Sunday, May 3, 2009

SON OF GODZILLA / Toho - 1967 / Music by Masaru Satô

Hey, yo!! Heads up, everyone, GODZILLA's looking for his son!! Jun Fukuda gives director Ishirô Honda a break and handles this one.

Masaru Satô had already done the Dungeon all-time favorite GODZILLA vs THE SEA MONSTER prior to this outing. Then, his next project would be GODZILLA vs MECHA-GODZILLA in 1974, and, that would be his last one for the series. He ended his career with 211 composing credits between 1952-1999!.. Wow!!

Obviously, the studio heads wanted a playful feel to the music, and, well, that's what they got! GODZILLA had been turned into a 'children friendly' monster and Toho was now competing with Daiei's GAMERA for the top spot with that audience.

Akira Kubo plays Goro Maki, a reporter that drops in to get a story!..

The island is a research outpost for weather manipulation.

And, ever since the atom bomb tests back in the fifties, there's also giant preying mantis referred to as GIMANTIS!!

For some unknown reason, Godzilla shows up on the island!

The Gimantis unearth an egg, an egg that hatches little Minya, the SON OF GODZILLA!! Can you say... WAAAAAGWAAAAAA!!!

Luckily, Bibari Maeda, as Riko, shows up to help out the baby monster, and make the boys in the audience happy!

Pops shows sonny boy how to fight and use their fiery, atomic breath! Minya struggles with the new power at first.

Great shot!!

Oh, yeah, don't forget about the web spitting giant spider, what makes pop and son miserable! At one 'point' the spider pokes Godzilla right in the eye with his spiked mouth!!

The science guys give one last shot at making it snow on the island.

In the meantime the big guy drops a boulder on Minya's tail, and viola, he now has the full power of his breath! Then, the boys really turn up the heat on the pesky arachnid!

It starts snowing like crazy and Minya can't make it back to the sea with his dad!

The gang make it off the island and Godzilla decides to stay with Minya, like a good dad, afterall...

Saturday, May 2, 2009

THE BRIDES OF DRACULA - Malcolm Williamson - "Is That Teeth?" (1960)

If this isn't one of the best lookin' title cards you've ever seen, I'll bite your neck!!!

It was a cold and windy night when it all began!! Yes, it's yet another classic Hammer vampire tale, this time, it's the story of "The Brides of Dracula!"

It's quite a simple story really, and it all begins when the totally lovely Yvonne Monlaur as Marianne Danielle first appears on the scene!

One of the first people Yvonne meets is Martita Hunt as the Baroness Meinster, or as everyone else knows her, Dracula's mother!!!

Yvonne goes off to spend the night with the lonely baroness, and, of coure she doesn't listen when told not to release the baroness's nice guy son, because he's not really a nice guy!!

Yvonne is pretty dumb, and is quite surprised when she sees that the baroness has been killed by her own son, the nice guy she just released!! Maybe you should have listened to the Mama!! Duh!!!

Unlike last night, now here's a guy that really does look like a vampire!!! David Peel was mostly a TV actor, and this was one of his rare film appearances, and only horror role, except in "The Hands Of Orlac" he played an airplane pilot!!

The rather somber and stoic soundtrack is provided by Master of the Queen's music, Malcolm Williamson, in his only 60's horror outing!!

The brides start coming to life, so enter stage right, the man of many hours, Peter Cushing, this time as Dr. J. Van Helsing again!

Here we have Andree Melly as Gina, before and after she meets Dracula! Gina's appearance as the bride scarred many a young boy's psyche in the 60's, who found it confusing, to be attracted to the devil with her hair down, instead of the innocent angel!!

Time for the big showdown between Dracula and Van Helsing!

You would have thought with Peter Cushing's experience, and the fact that David Peel was such a novice, that he would have put up a better fight!! Pretty easy to see what an amazing actor Peter Cushing really was as he delivers this incredible eye-popping performance!!

Any self-respecting vampire just wouldn't stand a chance to ever feel comfortable in a land with giant burning crosses like this scattered across the countryside. You'd of thought all the vampires would have moved out of the region by now!!

You can find "The Brides Of Dracula" on a double feature DVD with "Curse Of The Werewolf!" Now, that's a bargain you can sink your fangs into!!

Thursday, April 30, 2009

MR. SARDONICUS / William Castle - 1961 / Music by Von Dexter

Here is perfect example of what dude mean when say William Castle is 'Mr. Gimmick!' He come on at beginning to talk about ghouls, just to bug ever'bloody! Ray Russell, aka MR. SARDONICUS, write story and screenplay instead of Castle regular, Robb White!

Von Dexter have only 9 composing credit, but include HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL, THE TINGLER and 13 GHOSTS! And, in 1959, Von and William appear on TV show 'THIS IS YOUR LIFE - Robb White!'

Oskar Homolka play servant for Baron Sardonicus, he takin' doctor Ronald Lewis to see Sardonicus' wife, Audrey Dalton...

Ronald sing good but get lost easy!

Ronald find out real reason why he tricked to come to Baron' mansion.

Baron tell him story of what happen that dark night when he open father' grave up to get winning lottery ticket in jacket he bury with him by mistake. Not too pretty!..

Baron use threat of torture to get Ronald to help make face normal again, and so he can throw sweaty mask in trash can!

For treatment, Baron go into old locked room and hang out wif' stinky dead dad. The Baron need to 'scream face back into place' according to Ronald!! And, guess what?! It woik!!

So, happy, Mr. Sardonicus let wife leave wif' Ronald and go back to London...

But, William come back on and do punishment poll to see if Baron get free pass or not.

Hey, here is real fact!.. Eegah!! was lil' dude standing up in back!!.. No crap! He get all embarrassed when William tell him to sit down!

Baron lose poll and get punishment, so, jaw clamp shut and cannot eat or drink! Look so funny when he try to smash chicken into face! Ha ha, Oskar get last laugh!.. Now, that a happy ending!!

Monster Music

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