Monthly Archives: July 2023

Friday Night At The Home Drive-In: The Devil’s Hand (1961)

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Poster for The Devil's Hand (1961)The Devil’s Hand (1961) by #WilliamJHoleJr
w/#LindaChristian #RobertAlda

Haunted by visions of a beautiful woman, a man is drawn into a Satanic cult.

“The men she loved lived to love no others!”

“Still alive…the ancient cult of voodoo as it is practised today!”

#Horror #Voodoo #DevilWorship
#NotQuiteClassicCinema
#FridayNightAtTheHomeDriveIn

A few weeks ago I wrote about a movie called The Hand (1960). A week before that my topic was Devil’s Partner (1960). If you put those two movies together, you’d come up with The Devil’s Hand (1961). Well, probably not, really, but it’s an intriguing thought. And The Devil’s Hand (1961) did come out one year after the other two… Continue reading →

Friday Night At The Home Drive-In: The Snow Creature (1954)

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The Snow Creature (1954) by #WLeeWilder
w/#PaulLangton #LeslieDenison

An abominable snowman escapes its cage during transit from the Himalayas to the United States, and stalks the streets of L.A.

“Half man! Half monster!!”

“Terrorizes city, abducts women, annihilates men!”

#Horror #SciFi
#NotQuiteClassicCinema
#FridayNightAtTheHomeDriveIn

The Snow Creature (1954) is one of the first movies ever made about the Abominable Snowman (or the Yeti). Unfortunately, it’s not a very good one. I had apparently watched it some years ago, as I had a DVD in my collection. But I had no memory of it even existing, which perhaps says something about how forgettable a movie it is.  Continue reading →

Friday Night At The Home Drive-In: Monstrosity / The Atomic Brain (1963)

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Poster for Monstrosity / The Atomic Brain (1963)Monstrosity / The Atomic Brain (1963) by #JosephVMascelli
w/#MarjorieEaton #FrankGerstle #ErikaPeters #JudyBamber

A rich old woman plots with a scientist to have her brain implanted in the body of a young woman.

“WANTED: Youth and Beauty. Will Pay Millions. Only Beautiful and Shapely Girls Need Apply. No References Required. Appointments After Dark Only.”

#Horror #SciFi
#NotQuiteClassicCinema
#FridayNightAtTheHomeDriveIn

I have a particular fondness for horror movies from 1958. Monstrosity / The Atomic Brain didn’t come out until 1963, which is starting to get a little late in the game for that kind of late 1950s sci-fi horror madness. However, it was apparently shot in 1958 and not released until 1963, so that’s a different matter entirely. Still, it doesn’t have a whole lot in common with most of my favourites from that era. The producer, Jack Pollexfen, once said it was his worst movie ever – and the only one that failed to make money. That is, oddly enough, a recommendation of sorts to aficionados like me. The question is: Is it so bad it’s good? Or just so bad it’s boring? Continue reading →

Friday Night At The Home Drive-In: Creature from the Haunted Sea (1961)

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Creature from the Haunted Sea (1961) by #RogerCorman
w/ #AntonyCarbone #BetsyJonesMoreland

A crook kills his partners and blames a legendary sea creature, not knowing that the creature is real.

“This Gangster’s “Silent Partner” Isn’t Even Human!”

#Horror #Comedy
#NotQuiteClassicCinema
#FridayNightAtTheHomeDriveIn

Creature from the Haunted Sea (1961) is the third movie that Roger Corman made in Puerto Rico – the final chapter of his Puerto Rico trilogy, if you will. It was made, I believe, almost as an afterthought. We’re here, let’s quickly make another movie (or something like that). I wrote about the first movie in the trilogy a while back. It was, of course, Last Woman on Earth (1960). The second movie was a bit more unusual for Corman. It was called Battle of Blood Island (1960), and was a fairly straight forward war movie. Creature from the Haunted Sea is probably the zaniest of the three, and, truth be told, the worst. But seeing as how Corman is one of my filmmaking heroes, I still say there’s a lot to like about it… Continue reading →