Remade In Mexico

 

LOS QUE VOVIERON-(THOSE WHO CAME BACK)-1948-A plane going from Mexico to Buenos Ares carries an array of rude complaining passengers including a private detective and his criminal, a shrewish old woman and her wimpy husband, a grandfather & grandson and an engaged couple. They discuss fixing the plane, where to get food and argue a lot. They eventually learn to work together (kind of; some have to be forced) and learn late that there are unfriendly natives around. When they are ready to leave, a choice has to be made. 

Excellent Mexican remake of the 1939 US film THREE CAME BACK directed by Alejandro Galindo.

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Argentina

 

 

 (imdb)

EL VAMPIRO NEGRO-1953-This is essentially an Argentine remake/adaptation of Fritz Lang's M with a timid man who is actually a child killer. There are some side stories about the prosecutor who's hunting him, who roughs up a lot of suspects and puts the moves on a night club dancer Rita who rejects his advances. (His wife is an invalid) He plans to have her daughter taken away but "the vampire" (as the killer is known) kidnaps the girl. He's eventually trapped in the sewers by the city's beggars. 

Director Ramon Vinoly Barretto was highly regarded in his home country but died suddenly in 1970 at age 54.

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Horror Remake

 

 (imdb)

WEB OF THE SPIDER-1971-An American reporter Foster (Anthony Franciosa) meets Edgar Allan Poe (Klaus Kinski) in England and winds up making a bet to spend the night in a haunted castle. After investigating the place he meets two women, Julia (Karin Field) & Elizabeth (Michele Mercier). They don't seem to like each other. It's clear that something is going on. After Elizabeth seduces Foster, a man breaks in and seems to kill her. Foster shoots the man but his body disappears. Then Elizabeth's body also vanishes. While searching for the missing bodies, Foster meets doctor Carmis (Peter Carsten) who vanished years before. He proves through some apparitions/flashbacks that everyone in the house is dead. 

This stylish remake of NIGHTMARE CASTLE directed Antonio Margheriti (under the pseudonym Anthony Dawson) is good but I prefer the original. This was one of 10 films Klaus Kinski made in 1971.

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M2

 

 (letterboxd.com)

M-1951-Los Angeles is terrorized by a child murderer (David Wayne). The police are baffled. Things get so bad, innocent people are attacked. Two cops (Howard DeSilva and Steve Brodie) investigate as the mayor (Jim Backus) blows his top. The killing of a councilman's granddaughter stirs things up. Mobster Charlie Marshall (Martin Gabel), who's gang includes Raymond Burr, Walter Burke and Norman Lloyd, hatches a plot with a drunken lawyer Langley (Luther Adler) to find the killer themselves because the cops are too close to their operations. They hire bums and other street denizens to comb the streets while the cops interrogate recently released mental patients (William Schallert plays one of them). The pathetic whistling killer collects kids' shoes and plays the flute. His problems seem to stem from his mother. When the killer gets himself trapped in a warehouse with a little girl, the gang goes in and gets him (a kind of ridiculous scene). 

The finale is an interesting mock trial where Langley turns the tables on Marshall. Not a bad remake of the classic German thriller (from 1931) with solid acting, by Jospeh Losey (THE BOY WITH THE GREEN HAIR (1948)) who was soon after blacklisted and fled to England.

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Remake Mars

 

 (wikipedia)

INVADERS FROM MARS-1986-In this remake, David (Hunter Carson), a young boy sees a UFO land behind his house. When his father (Timothy Bottoms) goes to investigate he comes back acting very strange with a bruise on the back of his neck. Later his mom (Laraine Newman) and everyone else in town have become weird, possessed zombies including David's crabby teacher Mrs. McKeltch (Louise Fletcher) and the police. After he sees the teacher eat a frog, David convinces the school nurse Linda (Karen Black; Carson's real-life mom) that something is going on. Grotesque slimy aliens are planning to conquer Earth. The duo run around town being chased by the police and McKeltch in a yellow school bus. When it seems the whole town have been turned into slaves by the aliens, David and Linda convince Gen. Wilson (James Karen) of the truth and he brings in the army. One scientist (Bud Cort) tries to talk to the invaders and is killed. Eventually the invasion is crushed but….

This so-so remake of the notorious 1957 original succeeds more than it fails though pretty unnecessary as most remakes are. Original little kid star Jimmy Hunt appears as a policeman. Dan O'Bannon is one of the the credited screenwriters. Director Tobe Hooper made this the same year as the disappointing TEAXS CHAINSAW MASSACRE 2.

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Remake

 

 (imdb)

PHANTOM KILLER-1942-A janitor named Nicodemus (the one and only Mantan Moreland) finds the dead body of an executive after giving the suspected killer a light. He identifies the murderer as John Harrison (John Hamilton), a "society big shot" who also happens to be a deaf mute. (although he talked to Nicodemus). The police captain (J. Farrell MacDonald) and his Sargent (Warren Hymer) give the case to the DA. Prosecutor Clarke (Dick Purcell; two years later he played Captain America in the serial of the same name) believes Harrison is guilty but the DA will have none of it. Even his reporter girlfriend Barbara (Joan Woodbury;KING OF THE ZOMBIES) was with Harrison at a gathering. But Harrison is the killer and is not mute or deaf. Several more victims follow including the captain when he gets too close to Harrison's secret. 

It's pretty obvious what's going on but I liked this low budget crime drama with a twist (it's a remake of THE SPHINX from 1933 which starred Lionel Atwill) because of the big role Hamilton has and that the dumb Sgt. wises up after his boss is murdered. Mantan Moreland is (unfortunately) only in the first 15 minutes.

 “One Shot” William Beaudine was the director of this strange little Monogram picture. Lead actor Purcell died of a heart attack in 1944 at the age of 38. This was one of 14 feature films the legendary Manton Moreland was in in 1942. Of course John Hamilton later memorably portrayed Perry White on TV's “Superman”.

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Judex

 

JUDEX-1963-A rich banker Favraux (Michel Vitold) receives threatening letters. If he does not hand over half his fortune to charity before midnight he will die. They are signed by the mysterious Judex (The Judge). It turns out Favraux isn't so nice and made his money because of a scandal. He even runs down an old man who went to prison because of Favraux's shenanigans. He hires a PI to investigate and find out who's sending the letters before a party announcing the engagement of his daughter Jacqueline (Edith Scob) who has a child, Alice. 

The PI finds out the daughter isn't really happy with the engagement and Favraux wants to marry his granddaughter's governess (Francine Berge') but she has a lover. At the party at the stroke of midnight Favraux appears to die. Later his lawyer informs Jacqueline of her dad's nefarious deeds which involved blackmail. The next day she renounces her fortune and breaks her engagement (he was a gold digger anyway). 

However things are not as they seem. The mysterious Judex (American magician/actor Channing Pollock) is watching everything. Favraux is not dead, merely drugged and taken back to Judex's lair as is the old man who's life Judex saved. Judex planned on killing Favraux because his threats were not followed but because of his daughter's actions Judex allows the banker to live but be imprisoned forever. Meanwhile the governess and her lover break into the Favraux's house to steal the incriminating papers he possessed (she had been eavesdropping). They don't get the papers but try to kidnap daughter. They are thwarted by a pack of dogs belonging to Judex who gives Jacqueline a bunch of pigeons to release if she is ever in danger. The governess surmises Favraux is still alive and being held captive. 

There's several twists and Judex doesn't always get the upper hand. Though there is sound it's presented like a silent movie with title cards and frequent fade outs. This figures because this French film is based on a silent film and is dedicated to the original director Louis Feuillade. It was director by Georges Franju three years after his classic EYES WITHOUT A FACE (which also starred Scob).

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Mr. Laurel and Mr. Hardy

 

ANOTHER FINE MESS-1930-In this Hal Roach short Laurel and Hardy escape a policeman by hiding in a mansion owned by Lord Buckshot (perennial L & H fall guy James Finlayson) who leaves on a hunting trip in South Africa. His maid and butler also leave. When Lord Plumtree (Charles K. Gerrald) and his wife (Thelma Todd) arrive to rent the place Ollie impersonates Buckshot and Stan becomes the maid. After several mishaps the real Buckshot returns unexpectedly and the duo wind up dressed in a lion's costume riding a two seat bicycle being shot at by the police! 

MESS was directed by James Parrot (brother of Charley Chase) and the titles are read by twin sisters (The Crane sisters) instead of written out. It's a remake of a once thought to be lost L & H silent DUCK SOUP (the first film with them as an “official” team) based on a play written by Stan's father.

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3 Dead

 

NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD-3D-2006-Just because George Romero's original classic is in the public domain, any sucker shouldn't be allowed to remake NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD on a whim. Yes, another remake with gory SFX and some outrageous plot additions. It's useless but Sid Haig plays a crazy mortician. Unfortunately director Jeff Broadstreet made a sequel to this a few years later called NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD 3D: RE-ANIMATION. (It's actually a prequel...)

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You are not dying. I am dying...

NOT OF THIS EARTH-1988-This is remake of Roger Corman's classic 1957 Sci Fi story was supposedly redone on a bet between Corman and director Jim Wynorski. It follows the original story fairly closely and even uses much of the dialogue. 

Mr. Johnson (Arthur Roberts), an alien from the war torn far off planet Devanna comes to Earth seeking blood. With mind control he forces Dr. Rochelle (Ace Mask) to set him up with daily transfusions of blood for this is what the inhabitants of his home world need most. He engages the doctor's nurse Nadine (Tracy Lords) to assist in the procedure and she  goes to live in his house with him and his chauffeur Jeremy (Lenny Juliano). Of course there are a few things that are different. Most notably that original star Beverly Garland didn't do her snooping around in a bikini or have a topless sex scene with her policeman/boyfriend Harry (Roger Lodge). And instead of inviting 3 male bums back to become victims Johnson hires 3 cartoonish  hookers. Also a topless "stripper o gram" dancer. It features a chase scene from another Corman production. Ok fun as remakes go.

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Divorce 1930's Style

WHAT BECOMES OF THE CHILDREN?-1936-Fred (Glen Boles) and Marion (Joan Marsh) are close knit brother and sister, the children of a railroad magnate John Worthington (Robert Frazer) and his uncaring wife Edith (Natlie Moorhead). The Siblings are split up by the divorce of their parents. 15 years later Fred is a college dropout who gets a job as a saloon piano player. Marion marries hastily to Roy (Larry Kent), a diamond smuggler arrested on their wedding night! Almost thrown out of her apartment, she meets Elsie Ford (Barbara Pepper) who takes her to the saloon where her bro is working. Roy also shows up and taunts and manhandles Marion until Fred lays him out. Brother and sister are finally united but Roy is shot when he tussles with Fred again. Dad comes to the rescue and it's proven someone else did the shooting. Mom and dad get back together and everyone lives happily ever after in this low budget badly acted rumination on the pitfalls of divorce.

This is a remake of an 1918 silent film of the same name that starred the director of this sound version Walter Shumway (his only directorial effort) and his wife Corra Beach, who wrote the book it's based on.

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I Spit On Your Remake

I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE-2010-A novelist (Sarah Butler) goes to a secluded cabin to write her new novel. She jogs, smokes pot and drops her cell phone in the toilet bowl. Some white trash rednecks spy on her and eventually break in, humiliate her, beat her, gang rape her and film it. She escapes the assholes before they can kill her. Unlike the original (which I'm not a fan of), her revenge it more detailed and exacting. The director of this (and it's useless sequel) Steven R. Monroe went on to making movies for the Hallmark and Lifetime cable channels and this:

 https://moviemeltdown.blogspot.com/2013/11/when-will-it-end-bad-movie-making-i-mean.html

 There was a part 3 that also starred Butler by a different director.

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Not a Newton Room....

 

THE MAD ROOM-1969-In 1957 two children murder their parents and are placed in a mental institution. Their older sister a witness to the crime is now Ellen Hardy (Stella Stevens) a kind of live-in personal assistant to rich widow Gladys Armstrong (Shelly Winters) who's son () Ellen is engaged to. Things seem to be ok until Ellen gets a letter saying her to siblings are being released into her care. With no other choice Ellen brings them to stay in the Armstrong house where they get almost immediately into trouble for using Gladys private study as their “mad room”, a place to go when they are upset. Gladys winds up hacked to death after she learns the history of the two and her dog carries her severed hand around.

 

The pretty predictable story also features Severn Darden as a builder and Beverly Garland as Mrs. Racine, a drunken floozy who's husband/masseur is having an affair with Gladys. Her death scene is the highlight of the whole film when she commits suicide in a bathroom after making a bitter speech using the word “man-whore”. Another housewife is played by Jennifer Bishop who was later in several Al Adamson films (HORROR OF THE BLOOD MONSTERS, THE FEMALE BUNCH).

THE MAD ROOM is a remake of the 1941 film LADIES IN RETIREMENT, an adaptation of a hit Broadway play. Director Bernard Girard also made the seldom seen THE HAPPINESS CAGE.

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Watch Out!

NIGHTWATCH-1997-A loser (Ewan MacGregor) takes a job as a night watchman in a morgue after the old one (Lonny Chapman) quits. Years before another watchman was caught having sex with the corpses. He gets spooked a lot being alone with the dead but after a series of killings he's accused of necrophilia by 2 weird cops (Nick Nolte & John C. Reilly). His friend (Josh Brolin) and his girlfriend (Patricia Arquette) became involved and Brad Dourif livens things up as pill pushing doctor..

It's a remake of a Danish film by the same director Ole Bornedal but co-scripted by Steven Soderbergh. It mostly plays like a direct to video slasher movie but with a bigger budget and lots of emoting from the well known cast.

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Old Creaky House

THE CAT AND THE CANARY-1939- Old house mystery turned into a vehicle for Bob Hope. 10 years after the death of millionaire Cyrus Norman, his remaining relatives gather for the reading of his will in his spooky Louisiana bayou mansion, watched over by the equally spooky caretaker Miss Lu (Gale Sondergaard). The heir most likely to gain the inheritance is Joyce Norman (Paulette Goddard) but if she is proven insane before a certain period of time the money goes to the second heir. Only the family lawyer (George Zucco, a busy actor in 1939) knows who that will be but when he's killed weird things happen to Joyce to make her seem unstable. Hope is a wisecracking actor and relative who helps Joyce find out what's really happening in a story that features secret panels, strange sounds, a clutching hand and a search for a rare necklace. John Beal, Douglas Montgomery, Elizabeth Patterson and Nydia Westman are the other relatives. Charles Lane appears as a reporter.

 

This is actually a remake of a 1927 silent film directed by Paul Leni and there are at least 4 other versions including one made in 1979 directed by Radley Metzger.

 

Former actor Eliot Nugent (he'd direct Hope again in MY FAVORITE BLONDE) also worked with Danny Kaye and Harold Lloyd and made a version of THE GREAT GATSBY starring Alan Ladd in 1949. His career was hampered by alcohol and mental condition and he retired in the early '50's. Hope and Goddard would team up again a year later in GHOST BREAKERS.

 

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Color Remake

PHANTOM OF THE RUE MORGUE-1954-Color/3-D remake of Edgar Allen Poe's MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE (brilliantly executed by Robert Florey and Bela Lugosi in 1932).

 After several grisly murders of women, Ivan (Paul Richard), a knife thrower is accused of killing the latest victim. A police inspector (Claude Dauphin) thinks Ivan has the ears of a killer (?) but has to let him go. He interviews folks at The Sorbonne where he meets Prof. Daupin (Steve Forrest), a psychologist who profiles the killer for the inspector. Daupin also introduces Dr. Morais (Karl Malden), a zoologist with a red herring servant (Anthony Caruso), a belligerent eye patch wearing goon. Daupin becomes a suspect when his (stolen) brooch is found on a victim. Later another detective arrests him after a victim is stuffed up his chimney. The inspector goes out of his way to proof (frame?) Daupin even though it's obvious he couldn't be the murderer. Jeannet (Patricia Medina), Daupin's assistant/fiance tries to help. Of course Morais is the actual villain who's pet gorilla (Charles Gemora) is doing all the murders. He framed Daupin because he's sweet on Jeannet and his wife committed suicide. But mostly he's plain crazy. The ape is attracted to bells on a bracelet each victim wore. Unfortunately after Moray whips the hairy killer, it goes ape (no pun intended!) and kills again. Witnesses see Morais and his pal so it exonerates Daupin. When the police come to get Moray he sets a lion loose. The ape climbs a tree with Jeannet in tow. Before its death by shooting it kills its master.

Director Roy Del Ruth started his career with Max Sennett and later directed the original version of THE MALTESE FALCON in 1931. He made TOPPER RETURNS, THE BABE RUTH STORY and many other mid and low budget programmers. One of his last was THE ALLIGATOR PEOPLE (1959).

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Women In The Moon

MISSLE TO THE MOON-1958-This crazy nonsense is actually a remake of the earlier CATWOMEN ON THE MOON!

A grouchy looking scientist named Dirk Green (Michael Whalen) builds a rocket ship and plans to take it to the moon. The government won’t let him work independently and plan to take over his project in the morning. He decides to go up that night. He recruits two escaped convicts to aid him. Gene (Tommy Cook from TEENAGE CRIME WAVE) is the troublemaker and Lon (Gary Clarke, the teenage werewolf in HOW TO MAKE A MONSTER) is the nice one. Somehow Green’s partner Dayton (Richard Travis, also in MESA OF LOST WOMEN)) and Dayton’s fiancée June (Cathy Downs, also in THE AMAZING COLOSSAL MAN around this time) get trapped in the rocket with them. Everything goes ok in outer space until Gene decides to put the moves on June (unsuccessfully).

After they hit a meteor shower, Green has a heart attack and dies after spouting some mysterious mumbo jumbo about “my lido”. Eventually they do land on the moon, put on cumbersome spacesuits and meet the local welcoming committee: a bunch of slow moving rock men. The group easily out runs them and hides in a cave. Fortunately for them the caves contain oxygen!

Soon after they meet The Lido (the conveniently blind leader who wears what looks like a candelabra on her head) and her colony of moon maidens (who wear roman type outfits). Lon takes time to fall in love with one of them (Marjorie Helen) but Gene is only interested in their diamonds. To add to their predicament, The Lido plans to marry Dayton off to Alpha (Nina Bara who laughably overacts), the kind of second in command. 

Ya see, Green was actually from the moon and was returning to help the ladies escape before the planet self-destructs. Of course Dayton won’t comply so Alpha kills The Lido and takes over, hypnotizing Dayton to her will in the process. It’s pretty funny when he talks in the trance. June almost gets sacrificed to a dila-pidated spider but the crew escapes after all the pretty maidens (and the ugly ones too) die in a earthquake. Gene gets caught between the rock men and the sun’s deadly rays. He won’t drop the bags diamonds he horded and the sun burns him up. The others return to the ship.





Are you still with me?

MTTM is bad but entertaining. A lot happens in a short time. Bad SFX and acting rule the day. The opening scene sets it all up as the local sheriff stops in the desert to talk on his radio. It’s clear to see he’s standing in front of a painting! You can even see creases in it at the top!

MOON was directed by Richard E. Cunha, a TV cinematographer and director who decided to form his own company and produce horror films. His other efforts like GIANT FROM THE UNKNOWN, SHE DEMONS and FRANKEN-STEIN’S DAUGHTER are in the same vein but MISSLE is the most laughable. Still Cunha always manages to add a little sleaze or gore to his story.

Whalen and Downs were both in THE PHANTOM FROM 10,000 LEAGUES. KT Stevens who portrays The Lido was once a child actress named Baby Gloria. “International Beauty Contest Winners” played many of the moon maids or so it says in the credits….



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This Price is Right!

HOUSE OF WAX-1953-This is one of the best horror films of the ‘50’s and not only is it in Technicolor but it was originally filmed in 3-D! Vincent Price is in top form as Prof. Henry Jarrod, gifted if eccentric wax sculptor obsessed with Marie Antoinette. When his greedy partner (Roy Roberts) burns down their museum for the insurance money Jarrod is presumed dead. He re-emerges as a scarred killer with a wax facemask, He pretends to be wheelchair bound and opens up a new museum with the help of Igor, a mute sculptor played by Charles (Bronson) Buchinsky. He covers his murdered victims with wax and uses them as exhibits. He takes a liking to Phyllis Kirk and decides to make her his new “Marie”. Paul Picerni plays her boyfriend, a sculptor who briefly works with Jarrod. A Police Lieutenant (square jawed Frank Lovejoy) investigates. Strange that an actor with such a last name would have neither love nor joy in his performance. The wax figures have more expressions! Familiar character actor Dabbs Greer is his assistant.


Carolyn Jones is also featured as one of Jarrod’s early victims. She was in WAR OF THE WORLDS and Fritz Lang’s THE BIG HEAT the same year. The story goes that HOUSE’s director Andre De Toth had only one eye and therefore couldn’t even experience the 3-D effects. This makes sense considering how little it’s used. The most famous scene doesn’t even involve horror. It features the paddleball talents of one Reggie Rymal (who died in 2002). Still De Toth’s “flat” direction keeps the story moving.

HOUSE is a remake of the 1933 film MYSTERY IN THE WAX MUSEUM that was shot using an early 2-color process. Lionel Atwill had the Price role in that one. Both are based on a play by Charles Belden.

"Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves"-Confucius

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