Part 2-Ed Cahn and Romero Influenced Zombies

Edward L. Cahn was an editor at Universal during the Slient Era. He worked on films like "The Man Who Laughs" and "Jazz Mad". In 1926 he became chief editor. Five years later he directed his first film, the seldom seen and therefore underrated western LAW AND ORDER starring Walter Huston and Harry Carey.

My original review is here: http://http://moviemeltdown.blogspot.com/2008/06/westward-ho.html


The story concerns 4 violent and uncompromising lawmen who decide to settle down in a small town only to run up against a corrupt sheriff and some dishonest brothers. The movie got some good reviews but not much else. However Cahn kept plugging away, making movies like "The Gas House Kids In Hollywood" (1947) and "I Cheated The Law" (1949). He showed a little of "things to come" in 1950 when he made "Experiemnt Alcatraz" starring Robert Shayne (soon to be Inspector Henderson on TV's Superman) as a hardened crimminal who uses a rehabilitation experiment on "The Rock" as an excuse to kill a rival.

Then in 1955 Cahn unleashed the first of three movies that I believe had a big influence on George Romero and NOTLD, a little opus called THE CREATURE WITH THE ATOM BRAIN!!

The story concerns an evil gangster's revenge on the people who crossed him. But instead of the usual revenge technics like machine guns and time bombs this guy (portrayed by Michael Granger who would work for Cahn in future films) uses reanimated dead men to do his dirty work! They have pasty white faces and stitches (ala FRANKENSTEIN) around their foreheads where the gangster's mad scientist/war crimminal/creator has planted the title device! The gangster has a TV like screen that him enables him to see exactly what his undead army is doing. He even has a microphone and can project his voice through their bodies!

And he and the scientist do everything including the operations that transform the dead into zombies! Richard Denning (who would also star in Roger Corman's classic THE DAY THE WORLD ENDED) plays the police-scientist who figures out the whole thing when he notices the zombies leave radiation traces whenever they strike. This leads to an all out confrontation between the undead gang and a small group of soldiers and policemen. Close-ups in these scenes really remind you of NOTLD, especially it's well done TV parts. And shades of Al Adamson! Some of these scenes are used earlier in the film to depict the first creature attack!!!

My original review for it is here:
http://http://moviemeltdown.blogspot.com/2010/01/atom-brains.html
But this was only the first.......

Cahn Is The Man!-Part 1

I'm back with a long entry. Actually, I won't have time to write the whole thing in one entry. It's your lucky day!

As most moviegoers are aware Dawn Of The Dead was the number one movie a few years ago. Of course it's a remake of George Romero's ground breaking film from 1978. I didn't like the remake but since the original one of my favorite color horror movie of all time I really don't think I can give an objective review!

Anyway, since the original Dawn started a whole series of Euro-Cannibal Blood and Gore movies like Lucio Fulci's "Zombie" which was called "Zombie 2" in Italy because DOD was called "Zombie" there and Umberto Lenzi's all out gross-fest "Make Them Die Slowly" I thought I'd mention some movies that probably influenced Dawn.

Well, surprise! There really ain't any with the possible exception of Romero's own film directorial debut, the now and forever 1968 classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD!!! So what influenced Romero??

Well, you could make an arguement that Herk Harvey's eerie CARNIVAL OF SOULS (1962) was one. It's very low budget, it has undead "things" menacing a living human (kind of) and like Romero, it was director Harvey's first foray into the motion picture biz after making industrial films and shorts (unlike Romero however, "Carnival" would be Harvey's only full length film!). But you really have to go back farther than that. 

In fact all the way back to the 1950's and an underrated director by the name of Edward L. Cahn.....

(to be continued)

Back for a Bit

Due to personal problems I haven't been posting lately. After today maybe I'll be back on track. This one is very short...




SAMURAI SPY-(1965)-I saw this Japanese period piece on IFC recently. It's a pretty cool sword drama involving two clans who constantly betray each other. Samurai Sarutobi tracks down a spy named Nojiri while the mysterious Sakon has his own agenda. A bit talky but it doesn't take away from the overall plot.

Thanks for reading!