JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS / Columbia Pictures Corporation - 1963

Here's our last post for March, it's another Ray Harryhausen animated mythological adventure about the search for the Golden Fleece by our hero Jason and his gang of Argonauts. The budget was $1,000,000 for this movie, a few years earlier Ray was doing his thing for around $60,000 a production!

We gots a sound clip of the theme and more from this tale, sooooo, you can push the big red 'GO' button located there by our golden brown fleas, NOW, Ralphie The Tarantula!.. Here's... JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS!

The story starts with baby Jason saved from being killed by a rival to the throne of Thessaly.

Years later, Jason assembles a sailing crew of the finest men in Greece to search for the legendary Golden Fleece, Hercules shows up to join the quest.

The adventurers are under the protection of Hera, queen of the gods. Here, the gods watch over the events as they unfold.

Jason and his gang set off in their paddle boat protected by this good looking masthead.

They come across this huge room full of unimaginable treasures, but...

They awaken the giant bronze statue of Talos, who wants to stomp 'em a goodern!

It's Jason to the rescue as he lets all the steam out of the big guy's deadly assault!

They come across some Harpies attacking a man so Jason and his men take care of business.

Then, Neptune hisself comes to the aid of the crew as they traverse a narrow inlet as the walls come tumbling down, what a pal!!

Jason eventually locates the Golden Fleece but has to slay the Hydra before he can claim his trophy. It looks like gold Xmas tinsel was used in the making of some of the fleece.

And, in a really terrific scene, Jason and his pals have to fend off a small army of skeleton warriors! Tune in Wednesday when we're back to start off a new month of Dungeon reviews!

SECRET AGENT - Alfred Hitchcock - "Burns A Flaming Trail Among The Gay Capitals Of Europe" (1936)

Saturday Night Special? Hell Yeah! "Secret Agent" 1936!!

 What's really scary is to think that enough time has passed that some people today don't even know who Alfred Hitchcock is, and that some day in the not too distant future, only historians will know the name! I daresay that if it wasn't for "Psycho," 97% of people 30 and under today wouldn't know who he was!

"The films of Alfred Hitchcock" should be a mandatory course in educational institutions the world over! It's that fucking simple! 

 In between World Wars, Mother Earth was a pretty tense place, and it doesn't seem to be getting much better lately!

 How in the Hell is it possible that with over 30 gazillion people in the world, Peter Lorre is a character that has not, and possibly will not ever be created again?

That's "Father Knows Best's" Robert Young as Robert Marvin in the middle! One good rule, never trust a guy with two first names! On the left is Madeleine (The 39 Steps) Carroll as Elsa Carrington, and on the right is her husband Richard Ashenden as played by John (The Elephant Man) Gielgud. She's been given to him as a wife in a secret government plot to track down and kill a German agent. Basically a stranger, horndog Robert Marvin has picked up on the fact that they are not real close, and is doing everything humanly possible to get into Elsa's pants!

Elsa and Richard are having to get to know each other really quick!

Richard Ashenden is actually a novelist named Edgar Brodie who was publically killed off, but the bad guys are on to their little ruse!

Ashenden's partner on this job is yet another horny little character, Peter Lorre as a hired killer known as only "The General!" When he introduces himself to people he rattles off his full name, but I'm not sure if anybody really knows what he's saying! The two here have gone to this church to meet another operative, but what they find is the guy playing a solemn chord on the organ because somebody else already got to him. The only clue is that he's clutching a button in his hand. Here's a short little sound clip of "The General's" introduction, and the droning organ!

At a casino, an unfortunate fellow loses a button that falls onto the roulette table. Of course, it's the exact same kind of button that was found in the clutching hand!

They now have their man, now it just comes down to how will they dispose of him?

The man is an avid hiker, so the threesome plan a nice day outing together!

Not knowing the full depth of the mission, Elsa is almost catatonic when she finds out what they did!

It gets worse when they find out they got the wrong guy!! Only "The General" is non-repentant, Elsa and Richard have decided they've had enough of this job!

So Richard and Elsa find themselves falling in love for real, and decide to run off together and put all this nasty sordid business behind them!

I'm going to end this with these three awesome shots! For the rest of the story, you're just gonna have to go watch it yourself!

How about this shot? Sends shivers up my spine!!

I got my copy of "Secret Agent" at Big Lots for $3.99!  It's a two DVD set called "Alfred Hitchcock, Master Of Suspense," and not only includes "Secret Agent," but also nine other Hitchcock features including "The Lady Vanishes," and "The 39 Steps" and is definitely one of the deals of the century! Have a good weekend, take your vitamins, and don't text and drive!

FROM A WHISPER TO A SCREAM / Conquest Productions, Manson International - 1987

It's more March Madness as we present this flick about the uncle of an executed murderess who relates four horror stories to a reporter about an elderly man who pursues romance with a younger woman all the way to the grave, a wounded man on the run is rescued by a backwoods hermit with the secret to eternal life, a glass-eating carny pays the ultimate price for pursuing love with a normie and Civil War soldiers are held captive by a household of orphans with strange intentions. Original title is THE OFFSPRING.

We've got a little sound clip from this flick for your approval, sooooo, you can push the big red 'GO' button over by our hoarse screaming mimi, NOW, Rufus The Gnat!.. Here's a taste of... FROM A WHISPER TO A SCREAM!

It starts with a reporter, Beth Chandler, played by Susan (FORBIDDEN ZONE) Tyrrell, questioning Julian White (Vincent Price) about the weird history of his hometown, Oldfield.

In the first story we get to peek in on some interesting goings-on taking place at the home of Stanley Burnside (Clu Gulager) as he pampers the demanding women in his life.

Boy, that ice pick on the floor sure looks like it could really shut this crazy bitch up!

Stanley makes the best of the situation by enjoying a Winston and a Budweiser. Don't worry, Stanley soon gets paid back in spades, no winners here!

The second story has this fool going trough the belongings of the old black hermit that saved him from dying in the swamp. Dude's interested in obtaining eternal life!

But, he gets caught and chopped into little pieces by the hermit!

Sometimes there's a big drawback to having eternal life!!

The next story is about what happens at the carnival stays at the carnival! Check it out, there's Angelo Rossitto as the barker in his very last acting role!

Anyway, when the glass eater decides to have a love affair with a girl outside the carnival, well, things don't turn out quite as planned!

Then, the last story stars Dungeon Hero, Cameron Mitchell, as a soldier who has a surreal experience after he and others are held captive by a house of orphans. This tale would remind you of a story from THE TWILIGHT ZONE.

Anyway again, Beth is loony as a the people she just learned about and Julian gets a knife in the throat for all his work! Join us again tomorrow for more March Madness...