Pal's Puppets

 

 (imdb)

THE PUPPETOON MOVIE-1987-This is a compilation of George Pal's 10 Puppetoons shorts plus a short history of its inception. It's hosted by Arnie the Dinosaur who tells the tale to clay animation icons, Gumby and his pal Pokey! Originally there were 11 shorts but there have been several revised versions that added more with each volume. Pal received an honorary Academy Award in 1944 for his work on them. It was written, produced and directed by Arnold Leibovit who also made the bio-pic THE FANTASY FILM WORLDS OF GEORGE PAL (1985). 

THE PUPPETOON MOVIE also features the last work of the great voice actor Paul Frees. 

Thanks for reading!

He Knows

 

 (imdb)

HE KNOWS YOU'RE ALONE-1980-After a girl finds her boyfriend hanging dead from a tree, we learn it's all in a movie being watched by 2 young women in a theater. One of them thinks she's being followed when she goes to the bathroom. When she returns to her seat, a mysterious figure sits down beside her. While everyone is screaming, he kills her. 

Police Lt. Len Gamble (Lewis Arlt) thinks the murderer is the same person who killed his fiancé on their wedding day. Meanwhile 3 women (whose men go away for a bachelor party) are stalked by the killer. One almost married woman, Amy (Caitlin O'Heaney) is still friends with her ex-boyfriend Marvin (Don Scardino; SQUIRM (1976)). For some reason, the killer (Tom Rolfing) stabs Amy's tailor to death. Back at her house, Amy is given a surprise shower by her annoying friends, while one friend is having an affair with her professor. Both are done in by the killer. Later, Amy finds her friend's head in a fish tank and then is pursued by the killer. He attacks her while she's driving, then chases her around. She takes refuge in the local mortuary where Marvin works. Just when Amy is trapped Gamble shoots the killer...but he's not dead and he kills Gamble. Now he can chase both Amy and Marvin but they seem to trap him for the police. In the end, Amy and Marvin decide to get married but on their wedding day Amy has a visitor. It's Paul, her ex-fiancé...

Steve James appears in one scene as a witness but this is really known for then unknown Tom Hanks' appearance in a red herring role (his film debut). Some parts are ok with the killer very demented at times but there's too much talk and not many likable characters. 

This was the debut film of director Armand Mastroianni who went on to make CAMERON'S CLOSET (1988) and lots of TV episodes and movies.

Thanks for reading!

Grave Vampire

 

 (imdb)

GRAVE OF THE VAMPIRE-1972-A young couple are making out in their car in a graveyard, when they are attacked by undead lunatic Caleb Croft (Michael Pataki). Croft kills the guy and drinks his blood and drags the girl into a grave and rapes her. She survives the attack but is impregnated by the vampire. After Croft kills the cop investigating the crime, the woman, Leslie (Kitty Vallacher), eventually gives birth to a boy (ignoring her doctor's advice to have an abortion). When the baby won't drink milk, Leslie accidentally gives it blood which he drinks. Years later the baby is a grown man James (William Smith), looking to kill his dad who pretends to be a college professor. At s séance, Croft kills some students and he and son have a showdown. James kills him but becomes a vampire with ill fitting teeth. 

The final credit for “the end” was in French. “FIN du peut 'entre pas?” (maybe not). Terrible acting and dialogue. Co-writer/director John Hayes made the kind of whacky GARDEN OF THE DEAD the same year and later END OF THE WORLD (1977) with Christopher Lee.

Thanks for reading!

To God There Is No Zero

 

 (themoviedatabase)

THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN-1957-While Scott Carey (Grant Williams) is out on his boat with his wife Lou (Randy Stuart), a strange mist passes over him. 6 months later, his shirt and pants are too big. His doctor (William Schallert) doesn't seem concerned that he's lost height and weight. When his wife doesn't have to stand on tip toe to kiss him, he deduces he's shrinking. He has a lot of tests (conducted by Raymond Bailey) and it's discovered his “molecular structure” has been reconstructed through radioactivity and DDT. He loses his job and to pay his debts, he sells his story to a reporter and becomes famous. He's trapped in his house by reporters and onlookers but takes it out on his devoted wife. After a special toxin doesn't work, he walks around and meets little person Clarice (April Kent) who gives him some pointers but that fizzles when he starts to shrink again. He takes up residence in a doll house. He's menaced by the family cat.

Seeking shelter, he winds up in the basement and Lou thinks the cat ate him. In the basement he gets water from a dripping water heater, a house from a matchbox and tries to steal cheese from a mouse trap, He also encounters a spider. Lou has one last look in the basement but the boiler floods and Scott's cries for help go unnoticed. After Lou and Scott's brother Charlie (Paul Langton) leave, Scott has a showdown with “the enemy” spider which he kills after a first failed attempt. In the end, he accepts his fate and looks forward to a new adventure, knowing his existence will not end. Also with Frank Scannell, Billy Curtis and Lock Martin. 

Good sfx and direction from Jack Arnold make this one of the best science fiction films of the 1950's. Author Richard Matheson adapted his own novel. Grant Williams starred in THE MONOLITH MONSTERS, also directed by Jack Arnold the same year. Paul Langton co-starred in IT! THE TERROR FROM BEYOND SPACE the next year. Producer Albert Zugsmith made MAN IN THE SHADOW the same year, also directed by Arnold.

Thanks for reading!

Rat In The House

 

 (imdb)

OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN-1983-Peter Weller stars as a yuppie who spends the better part of two hours trying to kill an over-sized rat in his apartment while his wife (Shannon Tweed in her film debut) is away. This film won several international awards. I'm not sure why. Also with Lawrence Dane and Maury Chaykin. 

This Canada-US co-production was directed by George P. Cosmatos who later went on to direct Slyvester Stallone in RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART 2 (1985) and COBRA (1986) and the western TOMBSTONE in 1993. Peter Weller starred in the cult film THE ADVENTURES OF BUCKAROO BANZAI ACROSS THE 8TH DIMENSION in 1984 and full stardom with ROBO-COP in 1987.

Thanks for reading!

For What It's Worth (Keeter)

 

 (imdb)

UNMASKING THE IDOL-1986- Super ninja Duncan Jax (Ian Hunter) works for a secret organization, knows martial arts and has a pet baboon. His latest assignment is to break into an impregnable island and steal some gold to stop WW 3. He teams up with Gunner (Lise Patterson), Bugs (Vernond Littleton) and Whale (William Hicks). His friend Willie (Budd Browning) is despondent because he's too old to go on the mission (and to frolic in the Jacuzzi). Star (CK Bibby), his boss, seems to have great interest in the gold. The masked Red Leader waits on the island. Jax's real reason for going is that Goldtooth (Ron Campbell), a guy who killed his parents is there too. Jax's female spy Echo (Janet Nease) is fed to piranhas. Jax invades the island, has lots of fights and kills some red ninjas. (The good guys wear black) Even the baboon fights! Later his group steals the gold and substitutes fake stuff. Meanwhile, some stereotypical comic Germans ride around in a submarine. Jax beats up the Red Leader, who turns out to be China (Shakti Chen), a woman he had sex with at the beginning of the movie (she gets away). The Germans get blown up and Jay, Gunner and the baboon escape in a truck attached to a hot air balloon. Oh yeah, and Jax has a stereotype Asian manservant Sato (Shangtai Tuan). 

I think it was supposed to be a parody but the acting (especially from Hunter) and the script undermine it. The only person in the cast I knew was former pro wrestler, Dan Spivey, who's character seems too tough for Jax, so he shoots him. (like in RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK) This is like a mishmash of James Bond, Indiana Jones and any number direct to video action movies made around the same time. 

Filmed in North and South Carolina. Director Worth Keeter made his directorial debut with Earl Owensby's WEREWOLF (1979) and went on to TV's “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”. The Duncan Jax character returned in a sequel THE ORDER OF THE BLACK EAGLE (1987) also starring Hunter and directed by Keeter.

Thanks for reading!

"The Devil's Alive And He's Dancin' With The Mummy!"

 

 (themoviedatabase)

THE MUMMY'S CURSE-1944- No one wants to work on the drainage of a swamp because of the legend of the mummy. Dr. James Halsey (Dennis Moore) and Dr. Zardad (Peter Coe) visit Walsh (Addison Richards), the foreman. They are looking for Kharis and his princess. After a murder, some evidence seems to say the bulldozing released the mummy. We learn Zardad, with the help of weaselly assistant Ragheb (Martin Kosleck) has the mummy and through a flashback we see lonce again how Kharis, an Egyptian, tried to bring his love, Ananka back to life. He was buried alive and must guard her tomb forever. 

After the mummy (Lon Chaney) kills a caretaker, a woman (it's obvious she's Ananka) rises from the muddy swamp. After bathing in a nearby lake, she's found by Cajun Joe (Kurt Katch) and brought to Tante (Ann Codee) while Kharis (fueled by 9 tana leaves) searches for her. He kills Tante and Ananka (Virginia Christine) runs into the forest and passes out. But before Kharis can get her, she's rescued by Halsey and Walsh's daughter Betty (Kay Harding) (kind of ridiculous scene). Though she can't remember who she is, she becomes Halsey's assistant but the mummy comes calling and kills Doc Cooper (Homes Herbert). Then poor old Cajun Joe is killed while chasing Ananka through the swamp. Later Kharis gets his musty hands on Ananka and Ragheb tricks Betty into going there too because he's sweet on her. When Zardad threatens to kill Betty, Ragheb kills him. Halsey rescues Betty but has to fight Ragheb. Kharis shows up and causes he and Ragheb to be buried in a cave in. Meanwhile, Ananka turns back into a mummy. 

They could have made another sequel but this 5^th entry into the Mummy series was the last. Universal would revive the character one more time in the comedy ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET THE MUMMY (1955). This is one of the few non-comedy films director Leslie Goodwins worked on. He was known mostly for his silent shorts, The Mexican Spitfire series and GENIUS AT WORK with the comedy team of Carney & Brown. Later he went into TV.

Thanks for reading!