Cat-Women

 

 (imdb)

CAT-WOMEN ON THE MOON-1953-5 astronauts journey into space. The crew is headed by hardnosed Laird Grainger (Sonny Tufts). His co-pilot is the more laid-back Kip Reissner (Victor Jory). Helen Salinger (Marie Windsor) is the navigator. Doug Smith (William Phipps) is the radar guy and Walt Walters (Douglas Fowley) is the engineer. They land on the moon and Helen seems to know more than she should. After being attacked by giant spiders, they find a cave with oxygen and then find some kind of temple. Helen separates from the men and meets Alpha (Carol Brewster), leader of the female survivors of a genocide ("We have no use for men"). They turn Helen against her male companions and plan to "bring our culture" to Earth and put Earth women under their power. 

This notorious very low budget campy sci-fi space adventure uses props and sets from several other pictures. Director Arthur Hilton had better success as a film editor. Producer/co-writer Al Zimbalist was the executive producer on ROBOT MONSTER the same year! Composer Elmer Bernstein, who would win an Academy Award in 1967, did the soundtrack but his name is misspelled in the credits! (He also did the music for ROBOT MONSTER...).

It was remade in 1958 as MISSILE TO THE MOON.

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End of The World (the first time)

FIVE-1951-This low budget post apocalyptic drama was produced, written and directed by Arch Obler, creator of the radio (and later TV) program LIGHTS OUT.

It concerns the last 5 survivors of a nuclear holocaust. Michael (William Phipps), a poet/philosopher who really doesn't seem to miss mankind, Roseanne (Susan Douglas), a pregnant woman who wants to go to the city to find her husband, Charles (Charles Lampkin), an optimistic African American, Mr. Barnstaple (Earl Lee), a brain addled banker and eventual troublemaker (and bigot) Eric (James Anderson), a European spared because he was on Mt. Everest. Eric (who kind of talks like Paul Burich's alien character in NOT OF THIS EARTH) wants to go to the city on the pretense that there will be more survivors and presents the theory the little group is actually immune to the bomb's radioactivity but he's really only interested in plunder. After the banker dies and Eric reveals himself to be a racist Michael delivers Roseanne's baby. Despite Michael's care and protection Roseanne still clings to the hope that her husband is alive. Stupidly, she agrees to accompany Eric to the city in hopes of finding her husband right before Eric kills Charles. All they find are empty streets, abandoned cars and skeleton remains (including Roseanne's husband). Eric gets radiation poisoning and somehow Roseanne and Michael meet up again but her baby dies. After they bury the baby, Roseanne joins Michael in planting crops (which Eric had deliberately destroyed). The final scene of the couple standing together could signify a new beginning and maybe the end....

FIVE was the first atomic bomb survival and despite the minimal budget the acting pulls this one through despite Eric's weird accent. Actor Anderson would play with more success another bigoted role eleven years later in TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. Obler made the first feature length 3-D movie BWANA DEVIL next and later made THE TWONKY and THE BUBBLE.

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