Wednesday, March 21, 2012

THE BRIDE AND THE BEAST - Allied Artists (1958)

For some reason unbeknownst to even ourselves, we have been chosen by some unseen law of nature to review every gorilla movie ever made!! I guess it's just the mystique of the monkey suit! There's really only one thing you need to know about "The Bride and the Beast," and that is that it was written by Ed Wood! There you go, like I said, what else could you possibly need to know?

Just to prove a point, here's some comics gorilla wallpaper I made for you! It gives you a good idea how popular gorillas have been in pop culture over the years!! The music for "The Bride And The Beast" was composed by the great Dungeon Maestro Les Baxter, who did virtually hoards of Poe and Surf films for AIP over the years, one of my favourite's being "Panic In The Year Zero!"

Here's the happy newlyweds! Lance Fuller as big game hunter Dan Fuller, and his blushing bride Charlotte Austin as Laura Carson Fuller! Lance Fuller's first role ever was as a villager in "Frankenstein Meets The Wolfman!" 12 years later he'll have a co-starring role as Brack in the iconic "This Island Earth!" Next up for Lance were Dungeon classics "Voodoo Woman," "She-Creature" and a "Twilight Zone" episode where Lance played a character named Ogram Gatewood! Lance was married to blonde bombshell Joi Lansing for almost three years, and that must have been just enough, because he never got married again! Charlotte was named after her birthplace, Charlotte, North Carolina. She was also in two other primate flicks, "Monkey Business" and "Gorilla At Large!"

Dude's such a big shot, he's even got his own street named after him!

Age old come-on line, "Hey, I've got a monkey down in the basement, wanna see it?"

After a face to face, the gorilla decides to get a little friendlier! He's firm, but never more aggressive than some drunk on Hollywood Boulevard!

Hell, you can't sleep in 1958, what else are you going to do but get up and have a cigarette! I used to watch my Dad do this all the time!

Lance doesn't seem to have any problems sleeping! There are two things very bothersome about this shot! Number one, they are supposed to be on their honeymoon, and number two, what the Hell is that, a kid's bed? Looks to be about a half a twin!!

The gorilla also couldn't sleep, breaks out of his cage, and decides to pay a little visit to Mrs. Fuller, and he's just a little bit more curious than your normal every day simian! Sniff, Sniff!

Always the party pooper, Lance wakes up and puts a couple of slugs in his pet!

Lance brings in William (Space Patrol, Trauma) Justine as Dr. Carl Reiner to analyze his wife's dreams, and they discover that she was a gorilla in another lifetime. Now that's original Eddie, but considering that the doctor is Carl Reiner, I suppose anything is possible!

Jeez, I almost forgot to include this shot from the negative dream sequence!

"I'll bet she's pretty wild in the sack, eh boy?"

This doesn't look like something you could get away with these days!

The Fuller's head off to the jungle, and the most exciting thing that happens in the whole movie, the deadly poisonous spider stomping sequence!

Fuller's houseboy and guide is Johnny Roth in his only ever appearance on celluloid!

The man in the gorilla suit was a guy by the name of Steve Calvert! Steve was a former bartender that lifted his last name from a certain brand of whiskey! Steve was a gorilla in a number of features that included "Bride Of The Gorilla," "Bela Lugosi Meets A Brooklyn Gorilla," "The Bowery Boys Meet The Monsters" and even the gorilla robot alien in "Target Earth!"

Steve Calvert eschewed credits, hoping that just maybe the audience would think he was a real gorilla! Looks to me like he was really kicking Lance's ass!

I sure don't remember this part, but then, that's Hollywood!!

3 comments:

TABONGA! said...

What a strange movie! Allied Artists also produced some great flicks like INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS...

Douglas McEwan said...

I couldn't read this post because it was full of scary men-in-gorilla-suits.

Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!

Greg Goodsell said...

Do yourself a favor and read "The White Ape" by H. P. Lovecraft. It will answer all your questions.

Monster Music

Monster Music
AAARRGGHHH!!!! Ya'll Come On Back Now, Y'Hear??