusement park development. Jack reluctantly agrees. Meanwhile, Bert is visited by a man named Ben who says he’s from the observatory. He wants to investigate. Bert, eager for quiet fixes, agrees to let him. They go in the woods and discover the space ship and a dying alien who does a mind transfer to Ben before dying. No one believes their story, since the space ship blew up. But, Jack agrees to let Ben try to get the ‘animals’ first. Edie, the town reporter, goes into the woods with a gas can to try to burn the aliens. She and Steve are chased by the insectoid. Before it can kill them, it is killed by Ben using high frequency sounds. Mayor Bert is killed by the tall hairy alien. Jack and others investigate and are almost killed by the hairy one. Ben shoots it with a poison dart made from the insectoid’s venom. Jack finds out that the observatory knows nothing about this Ben. Edie is traipsing around in the woods alone again when a semi-transparent reptile alien. Ben fights with it, eventually triumphing. Ben survives but is weakened such that his human disguise is gone. Edie can’t see him well, but sets him up for lots of loose-thread tidying questions so Ben can exposit. Ben is an alien sent to earth to hunt down the three escaped zoo specimens who escaped when their transport ship crashed on earth. He came to save the people of Perry Hall from the monsters. Edie sees Ben’s true (ugly) alien self and screams. Jack instinctively shoots whatever makes women scream, killing Ben. Poignancy. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
Because it is a bold effort by a bunch of non-Hollywood types to make a movie themselves. The result is clearly not up to “Hollywood” levels of polish, but one cannot help but admire Don and his group’s ambition. Since it is SUCH an amateur production, everything in the film — the hair styles, the clothes, the cars, the bar, the houses, just scream Small Town 70s!

Cultural Connection
Homemade Movies — Before videotape technology trickled down to the consumer level, there as Super 8. Introduced in the mid-60s, Super 8 was initially a silent film product — the source of those silent birthday party and vacation films that parents would bore their guests with. In the mid-70s, Kodak added a magnetic tape strip for instant synchronized sound. Suddenly, the masses had an inexpensive technology to create “real” movies. Amateur Spielbergs were empowered. Videotape would eventually replace Super 8, but the videotape generation did not have the same DIY ethos of Dohler’s Super 8 age group. The advent of CGI would take movie magic back away from the hands of the common man. The 80s will be THE era for grassroots movie making.

Notes
Cinemagic — Don Dohler was the publisher of a small quarterly called Cinemagic Magazine. Issues contained how-to articles on making space ship models, making monster masks and recipes for the best on-screen blood. Dohler and his circle of friends had the zeal of youth. They felt that with a bit of skill here and there and a large dose of audacity, just about anyone could create a reasonably good sci-fi or horror film. Cinemagic had a regular section to announce and promote indie projects. The late 70s and early 80s certainly did not lack for amateur ambition. TAF was Dohler’s chance to prove that the average Joe could make movies too.

Meet The Monsters — Only the third monster is identified by name in the script. It is the 2-legged, tailed reptilian beast that is only semi-visible. Ben identifies it as a Leemoid. The hairy monster and insect-man are identified in the end credits as a Zagatile and Inferbyce, respectively. Their names do not matter to the plot. This is just a nerdy detail.

Commoner Casting — Most of the people who acted in TAF were locals who had never been in a film before, and never were again. It shows. They look and act like ordinary folks — not all made up and costumed per the Hollywood norm. The credits call out “Johnny Walker” as a guest star. He played Rex, the first to die from the Inferbyce, so had very little screen time. Walker had some minor roles in a few episodes of “Hawaii Five-O,” so amounted to the cast’s one “professional.” Some of the cast would become Dohler’s regular acting pool, getting roles in others of his low-budget indie films.

TAF Times Two — In 1982, Dohler would produce a remake of TAF. Nightbeast would use much the same story line, same setting and even repeating some of the characters, such as Sheriff Jack, Doc Sherman, MaryJane and Mayor Bert. The remake would have only one alien monster who crash lands outside of a small Maryland town and goes on a rampage of killing, etc. etc.

Bottom line? TAF could easily be panned as worse than Ed Wood might have created, but like Wood’s efforts, there is an earnestness that is compelling. That doesn’t make TAF a good film. It’s not. It’s quite bad, actually. Far too much footage is spent watching people walk through the woods past a fixed camera. Yet, Dohler manages some bursts of effort, such as the forced perspective shot of the model space ship, and some camera angles, that feel like a Little League base hit. Run Don, Run! One has to admire his spunk. Film making is hard work. For all those who kvetch about the quality, go make a movie yourself. See how well you can do. Don’s work might look pretty good then.
—

Terror is a Man

To augment the reviews of films based on H.G.Wells’ “Island of Dr. Moreau” we must digress back to 1958 for Terror Is A Man (TiaM). The screenplay was written by Paul Harber, with no acknowledgement to Wells, but Harber’s story is clearly derived from Wells’ Moreau. This sci-fi / horror hybrid has undertones of Frankenstein as well. Where the 1932 adaptation had inserted a "panther woman", this version features a "panther man." Richard Derr stars in the role of shipwrecked sailor who stumbles on the doctor’s island. Greta Thyseen plays the curvaceous and lonely wife of the doctor. It was filmed in the Philippines. This film was re-released in 1964 with the title Blood Creature, perhaps to appeal to the drive-in horror market. It was given the odd marketing gimmick of a ringing bell (more like an old phone ring) to alert viewers when something shocking was about to come, so viewers could close their eyes.

Quick Plot Synopsis
Shipwrecked William Fitzgerald washes up on a remote island. He is nursed back to health by a Dr. Girard. A strange creature kills a couple of island natives, so the rest of the village flee in their canoes. Girard and his assistant, Walter, capture the beast, which is Girard’s project-in-progress. The doctor’s wife, Frances (Thyssen) is afraid of her husband’s work, and lonely. William takes a shine to her and offers to help her get off the island. Girard does not hide his work, but puts in some long exposition, telling William the back story of the making of CatMan from a panther via surgery. Using glandular hormones, Girard says he can grow Catman’s brain to be human. Why? Girard does not think humankind can evolve to betterment, being held back by ‘complexes’ etc. So, he wants to start afresh with his new man — the start of a new perfect race. William agrees to help the doctor with his work. Unseen by others, Walter beats the gurney-bound Catman with a board. Later, when everyone is down in the lab, Walter comes in and the Catman goes into a rage, breaking free. Girard tries to talk soothing. Walter gets a torch and lights Catman’s bandages on fire. Catman passes out and is sedated again. Walter, William and Frances talk of escaping the island, but Walter wants to kill the creature first. When he comes down to the lab with a gun, Catman breaks free and kills Walter. Thus escaped, Catman kills the servant girl, Selena and runs out into the jungle. Girard and William go looking for him, but he has doubled back to the house. He corners Frances and she swoons. Catman carries her away. Girard and William follow. Catman carries Frances up to the sea cliffs. Girard convinces Catman to put Frances down, but he then claws the doctor’s face, then throws him over the cliff. William shoots Catman in the stomach, causing him to fumble down the cliff to the beach. There, Catman encounters the servant boy, who gives him the small boat in which to escape. Frances muses that she thought the Catman only wanted to help her. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
The paraphrase of Wells’ Moreau story gives the script some interest. The production is spartan, which gives the story a more intimate feel. Thyssen is marvelously out of place (statuesque platinum blonde in tight skirts and pumps — on a rustic jungle island).

Cultural Connection
Evolution into the Master Race — During Dr. Girard’s long exposition about his work, he posits that organisms evolve into better and better species. Girard felt that present mankind was too flawed to ever evolve into the superior beings he envisioned, so he undertook to shortcut the process. His goal was rather Nazi, to create a superior race of super men.

Notes
Based on the Book — Even though Wells is not credited as the source material, it is clearly drawn from his “Island of Dr. Moreau.” Paul Harber, who wrote the script, was more experienced as a third-tier actor than a writer. Reworking Wells was easier than creating a whole new story. Of course, the addition of a Marilyn Monroe clone was pure Hollywood and not Wellsian. To his credit, Harber kept vivisection as the doctor’s method, not the tepid “genetics” used by later retellings.

Hint of Frankenstein — Mixed in amid the strong Wellsian story are elements of the classic Frankenstein story. Instead of a whole village of beast-folk, Girard has only one — his “monster”. It has stitched up scars too, per the classic monster. Walter beats Catman, much like Dr. Frankenstein’s assistant tormented the monster.

Misplaced Babe — The Frances character, played by former Miss Denmark 1951, Greta Thyssen, is almost surreally out of place. Where almost everything on the set and costumes is dark, she is always dressed in whites to go with her platinum blonde hair. She is always clean, tidy and wearing the classic pointy-peaks undergarments of the 50s idiom of beauty. She does some sultry glamor posing on the beach — for no good reason. Amid all the ‘horror’ and drama, her part was to look unapproachably glamorous.

Radio Pheromones — Apparently the lonely and lovely doctor’s wife was giving off “help me” pheromones. Total stranger William falls in love with her very quickly and promises to help her get off the island. Fat, sweaty Walter picks up her pheromone transmission, but thinks to finagle a bit of booty as part of helping her. Even the beast, Catman, is implied to have picked up Frances’s pheromones and carried her off as his version of “help me.” She believed, in the end, that Catman was just trying to help her.

Intelligent Design — Harber’s exposition tosses around the usual old presumptions about Evolution. Changes happen slowly and incrementally over a long time. William points out that what Girard is doing is not sped up evolution, but intelligent design. A deliberate intelligence was manipulating things to make the new creature. It was not random mutations over eons.

Sequel Hint? — Viewers will note that the “monster”, Catman, does not die at the end. Instead, he escapes in a boat. The writer and/or producers were leaving room for Catman to return, rather like the Creature from the Black Lagoon did, or like Frankenstein’s monster did. Unfortunately, Catman did not return. Subsequent “Blood Island” films followed all new and unrelated story arcs.

Bottom line? TiaM is not a great old sci-fi, but it’s not too bad for nostalgic entertainment. The paraphrase of Wells is interesting. The heavy-handed dubbed audio gets a bit annoying at times. Those who like old black and white horror/sci-fi hybrid B films, will find TiaM to be a sturdy example.

At The Earth's Core

This is the middle of three films produced by Amicus Productions in the mid-70s. All were based on Edgar Rice Burroughs novels, and all three starred Doug McClure. The set are more properly classified as fantasy than sci-fi, but this middle film, At The Earth’s Core (AEC) at least featured a steampunk earth-boring machine called The Iron Mole. This techno-wonder is just a device to deliver two Victorian man into a fanciful world of monsters and pretty “prehistoric” women. Doug McClure (more famous for his role in The Virginian television series) stars with the venerable Peter Cushing. Caroline Munro stars as tribal babe and love interest.

Quick Plot Synopsis
Dr. Abner Perry (Cushing) and David Innes (McClure) set off to explore the center of the earth in their giant boring machine, The Iron Mole. Very soon after embarking, however, the Mole proves difficult to steer. They avoid magma, but stumble upon an underground sea and prehistoric land with a giant cave. They are chased by a sort of parrot T-Rex until captured by little pig-men with spears. They are added to the pig-men’s other captives, which includes the beautiful Dia (Caroline Munro). Dia escapes. The rest are taken to the city of the Mahars. These are chunky pterodactyl beings who command their pig-men army via telepathy. Most of the captives become worker slaves. Perry is sent to the library to copy cuneiform clay tablets. Some are set aside to be food for the Mahars. David escapes in a moment of chaos. Once outside, he comes across Ra. They fight, until a tentacled plant has Ra. David saves him and they become best buds. David wants to free the slaves from the Mahars. Ra says they’re too strong. He shows David the feeding ritual wherein the Mahars mesmerize their prey (20-something pretty women with glistening cleavage) so they can swoop down and grab them. The eating is mercifully just assumed. David falls from the hiding spot, but the Mahars are all asleep. He crawls to freedom, but return to help the slaves. They are captured by pig-men and brought to an arena. David has to fight a big lizard thing. He manages to kill it, but as a Mahar swoops in to get David, Ra breaks free and kills the Mahar with his chains. The slaves make a rush for freedom. Most are stopped, but David and Perry are reunited. They remerge to find Dia being menaced by Hooja. All are attacked by a fire-breathing frog-thing. Perry kills it with his newly built bow and arrow. David reconciles with Dia by being assertive. They go back and unify the tribes to mount an attack on the Mahars. Perry teaches them all archery. The attack does not go well at first, as the Mahars direct the pig-men to close the fire curtain gate after David and a few get in. Ra manages to find the control room with the gate lever, but dies opening it. The Mahars swoop in to get David and his few tribesmen. Reinforcements arrive just in time to shoot arrows into the swooping Mahars. The city starts to explode, so everyone rushes back outside. Fast forward. David and Perry, now all cleaned up, prepare to take the Iron Mole back to the surface. David wants Dia to come with him as his wife. She loves him, but cannot leave her people (she’s a princess). Sad David leaves with Perry. The Iron Mole comes up in the White House lawn. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
The rubber suit monsters have a nostalgic charm, giving the film a very 50s feel. While the budget cannot live up to the story’s ambitions, the story itself shines through to keep interest up. Of course, the revealingly-clad prehistoric women add visual appeal.

Cultural Connection
Rubber Suit Monsters — The movie Godzilla in 1954, introduced audiences to the man-in-a-rubber-suit monster. At first, it was fairly effective as a technique. Toho Studios would produce many, and have many imitators (often of much lower production values). Toho themselves devalued the technique down to cheesy levels by creating so many rubber suit monsters themselves. Only the very young in a 70s audience would still have the suspension of disbelief to simply accept the monster for what it pretended to be. The advent of the Star Wars era, just a couple months after the last of the three Amicas ERB films hit theaters, spelled doom from the old school approach. People still accepted wacky monsters played by men in rubber suits, but the fashion was for them to be aliens in galaxies far far away.

Notes
Based on the Book — Edgar Rice Burroughs published the story “At the Earth’s Core” in 1914, as a four part serial. It was pretty much a solid ERB tale, with monsters and villains to fight and a beautiful princess to defend and win the heart of. AEC follows the book reasonably closely for the story line. There was no way Amicus Productions limited budget could have done ERB’s fanciful monsters justice, of course. The ending of the film deviates from that of the book. In the novel, Dian did not return with David to the surface because of a trick by Hooja. It was not because she had to stay with her people. The book leaves open the possibility of a sequel when he goes back for her Orpheus in the Underworld-like.

Retro Sandwich — AEC was the second of three films by Amicus, based on ERB’s prehistoric fantasy stories. The first of the trilogy was The Land Time Forgot (’75). Then AEC in ’76. Finally The People That Time Forgot (’77). All three featured Doug McClure.

How To Treat A Woman — An amusing leftover bit of ERB’s man’s man world view, lingers in the story thread of David insulting Dia. When Hooja made rude advances towards Dia, David smacked him down. But, David did NOT then claim Dia as his justly-won property, thereby insulting her and making her unfit to be anyone’s mate — except for Jubal the Ugly One, who did not seem to care. To resolve her feeling insulted, Perry tells David to “be strong and masterful.” So, David spins her around by the shoulder and orders her to sit down and listen to him. Once he had pushed her around, all was well. She was all smiles and eager to rest her head on his semi-bare chest. That’s how ya have to treat wimin. Show ‘em who’s boss. This is a surprising carryover from older days, given it was a mid-70s film.

Bottom line? AEC is marginal as sci-fi. It does have a bit of steampunk with the Iron Mole, but this gets little screen time. The rest is pure fantasy genre. 20 years after Godzilla introduced audiences to the rubber suit monster, the technique was pretty lame. People weaned on CGI in the post-StarWars era may have a hard time looking past such low-rent FX. Fans of the older style of movie story telling may be able to look past all that, and just enjoy a good adventure story. —

Track of the Moon Beast

This is one of those movies that is often panned as a “worst movie ever.” Track of the Moon Beast (TMB) is certainly a low-B indie production with a third-tier cast, but other “worst” films suffer more. Filmed in 1972, but released in 1976, did not help. Chase Cordell, who usually played bit parts like “Officer” or “Man #1” got his starring moment in TMB as the poor mineralogist named Paul who gets stricken by the moon chunk. Leigh Drake co-stars as his eye candy love interest, Kathy. Drake played in only two other films, as “dispatcher” and “officer”. Just about everyone involved, from producers to grips, were among the little nobodies of the movie industry. But, they all got together to make themselves a movie.

Quick Plot Synopsis
A huge meteorite collides with the moon. This impact sends billions of moon bits spraying off into space. Some fall into earth’s atmosphere. Watching the meteor shower is Paul, a mineralogist working the mountains, and his instant girlfriend, Kathy, a photographer. A tiny meteor fragment hits Paul in the head, leaving only a small scratch. They go to “his place” (actually, he lives with his mother, but she’s away). There is kissing. The next day, they attend a geology conference. Near one of the moon rocks, Paul feels sick. Later, they attend a folk-rock concert, featuring the “hit” song California Lady. Paul feels ill again, so Kathy takes him home. At night, when the full moon rises, Paul turns into a lizard man who likes to kill. He kills a drunk bowler coming home late. The sheriff is stumped by the gruesome deaths, so calls in Johnny Longbow, native american anthropologist. Johnny recounts some indian legends about man hit by lights from the sky, who becomes a lizard man. When Paul doesn’t get better, Johnny takes him to get tests. The X-rays show the fragment in his brain. Later, Paul turns into the Moon Beast again, and kills some campers. More doctors fly in to check out Paul. The fragment has broken up in his brain. Somehow, they just know that Paul will become atomically unstable and spontaneously combust. Paul and Kathy overhear this grim doctor talk. Paul wants to die as a man, not a flaming lizard, so runs away. Kathy covers for him. Unable to buy a shotgun, since there is an APB out for him, Paul goes up into the mountains to throw himself off, or something. Kathy follows him up to the mountains, totally devoted to the man she just met two days ago. Johnny has fashioned an arrowhead from one of the moon fragments, intending to shoot lizard-Paul. The added moon material should hasten the combustion. Kathy pleads for some other alternative that would keep and “Us”. But it’s not to be. Paul becomes the Moon Beast and freaks out Kathy. Johnny shoots lizardPaul. He, and/or the film, glow red for awhile before he is reduced to a small pile of burning paper. Everyone gets in their cars and leaves. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
Fans of “so bad it’s good” films will find much to enjoy. The trope of something-turns-him-into-a-beast is tried and true (to the point of being threadbare). Despite being a product of the mid 70s, TMB has a very 50s feel to it. (the low-budget, extra-cheap 50s). And, there's something to be said in favor of Ms. Drake's nice legs.

Cultural Connection
Man’s Inner Monster — The trope is very old. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is an early iteration. The Wolfman in the 1940 and a score of low-budget films in the 50s and 60s. Culturally, there is an expectation that somewhere deep down inside of men, there lurks a monster. That’s what people call a serial killer or molester, or even a major swindler. Inside of mankind IS the capacity to do great evil. Stories like Dr. Jekyll and The Wolfman, et al, seem to be a way for the culture to look (via theatrical abstraction) at the face of that inner evil.

Notes
Wolfman Redux — The writers (Bill Finger and Charles Sinclair) did not work too hard to generate the story. The premise in TMB is essentially that of The Wolfman, but with a less mystical cause. But, in essence, it’s the same problem. Normal human by day, the rising full moon turns him into a monster that likes to kill. Both men, knowing the awful truth about themselves, want to die. To do so, however, takes a special weapon: a silver bullet, or an arrowhead of moon rock.

Amateur Hour — Many film critics kvetch about the low production values of TMB or the bad acting, etc. Granted, it’s not Casablanca, or even The Wolfman, but look at it this way. What if a bunch of people in the lower margins of the movie industry got together to do a movie themselves? An assistant director, Richard Ashe, would get to be The Director this time. Some associate producers on some obscure films would get to produce one of their own. A couple of writers (Finger and Sinclair) who wrote some television episodes, would get to do their own feature film screenplay. A guy who, up until TMB, played only uncredited bit parts or roles like “Man #2”, would get to be THE star. An attractive young folk singer thinks she’d like to try being an actress, gets to be the love interest. A whole bunch of other bit-part actors and actresses would get to play a character with a name! A singer who would have been in heaven to be a “one hit wonder,” gets to sing an entire song in the film. Woohoo! Don’t look at TBM as “bad” movie, but as a group project by a bunch of little nobodies you’ve never heard of, nor would again...but they got together and made a movie!

Worst Actress Ever? — Several critics have scoffed at Leigh Drake as being a terrible actress. Of course she was bad. She wasn't an actress. She was (and still is) a folk singer who may have attracted the producers’ eye (young, blonde, leggy) and said to her, “how would you like to star in a movie?” She should have said no? She gave it a shot. Yes, even Cordell (as wooden as he is) does manage to emote better than Drake does. Yes, she delivers her lines more successfully than with feeling, but watch her face, her eyes. She’s trying. She is a folk singer (band named Sugar Magnolia) trying to emote. One might suspect she did not get much help from her director — who had done a few jobs as assistant director in second units on some other obscure small films. “Yeah, Leigh, honey, that’s good enough. Next Scene!” Watch Drake freak out at the ending. The girl is clearly trying. Cut her some slack. Compare her to the two doctors, who may well be actual scientists told to go stand over there and read what’s on this card. TMB is their only film credit, and for obvious reasons.

Attempted Exploitation — For no particularly good reason, Ashe has actor Chase Cordell (Paul) appear rather frequently with his shirt off. Perhaps Ashe thought female viewers would like seeing a bit of amateur beefcake. Hmm. Maybe. For obvious reasons, Ashe has Leigh Drake appear only in very short skirts or shorts. Drake has nice legs and long legs, so Ashe sets up scenes and angles to show them off. They are almost more of the co-star than Drake herself. Clearly, the leggy exposure was expected to appeal to male viewers. There is a bit of attempted gore (ripping off a camper’s arm, etc.) but done so quickly and dimly (as befitting a small budget), that it would have little appeal to those who like that sort of thing. Ashe tried to jazz up the blandness of the script he had to work with. Chase’s chest and Leigh’s legs just weren’t enough. Lame lines are still lame lines.

Rock On — As thin as it is, the rationale behind the story, is that somehow moon rocks have an energy affinity for one another. While they’re on the moon together, all is peaceful and calm. But if separated, the moon rocks (somehow) transmit/attract energy from each other. Hence the fragment in Paul’s brain, when energized by the appearance of the full moon (the mother rock), causes him to mutate into a lizard man. Why not a squid man or an adorable puppy man, is never explained. Apparently, it’s just something innate in human DNA (our latent lizard-ness?), since it happened before to the indians. Paul was not a fluke, but a repeat.

Telltale Bumpers -- Proof that TMB was filmed earlier than '76 can be seen in all the cars that appear in the film.
They are all '71 or '72 Plymouth models. Note that they have the tidy little bumpers. Starting with 1974 models, (then) new crash impact laws required beefier bumpers. Since the tooling for most car platforms had a five year life cycle (or more), the expedient solution was to graft on honkin' huge chrome slabs.  These are what made '74-'76 models so, um, charming. Later refreshes of  model styling would absorb the honkin' huge impact absorbers to give absurdly large front and rear overhangs. The "charm" of late-70s, early-80s models. Newer materials would eventually let cars look a bit less absurd while fulfilling the law.

Bottom line? TMB is low-rent entertainment. It isn’t particularly sci-fi. It does take the semi-mystical premise of The Wolfman and try to give it more of a scientific spin. Moon Rocks, with a propensity to beam energy to each other…sometimes. Don’t expect a good movie. It will help. Expect an amateur production on a very low budget and at least give them some credit for trying.

It's Alive ('74)

The 1974 film titled It's Alive (IA), by Larry Cohen, is an entirely different story from the 1969 film by Larry Buchanan. The '74 film is essentially a horror story, but it gets put into sci-fi lists of movies, so it is included here. Actually, there is a trace of sci-fi theming, with a typical 70s mood, which may explain the sci-fi/horror hybrid label. The film is written, produced and directed by the same man: Cohen. Typically, this spells trouble for a film, but Cohen manages to avoid most of the usual pitfalls. John Ryan and Sharon Farrell star as the parents of the monster baby. Several other familiar second-teir actors play minor supporting roles. Cohen would go on to create two sequels, one in '78, the other in '87, expanding the monster baby trope.

Quick Plot Synopsis
Frank and his wife Lenore wake one night. It is time for her baby to be born. They drop off their 11 year old son, Chris at a friend's house. At the hospital, things are mostly typical, though Lenore keeps saying things feel different this time. No one listens. When the doctor delivers the baby, using forceps, the baby -- unseen, but a little monster child with fangs and claws -- kills the five doctors and nurses. The police are called to the crime scene. The baby escaped through a skylight. News is out about the monster killer baby, so Frank's job in a PR firm is over. He brings Lenore home, who seems a little loopy. Random other people are killed in the area: a musician, a milk man. Everyone assumes the baby must be killed. A professor wants the baby's body to study. A man from a big pharmaceutical firm urges a police lieutenant to totally destroy the body to preclude any lawsuits. The baby makes its way to Chris's school. Somehow the cops know and swarm the school. Frank goes there and shouts that the baby is no kin of his. It kills a policeman. Frank notices Lenore's oddly unconcerned behavior, and how food (milk) is disappearing from the fridge. He connects the dots. Lenore has been hiding the monster baby. Frank gets his hidden revolver. At the same time, young Chris has run home and lets himself in to the basement via the ubiquitous hidden key. Frank goes downstairs. Chris talks consolingly to the baby. Frank shoots at it. Charlie (the friend) shows up just in time to get killed by the baby. Frank shoots again, this time wounding the baby. It flees. The police eventually trace the trail of blood to the sewer system under L.A. Frank goes along, intent to be the one to finish off the monster baby. Police search the sewer system. Frank finds it. His heart softens. He bundles the wounded monster baby in his coat and tries to run from the cops. Eventually, he's surrounded, with many shouting for him to kill it. Kill It! This includes the doctor. Frank tosses the monster baby on the doctor, who is killed by the baby. Police open fire killing the baby. As sad Frank and Lenore sit in the back of a cop car, the Lt. gets a call. Another monster baby was born in Seattle. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
Cohen does a fair job of keeping the pace moving. Both Ryan and Farrell give credible performances as the conflicted couple. To his credit, Cohen does not reveal too much of his monster baby puppet, leaving most of the monster to the viewer's imagination.

Cultural Connection
Abortion -- The Supreme Court decided, in the Roe v. Wade case in 1973, that abortion was legal. While they decided that on a narrower technical ground, the popular mindset was much broader. Abortion became, then, simply another elective surgery.

Notes
The Usual Suspects -- The thin sci-fi link in IA is the intimation that Lenore's monster baby may be a mutation caused by exposure to radiation. This would be the classic 50s explanation for any and all monsters. A bit later, the intimation shifts to Big Pharma (drugs with hidden risks) or pollution. Those were much more 70s suspects for the evil in the world. There is even a hint of Evil Corporations as a suspect, when the Pharma executive urges destruction of the baby so as to avoid lawsuits and loss of profits.

BabyPhobia -- Why would a newborn ever be considered a suitable monster? Perhaps Cohen was tapping into a subtle 70s sentiment. After all, the many "free love" flower children of the 60s were (by the mid 70s) over 30. Was Cohen's monster baby an analogy for how the "free love" generation viewed having children and settling down? A baby "ruins" everything. It "kills" their free-spirited self-centered lifestyle. IA may have resonated with maturing hippies, afraid to enter the adult world of family life. 1968's Rosemary's Baby was an early example of Baby Fear in film.

Abortion Metaphor -- It's unclear if Cohen was intending this, but his screenplay could be seen as a metaphor for an abortion. Consider how Frank (and all the other men, it seems) are so adamant that "It" must be killed. Call it a 4th trimester abortion. Note how the mother loves "It" unconditionally. The son, Chris, can see the baby as a little brother in need of protection. Frank, the father, at first feels nothing by scorn and denial for "it". But, once wounded and whimpering, Frank sees the mortality and maybe the humanity of the baby. His human heart trumps his selfish hate. Still, in the end, the System manages to prevail and "it" is killed.

Who's The Monster? -- At one point, Frank is reminiscing about seeing James Whale's 1931 movie, Frankenstein. He recalled how as a kid, he always thought of the monster was named Frankenstein. It was only in college that he read the book and realized it was the doctor's name. He muses, who was the real monster, the creature, or the creator? Cohen includes this as commentary on his own screenplay. Who is the real monster in IA? Is it the mutant baby, or is the society which is so eager to kill it. Where the 1931 monster had a mob of angry villages shouting for the death of the monster, in IA, it is a ring of policemen, led by the doctor, who are the mob shouting death-to-the-monster.

Sewer Star -- Fans of older sci-fi can be amused by the L.A. sewer system once again providing the setting for another monster hunt. The most famous of these was Them! in 1954. Lesser known, but very similar was Indestructable Man in '56. There were others too. To those who lived in L.A., the vast network of sewer tunnels must have felt like a whole other netherworld -- the realm of nightmares and monsters.

Bottom line? IA is almost pure horror, but the sci-fi connections are there. As horror goes, it's mild enough by modern standards (or lack thereof). Gallons of bright red latex paint get mere flashes on the screen. The monster itself is well handled -- revealed in only PoV shots, glimpses and tight close-ups. The acting helps keep IA from lapsing into a campy B-movie. Fans of sci-fi with saucers, spaceships and aliens might be disappointed at the mostly-horror aspect of IA. Fans of 70s-style angst over the harmful effects of pollution, corporations or Big Pharma, might be better entertained.

It's Alive (1969)

In the autumn of 1974 a sci-fi/horror movie was released with the title It's Alive. This 1974 film was about a monster baby. There was another film, shot in 1969 with the exact same title, but an entirely different story. Before reviewing the '74 film, this is a quick digression to review of the '69 film. 1969's It's Alive (IA) would normally fall outside of the range of this study, as it appears to have been made for television, with no theatrical release. Aside from clarifying the differences between the two films of the same name, the '69 film is of some interest because it was produced and directed by Larry Buchanan -- responsible for many remakes of low-budget 50s sci-fi. The story itself may be based on a short story by Richard Matheson (of "I Am Legend" fame), with the screen adaptation (most likely) by Buchanan himself. No writers are listed in the credits. A telling omission, perhaps.

Super-Quick Plot Synopsis
Norman and Leilla are a middle aged married couple from the big city, taking a cross country driving vacation. As they drive through the back roads of the Ozarks, they run low on gas. They ask a semi-random stranger, Wayne, for directions. He sends them to a farm house he saw a few miles up the road. That house belongs to Greely, a big creepy man who keeps a roadside attraction of snakes, etc. He invites them to wait in the house for a fuel truck due to arrive any time now. While they wait (and ignore warning hints), Greely invites them to see his prize critter. They go down in a cave. Greely locks them in a caged room. Greely knocked out Wayne earlier and threw him in the room too. They learn that they are to be food for "it". During one attempt to get out, the rubber-suit-monster "gets" Norman. Bella, the oppressed captive housekeeper tells her backstory of capture and cruelty. She tries to help them escape. She brings some of Wayne's dynamite. Despite drugged coffee, they get out. Greely catches them again. He shoots Bella, but she lit the dynamite fuse. The disloyal creature goes for Greely. The explosion causes a cave-in. Wayne and Leilla escape but decide that no one will believe them. End shot on the bubbling pool. The End?

Why is this movie fun?
IA falls into that category of movies "so bad, they're good." Bill Thurman, as they creepy Greely, plays his part so over-the-top that it's amusing to watch. The actual monster is almost a parody (if Buchanan had not been serious) of the 50s style of rubber suit monsters.

Cultural Connection
Roadside Attractions -- The setting -- a former roadside attraction in "the middle of nowhere" -- harkens to a bygone day before interstate highways. When the countryside came right up to the edge of the narrow highway, it was easy for any mom-and-pop outfit to offer weary travelers some diversion, or souvenirs, or a quick snack. The venue did not have to be high-class, and usually wasn't. It just needed to be novel enough to pique interest. Concrete dinosaurs, cave tours, exotic animals -- the road-weary got a rest, stretched their legs and a distraction. The venue owner got a few bucks. Everyone was happy. As eulogized in Pixar's Cars, the interstate highway system doomed the roadside attraction. No one could get close to the highway. Rest stops became state-managed banalities. Legs still get stretched, and snacks consumed, but the novelty -- the sense of discovery or wonder -- is missing.

Notes
Some Filler Added -- TV movies needed to be specific lengths. Theatrical release films were often too long, so non-essential footage was cut. Other times the story wasn't quite long enough. In those cases, filler was added to pad out the run time. IA has several of these paddings. There are long, but pointless, bits of dashboard-cam as someone drives along winding back roads. Viewers get to see people walk down long flights of stairs -- all the way down. Poor Bella rocks in her chair and we get to see rocker-cam shots of her room going up and down, up and down. Buchanan must be given some credit for trying to sneak his padding in through a variety of means.

Cheap Thrills -- The television market continued to grow (whereas the theater market continued to decline), such that more and more movies were being produced directly for television with no theatrical release planned. Television was assuming the role that second-feature drive-ins had been serving. So, it is fairly natural that off-hours TV programming would assume the ethos of late-50s, early-60s B films. The twist was that "cheap TV" had even lower budgets than "cheap film."

Paleo-Blaster -- Wayne (Tommy Kirk) starts out as just the random stranger with a jeep, but we later learn that he's a paleontologist -- who pokes around backwoods Arkansas alone in a jeep. Handily, Wayne's career allows for some science-y talk about prehistoric creatures and suspended animation, etc. etc. Especially handy for the plot, is the little known fact that roving paleontologists regularly pack sticks of dynamite. Wayne may have been new to paleo-blasting, however. The wad of sticks he planned to blow the jail door with was also enough to cause the caverns to collapse. Paleontology is a risky career.

Short Mourning -- Granted, Norman is written as a total jerk, so no one feels bad that the monster gets him first. What is somewhat amusing is how fast his widow copes with her loss. Just hours later (if that), she's making smiley eyes at Wayne. "How awful about Norman...but I never really thought about being the wife of a paleontologist...." Leilla was taking her tragic loss pretty well.

Monster Redux -- To keep production costs very low, the monster costume was recycled from an earlier cheapy movie: Creature of Destruction ('67). This prior film was another of Buchanan's cheapies for Azalea Pictures. It was another of his remakes of 50s B films. In this case, The She-Creature from 1956. The '67 film did not attempt to make the monster feminine, but a sort of budget gill man. In IA, Buchanan does a workman-like job of trying to build suspense for his recycled monster. That is, he does not (as in Octoman show his monster even before the opening credits. However, he doesn't attempt disguise his monster with any mysterious shadow shots, or tight shots of a wet claw, etc. Buchanan just has his rubber suit monster pop his head up from behind the rocks. "Hi there." It could be that Buchanan thought the costume's snaggle-toothed, oogle-eyed face was impressive enough for a full reveal.

Bottom line? IA is almost painfully low-budget, suffering most of the usual pitfalls of cheap B films. Unless one likes so-bad-they're-good films, it is probably not worth much effort to find it. This review is mostly to document that Buchanan's 1969 film is not (at all) the same story as the 1974 film of the same name, by Larry Cohen.
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The Thing With Two Heads

American International quickly followed up Amazing 2-Headed Transplant with yet another 2-headed-man film. The Thing With Two Heads (TW2H) repeated the trope of transplanting a second head onto a man, but with a twist. Instead of the by-now-customary good and evil head, the polarity was made racial. There was one racial bigot head, and one soul-brother head. Veteran actor Ray Milland plays the bigoted Dr. Kirschner. Rosey Grier plays the black man. TW2H was aimed at the drive-in B-feature market, playing second bill to Baron Blood starring Joseph Cotton.

Quick Plot Synopsis
Dr. Kirschner (Milland) is a brilliant surgeon with his own transplant foundation. He, however, is wheelchair bound and crippled with arthritis. A new hire at the foundation turns out to be a young black doctor, Dr. Williams. Kirschner makes excuses, but it is obvious to all that he's declining Williams because he's black. He gets to stay due to his contract. In Kirschner's mansion basement lab (which all mad doctors have, apparently), he and his minions have successfully transplanted second heads on other animals, the last being a gorilla. When they were about to operate and take off the extra ape head, it gets loose and runs amok in suburbia. The excitement and chase were too much for Kirschner. He is dying of chest cancer sooner than expected. If he is to live, a human 'donor' body must be found very soon. None can be found the usual way. Dr.Desmond (an associate from the foundation) gets the prison warden to ask for volunteers on death row. One does, a Jack Moss (Grier) who maintains his innocence. Instead of the electric chair, he's sent to Kirschner's mansion. There, Kirschner's head is grafted on. Jack/Kirschner (JK for short) wake up, get dressed and flee (to go prove's Jack's innocence). JK gets one of the guard's guns and forces Dr. Williams to drive them. Desmond alerts the cops. A chase ensues. They flee on foot until happening upon a motocross race. They take one of the dirt bikes. Yet another grand chase ensues over rolling meadow with convenient gullies and hillsides that consume the 14 police cars. JK and Williams get to Jack's girlfriend, Lila. An extended set of blaxploitation scenes ensue. JK escape with K in charge. He plans to cut off the J head himself, but is stopped by Williams and Lila. Kirschner's head ls left on the small table, hooked up to life support. He calls out to Desmod to get him another body. Jack, Lila and Williams drive off singing "Oh Happy Days…" The End.

Why is this movie fun?
After all the previous good-evil two-headed movies, TW2H is almost a light-hearted treatment. It's low on the gore factor and even interjects some humor now and then. The score is so thoroughly 70s that you can almost taste the 8-track tape.

Cultural Connection
Blaxploitation was a variant of the age-old Exploitation type of film. Those were, loosely speaking, films which relied upon some sensational or titillating draw, in lieu of good writing, quality acting, decent budget, etc. Reefer Madness, Wild Women or Diary of a Nudist. Blaxploitation was a genre that started in the 70s. It featured mostly black actors acting especially "black" via slang and the vicarious satisfaction of epithets hurled at white characters. ("cracker", or "honky") The most famous blaxlploitation film was Shaft. TW2H has its threads of blaxploitation, which common as they were in the 70s, were otherwise rare in sci-fi. A notable early exception being Omega Man which had elements of militant "black" culture voiced by Zachary and Lisa.

Notes
Black and White -- TW2H has an inevitable variation on the customary Jekyll and Hyde moral formula of one head being "good" and the second head being "evil." Instead, the "good" head is black (and innocent, you'll notice), while the "bad" head is a racial bigot. Instead of violence vs. peaceful, or chaste vs. rapacious, the good/bad element has been pared down to mere racism. This seems insufficient "steam" for the format. It does provide some humor though.

Extra Head -- As developed in the prior 2-head movie, the whole point of the extra head transplant was to allow the new head to acclimate to the new body. After it had taken control of the nervous system, etc., then the original head could be removed. In this, the 2-head films are a cousin to the brain transplant films. Just, instead of transplanting only the brain, the whole head is taken.

Car Wars -- The opening credits point out that automobiles were provided by Chrysler Corporation. Keep this in mind when you watch the Keystone Cops-ish chase scene. When the police cars are just driving in the usual manner, they are clean and tidy Dodge Coronets or Plymouth Satellites. In some of the chase footage, there are Dodges and Plymouths, but note that whenever a cop car crashes, it is a Ford Custom 500. No Chrysler cars get wrecked, only Fords. Coincidence? I think not.

Bottom line? TW2H is a silly film and not really worth much effort to track down (let alone buy). It does give a flavor of the silliness of the 70s. And, it is a sort of eventual distillation of Jekyll and Hyde into banality.

The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant

American International Pictures put out a schlock horror/sci-fi hybrid in 1971, The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant (I2HT). This was a 70s reworking of the 1959 (or '62) film, Manster which featured a rampaging man with two heads -- one especially bent on evil. The Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde connection is made plain in the script. (notes below) Bruce Dern plays the Frankenstein role as Dr. Girard. Pat Priest (Marilyn from the Munsters TV show) plays his wife, Linda. Casey Kasem (of American Top 40) plays family friend, Ken. Of course, the poster offers the usual iconic abduction scene with far more frontal exposure than the movie ever even tried to deliver on.

Quick Plot Synopsis
Maniac killer, Matthew Cass is caught and sentenced to a mental hospital. Nearby, lives Dr. Roger Girard (Dern) and his wife Linda (Priest). Old Andrew and his big son Danny are their groundskeepers. Danny suffered brain damage as a child, in a caved-in mine, so has the mind of a child. Roger (and his creepy cohort, Max) have been experimenting with grafting second heads on a variety of animals. He shows this off to his doctor friend, Ken (Kasem). Linda isn't allowed to know of the experiments. Cass escapes. He kills Andrew and carries off Linda. Before he can rape her, Roger shoots Cass. They take him back to their lab. Danny, upset over death of his father, is sedated. Max suggests that they put Cass's head on Danny's body. Somehow, this will be an interim step to Max getting Danny's body. (?) Roger agrees and they do the transplant. When Danny/Cass (hereinafter referred to as DC) wake up, he/they escape. DC hides in the old mine, then comes out to kill a couple of teens necking on a remote road. Witnesses tell of a two-headed giant. From the big footprints, the Sheriff suspects Danny. Roger denies knowing anything. Linda is locked in the lab for finding out too much. DC, hungry, stumbles upon the camp of three bikers. DC kills all three with maniacal glee. The sheriff has a posse with dogs. Ken hears about the two-headed giant, so goes to confront Roger. Ken tries to rescue Linda (now tied up in the bedroom) but Roger and Max stop them. Roger, Ken and Max look for DC too. Meanwhile, DC doubles back to Roger's house. He trashes the lab and abducts Linda (now locked in a cage. The honeymoon is obviously over.). Ken, Roger and Max follow the tracks and fallen shoes to the old mine. Max wants DC captured alive so he can still have the body for himself. This doesn't work out. DC knocks out Max. Ken shoots DC, to little effect. Roger shoots DC with more effect (Cass in the head). Ken helps Linda escape as the mine caves in. Roger, DC and Max are buried. Linda suggest that they not tell the whole truth, so Roger's legacy won't be soiled. The killer was Danny. Roger is dead too. So sad. Ramp up ballad. Roll credits. The End.

Why is this movie fun?

On its own, I2TH has little redeeming about it, beyond it's Jekyll and Hyde ancestry. The saturation of 70s style is interesting for those who lived through it. (Check out Casey Kasem's HUGE lapels!). The rampant 70s-ness will likely only mystify later generations. Pat Priest looks lovely as she traipses around in bikinis, nighties and low-cut dresses, all with an innocent Doris Day air.

Cultural Connection
The Jekyll and Hyde duality of good and evil was still a very potent theme. It would get many more serious expressions, but it was not immune to tawdry exploitation either. There was a demand for cheap gratuitous sex and/or violence films in the second-feature drive-in market. Such films were not really expected to be quality entertainment -- or even all that good. They just had to fill out the second half of the bill. Perhaps the assumption was that most of the teen drive-in audience was, by then, much more focused on necking than the film, that it just didn't matter. I2TH played second bill to Scream and Scream Again, featuring Vincent Price.

Notes
Hyde Bound -- Where the connection to 1931's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to the 1959 film Manster is largely inferred, the connection to I2HT is spelled out. When the Sheriff and his deputy examine Roger's trashed lab, the deputy says: "Dr. Girard must have been brewin' up some of that Jekyll and Hyde joy juice in here." There you have it via White and Lawrence's script. Two-headed monster men are Jekyll & Hyde at the same time. Note how the trope continued in that Danny was the "good" (at least innocent) head and Cass was the totally degenerate "bad" head. Note too, the continuation of the Hyde-esque sexual immorality undertone to the "bad." Cass is almost as fond of rape as he is of murder.

Hyde on Two-Head Coattails -- In late 1971, Andy Milligan wrote, produced and directed a Jekyll and Hyde remake (in a 70s take on Victorian style). It was a fairly lame remake, originally titled Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Blood.  But, I2HT apparently had garnered enough publicity that Andy retitled his low-low-budget production: The Man With 2 Heads. The poster almost suggests two-headedness, however, there was no man with two heads. Rather, it was the conventional Jekyll and Hyde alternating "heads". Andy's film is remarkable only in that it demonstrates the Hyde roots beneath the two-heads trope. Otherwise, it is an entirely avoidable film.

Stock Characters -- Aside from the absurd premise, the screenplay is comprised of stock characters. Roger is the stereotypic Frankenstein, dabbling outside of ethics for some vague benefit to mankind AND some personal glory. Max is the typical leering Mephistopheles goading Roger on, for his own selfish gain. Linda is the typical trophy wife, lovely, clueless, prone to faint a lot, get tied up (bondage?) and be abducted by the monster. (It's a living). Cass, the maniac, is the insatiable killing machine for no reason. The Sheriff is the usual slow bumpkin. Such well-worn characters were easier to write. There's no need for character development, because an audience already knows them well.

Poor Pat -- Pat Priest got her "big break" (of a sorts) as a replacement for Beverly Owens as "Marilyn" on the Munsters TV show (1964-66). She was slender, pretty and platinum blond -- the stereotypic bikini babe of the Beach Party movie era which was in vogue, but winding down. Post-Munsters, Pat's career "peak" could be said to be the 1967 Elvis film Easy Come, Easy Go in which she played the girlfriend (Dina) of Evils's nemesis -- in the blond bikini beach babe idiom. From then on, she found only small TV roles or bit parts. Her most "staring" role was in I2HT. (a sad testimony) Note the pool scene in which she lounges lusciously leggy in a blue bikini -- a pure beach babe shot. Poor Pat was a beach babe just a little too late.

Thin Science -- As is typical of a horror/sci-fi hybrid, the science is quite thin. There is, however, a poorly stated medical motive to the absurdity. This will be a factor in the follow-up 2-headed man film, so worth mentioning here. The idea, was to graft the head of someone you're trying to save, onto a donor's body while it sill has its original head. The original head would keep the body alive while the new head "took". Once the new head was stabilized and also controlling the body, the original head would be removed -- no longer necessary. This was Max's intent. Use Cass's demented head to prove the process, then lop it off and have Roger graft Max's head onto Danny's powerful body. Once the Max head was stabilized, the Danny head could go. Viola! New and Improved Max! --- Of course, it's wise not to try to read too much into such silly films, but this seems to be the medical motive.

Bottom line? I2HT is a low-rent film that could easily be forgotten with little remorse. The only reason to watch it, is as a series with Jekyll and Hyde at one end, then Manster, and finally The Thing With Two Heads. Outside of this series, it has little reason to be watched. MGM's Midnight Movies issued I2HT and TWTH as a double feature DVD. Unless it's in the dollar bin, or you like 70s schlock, it's probably not worth the money or effort.

The Manster

To better understand the two 70s two-headed-man films, it is worth looking at their direct inspiration. In 1962, there was The Manster -- a horror/sci-fi hybrid. This film was the American release of the 1959 japanese-american production entitled, "The Homicidal Maniac with Two Heads". The American version also ran as The Split. George Breakston was the writer, producer and director. Normally, such one-man-shows fail for lack of supervision, but Breakston had done several such one-man productions before, so avoided the usual pitfalls. Peter Dynsley stars as Larry Stanford, the reporter who becomes the two-headed man monster (Man-ster). Dynsley's real wife, Jane Hylton, plays Larry's wife, Linda.

Quick Plot Synopsis
Under the title and credits, a shadowy ape-man attacks and kills some skinny dipping geishas. The beast returns to Dr. Suzuki's lab. He shoots the beast, who had been his brother. In a cage is a deformed woman, Emiko, who had been his wife. Both, experiments gone wrong. Enter journalist Larry Stanford to interview Dr. Suzuki on his work in evolution. The doctor decides to inject Larry with his new-and-improved serum. Back in Tokyo, Larry becomes more irritable and less interested in making up with his estranged wife, Linda. Dr. Suzuki is in town, and shows Larry the delights of geisha houses. Larry becomes rather debauched and a drunkard. He also becomes smitten with Dr. Suzuki's "girlfriend" Tara. Through all of this, Larry feels a pain in his shoulder. Ian, Larry's editor, tries to get Larry some help (psychiatrist, Dr. Jennsen) but Larry just rampages around. Larry's right hand morphs into a wolfman hand. He rampages around Tokyo, killing random people. At one point, he takes his shirt off to investigate the shoulder pain and discovers an eye. He screams and runs to Dr. Jennsen. At Dr. J's office, the second head sprouts up. Dr. J is killed. Ian tells the police that he thinks the killer is Larry. They go to his apartment, just in time to save Linda from two-headed-Larry. Much chase and pursuit footage ensues. Larry gives them all the slip. Dr. Suzuki tells Tara that he thinks he has a drug solution that will correct the earlier serum's error. It should split Larry into two beings. Tara, fed up with the whole mad scientist's girlfriend gig, leaves to call the police. Dr. Suzuki, full of remorse over his tampering, shoots Emiko and is about to commit hari-kari when Larry enters the lab and knocks out Tara. He is, at first, subservient and obedient to Dr. Suzuki, until the doc jabs him with the new drug. Larry kills Dr. J. He grabs up limp Tara and runs up the volcano. The police pursue, with Ian and Linda too. At the rim of the volcano crater, Larry "splits" into two. His left half being morphs back into mild-mannered human Larry. His right half is a hairy snarling ape-man beast. The beast and Larry fight. The beast throws Tara into the volcano. Larry makes his move then, and pushes the beast into the volcano. Linda rushes up "Oh Larry" and gives him a hug. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
The low budget gives Manster an odd, campy quality, akin to so many cheap horror films of the late 50s. Yet, there is an earnestness to the production which tries to shine through. There are the three iconic scenes which, while not great cinema, are nonetheless very memorable.

Cultural Connection
The depths of the human soul have long been the basis of great science fiction. From Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, through to the 50s' Golden Era, the many aspects of the human psyche have made for great stories. Mankind's "dual" nature -- part civilized, part savage -- gets used often, usually with some "science" as the catalyst that makes the two more distinct. Manster is one of these stories.

Notes
Neo-Frankenstein -- Dr. Suzuki is the classic Frankenstein model of the "mad" scientist. He has a vague notion of his work being for the betterment of mankind (or at least, Science). Yet, he has no sympathy for the individual. Like Frankenstein, he is recklessly leaping into unknown realms, and then surprised that his results turn out so badly. He feels remorse, even repentance at his misdeeds, but too late. He is killed by his own monster. Also akin to Frankenstein, the monster is the result of medical tampering not radiation, as we so commonly the cause in late 50s Japanese sci-fi.

Three Iconic Scenes -- While they may seem cheesy to modern eyes, three scenes in Manster made a big impression on young viewers. The first was Larry discovering the eye on his shoulder. The second was the growing of the second head while in Dr. Jennsen's office. The third was the splitting scene up on the volcano.

B Feature -- The film was titled Manster for some of its American run. In 1962, it ran as the second feature in drive-ins, to Eye's Without A Face, retitled as The Horror Chamber of Dr. Faustus. Both films dealt with medical doctors dabbling beyond ethics and disfigurement.

The Dark Side -- Breakston's story is a reframing of Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll tale with a 50s spin. Instead of a single man alternating between his good and evil self, Breakston has his character descend from the "good" (civilized, moral, clean-cut, sober) to the "bad" (brutal, licentious, grubby, drunken), and then grow a second head to symbolize the dual nature of man. Note too, that the dark side of man is pictured as an ape. This is an old trope. This is dramatized more clearly by the split near the end. One half is Larry's "good" side (he even returns to being clean cut), while his dark half is savage and hairy. This pairing of good and bad heads would become the foundation for the 70s two-headed-monster films. The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant ('71) would repeat the good-and-evil theme. The Thing With Two Heads ('72) would opt for racism, one black, one white. Note too, that Breakston employed the good-girl / bad-girl trope from Dr. Jekyll. Linda is the virtuous woman (Muriel from 1931) and Tara is the manipulative prostitute (Ivy from 1931).

Metaphor? -- While it can be dicey to read too much into B sci-fi screenplays, it does seem as if Breakston is painting a metaphor about the loss of conservative (50s) values. Larry, the hard working man who wants to lead a proper married life, is enticed (by Dr. Suzuki) into a life of hedonistic abandon (the same as Mr. Hyde sought). There is much drinking and drunkenness, but note the frequent sexual references. There are many geishas, several bathing naked. Tara alludes to having come from the life of a "bad girl." She seduces Larry. And, as such bad girls are apparently unredeemable (too broken to ever be a good girl again), she is killed by the beast. Indeed, one could almost see the film as a metaphor for infidelity. In playing up the sexuality, Breakston seems to be keying off of Paramount's 1931 Jekyll film which was chock full of sexual themes. When the temptress is dead, Larry can be the married man again.

Bottom line? Manster is a peculiar B-grade sci-fi/horror hybrid. A bigger budget and more careful special effects might have lifted it to a minor A film, but the story can be appreciated nonetheless. The film has a cult following and even had "legs" enough to spawn a couple of variations on the theme in the early 70s. Manster made a bigger impression than it might seem.

The Cremators

Harry Essex's other B movie in 1972 was The Cremators, also aimed at the drive-in market. It had an even tinier budget than his Octaman which was already low-budget. Once again, Essex was the writer, producer and director. He had help from Roger Corman. Once again, he got his son, David, an acting part in the film. The rest of the cast are third-tier (at best). Maria De Aragon stars as Jeanie. Marvin Howard stars as the nerd scientist, Ian. As he had with Creamators, Essex again brought a taste of 50s sci-fi to the 70s. The story itself hales back to the early 50s. The poster probably led ticket-buyers to think the film was much more exciting than it actually was. (no burning cities or scantily clad women)

Quick Plot Synopsis
A narrator tells how, 300 years ago, a meteor fell and only an indian brave and a fish were witnesses. Both died. The indian was chased by a rolling fireball. It runs over him, turning him a people-shaped pile of ash. Flash forward to 1972 and nerdy entomologist Ian is staying in a lighthouse and studying bugs. He finds some odd glistening rocks. He mails some to a colleague to study. The mailman is later overrun by the rolling fireball. The sheriff and medical examiner theorize a lightning strike. Ian meets Jeanie and they two develop a relationship. She''s intrigued by the shiny rocks he found. He gives them to her. A local beach bum / hippy brings Ian his dead cat to examine. Ian finds more of the shiny rocks inside it. When the dog of the postman is found, it too dies and has some shiny rocks in its belly. Later, a lone sailor walks down a dirt road. He stops to strike a match on a shiny rock. This upsets the fireball, so it rolls over him. The sheriff and examiner think it's another rogue lightning strike. Ian thinks it has something to do with the shiny rocks. They think he's just mega-nerdy. Ian's friend (who did not get his package) Dr. Willy Seppel, arrives. He can't explain the shiny rocks or their odd heat properties. He thinks they came from space. Two of Ian's specimens burn out of their wooden box and leave a char-trail out the door. He connects the dots that the fireball is like the "mother" trying to collect the little shiny rocks. The postman and sailor died because they had one. Jeanie is puttering to the island in Mack's boat, listening to Ian and Mack discussing all this via ham radio. The fireball rises up out of the water and chases Jeanie. Mack left two shiny rocks in a box in his boat. Jeanie screams and asks Ian for help. He tells her to throw the rocks overboard. She does. Willy takes a couple shiny rocks out in a boat. The fireball comes for him. He tries to shoot it with a big 12 gauge shotgun, to no effect. Willy is toast. Ian, upset over the death of his friend, has a plan. He tells Jeanie to stay in the lighthouse, but of course, she doesn't. Ian buries some dynamite in the sand, and puts shiny rocks on top. He stomps on them to make the fireball mad. It comes for him. He detonates the dynamite. Boom. Everyone is glad it's over, but there are still two glowing shiny rocks on the sand. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
Fans of really-bad movies will find plenty of bad to laugh at. But, beyond that, the special effects work of Doug Beswick almost manage to save the film from being utter dreck. Granted, they're shoestring-budget effects, but Beswick manages to do a pretty credible job with that shoestring.

Cultural Connection
Eco-Nagging: Even though it had nothing whatsoever to do with the story, Essex did not resist the urge to pander to the blossoming ecology movement. He has his narrator scold in the opening monologue about how man has polluted the earth. Yet, there is no connection made between man's pollution and the "monster". Environmental harping was, apparently, just something that had to be included. A somewhat naked example of Hollywood activism, perhaps.

Notes
Remake from '52 -- It would seem that someone, Essex, or Corman, perhaps, had acquired the rights to a story by Judy Ditky entitled, "The Dune Roller." This story was dramatized on television in an episode of Tales of Tomorrow. This episode is viewable on the internet via archive.org and some other sources. The essentials of the story are the same. A scientist works on Lightning Island in lake Michigan.The island is infamous for lightning strike deaths. There is also the legend of the Dune Roller -- a fireball which burns people up. He finds odd rocks. The rocks apparently grow together. An old man is killed because he had some of the rocks in his pocket. The scientist (who has a girlfriend name Jeanie, too) decides to blow up the Dune Roller with dynamite. Some glowing fragments suggest the story is not over after all. The black and white TV episode (only 23 minutes long) has the visuals of the burned holes in the box, and the charred trails leading out the door. Essex kept that.

David II -- Harry managed to get his young adult son, David, another role in one of his movies, this time as a long-haired hippy instead of a long-haired "indian." David still has only the average man's acting ability. (very little) The only time he seemed to convey any pathos was when he was petulant and defiant. Perhaps these were emotions he was familiar with. David may have been a bit of a hyperactive handful as a son too. Note how much footage is dedicated to scenes of David running up and down the beach (which added nothing to the plot). David was clearly not intent to be an actor. He did no other movies.

Lame Love -- A curious scene (among many) in Creamators is the "love scene". Ian and Jeanie have obviously hit it off. And in swingin' 70s style, Ian has Jeanie in bed. Harry Essex did not, apparently, have an especially passionate imagination. The love scene starts with Ian kissing Jeanie as if practicing on a resuscitation dummy. She was appropriately inanimate. This is followed by a camera swing-around of the two lying motionless. The climax, so to speak, was a closeup of Jeanie's hand squeezing Ian's arm. Yes, that was it. Perhaps others, (Corman, maybe?) were urging Essex to include a gratuitous sex scene, but Essex really didn't want to. His enthusiasm was conspicuously absent.

Bottom line? Cremators is a very low quality production. Based on the budget of $50,000 or less, it may well have been a one-take shooting (which explains some of the bland acting). Albert Glasser's score is often lurid and loud to the point of annoyance. It is often used to prod tension or excitement, which the film never delivers -- like a sneeze that almost, but never quite comes. The screenplay appears to have been a first draft that was never cleaned up. Note how many times the scenes flip from day to night and back again. This film is better appreciated as a slightly more elaborate remake of a 1952 television episode -- not so much as a movie itself. Beswick's special effects (as low-tech as they are) almost carry the film. Clearly, the acting, editing and directing did not.

Octaman

Harry Essex managed to bring a slice of the 50s into the 70s with his first of two low-budget monster films: Octaman. The story loosely follows the by-now-hackneyed formula of rubber suit monster randomly attacking people. Essex was the writer, director and producer. As such, Octaman suffers in the usual ways. As a director, Essex created a movie with the look and feel of a made-for-television film. But, Octaman appears designed to be a second-run feature for the drive-in market. It first aired in Mexico in late 1971, but also ran in Germany, curiously. The American poster got a German subtitle: Beast of the Deep.

Quick Plot Synopsis
A narrator intones about mankind's search for answers to mysteries, then quickly settles on the legends of a half-man-half-octopus, "the hideous fruit of atomic radiation, in the form of a bizarre legend wrapped in horror and written in blood." A team of scientists are in some latin american country measuring water samples for radiation. It is dangerously high. They find a little (plastic) octopus with strangely hypnotic eyes. When all but one of the scientists go to town for supplies, Octaman kills the remaining scientist and retrieves his octo-buddy. The others return and are convinced there is some "mewtant" creature afoot. The team's sponsor (Jeff Morrow) refuses to fund any search for monsters. So, Rick convinces a publicity-hungry rancher to fund the search. They search, and Octaman manages to kill a few of them off, one by one. Davido ("The Indian") says he knows where to look. His grandmother told him of the spot where the beast killed his father long ago. The team motors over in their Ford Condor motorhome and set up camp. Susan, Rick's fiancee, gets spooky intuitions when the beast is near. Octaman kills off a few more people. Rancher Johnny wants to cancel the safari. Octo knocks out Johnny and abducts Susan. Rick, Steve and Mort surround Octo with a ring of fire to deprive him of oxygen. He passes out. Rick rescues Susan. Octo is captured, safely sedated and under a big net. But, he wakes up. Susan talks him into going away instead of killing them. (?) Their search led them to a cave (Bronson Caverns). Octo traps them with a cave in, but the team find a way out. Octo waits in ambush in the motorhome. After much fighting, Octo has Rick in a choke hold. Susan convinces Octo to take her and spare Rick. Octo carries off Susan (again). She shoots him in the chest. The other guys arrive and blast Octo with their guns too. Octo, full of holes, shuffles back into the pond. Bubble bubble. The End.

Why is this movie fun?
Octaman is a throwback to the Golden Era of B sci-fi, when men in rubber suit monster costumes were king.

Cultural Connection
The 50s' angst over the danger of radiation was pretty badly faded by the 70s. The old fear was spruced up with a coat of Enviro-Angst for the next generation. Back in the 50s, people worried about radiation, but more in the sense of sudden death. After the Cold War tension had cooled (or at least grown somewhat stale) over the 1960s, environmental fear was rising to take the place of Atomic Angst. Enter Essex's Octaman as the hybrid. Several times, the lead character and narrator preach and whine about how nasty people are to pollute the earth -- in this case with nuclear fallout from underwater testing.

Notes
Monster Star -- Essex opted, as the director, not to keep his monster mysterious. Instead of a slow, progressive "reveal" via shadows, feet, claws, etc. he puts his octo-monster on the screen right at the title. The film is really all about his octo-monster. Based on screen time alone, Octaman is THE star of the film. The rest of the cast are supporting roles, or fodder for his rage. The costume IS fairly elaborate for such a low-rent film and very reminiscent of Paul Blaisell's work. Rick Baker and Doug Beswick both got their start in special effects and makeup making the Octaman costume. Both would go on to work on Star Wars and become part of the post-Star-Wars generation of special effects men.

They're After Our Women! -- Essex includes, not just one, but TWO of the classic Abduction Scenes in Octaman. Twice, he has his monster fascinated with and then carrying off the desirable female. What he planned to do with her remained ill-defined. Take her to his underwater home and she'd just drown. She does her part too, in the classic idiom. She faints a lot so she's easier to carry. When she's conscious, she only kicks and protests a little. Monsters have long had a sort of Id-personified quality to them. An interesting twist on the Abduction Scene comes when Susan pulls out the revolver from her pocket and shoots her abductor in the chest. Modern women don't take to being abducted like they did in the old days.

Golden Echo -- Harry Essex's Octaman is an echo of the 50s in several ways. For one, Essex was a screenwriter for both It Came From Outer Space ('53). He reused the monster-eye-view camera effect from this film (though oddly with a multi-faceted lens when Octaman clearly had a single pupil). Essex also worked on the screenplay for Creature From the Black Lagoon ('54). From this, he borrowed the aqua-man-hybrid who has a beauty-and-the-beast attraction to the leading lady. Adding to the 50s feel is a cameo appearance of Jeff Morrow, Exeter in This Island Earth ('54) and starring in The Giant Claw ('57).

It's NOT Who You Know -- Being the son of the writer-director-producer might count for something, but it can't launch a career. Harry Essex got his son David a rather prominent role in Octaman. David plays the role of "Davido", the indian. While most of the acting in Octaman is marginal, David's comes across as someone all-too-aware that he's in front of cameras, filming a movie. Too many times, he's sporting a big stupid grin ("Hehe, I'm in a MOVIE!  Can you believe it?") when the role called for some other emotion.  His father would give him another try in his second attempt: The Cremators, (up next) with no better result. David Essex acted in no other films.

Sad Ending -- Not for the creature, but for the female star "Pier Angeli." Her real name was Anna Maria Pierangeli. As a young woman in the late 1940s, she wanted very badly to be a star. She worked at it, and landed some smallish parts in some films with big Hollywood names, such as Kirk Douglas, James Mason, Lorne Green, Paul Newman, and more. Yet, despite her obvious beauty, her career never seemed to take off. Perhaps her acting talent was not as strong as her beauty. Most of her roles were small or the films low-budget. When she did Octaman, she was 39 years old and starting to look more middle aged. She took her own life in September of '71 with an overdose of sleeping pills while Octaman was nearing the end of production. A low-rent film like Octaman seems like a sad way to end the career of a pretty actress. Some photos of Anna Maria in better days can be seen at AnnaMariaPierangeli.com

Bottom line? Octaman is a low-rent, cheesy monster flick with only a hint of science to its fiction. It is a very 50s-style of film which appears to be serious (not intended as a spoof). The acting is stiff to poor. The pacing is erratic. Some scenes are full of quick action, but some (like the climbing out of the cave) are clearly padding. Still, for fans of Golden Era B sci-fi, Octaman can be good cheap fun. For those raised on mega-budget CGI epics, Octaman will probably seem laughably stupid.