Home? I Have No Home…

 (imdb)

 

BRIDE OF THE MONSTER-1955- Mad scientist Dr. Eric Vornoff (Bela Lugosi) is so far unsuccessful in his attempts to create a race of atomic superman. In his cheapo lab where he fries victims’ brains, he has a stove, refrigerator and a giant octopus. In town, the deaths are blamed on “The Monster”. Police Capt. Robbins (Harvey B. Dunn), who has a pet parakeet, discusses the case with Lt. Dick Craig (Tony McCoy) and his fiancée reporter, Janet (Loretta King) who is investigating the monster story. The suspicious Prof. Strowski (George Becwar) thinks the monster might be like the one in Loch Ness. On her way to Lake Marsh, Janet has a car accident. She faints but is rescued by Lobo (the one and only Tor Johnson), Vornoff''s hulking servant. Craig and his partner Marty (Don Nagel) go to the lake to find Janet, who's kind of being held prisoner by Varnoff. Meanwhile, Strowski visits the bad doctor.

Turns out the professor is from an unnamed country that had exiled Varnoff years before. Strowski wants to take Varnoff “home” but he will have none of it and throws Strowski to the octopus he happens to have on the premise (that's the monster). Varnoff decides to make Janet an atomic bride (complete with wedding gown) but Lobo has other ideas. He frees Janet and straps his boss to the operating table. Lobo and Craig have a fight (the Lieutenant fairs well). Somehow Lobo manages to turn Varnoff into a monster (now portrayed by stuntman Eddie Parker; no stranger to playing monsters..). Robbins, Marty and Kelton the cop (Paul Marco) arrive just as their tussle begins. Lobo is killed and now atomic Varnoff takes off with Janet. All's well that ends well as the doc becomes a victim of his own octo-monster. Robbins sums it all up: “He tampered in God's domain”. 

Several other Ed Wood “stock players” appear: Conrad Brooks (uncredited), Bud Osbourne, Ben Frommer and of course Dolores Fuller in a bit role as another reporter. Former “Bowery Boy” William “Whitey” Benedict also has a small role. Saying this is director Ed Wood, Jr.'s best movie might be stretching it but despite its so-so acting, weird plot, the who gives a shit editing and not too special effects, it's fun to watch and not see nearly as much as PLAN 9 has been in recent years. There's stock footage, of course and the scenes where the octopus kills its victims are pretty pathetic but after watching a few modern horror/Sc-Fi movies recently, I have to say for its entertainment value, BRIDE beats them all! 

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Glen Was 60 Feet Tall...

 

 (moriareviews.com)

WAR OF THE COLOSSAL BEAST-1958-In this sequel Glen Manning, THE AMAZING COLOSSAL MAN, didn't die in the original. Instead, he survived and wound up in Mexico, a deformed, one eyed, deranged monster (now played by Dean Parkin) stealing food trucks and scaring locals. His sister Joyce (Sally Fraser) hears reports and contacts Mr. Swanson (George Becwar), whose truck disappeared and Major Baird (Roger Pace), useless army brass who advises sis to give up her quest. She visits Mexico to see a young boy Miguel who's in shock from an encounter with a monster and meets helpful Sgt. Murillo (Rico Alaniz). Later Baird and Dr. Carmichael (Russ Bender) come to investigate. They find a colossal footprint. ("That is a very big footprint") Baird wants to call in the military but Joyce says they should reason with Glen. After seeing the scarred giant, they decide to capture him. They drug him with some bread but have trouble finding a place to put him in the US. Finally, they tie him up in an airport hangar and we get a flashback to the original. Then he escapes but is recaptured. It's determined that Glen has irreversible brain damage and the army decides to send him to an isolated island but he escapes before they can move him. They trap him in Griffith Park but he terrorizes a bus load of school kids. Joyce's plea makes him put the bus down and commit suicide in the color finale. 

Who else but Bert I. Gordon (who passed away at age 100 in March) would be behind such giant shenanigans? It's low budget for sure with some sub-par sfx but the giant's “new look” is pretty cool.

Sally Fraser was in Mr. BIG's other “giant” movie in 1958, EARTH VS. THE SPIDER. Dean Parkin cut his teeth for this role by playing the “huge” title creature on Gordon's THE CYCLOPS the year before. Russ Bender has the distinction of playing two different characters in each film and getting killed in both!

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