Frozen Alive (1964)

FROZEN ALIVE (1964)
Article 2251 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-15-2007
Posting Date: 10-11-2007
Directed by Bernard Knowles
Featuring Mark Stevens, Marianne Koch, Wolfgang Lukschy

A scientist experiments with suspended animation. He tests it on himself, not knowing that his wife has just died in a freak gun accident (NOT a murder, as most of the other plot descriptions of this one say). However, the police think it is a murder, and wait for the scientist to come out of suspended animation.

Before anyone screams that my plot description is replete with spoilers, I will say this in my defense; every time I read about this movie, I read something very similar to what I’ve written above, despite the fact that the events that are therein described don’t begin to occur until about two-thirds of the way into the movie. Furthermore, since we actually see the wife’s death as it occurs, there is simply no mystery involved as to how she died, so I’m not giving anything away by making these corrections to the plot description. Yes, I could have restricted my plot description to events near the beginning of the movie, but let’s face it; this movie is a snoozefest of the first order, and virtually nothing of real interest occurs during the first two-thirds of the movie except some tepid soap opera antics and the seemingly endless setting up of a plot that could have been handled in five to ten minutes by an efficient director and writer. Quite frankly, the movie is fairly devoid of thrills; at its best, it is only slightly interesting, and it’s only at its best for a few minutes towards the end of the movie. You’re better off with either THE FROZEN DEAD or THE FROZEN GHOST .

 

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Pufnstuf (1970)

PUFNSTUF (1970)
Article 2250 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-14-2007
Posting Date: 10-10-2007
Directed by Hollingsworth Morse
Featuring Jack Wild, Billie Hayes, Martha Raye

A young boy with a magical golden talking flute ends up on Living Island where he is befriended by a dragon and terrorized by a witch.

“H.R. Pufnstuf” and the other Sid and Marty Krofft productions were part of my Saturday morning viewing when I was a child, but (with the marked exception of “Land of the Lost”) not a revered part. I watched them just to be watching something. Maybe that’s why I don’t have fond nostalgic memories of them, and this travesty certainly doesn’t inspire me to revisit them. On the plus side, some of the costumes are bizarre enough to catch my attention, there is a joke here or there that actually amused me, and the cast features Billy Barty and Angelo Rossitto. On the minus side, all but one of the songs are godawful, and the one that isn’t (which has the benefit of being performed by Mama Cass, someone who can actually sing, which is an advantage none of the other songs have) is merely passable and ludicrously out of place. And for the most part, the comedy consists of desperate, loud, screechy, repetitive, twitchy, ham-fisted, obvious, brain-numbing slapstick. In this context, Martha Raye comes off as the most dignified. Incidentally, the movie is directed by the man who gave us all of the Rocky Jones features.

The movie ends with Witchiepoo telling you to go home and have a nightmare. My response is “I’m already home and I just had one.”

 

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Fireworks (1947)

FIREWORKS (1947)
Short
Article 2249 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-13-2007
Posting Date: 10-9-2007
Directed by Kenneth Anger
Featuring Kenneth Anger, Bill Seltzer, Gordon Gray

A man dreams that he tries to pick up sailor and then is brutally beaten by a group of them.

Back when I covered Kenneth Anger’s INAUGURATION OF THE PLEASURE DOME , I was hampered somewhat by the fact that the movie was very hard to find, and that I had little information on hand to help me to sort out the movie. However, the recent release of some of Anger’s early films on DVD (complete with notes and commentary) has helped with appreciating this one a little more. Despite the above plot description, it really isn’t about the story; it’s the recreation of a dream that Anger actually had, most probably inspired by a series of events in 1944 involving the brutalization of Mexicans by gangs of sailors. It’s full of abstract imagery, gay sexuality and brutal and grotesque visions, some of it quite horrific. I know enough about the movie now to admire Anger’s accomplishment, but ultimately with this sort of underground cinema, how much you really enjoy it is dependent on how much it speaks to you personally, and, for me, the movie doesn’t really satisfy much in that regard. The dreamlike quality and the grotesqueness provide the fantastic content.

 

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The Alien Encounters (1979)

THE ALIEN ENCOUNTERS (1979)
Article 2248 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-12-2007
Posting Date: 10-8-2007
Directed by James T. Flocker
Featuring Augie Tribach, Matthew Boston, Phil Catalli

An unemployed astronomer loses his job when a radio telescope is destroyed while he is hearing messages from outer space. He then tracks down a scientist who is building a machine to extend life, only to discover the scientist is dead. He visits with the scientist’s wife and son, and discovers about the scientist’s own encounter with UFOs.

This amounts to an extremely low budget variation on CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND. With its indifferent acting, constant narration, static presentation, and IMDB rating of 1.9, you won’t be expecting much. Nevertheless, I found it not without interest value. The narration isn’t quite as annoying as it could have been, and after a while you’re a little grateful for it; whenever he switches to dialogue, writer James T. Flocker displays a tin ear. Also, given the budget, the special effects aren’t half bad, the story has some nice touches, and I like the locations. The biggest problem is that the director just doesn’t know when enough is enough; though it is rather interesting to have the scientist’s son being shadowed by a friendly floating sphere, the movie indulges in endless footage of him walking through the desert with the sphere, for example. The overly laid-back pace is also an impediment; if you don’t get into the groove with this pace, the movie will be a total bore. My best advice for those wishing to tackle this one is to keep the expectations low, and to sympathize with the low budget; it makes you appreciate some of its better points.

 

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Francis Covers the Big Town (1953)

FRANCIS COVERS THE BIG TOWN (1953)
Article 2247 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-11-2007
Posting Date: 10-7-2007
Directed by Arthur Lubin
Featuring Donald O’Connor, Yvette Duguay, Gene Lockhart

Peter Stirling gains employment at a newspaper in the hopes of becoming a big reporter. Francis the talking mule uses his ability to talk with horses to help Peter get big scoops (you know, the inside track on stories, NOT scoops of of other things mules might produce). However, troubles arise when Peter uncovers the truth about a protection racket.

Yes, it’s another Francis the Talking Mule movie. Taken individually, these movies are passable light comedy. Taken in toto, they’re tedious repetitions of the same gags, and I’m afraid this this one, despite eschewing the usual military milieu of the series, is pretty formulaic. I’m really tired of gags involving Peter bringing in someone to meet Francis, and Francis refusing to talk to them until Francis decides to insult them. I’m really tired of Peter undergoing psychiatric examinations because people think he’s crazy for talking to a mule. I’m really tired of the movie always ending with Francis saving Peter’s hash by appearing before a large group of people and proving that he can talk. All those scenes are here in spades, or course, and the fact that this may be slightly better than the other entries in the series does little to alleviate things. The best things here are the familiar faces that pop up; Gene Lockhart plays a newspaper editor, Gale Gordon plays a district attorney, Maurice Cass (Professor Newton from the Rocky Jones series) pops up as a psychiatrist, John Qualen is here as an inordinately meek lawyer (and he pretty much steals the show in his few scenes), and Eddie Parker pops up as well.

This marks the fifth entry of this series I’ve seen. Two more to go.

 

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Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome (1947)

DICK TRACY MEETS GRUESOME (1947)
Article 2246 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-10-2007
Posting Date: 10-6-2007
Directed by John Rawlins
Featuring Boris Karloff, Ralph Byrd, Anne Gwynne

Dick Tracy investigates a bank robbery in which the people in the building were frozen in their places due to a gas. One of the robbers, known as Gruesome, was recognized as a man whose corpse was brought in a few days ago, but which came to life and walked out.

This fairly entertaining entry in the Dick Tracy series benefits from the presence of several familiar faces; Boris Karloff, Skelton Knaggs and Milton Parsons (as Gruesome, X-Ray, and Dr. A. Tomic) all appear in the movie. Both Parsons and Knaggs had appeared as different characters in other Dick Tracy movies. The movie also features Jason Robards Sr., Robert Clarke and Lex Barker in small roles. I was a little disappointed not to find Ian Keith in this one, as his continuing character of Vitamin Flintheart was one of my favorites. It’s nice to see Ralph Byrd in the Tracy role again; he comes as close to that square-jawed Dick Tracy look as any actor could. Though Karloff’s presence adds to the proceedings, the character of Gruesome really doesn’t make for a memorable villain, though he does inspire a comment in which Karloff’s name is dropped. Nonetheless, it’s fast moving and efficient. This would be the last of the series.

 

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The Day the Earth Caught Fire (1961)

THE DAY THE EARTH CAUGHT FIRE (1961)
Article 2245 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-9-2007
Posting Date: 10-5-2007
Directed by Val Guest
Featuring Janet Munro, Leo McKern, Edward Judd

After the simultaneous explosion of two nuclear bombs, the earth begins to undergo a strange series of disasters. Reporters try to piece together the details of what has happened to the planet as a result of the tests despite the fact that the government is suppressing the knowledge.

The last few movies I’ve seen of Val Guest’s have been fantastically themed comedies that really didn’t impress me all that much. Here we have him working in the mode in which I like him best; this is a very effective end-of-the-world science fiction adventure. It’s a bit on the talky side, generally setting aside action for words, but I find it quite fascinating, especially in the way we follow the trail by which the facts of the matter are eventually disclosed, with chance conversations and government cover-ups playing a large part in the proceedings. We also see how the events affect the personal lives of those living through it, in some cases making them better and stronger people. The beginning and end of this black-and-white movie are effectively tinted in red, and it makes excellent use of stock footage. The most memorable moments for me are the vision of deadly fog rolling across London, and the unresolved ending which leaves us wondering which of the headlines will grace the front of the next edition of the newspaper. Fine performances all around, especially from our three leads.

 

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The Crime Doctor’s Courage (1945)

THE CRIME DOCTOR’S COURAGE (1945)
Article 2244 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-8-2007
Posting Date: 10-4-2007
Directed by George Sherman
Featuring Warner Baxter, Hillary Brooke, Jerome Cowan

Dr. Ordway is called in by an acquaintance who thinks she may have married a madman. When he is found murdered in his study with a locked door and no other exit, the doctor takes it upon himself to solve the mystery.

As a general rule, one way to differentiate between horror and mystery is that in the former, the fantastic elements are real, and that in the latter, the fantastic elements are faked. There are exceptions, but you run the risk of annoying your audience if you break these rules. This is the second of the Crime Doctor series I’ve seen, and it is quite enjoyable, as was the first one. The fantastic content is quite marked; two of the suspects are dancers who do an act where one of them disappears, they are never seen during the day, and they have coffins to sleep in. Now, given that this movie is technically a mystery rather than a horror movie, I would probably be disappointed if they did indeed turn out to be vampires, as I would be hoping for a more logical solution. The most far-fetched thing about this movie is the relative ease with which several people embrace the whole vampire story. It’s a fun movie, with Warner Baxter enjoying himself in the title role and Emory Parnell effective as a police captain. I was able to figure out who the murderer was long before the ending, but that didn’t ruin it for me.

 

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Of Stars and Men (1964)

OF STARS AND MEN (1964)
Article 2243 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-7-2007
Posting Date: 10-3-2007
Directed by John Hubley
Featuring the voices of Dr. Harlow Shapley, Mark Hubley, Ray Hubley

After being granted a crown by a lion, a man investigates his place in the universe.

This movie was based on a book of scientific philosophy by Dr. Harlow Shapley, and there’s something quite audacious in the attempt to even do such a thing. It’s not a complete success; it can’t help but be a little dry and dull at times. Nevertheless, it’s successful enough to be worth watching; it combines whimsical animation with classical music, and occasionally uses narration and abstract visuals to discuss the concepts of space, time, matter, energy, and whether life exists on other planets. It does manage to leave you pondering on how man fits into the universe, which is one of its goals. The framing story of man receiving the crown from the former King of Beasts (the lion) serves as an effective metaphor for the search, and the most effective moment in the movie is when man finally figures out what to do with that crown. I found the movie unique, likable and effective.

 

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Colossus and the Headhunters (1960)

COLOSSUS AND THE HEADHUNTERS (1960)
aka Maciste contro i cacciatori di teste
Article 2242 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 5-6-2007
Posting Date: 10-2-2007
Directed by Guido Malatesta
Featuring Kirk Morris, Laura Brown, Alfredo Zammi

Maciste rescues a group of islanders who lost their home in a volcanic eruption. He brings them to a distant land, where they find themselves embroiled in a battle between distant relatives and headhunters.

The fantastic content here is, once again, Maciste’s enormous strength. It’s not as enormous as some other sword-and-sandal heroes, though; he gets two opportunities to bend the bars back and skips them both. He is good at moving heavy boulders, knocking down platforms and strangling two men at one time, though. There are no monsters and no evil queens to contend with. Despite a sizable cast during the battle scenes, this comes off as one of the cheaper movies of its kind, especially during the opening sequence. And, if you didn’t guess it from the above plot description, there’s no one named Colossus in the movie. Still, I will give the movie points for one thing; when it comes time to bore us with the ritual dancing, at least they make no bones about the fact that it’s done to kill time.

 

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