The Secret of the Black Trunk (1962)

THE SECRET OF THE BLACK TRUNK (1962)
aka Das Geheimnis der schwarzen Koffer
Article 3050 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-13-2009
Posting Date: 12-20-2009
Directed by Werner Klingler
Featuring Joachim Hansen, Senta Berger, Hans Reiser
Country: West Germany
What it is: Son of Edgar Wallace krimi, with slight horror elements.

A series of knife murders have an odd feature about them; the victims find that their luggage has been packed for them just before their deaths. Scotland Yard investigates, and discover that the murders are linked to an addictive drug called Mescadrine.

I didn’t know that Edgar Wallace’s son also wrote thrillers, but this movie was apparently part of a competing series of krimis that were based on his works. It’s not a bad one, though krimis seem to have the same basic elements; a strange mystery, a confusing story, and a comic relief character are three of the elements that pop up quite a bit. The comic relief character here isn’t too bad; he’s a “soundhound” that goes around recording random sounds, noises, and conversations, and some of the humor comes from the titles he gives each of his sounds. On top of the slight horror elements that usually crop up in these movies, we may have a little science fiction element as well, as I’m not sure whether the drug in question actually exists or is a figment of the author’s imagination. The middle of the movie does get quite confusing, but it sorts itself out towards the end, and the explanations for the murders are not bad. This one was moderately entertaining.

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Seconds (1966)

SECONDS (1966)
Article 3049 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-12-2009
Posting Date: 12-19-2009
Directed by John Frankenheimer
Featuring Rock Hudson, Salome Jens, John Randolph
Country: USA
What it is: Cautionary science fiction tale of a dream turning into a nightmare

A middle-aged banker is drawn into a business deal with a clandestine organization that specializes in allowing people to change their identity, regain their youth, and start a new life. However, as he finds out, starting a new life requires knowing what you want to do with your own life and being willing to leave the old one behind. And if you can’t…

Of the great movies that John Frankenheimer made during his classic period in the early-to-mid sixties, this is the one with the greatest amount of fantastic content. The premise certainly seems like a dream come true, especially for those who have reached that mid-life crisis that leaves them wondering if they have wasted their lives (just having recently turned 50 myself, I can understand the appeal), but the ominous undercurrents are there from the beginning; the abrupt revelations, the strange room of desk clerks, the blackmail scheme, and the unanswered questions (just where does the organization procure its corpses for the faking of the deaths?) should all leave you with the ominous feeling that all is not quite right here. The story is gripping, the direction is strong, the cinematography by James Wong Howe (which uses a number of fascinating lens distortions) is memorable, the score by Jerry Goldsmith is strong, and all of the acting is effective, with special notice going to John Randolph and Rock Hudson (as the before and after main character), Will Geer, Salome Jens, and Murray Hamilton. You should also recognize Jeff Corey, Richard Anderson, and Khigh Dhiegh. The movie is powerful and memorable, and the ending won’t soon be forgotten. Highly recommended.

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The Road to Hong Kong (1962)

THE ROAD TO HONG KONG (1962)
Article 3048 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-11-2009
Posting Date: 12-18-2009
Directed by Norman Panama
Featuring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Joan Collins
Country: UK
What it is: Hope/Crosby Road film, final installment

Two entertainers find themselves the target of a secret criminal organization when one of them memorizes a secret rocket fuel formula.

This was the final Hope/Crosby Road movie, and though the movie isn’t bad, one can see why the series was retired; despite the more modern touches (a science fiction/spy plot in particular), one can sense that this type of amiable comedy had run its course. The self-referential humor is a bit clumsy here, especially with the constant references to early Road movies, and the movie spends a surprising amount of time sticking to the plot, something the other Road movies wouldn’t dream of doing. Hope and Crosby are both beginning to show their age, and though Joan Collins has a certain appeal, I’d rather have seen more of Dorothy Lamour (who doesn’t end up in a sarong in this one, though a couple do pop up). Still, stray jokes work quite well, and Peter Sellers steals the movie in his scenes as a crazed neurologist. This is also the Road movie with the most prominent fantastic content, with two trips into outer space and a running joke about special effects adding to the fun. And even if it is the weakest of the Road movies, it’s also possibly Bob Hope’s best movie from the sixties, which is another way of looking at it.

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Murderers’ Row (1966)

MURDERERS’ ROW (1966)
Article 3047 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-11-2009
Posting Date: 12-17-2009
Directed by Henry Levin
Featuring Dean Martin, Ann-Margret, Karl Malden
Country: USA
What it is: Faux James Bond, Matt Helm style

Matt Helm must locate a scientist who has the secret to a powerful death ray… before he falls into the wrong hands.

Watching this movie so soon after having seen a Disney shopping cart movie gave me an interesting perspective on it. It occurred to me that, despite the endless drinking, pulchritude and double entendres that populate this movie, it felt like it exuded the same sense of innocence as the Disney comedies. The key here is in the double entendres; they’re handled with such a light touch that the movie has the air of a good-natured wink (unlike THE AMBUSHERS, where the same elements were handled so crassly that they came across like a smarmy smirk). This sense of innocent fun is what set the Matt Helm movies apart from the James Bond films, which they otherwise emulate. Unfortunately, as the movie goes along, it moves away from the humor and starts emphasizing the action, and when it does this, you’re fully aware you’re watching a second-rate James Bond imitation, and the lethargic pacing (which infects the whole movie) becomes especially noticeable. Still, it’s likable enough, with some great Ann-Margret dancing and some Crosby-Hope Road movie referential humor (in moments which involve Karl Malden, Frank Sinatra, and the group Dino, Desi & Billy). The ending, unfortunately, tries to get too much mileage out of a repeated running gag involving a time-delayed gun; it should have been used twice at best but it pops up repeatedly.

This leaves one more Matt Helm movie to go in the series.

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The Monkey’s Uncle (1965)

THE MONKEY’S UNCLE (1965)
Article 3046 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-9-2009
Posting Date: 12-16-2009
Directed by Robert Stevenson
Featuring Tommy Kirk, Annette Funicello, Leon Ames
Country: USA
What it is: Shopping Cart Movie

Merlin Jones’s experiments with monkeys are used to save the football team at Midvale college. In the first half, he must find a way to help the football players pass their English exams or else face expulsion. In the second half, he must prove that men can fly under their own power in order for the college to net a ten million dollar contribution that will trump a smaller one which requires the removal of the football program.

Feeling as they do like TV episodes strung together, the Merlin Jones movies come across as the chintziest of the Disney shopping cart movies. But even the Disney at its chintziest has its surprises; for one thing, that’s no anonymous rock group backing up Annette Funicello in the opening song, but the Beach Boys themselves. I also noticed that even though the movie consists of two separate stories, they don’t feel quite as disjointed as they might have, because there are enough similar themes between the two halves (the sleep learning, the theme of saving the football team, the monkey subplot) to make the movie feel more like a single entity. Granted, it’s still one of the weaker of Disney’s efforts, and it really suffers by comparison to some of Disney’s other efforts of the era. All in all, it’s likable enough, but extremely minor.

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Scream of the Demon Lover (1970)

SCREAM OF THE DEMON LOVER (1970)
aka Il castello dalle porte di fuoco
Article 3045 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-8-2009
Posting Date: 12-15-2009
Directed by Jose Luis Merino
Featuring Ema Schurer, Carlos Quiney, Agostina Belli
Country: Italy / Spain
What it is: Spanish / Italian period horror of the damsel-in-castle variety

A female biochemist is hired to work for a baron who is suspected of having killed all of his mistresses with the help of two savage dogs. She is hired to help develop a way to regenerate burnt human flesh. She begins to suspect the baron is guilty of the murders… or is he? One thing’s for sure; it’s not the dogs that are responsible.

This is one of those movies that had me wondering at first just how familiar it would be; I’ve seen a lot of Italian horror movies with women in castles with murderers. To its credit, the movie has a few twists to add to its familiar tale, and it even dredges up a bit of mystery when it becomes clear that two different explanations could be tendered for the events. Unfortunately, the script is quite clumsy at times; all too often, the characters act in ways that make no sense, especially the female biochemist. Still, its best scenes are quite effective, and in some ways it reminds me of HORROR CASTLE, though the plots aren’t really that similar. It’s no classic, but it is somewhat better than I expected it would be.

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The Savage Bees (1976)

THE SAVAGE BEES (1976)
TV-Movie
Article 3044 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-7-2009
Posting Date: 12-14-2009
Directed by Bruce Geller
Featuring Ben Johnson, Michael Parks, Paul Hecht
Country: USA
What it is: Killer Bee Thriller

A boat from Brazil inadvertently brings a swarm of killer bees to New Orleans during Mardi Gras.

I haven’t seen every killer bee movie ever made yet, but I’d have to say that I think the TV-Movies did a better job with the concept than the theatrical ones. This one does a nice job of following different story threads at the beginning, with a sheriff investigating the death of his dog, a ship that is mysteriously bereft of crew, and a child who goes to church and doesn’t come back. Granted, it isn’t really that mysterious (once the title comes up, you know what’s tying them all together), but it’s solid, well-acted, and does a decent job of giving you the willies. It flirts a little with the theme of stalling bureaucrats, though it really doesn’t develop the theme fully and instead keeps focused on the action at hand. Ben Johnson does a great job as the sheriff doing his best in difficult circumstances, and James Best pops up in a small role as one of the aforementioned bureaucrats. This TV-Movie was popular enough to spawn a sequel, TERROR OUT OF THE SKY. I have to give special notice to Norman E. Gary, the bee wrangler for this movie (which used hundreds of thousands of real bees) and to the gutsy cast who often allow themselves to be enveloped by their tiny co-stars. There were very few bee-related injuries on the set.

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Maciste in King Solomon’s Mines (1964)

MACISTE IN KING SOLOMON’S MINES (1964)
aka Samson in King Solomon’s Mines, Maciste nelle miniere di re Salomone
Article 3043 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-6-2009
Posting Date: 12-13-2009
Directed by Piero Regnoli
Featuring Reg Park, Wandisa Guida, Bruno Piergentili
Country: Italy
What it is: Sword-and-Sandal fantasy

An evil courtier combines forces with a female barbarian to conquer a fortress that will give them access to the riches of King Solomon’s mines. When they do so, they make slaves of the villagers in the surrounding countryside, but Maciste is going to come to the rescue…

There’s a couple of pieces of novelty to this sword-and-sandal epic. It’s set in Africa and features location footage from South Africa (making this at least partially a jungle movie as well), and the female villain starts out as a fighting barbarian. I was hoping they’d make interesting use of that last aspect, but once she becomes queen of the city, she becomes just another in a long line of evil queens. Maciste does lots of heavy lifting, is outwitted by the evil queen and becomes her slave, and, as usual, comes to the rescue in the end. Despite the above novelties, this is pretty routine.

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Rocket Attack U.S.A. (1961)

ROCKET ATTACK U.S.A. (1961)
Article 3042 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-5-2009
Posting Date: 12-12-2009
Directed by Barry Mahon
Featuring Monica Davis, John McKay, Phillip St. George
Country: USA
What it is: Cold War Sputnik Nuclear Attack Paranoia

Spies are sent to the Soviet Union to find out whether Sputnik is transmitting critical information to the communists. They not only find that such is the case, but that a nuclear attack on New York is being planned.

The first three-quarters of this movie is thrill-an-hour spy stuff (since this sequence only takes forty-five minutes, I’m assuming the thrill would have occurred during the next fifteen minutes had it continued). The rest of the movie shows the aftermath of the result of the spy mission. I’ve dealt with director Barry Mahon before; he gave us BLOOD OF THE ZOMBIE and THE BEAST THAT KILLED WOMEN, both of which are awful and both of which are better than this one. It’s something of an update of INVASION U.S.A. with Sputnik and nuclear paranoia thrown into the mix; it’s a compendium of stock footage and extremely static and poorly-acted new footage that falls flat for practically every second of its running time. Still, even with a loser like this one, I do find a couple of things to admire. The Russians actually speak Russian, and they don’t use subtitles, which is a novel idea for the time. Furthermore, the final part of the movie spends some time with the lives of ordinary people in New York who don’t know what is about to happen, and it gives it an unexpected human touch. If the static direction wasn’t so deadly, these ideas might have given the movie a bit of a lift; unfortunately, as it is, they’re just good ideas poorly used. You’re better off with INVASION U.S.A., which has better acting and a certain amount of energy.

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Panic in the City (1968)

PANIC IN THE CITY (1968)
Article 3041 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 9-4-2009
Posting Date: 12-11-2009
Directed by Eddie Davis
Featuring Howard Duff, Linda Cristal, Stephen McNally
Country: USA
What it is: Thriller with marginal SF elements

When a mysterious man is found in the street with a high radiation count, an agent from the National Bureau of Investigation is called in to investigate. He eventually discovers a foreign plot to build and detonate an atomic bomb in the city of Los Angeles.

The basic plot is fairly ordinary, but it’s well-written and concentrates on the cat-and-mouse game between the NBI and the agents. The direction is rather unimaginative, but it keeps itself focused on the plot, which helps through some of the duller scenes. The acting is good, and it handles its story realistically and without sensationalism. The end result is a mildly engrossing thriller, one that rises above its low budget and occasionally shows moments of inspiration. My favorite line is from Linda Cristal (about paying the telephone bill), and my favorite moment is the final one, where we can see, without a word spoken, how she is going to handle her grief. The cast also features Nehemiah Persoff, Oscar Beregi Jr., Anne Jeffreys, John Hoyt, George Barrows, and Dennis Hopper. Not bad at all.

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