A few great vintage 1960s Mexican comic books featuring the adventures of their beloved masked wrester/film star, the Blue Demon!
Sunday, August 14, 2011
CAPTAIN AMERICA
Thought Captain America: The First Avenger, while hardly anything ground-breaking or visionary, was a solid and fun comic book movie, one of Marvel's better efforts so far! Highlighted by it's retro 1940s set design and period setting, nice nods to the character's long history, and enjoyable performances from all of the main leads. A well-deserved success for the often-malinged (and often deservedly-so) director Joe Johnston.
BLAZING COMBAT!
A peak at my little collection of vintage 'war stuff'....always loved a good Sat afternoon war movie matinee as a kid, followed by a backyard G I Joe battle when I got home!
RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
As a big Apes fan and collector since I was a kid I thought Rise of the Planet of the Apes was an enjoyable enough film, solid without being spectacular. Much more faithful in concept and tone to the original films than Tim Burton's 2001 remake, and it's nice to see it doing well with critics and audiences as I'm certainly up for more big-screen Apes adventures! I do miss John Chamber's Oscar winning make-up though, and it's unfortunate that the trailers pretty much gave away the entire plot of the film, and the human characters and actors (apart from John Lithgow) were very wooden and little more than caricatures.
I also found that the abundance of references and in-jokes to the original films went too far....one or two are fine, I liked the bit with Caeser building the Statue of Liberty model and the news clip of the Icarus lift-off, but the others were a bit too forced and obvious, and the "damned dirty ape" line should never have been used - it is such an iconic line and it belongs to Heston alone, not handed down to some kid who was probably the worst actor and most cliched character in the entire film.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes got me thinking of the fourth film the original series, and the one which this new film most resembles in tone and theme, 1972's Conquest of the Planet of the Apes. Conquest was the first Apes film I saw in a cinema, when my English teacher took me and a couple of other classmates to a screening of it at the old Airport cinema in Melbourne (this was back in the days when a school teacher taking a few of his 12 year-old students to the movies on a weekend wasn't considered anything to get overly suspicious or concerned about). He was a bit of a Star Trek/sci-fi nerdy/buff-type and I guess in us he maybe recognised (and took pity on?) a few like-minded kids. The only other Apes film I had seen up until then were Beneath the Planet of the Apes (a 16mm screening in our class thanks to a student whose dad had a bit of pull at the Channel 7 TV studios) and about the first half of the original Planet of the Apes when it aired on Sunday night television (was forced to go to bed just after Taylor spoke - school the next day).
So I hadn't seen Escape From the Planet of the Apes and knew very little of what Conquest was about and it was quite a shock to see the apes roaming not a primitive wasteland but a modern city, and the humans talked but most of the apes didn't? I suppose at the time it was something of a let-down, as the imagery of the talking, powerful apes roaming this eerie, barren Forbidden Zone strewn with the ruins of nuclear-ravaged cities, was one of the aspects of the first two films that most appealed to me, and Conquest obviously lacked that tone. But I was still sitting in a cinema watching an Apes film so I certainly still loved the experience, and over the years Conquest has definately improved for me, I appreciate more it's tone and themes now than I did as a kid, it has that great early-70s American sci-fi vibe, and I love the cold concrete feel of the Century City locales. The original can't be touched, but Conquest runs very close with Beneath as my second favourite entry in the Apes saga.
I also found that the abundance of references and in-jokes to the original films went too far....one or two are fine, I liked the bit with Caeser building the Statue of Liberty model and the news clip of the Icarus lift-off, but the others were a bit too forced and obvious, and the "damned dirty ape" line should never have been used - it is such an iconic line and it belongs to Heston alone, not handed down to some kid who was probably the worst actor and most cliched character in the entire film.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes got me thinking of the fourth film the original series, and the one which this new film most resembles in tone and theme, 1972's Conquest of the Planet of the Apes. Conquest was the first Apes film I saw in a cinema, when my English teacher took me and a couple of other classmates to a screening of it at the old Airport cinema in Melbourne (this was back in the days when a school teacher taking a few of his 12 year-old students to the movies on a weekend wasn't considered anything to get overly suspicious or concerned about). He was a bit of a Star Trek/sci-fi nerdy/buff-type and I guess in us he maybe recognised (and took pity on?) a few like-minded kids. The only other Apes film I had seen up until then were Beneath the Planet of the Apes (a 16mm screening in our class thanks to a student whose dad had a bit of pull at the Channel 7 TV studios) and about the first half of the original Planet of the Apes when it aired on Sunday night television (was forced to go to bed just after Taylor spoke - school the next day).
So I hadn't seen Escape From the Planet of the Apes and knew very little of what Conquest was about and it was quite a shock to see the apes roaming not a primitive wasteland but a modern city, and the humans talked but most of the apes didn't? I suppose at the time it was something of a let-down, as the imagery of the talking, powerful apes roaming this eerie, barren Forbidden Zone strewn with the ruins of nuclear-ravaged cities, was one of the aspects of the first two films that most appealed to me, and Conquest obviously lacked that tone. But I was still sitting in a cinema watching an Apes film so I certainly still loved the experience, and over the years Conquest has definately improved for me, I appreciate more it's tone and themes now than I did as a kid, it has that great early-70s American sci-fi vibe, and I love the cold concrete feel of the Century City locales. The original can't be touched, but Conquest runs very close with Beneath as my second favourite entry in the Apes saga.
THE GREEN SLIME
1968/Directed by Kinji Fukasaku
I’m sure I wasn’t the only monster-loving kid on the verge of puberty who was entranced by the cover art for Famous Monsters of Filmland No. 57, which featured a shapely female astronaut in a skin-tight spacesuit being menaced by a typically lurid, green one-eyed space creature. The art was a detail from Vic Livoti’s original poster for The Green Slime, a 1968 American/Japanese co-production which was one of those films that I never got a chance to see until I recently acquired the widescreen DVD released by Warner Archives.
When a huge meteorite is discovered on a collision course with Earth, a space team mount an operation to land on the object and destroy it with explosives. The mission succeeds, but the team unwittingly bring back a pulsing, luminous green ooze which quickly mutate into an army electricity-shooting tentacled monsters who take over the revloving space station Gamma 3. The obligatory love triangle is provided by Richard Jaeckel, Robert Horton and Italian stunner Luciana Paluzzi (my favorite Bond bad girl) Featuring some elements later found in big studio films like Alien and Armageddon, The Green Slime is a fun slice of swingin’ sixties sci-fi, with mini-skirts and beehives, a colourful pop-art production design, cool monsters that would not have looked out of place stomping across a miniature city in a Toho production, and a classic psychedelic-tinged theme song composed by Charles Fox that was later covered by the Fuzztones!What more could you want?
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
ARTISTS & MODELS
Had to send off to Italy to get a copy of this 1955 Jerry Lewis/Dean Martin combo on DVD, but it was worth the effort. Directed by Frank Tashlin and filmed in glorious VistaVision, Artists & Models was always my favourite of the Lewis and Martin comedies when I was a kid - its mixture of slapstick comedy and comic book industry setting made it irresistible, and having not seen it for a good 20+ years I was happy to see how well it held up. Like many of the pair's films it has some embarrassing moments, and some of the musical numbers and extended Lewis comedy skits become a bit torturous, but it has some genuinely likeable characters, beautifully lush production design, and a terrific performance from Shirley MacLaine that is as sexy as it is kooky (not to mention energetic). 56 years after it's release, it has also transformed itself into a nostalgic and endearing time capsule that reflects the moral outrage and concern that was directed towards violent crime and horror comics at the time.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
FROM THE VHS VAULT...
SAVAGE STREETS
(1984 CBS/Fox)
Directed by Danny Steinman
Along with Chained Heat (1983), the trashy, violent vigilante flick was responsible for giving former child star Linda (The Exorcist) Blair a second career shot and the grindhouse cult stardom she enjoyed for a period in the mid-eighties. It’s set in Hollywood, where Linda and her high school friends cruise the streets looking like extras who were rejected from Pat Benatar’s Love is a Battlefield music video. When her innocent, deaf sister (future scream queen Linnea Quigley) is gang raped by a bunch of sorry looking street punks. Linda dons black leather and stilettos, arms herself with a crossbow and goes after the lowlifes responsible. As the school principal, John Vernon tells the female students how well their bodies are developing and has lines like "Go fuck an iceberg", while the teachers allow the kids to smoke in class and have discussions on giving head, and the girls in gym class dress like they are on their way to a part-time job in a local brothel - no wonder I used to daydream about going to school in America when I was a kid!
Savage Streets is a prime example of mid-eighties exploitation fodder, and was heavily cut on most VHS releases around the world (including the Australian release on the CBS/Fox label). Surprisingly, a pre-Whispering Jack John Farnham provides several of the songs on the soundtrack LP, which was released by MCA (and is probably the only Farnham related recording I am ever likely to own). Director Danny Steinman made Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter the same year.
(USA/Colour/89 mins)
DVD Availability: Released uncut (93 mins) in the UK in 2011 by Arrow Video, with audio commentaries, interviews with cast members, booklet, fold-out poster and reversible sleeve.
(1984 CBS/Fox)
Directed by Danny Steinman
Along with Chained Heat (1983), the trashy, violent vigilante flick was responsible for giving former child star Linda (The Exorcist) Blair a second career shot and the grindhouse cult stardom she enjoyed for a period in the mid-eighties. It’s set in Hollywood, where Linda and her high school friends cruise the streets looking like extras who were rejected from Pat Benatar’s Love is a Battlefield music video. When her innocent, deaf sister (future scream queen Linnea Quigley) is gang raped by a bunch of sorry looking street punks. Linda dons black leather and stilettos, arms herself with a crossbow and goes after the lowlifes responsible. As the school principal, John Vernon tells the female students how well their bodies are developing and has lines like "Go fuck an iceberg", while the teachers allow the kids to smoke in class and have discussions on giving head, and the girls in gym class dress like they are on their way to a part-time job in a local brothel - no wonder I used to daydream about going to school in America when I was a kid!
Savage Streets is a prime example of mid-eighties exploitation fodder, and was heavily cut on most VHS releases around the world (including the Australian release on the CBS/Fox label). Surprisingly, a pre-Whispering Jack John Farnham provides several of the songs on the soundtrack LP, which was released by MCA (and is probably the only Farnham related recording I am ever likely to own). Director Danny Steinman made Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter the same year.
(USA/Colour/89 mins)
DVD Availability: Released uncut (93 mins) in the UK in 2011 by Arrow Video, with audio commentaries, interviews with cast members, booklet, fold-out poster and reversible sleeve.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
HIP POCKET SLEAZE UPDATE
Publication date for Hip Pocket Sleaze grows slowly but surely nearer. Hopefully I should be seeing a pdf proof of the final layout in the coming week. Keep an eye on the Headpress website, who have added a brief bio of me to their author profiles page:
www.worldheadpress.com/john-harrison-196
www.worldheadpress.com/john-harrison-196
Saturday, June 11, 2011
COFFIN JOE
THE STRANGE WORLD OF JOSE MOJICA MARINS
Directed by André Barcinski & Ivan Finott
Brazil/2001
Though somewhat short on length (an extra 15 minutes could have been devoted to some uncovered/glossed-over periods) and rather cheaply shot on video, this documentary provides an excellent overview on the life and career of Jose Mojica Marins, with a heavy emphasis of course on the films of his most famous creation, the charismatic and primal undertaker Zé do Caixão/Coffin Joe, the onscreen alter-ego of Marins himself, who went on to become an icon of Brazillian horror cinema and something of a folk hero to the people of Brazil itself.
Via interviews with regular early collaborators such as actor Mario Lima, screenwriter Rubens Lucchetti (whose house resembles a library, with its labyrinth of shelves harbouring neatly stacked movie and pulp magazines), editor Nilcemar Leyart and cameramen Virgilio Roveda and Isaac Floor – as well as input from his aunt Conceircao and son Crounel – The Strange World of Jose Mojia Marins traces Marins’ life as a poor youth growing up in an old movie theatre in Vila Anastacio, an environment which naturally helped develop an intense love of – nay, obsession for - cinema, through to his early filmmaking efforts like the 1958 western The Adventurer’s Fate and 1961’s My Destiny in Your Hands, to the creation and popularity of Coffin Joe. After finding himself under heavy fire from police, politicians and censors in the late-sixties, Marins subsequently struggled to fund projects throught the 1970s, eventually turning to alcohol for solace and hardcore pornography to pay the bills, in a decline which eerily mirrored that of American filmmaker Ed Wood. However, unlike Wood, Marins was able to pull himself through his tough times to enjoy the rennaisance and cult status which his early films received when they were finally released in the US by Something Weird Video in the early 1990s
Of course, Marins himself is also interviewed at length, wandering around his small apartment cramped with videos and 16mm film cans, showing off his bound collection of Marvel comic books (and dismissing Batman because of the perceived homosexual connotations he had with Robin), and visiting the studios and cinemas of his youth (all of which have been sadly turned into decaying parking lots or garages). Laconic and enthusiastic, and often clutching a cigarette between his long-nailed fingers, Marins reflects back on a career that was creatively rewarding but financially disastrous, discussing his filmmaking techniques (which often involved ingesting substantial amounts of amphetamines to make it through long shooting sessions, and ‘testing’ the resolve of his actresses by having poisonous snakes and spiders crawl over their often naked bodies), and the aura of superstition that often hung over his productions (highlighted by the sudden deaths or serious illnesses of several of his actors and crew members).
Some of the most revealing moments in The Strange World of Jose Mojia Marins are provided by the rare archival footage which the filmmakers have uncovered, including his visit to a Spanish horror film festival in the early- seventies (accompanied by his big, black and bald bodyguard Satan) and an amazing sequence from 1980 where Marins – in full Coffin Joe regalia – conducts an acting class to a large auditorium full of students. Whipping his students into a frenzy as he commands them to imagine that they are aboard an airliner that is about to crash, Marins directs the crowd with the fervour of a revival tent preacher, sweat dripping down his face as his pupils convulse wildly as if in the grip of an exorcism. Incredible stuff, which goes a long way in helping to cement the Coffin Joe myth.
The Strange World of Jose Mojia Marins is available as part of Umbrella Entertainment's 4 disc Coffin Joe box-set.
Directed by André Barcinski & Ivan Finott
Brazil/2001
Though somewhat short on length (an extra 15 minutes could have been devoted to some uncovered/glossed-over periods) and rather cheaply shot on video, this documentary provides an excellent overview on the life and career of Jose Mojica Marins, with a heavy emphasis of course on the films of his most famous creation, the charismatic and primal undertaker Zé do Caixão/Coffin Joe, the onscreen alter-ego of Marins himself, who went on to become an icon of Brazillian horror cinema and something of a folk hero to the people of Brazil itself.
Via interviews with regular early collaborators such as actor Mario Lima, screenwriter Rubens Lucchetti (whose house resembles a library, with its labyrinth of shelves harbouring neatly stacked movie and pulp magazines), editor Nilcemar Leyart and cameramen Virgilio Roveda and Isaac Floor – as well as input from his aunt Conceircao and son Crounel – The Strange World of Jose Mojia Marins traces Marins’ life as a poor youth growing up in an old movie theatre in Vila Anastacio, an environment which naturally helped develop an intense love of – nay, obsession for - cinema, through to his early filmmaking efforts like the 1958 western The Adventurer’s Fate and 1961’s My Destiny in Your Hands, to the creation and popularity of Coffin Joe. After finding himself under heavy fire from police, politicians and censors in the late-sixties, Marins subsequently struggled to fund projects throught the 1970s, eventually turning to alcohol for solace and hardcore pornography to pay the bills, in a decline which eerily mirrored that of American filmmaker Ed Wood. However, unlike Wood, Marins was able to pull himself through his tough times to enjoy the rennaisance and cult status which his early films received when they were finally released in the US by Something Weird Video in the early 1990s
Of course, Marins himself is also interviewed at length, wandering around his small apartment cramped with videos and 16mm film cans, showing off his bound collection of Marvel comic books (and dismissing Batman because of the perceived homosexual connotations he had with Robin), and visiting the studios and cinemas of his youth (all of which have been sadly turned into decaying parking lots or garages). Laconic and enthusiastic, and often clutching a cigarette between his long-nailed fingers, Marins reflects back on a career that was creatively rewarding but financially disastrous, discussing his filmmaking techniques (which often involved ingesting substantial amounts of amphetamines to make it through long shooting sessions, and ‘testing’ the resolve of his actresses by having poisonous snakes and spiders crawl over their often naked bodies), and the aura of superstition that often hung over his productions (highlighted by the sudden deaths or serious illnesses of several of his actors and crew members).
Some of the most revealing moments in The Strange World of Jose Mojia Marins are provided by the rare archival footage which the filmmakers have uncovered, including his visit to a Spanish horror film festival in the early- seventies (accompanied by his big, black and bald bodyguard Satan) and an amazing sequence from 1980 where Marins – in full Coffin Joe regalia – conducts an acting class to a large auditorium full of students. Whipping his students into a frenzy as he commands them to imagine that they are aboard an airliner that is about to crash, Marins directs the crowd with the fervour of a revival tent preacher, sweat dripping down his face as his pupils convulse wildly as if in the grip of an exorcism. Incredible stuff, which goes a long way in helping to cement the Coffin Joe myth.
The Strange World of Jose Mojia Marins is available as part of Umbrella Entertainment's 4 disc Coffin Joe box-set.
Review Copyright John Harrison 2011
Note: The above review was originaly written for the New Zealand website DVD Holocaust. Check out more of my reviews (posted under the name 'The Graveyard Tramp') on their website at:
DVD HOLOCAUST
Friday, June 10, 2011
X-MEN: FIRST CLASS
Was quite impressed with Matthew Vaughn's X-Men: First Class, a cool reboot/prequel with a 1962 setting that gives it a nice James Bond/Cold War thriller flavour to offset its more fantastical elements. Highlights were January Jones as the lovely Emma Frost, Kevin Bacon as Nazi villain Sebastian Shaw and, above all, Michael Fassbender, who injects the young Magento with a definite pinch of Don Draper debonair. He is a shoe-in the be the next 007.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
COLUMBO VS MANSON
COLUMBO: THE HELTER SKELTER MURDERS by William Hartigan
(1994 Forge/USA)
(1994 Forge/USA)
One of the more bizarre pieces of Manson related literature published, this fictional novel sets up the premise that Columbo (the scruffy, bumbling detective played on television in the 1970s by Peter Falk) was one of the first cops on the scene at the Tate murder at 10050 Cielo Drive, and had been in personal contact with Manson during his initial interrogation (where Charlie gave Columbo the nickname Crisco). The story then cuts to the present, where wealthy department store owner Joe Khoury and his mistress murder his wife and lover, planting clues at the scene which will hopefully lead police to believe that it is a Manson copycat killing (a tactic planned after Khoury learns that one of his secretaries is a still loyal Manson girl named Cathy Murphy – or Puss Dogood, as Charlie has dubbed her).
The Manson connection in Columbo: The Helter Skelter Murders is almost superfluous, since Columbo decides to immediately start concentrating on Khoury and his mistress Kimberly Dana (a beautiful but talent starved aspiring actress). Naturally, in order to rule out the Manson girl, he does talk to her several times, as well as interviewing another – and younger – Manson girl named Melissa ‘Boobs’ Mead, who is revealed to have also spent some time as a Khoury employee. Columbo also travels out to Folsom Prison to pay Charlie a visit, but the subsequent (and very brief) face-to-face between the fictional detective and the real convicted killers is hardly riveting or disturbing material:
“Remember me, Charlie?” Columbo asked.
“Lieutenant Crisco,” said Manson, grinning. “I don’t forget anybody. I remember everybody. Everything….It’s gonna make a difference to you someday whether I remember you as friend or enemy. The day comes, you know. It comes. For sure.”
Columbo: The Helter Skelter Murders is written in a style that successfully reflects the characters and style of the television series - like the TV show, we know from the start who the killers are, so the interest in generated not by the mystery but the way the seemingly incompetent and bumbling detective pieces together the clues. Author William Harrington, a former criminal layer, also penned Columbo: The Grassy Knoll, which had the detective cracking the JKF assassination conspiracy!
(285 Pages/Hardcover/ISBN 0-312-85537-0)
Review Copyright John Harrison 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
INSIDIOUS
Thoroughly enjoyed James Wan's Insidious, a refreshingly non-gory horror film that mixes elements of The Exorcist, The Amityville Horror, Poltergeist, Sam Raimi and Peter Jackson into something that, if not wholly original, is certainly creative, atmospheric and genuinely creepy. Listening to Tiptoe Through the Tulips will never be the same again...
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
DEADLY EARNEST!
For Aussie folks in Melbourne...can't wait for this! And at the grand old art deco Astor, only 10 minutes walk from me...this screening is part of the St. Kilda Film Festival. Each state in Australia had their own Deadly Earnest on television...at least one has passed on. The Deadly that is showing up for this event is the original Melbourne one, as played by Ralph Baker.
DRIVE IN DELIRIUM'S HORRORPALOOZA! - a selection of trailers from the 60s and 70s
THE ASTOR THEATRE
SATURDAY 28 MAY 10.30PM - 12AM
He’s back! From late night Fridays, way, way, back in the 1960’s, the one and only DEADLY ERNEST, Australia’s pioneering horror host, will emerge from his creaking coffin to introduce this program of blood-drenched, flesh-filled, skull-splitting terror that’ll stand your hair on end.
Come join us for this eye-popping, jaw-dropping trip back to the gory days of big screen exploitation with the most insane horror film trailers ever to up-chuck on to the giant Astor screen!
Horrorpalooza guarantees ninety delightfully depraved minutes of non-stop violence, monsters and Scream-Queen mayhem — not to mention numerous undead armies of flesh-feasting freaks running amok.
Programmed by Mark Hartley and Jamie Blanks, the makers of Not Quite Hollywood and Urban Legend, a mind-numbing cinematic orgy you won’t want to miss!
http://www.stkildafilmfestival.com.au/2011/page-88/Horrorpalooza
DRIVE IN DELIRIUM'S HORRORPALOOZA! - a selection of trailers from the 60s and 70s
THE ASTOR THEATRE
SATURDAY 28 MAY 10.30PM - 12AM
He’s back! From late night Fridays, way, way, back in the 1960’s, the one and only DEADLY ERNEST, Australia’s pioneering horror host, will emerge from his creaking coffin to introduce this program of blood-drenched, flesh-filled, skull-splitting terror that’ll stand your hair on end.
Come join us for this eye-popping, jaw-dropping trip back to the gory days of big screen exploitation with the most insane horror film trailers ever to up-chuck on to the giant Astor screen!
Horrorpalooza guarantees ninety delightfully depraved minutes of non-stop violence, monsters and Scream-Queen mayhem — not to mention numerous undead armies of flesh-feasting freaks running amok.
Programmed by Mark Hartley and Jamie Blanks, the makers of Not Quite Hollywood and Urban Legend, a mind-numbing cinematic orgy you won’t want to miss!
http://www.stkildafilmfestival.com.au/2011/page-88/Horrorpalooza
Monday, April 25, 2011
NEW REVIEWS POSTED
Some new reviews have been posted over at DVD Holocaust, including the following (click on the titles to access the review):
HELL DRIVERS
HIGH ANXIETY
DEADLIER THAN THE MALE/SOME GIRLS DO
HELL DRIVERS
HIGH ANXIETY
DEADLIER THAN THE MALE/SOME GIRLS DO
Monday, March 7, 2011
MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT
As with Scary Monsters and Little Shoppe Horrors, it's always great to see a new issue of Monsters from the Vault sitting on the racks of the local comic book store, keeping alive the tradition of the old-school, printed monster movie magazine. With its thick, glossy stock, superb photo reproduction and gorgeous original cover art, Monsters from the Vault is as near a pro-zine as you can get, and is clearly a labour of love for publisher/editor Jim Clatterbaugh.
The latest issue (#28) highlights a marvellous retrospective of James Whale’s classic The Bride of Frankenstein on its 75th anniversary, with essays on the film contributed by a variety of writers, and filled with some incredibly rare photographs (including some great behind-the-scenes shots supplied by Ronald Vorst). Complimenting the article is Daniel Horne’s stunning cover painting of Elsa Lanchester as the Bride. Elsewhere in the issue, articles cover director Roy William Neil (Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, The Spider Woman, Sherlock Holmes and the House of Fear), a retrospective of the 1931 John Barrymore thriller The Mad Genius and an intriguing look at a stage production of Dracula starring Bela Lugosi which was held in the auditorium of a Florida high school in the early-1950s.
A great read, although not quite as enjoyable as the issues which cover some of the more B-grade or exotic/oddball fare, such as the previous issue’s articles on Don (The Giant Gila Monster) Sullivan and The Monster of Piedras Blancas, or the coverage of Mexican monster movies featured in issue 24 (my fave issue of MFTV so far).
For more information and ordering instructions head on over to:
MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT
The latest issue (#28) highlights a marvellous retrospective of James Whale’s classic The Bride of Frankenstein on its 75th anniversary, with essays on the film contributed by a variety of writers, and filled with some incredibly rare photographs (including some great behind-the-scenes shots supplied by Ronald Vorst). Complimenting the article is Daniel Horne’s stunning cover painting of Elsa Lanchester as the Bride. Elsewhere in the issue, articles cover director Roy William Neil (Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, The Spider Woman, Sherlock Holmes and the House of Fear), a retrospective of the 1931 John Barrymore thriller The Mad Genius and an intriguing look at a stage production of Dracula starring Bela Lugosi which was held in the auditorium of a Florida high school in the early-1950s.
A great read, although not quite as enjoyable as the issues which cover some of the more B-grade or exotic/oddball fare, such as the previous issue’s articles on Don (The Giant Gila Monster) Sullivan and The Monster of Piedras Blancas, or the coverage of Mexican monster movies featured in issue 24 (my fave issue of MFTV so far).
For more information and ordering instructions head on over to:
MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)