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The World Beyond (1978)
The World Beyond 1978
Did you ever have a memory of seeing a movie or TV show at a young age and no one else remembers except you ? You might remember bits and pieces of what you saw, but you cannot remember the name or the plot details beyond certain memorable scenes. That's how it was for me for many years with this TV movie which I found out was actually a pilot to a TV series that was never picked up.
I remember seeing the ad in my TV Guide and wanting to see this so badly. It did not disappoint. I was a mere 9 years old when I saw it and it scared the living hell out of me. For many years I called it "The Mud Monster" since that was what the actual Monster in the show was. I could not remember the actual name of the show nor could I remember the basic plot.
This like I said was a pilot for a TV Show. One that was far ahead of its time and maybe that is why it was never picked up. The premise is that the main character named Paul Taylor died in a car accident. When he is brought back to life he suddenly has a supernatural ability to communicate with the recently dead. Presumably every episode he would travel to help a different person in a set of circumstances.
This was actually the second pilot/episode. No one I know has ever saw the first episode. The World Beyond had such a wild premise. Remember this was many years before other shows about unexplained phenomena would see the light of day like The X-Files or Supernatural.
In this episode Paul is contacted by a man who asks him to go to Logan's Island and save Marian Faber. The man is obviously dead and Paul has no idea what is in store for him at that remote Island in Maine. He meets Marian and a an old boat owner soon after chartering his small boat.
On the island they find Frank Faber missing and Paul secretly knows that he is actually dead. Inside Frank's house they find several books on the occult and the Kabbalah with certain pages left open. They also find tracks and traces of mud everywhere.
They go looking for Frank and eventually find him dead, buried up to his neck in mud. To add to the confusion they find a patch of mud with a hole shaped like body with steam coming out of it. The noise they hear shortly after reminded me of the alleged recording of the Sasquatch howls I heard in TV Shows like "In Search Of" or in films like "The Legend Of Boggy Creek". Very atmospheric and very scary to a kid like me.
The monster attacks the house/cabin. Frank tried to keep the creature out by boarding it up. Paul estimates that Frank was dealing with dark forces/magic and conjured up a Golem. He cites several passages in the Kabbalah which mentions Golems in ancient times. Marian at first does not believe Paul.
The Golem kills the dog of the boat owner and then the boat owner himself when he attempts to rescue his wailing dog. When Paul and Marian go to see what happened they find the boat turned over. Whatever did this was immensely powerful. And all the time you can hear that Monster's roar.
Inside they attempt to bolt themselves in and brace the door to both the the cabin and the cellar. The Monster powers its way in the door and as they attempt to slam the door on the Golem his hand is chopped off ! Now that was terrifying. The muddy hand is still alive, attacks Marian and escapes downstairs.
Paul has to go downstairs to check on the cellar door. The hand attacks him and tries to kill him. Paul manages to free himself of the hand and throws it across the room and it lands next to a bag of opened salt. The hand explodes as a result. Now they know that the Golem has a weakness and that is salt.
Paul formulates a plan and calls the mainland for help using the destroyed boat's CB Radio. Paul lures the creature towards a cliff where he has a rope set up to trip the Golem. As the monster runs after Paul you can finally see the full body of the Golem. The creature trips over the rope and falls into the water, exploding in the salt water.
Paul has saved Marian as asked to by her dead brother Frank. Back on the mainland Marian asks Paul to meet up for dinner. Paul unfortunately cannot commit to the date since he knows he has work to do. He has taken it upon himself to help the ones their dead relatives or friends ask to help.
Now it was a nice ending, Paul and Marian had good chemistry and were both likable characters. However you could see the direction the series would have taken, having Paul in a different situations each episode, constantly on the move. It would have been a great series, who know what they could have done. Imagine all different supernatural threats or situations that Paul had to face every show.
To me it was a missed opportunity, but a great memory for me. The internet and friends I later met as an adult put me on the path to find out more about this show that I only remembered spots of as a kid. The copy I have and that is floating around is said to be sourced from a guy around my age who taped in on Betamax when it first aired back in 1978.
If you ever get a chance to watch it, there are links on YouTube and that really is the only way to see it. Don't expect clarity or sharpness and keep an open mind.
I love it.
House of the Wolf Man (2009)
I Really Wanted To Like It
It almost kills me to write a bad review for this this film that I so wanted to like. As a huge fan of The Universal Monsters, I can say that that this film tried to capture that old feeling, but ultimately failed. Shot on an extremely low budget, I can give this film a pass in certain areas. The black and white also adds a nice touch and a nod to the classic films. However the ultimate failure of this movie is all due to the terrible acting. And I mean really bad, over the top, Scooby Doo-type reactions. I cannot imagine any non Universal Monster fans sitting through more than 20 minutes of this film.
5 Strangers are invited to a Gothic castle by the host, Bela Reinhardt. As the movie slowly progresses, you find out that each of these 5 individuals has something in common and there is a reason they were chosen to come. The Dr. will choose one of them to be his successor. Who will it be ? The nerd, the jock and his brainy sister, the big game hunter, or the beautiful girl with the attitude? You'll have to watch to find out. See the mystery of the unknown footprints and many other twists and turns. If you can survive the slow pace and bad acting, at least stick around for the main event. The Frankenstein Monster takes on The Wolf Man in a knock down drag out slug fest! I liked the design of both monsters and the fight was a lot of fun. Worth the price of the DVD.
Of course Dracula comes in at the very end to make an appearance that really makes no sense. And I also understand that the actor who played him in this film recently passed on. Like I said previously, the movie had its heart in the right place. It just did not deliver.
I give it 4 of 10 stars and that is only because I loved the monster fight at the end of the movie.
Sadko (1953)
There Ain't Nothing Magic About This Voyage
Sometimes I will buy a DVD on a whim if it is cheap enough. This is one of those cases. I paid about 14 bucks including shipping. I am a fan of Sinbad films, but the ones I like are Ray Harryhausen made. I never even heard of this movie before. But I saw the cool cover and the bird with the chicks head on it. It also came with another movie so I went for it, figuring it couldn't be all that bad. It wasn't till after I watched it and researched it that I discovered it was actually the subject of an MST3K episode. I can only imagine the job that Joel and The Bots did on this barely watchable film. In fact I only learned afterward that it was originally a Russian film called 'Sadko' and had no connection to Sinbad. Now that makes perfect sense after watching it. 'Sadko' was made in 1953 and actually an award. But the dubbed version is what I am reviewing here. I can forgive it just for the simple fact it was made in 1953. The American distributors obviously tried to cash in on The Sinbad films. The movies even starts out with a reference to The Cyclops and The Roc. And that's where it ends any similar connection to the character of Sinbad. This 'Sinbad' is a bearded, singing and harp playing guy who is totally disrespected by the rich merchants of his home village. He has the best intentions of ending the poverty, starvation and overall plight of the people. He sets off of with several ships to find this bird of happiness that he has no clue where it lives to save his village. Great idea genius. He gets help from Neptune's daughter to finance the trip via some golden fish. His crewmen must past an important test to be admitted- they must chug a couple pints of wine and get punched without falling! They encounter some Vikings who don't seem all that formidable and then travel to India where cock fighting is a popular sport. In India they learn about a magic bird that sings of happiness. Sinbad wins a chess match to get the bird. And to be honest, the bird is the only cool effect in the whole film. A relatively hot chick who looks like Evil-Lyn from He-man with a bird's body. She is not the bird they are looking for but use her sleep inducing song to escape India. During a storm Sinbad jumps overboard as a sacrifice to Neptune and visits the non impressive undersea kingdom of Neptune which includes a dopey fish puppet and a cool octopus prop. Sinbad decides to give up the search for this bird and return to his true love. Upon his return he is welcomed back to the cheers of the villagers despite his failure to bring that bird home. He tells the people that happiness is here, at home or something like that. And somehow, the people accept this statement. What a load of BS. The guy fails and returns to the village under the same condition. What is so happy about that ?! I found this ending so contrived. I would definitely not recommend this movie. I only give 2 stars of 10 and that is because it was made in 1953.
Devil (2010)
Devil: A Nice Change Of Pace
A big fear of many people is claustrophobia. It is a very common phobia and many films that have capitalized on it can come to mind. I'd start with the classic 'Night Of The Living Dead' and most recently 'The Descent', both films really made the viewers feel like the characters in the film - closed in and no where to go . 'Devil' is another film which uses claustrophobia to heighten the anxiety of the movie goers. It also has a supernatural aspect to it. The film starts out in narration as one of the main characters tells a tale his mothers would tell him about how The Devil himself would take human form. It basically sets up the main story of 5 strangers stuck in an elevator and a bunch of weird occurrences during the break down. For those of you who do not know of term 'Red Herring', it refers to a purposely put false lead or clue in a mystery or Giallo film. There are many Red herrings here. And I enjoyed the guessing game in this film. Some people think that horror is all about blood, violence and gore. Am I the only one out there who still likes a building of suspense and a grounded bit of realism? This film had a nice slow build up, like a kettle of water set to simmer. It slowly builds up to the boil. And that's why I like this film. You slowly learn more and more about each character and as the 5 people in the elevator start dying one by one, the film keeps you on the edge wondering who the killer is. It's a simple plot and it probably is not an original one. But is was effective and I'm sure that anyone who watches it will be thrown off course and probably shocked by the outcome. I don't see it lasting very long in the theaters. I am glad I gave it a chance and I could say that it was a nice change of pace from the CGI bloodbaths that many of the general audience considers 'real horror'. It was well paced and well acted, a film I would recommend.
Smorgasbord (The Movie) (1983)
A misfit visits a shrink. Off the wall comedy with a hundred gags.
This film was on HBO a lot when I was a kid in high school. Oddly enough I have never seen it from beginning to end until today. Thank you to the Warner Archive, I finally have this 'lost' film on DVD. Not much of a plot here other than the main character Warren visiting his psychiatrist. But the laughs and gags come very rapidly. A ton of skits, loosely linked together with some great running gags. Even though I love this movie, I readily admit that half of these gags are misses and some run too long. Lewis is brilliant in this film, showing off physical comedy along with a fantastic dance number. Watch it, give it a chance. I'd be surprised if you do not laugh!
Tirannoui baltob (1994)
A Guilty Pleasure For Dinosaur/Kaiju Fans Only
A while back I had a really bad copy of this Korean Dino flick on VHS. Some of the Kaiju completist like myself all searched for this film which was made by the same Director as the 2001 Yonggary(Reptilian) and D-War(Dragon War). Over the years it has become more of a lost film. In fact I seriously doubt the copy I bought off of Amazon.com is legit. It is a poor quality DVD which appears like it was sourced from VHS. This film is a low budget film from Korea, bear that in mind. So even though it came out in 1994, it has more of a 60's or 70's feel to it. If you are not a dinosaur or kaiju enthutiast, you'd probably turn it off after 10 minutes. It's cheesy and goes for low brow, slapstick humor including a fart joke. I noticed a lot of clonks on the head with rocks and weapons like in many Hanna Barbera cartoons. You may laugh or you may cringe at the cartoonish over acting and the wide eyed Scooby -Doo facial reactions. Toho allowed some of that in GMK. The plot borrows heavily on other films like '1 Million Years BC' and 'Caveman'. In fact the plot is very simplistic, with absolutely no dialogue. So if you like low budget goofy caveman film with live action dinosaurs, this is a film for you to watch. The film starts out with a caveman clan sacrificing an injured tribe member to a T-Rex who lives in a cave. Later a cave woman angers the leader to the point where he stomps on her and orders her to now be sacrificed. But, she is saved by the main character, a little stubby caveman and they spend most of the film on the lamb from their former tribe. Along the way they encounter bi-pedal rat monsters, a tribe of hairy primitives and they end up becoming part of another more advanced tribe. That other tribe has a Triceratops and its baby as pets and uses bow and arrows as weapons. However the cavewoman is kidnapped by her former tribe and brought back to their leader. It's up to the hero and his new tribesmate to go and bring her back. There is of course a really hot chick in the new tribe. She is later attacked by a Pteranodon and taken away. Yes, she is saved by the main caveman and his archer caveman buddy. Eventually they go to find the kidnapped cavewoman and she too is rescued, but not before the main hero battles the much bigger leader. The big bad guy is eventually killed by 2 arrows to the chest. Sounds familiar, right? How does it end? Well the hero, who's now in charge of the clan, attacks the lair of the T-Rex with fire. When you think he's dead, he comes to their cave to attack. In true hero fashion the T-Rex is lead near a cliff and is tricked into falling over. Caveman rejoice and it's over, right? No, it ends with the T-Rex opening his eye up. The End. Not a bad movie, I wish I had a better copy. I love suitmation and I admit that I like this film. A guilty pleasure, I'd say.
Gojira-Minira-Gabara: Oru kaijû daishingeki (1969)
Not A Bad Children's Film
This film was more enjoyable for me when I was a kid. That I will admit. Watching it as a adult, it does have some rough spots. However, taken for what it is meant to be, it is an enjoyable children's film. The film is seen through the eyes of young, latch-key kid, Ichiro. He dreams of Monsters. He dreams of a bully who Minya must eventually stand up to, much like his own bully, Gabara. It's obvious that his dad is not around as much as he wants him to be and I always took Minya's relationship to Godzilla to be what Ichiro really wants with his own hard working, hardly at home dad. Is it a goofy film ? Yes. Minya does sound like Don Knotts. The stock footage can be bothersome when it is obvious that Godzilla changes looks throughout the movie. Gabara is a really cartoonish creation of a monster or Kaiju. But I still love him and this film. I know that it is childish. Maybe that's why I can enjoy it. I was a child when I first saw it. What kid wouldn't want to visit Monster Island ?