Giant Mollusk

 

 (imdb)

THE MONSTER THAT CHALLENGED THE WORLD-1957-At an Air Force facility near The Salton Sea, 3 men are mysteriously killed. Lt. Commander Twillinger (Tim Holt) investigates with the help of a local sheriff (Gordon Jones) and an atomic scientist (Hans Conried!). After several more deaths, it's discovered giant mollusks are breeding underwater. Twillinger also has time to sort of romance a secretary (Audrey Dalton), a widow with a young daughter (Mimi Gibson) who causes a lot of trouble! 

This is a pretty good low budget horror/sci-fi story with a weird monster and a good climax. Director Arthur Laven spent most of his career in TV, only occasionally stepping out to make a feature length film (THE RACK (1956), GERONIMO (1962)). Too bad he didn't do more movies with monsters in them.

 For years MONSTER was always listed as star Tim Holt's final movie but he made the regional film THE YESTERDAY MACHINE in 1965 and HG Lewis' THIS STUFF'LL KILL YA! (1971). Audrey Dalton was later in William Castle's MR. SARDONICUS and lots of TV. Hans Conreid, usually an over-the-top comedian (THE TWONKY; THE 5,000 FINGERS OF DR. T.; both 1953) isvery sedate and serious here. Gordon Jones of course had been Mike the Cop on The Abbott & Costello Show in the early '50's. There are also several character actors squeezed in: Milton Parsons, Ralph Moody, Dale Van Sickel.

Thaks for reading!

Yesterday

 

 (cultpix.com)

THE YESTERDAY MACHINE-1965-After a college kid is shot by unknown assailants a reporter Jim Crandall (James Britton; the director's brother) goes to interview him at the hospital. Dr. Blake (Charles Young) tells Jim the boy's story and in a flashback we learn the boy's attackers were dressed in Civil War clothes and his cheerleader girlfriend disappeared. After night club singer Sandra Del Marr (Ann Pelligrino) croons a song, police Lt. Partane (Tim Holt) and his assistant Lansky (Robert Kelly) inform her of her cheerleader sister's disappearance. Later a weird detective finds a Civil War cap that's the real thing, along with the girl's sweater. Partane relates a story to Lansky from WW2 involving some young concentration camp prisoners who should have been old and a German physicist Prof. Von Hauser. Later Jim and Sandy investigate an old house near where her sister's sweater was found. After Jim knocks out a guy who attacked Sandy they seem to go back in time and meet a guy on a horse in a tri-corner hat. When the guy sees Jim's cigarette lighter he declares "Witchcraft!" and rides off. After walking around they are transported to the lab of Prof. Von Hauser (Jack Herman) who's doing experiments with time traveling. He has a former Egyptian slave as a servant and is quite kindly until Jim calls Hitler a madman. The long winded mad scientist explains in detail how he mastered time with something called "The Minus Ray". Meanwhile Sandy is reunited with her sister. Later Von Hauser plans to send Sandy's sister into the future but with the help of the slave (who's killed) Jim escapes and rescues the women. Partane arrives and kills Von Hauser and destroys the machine. 

This movie is mostly talk and not much else. The story's sole proof of time travel are 4 characters. It's very cheap and badly acted. Writer/director Russ Marker wrote the shoddy NIGHT FRIGHT with John Agar. 

Tim Holt was a popular young star before WW2. On his return from the war (a decorated officer) he starred in Orson Welles' THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS and co-starred in THE TREASURE OF SIERRA MADRE but soon after was regulated to westerns (some successful, some not). He grew disillusioned with Hollywood and moved to Oklahoma. For years his filmography ended with the Sci-Fi monster film THE MONSTER THAT CHALLENGED THE WORLD (made over two years after his previous movie) but then THE YESTERDAY MACHINE showed up. His final film role was in Herschel Gordon Lewis' hillbilly drama THIS STUFF'LL KILL YA!

Thanks for reading!