Monthly Archives: March 2024

Red Planet Mars (1952) – Friday Night At The Home Drive-In

Posted on by
Reply

Poster. for Red Planet Mars (1952)Red Planet Mars (1952) by #HarryHorner
w/#PeterGraves #AndreaKing

Scientists make contact with Mars and cause unforeseen political, economic, and spiritual problems.

“SEE! The first contact between Earth and Mars!”

“The World Torn Asunder By A Threat From Outer Space!”

#SciFi
#NotQuiteClassicCinema
#FridayNightAtTheHomeDriveIn

Where do I begin with this one? Red Planet Mars starts off like an interesting sci-fi story. Husband and wife scientists are on the verge of making contact with Mars. Or rather, they have been in contact with Mars, but they just haven’t been able to decipher the messages that they’re getting back. It’s intriguing, and you want to know more. And eventually the scientists DO figure out how to communicate with the Martians, but it leads to all kinds of unexpected difficulties on Earth… and this is where the movie starts to get a little weird… Continue reading →

King Dinosaur (1955) – Friday Night At The Home Drive-In

Posted on by

POSTER FOR King Dinosaur (1955)King Dinosaur (1955) by #BertIGordon
w/#WilliamBryant #WandaCurtis

When a new planet appears near Earth, four scientists are sent to explore it.

“SEE…A prehistoric world of fantastic adventure come to life!”

“Terrifying! Fantastic! Startling!”

#Horror #SciFi
#NotQuiteClassicCinema
#FridayNightAtTheHomeDriveIn 

I’ve mentioned the name Bert I. Gordon several times on this blog. He was best known as a producer, writer, director of Sci-Fi and Horror features. He also sometimes worked as an editor, special effects guy, and even a cinematographer. King Dinosaur (1955) was the first film he every directed, which makes it somewhat historically significant to fans of his work and B-movies in general. Unfortunately, that may be the only thing that makes it significant.  Continue reading →

Man Beast (1956) – Friday Night At The Home Drive-In

Posted on by

Poster for Man Beast (1956)Man Beast (1956) by #JerryWarren
w/#AsaMaynor #TomMaruzzi #LloydNelson

While searching the Himalayas for her brother, a woman and her companions find the lair of a furious Yeti.

“Hair-raising excitement in the icy lair of man-like creatures roaming the roof of the world!”

“SEE: Death-drop at 21,000 feet!”

#Horror #SciFi
#NotQuiteClassicCinema
#FridayNightAtTheHomeDriveIn

Man Beast (1956) is a good old-fashioned bad movie – sort of like Edward D. Wood Jr. used to make. The acting is stilted, the dialogue is mostly bad, and it’s hard to know where one ends in the other begins. It’s quite low budget, which is obvious because there are very few actors and very few sets. Looking at it objectively, it would be hard to single out one good thing about this movie… which may be precisely why I found it so hard to resist. Continue reading →

The Man Without a Body (1957) – Friday Night At The Home Drive-In

Posted on by

Poster for The Man Without a Body (1957)

The Man Without a Body (1957) by #WLeeWilder and #CharlesSaunders
w/#RobertHutton #GeorgeCoulouris #JuliaArnall

A businessman with a brain tumour conspires to get a new brain – by stealing the head of Nostradamus.

“A diabolical dream come true! Who is his Next Victim?”

#Horror #SciFi
#NotQuiteClassicCinema
#FridayNightAtTheHomeDriveIn

I suppose I should know by now what to expect when I see the name W. Lee Wilder attached to a movie… The Man Without a Body (1957) is about as good – or not good – as all my past experience should have taught me. For those who may not remember, W. Lee Wilder is the brother of Billy Wilder. Yes, Billy Wilder, the brilliant film director who made such classics as The Apartment (1960), Some Like It Hot (1959) and Sunset Boulevard(1950). W. Lee Wilder made about 35 films, none of them as famous or successful as Billy Wilder’s films. Billy apparently once referred to his older brother W. Lee as “a dull son of a bitch”.  Continue reading →

The Brain from Planet Arous (1957) – Friday Night At The Home Drive-In

Posted on by

The Brain from Planet Arous (1957) Poster for The Brain from Planet Arous (1957) by #NathanJuran
w/#JohnAgar #JoyceMeadows #RobertFuller

An alien brain hijacks the body of a scientist to take control of the Earth.

“It Will Steal Your Body And Damn Your Soul!”

“Science-Fiction’s most astounding story!”

#Horror #SciFi
#NotQuiteClassicCinema
#FridayNightAtTheHomeDriveIn

I’ve been hearing about The Brain from Planet Arous (1957) for a long time. If you’d asked me, I probably would have said that I’d seen it years ago. But watching it last Friday,  it became clear to me that I’ve never seen this unassuming sci-fi masterpiece before. Masterpiece? Well, perhaps I’m overstating it slightly, but this movie is the most fun I’ve had at the home drive-in in quite a while…

It may not hurt that I’m a fan of “brain” movies. I mean all types of them: disembodied brains, brain transplants,. evil monster brains – you name it. How could I have missed The Brain from Planet Arous until now?  Continue reading →