Thursday, May 25, 2006

The Mummy & The Curse of the Jackals – 1969

     Accordian music in the first 15 seconds means we are in for a bumpy ride. And the video looks like like it was recorded off the TV TUBE with a webcam, then blown up to DVD resolution. It’s like watching a movie thru a muddy creek. Ugh!

The dialogue here sounds like it was written by Ed Wood. The writer (William Edwards) only has three credits on IMDB Pro, but one of them is the SWV classic, Dracula The Dirty Old Man.

Soundtrack sounds like it was written by Herschel Gordon Lewis (who wrote the music for most of the classic “Gore” flicks). And watching this turkey, it is unbelieveable that the director (Oliver Drake) has 179 credits. Granted, he started in the 30’s, and this was his second to last film. I know, I know, there are two credits after this, but one is done 7 years after his death, and is only a song, so I’m thinking it was something he did awhile ago. This is obvious the twilight of his career, and that’s a good thing, as this is not something he wanted on his resume.

Some final notable elements: here is John Carradine when he was still young and agile, before being crippled by arthritis. Anthony Eisley is the hero of this swamp fever of a movie. He was the handsome hero in Dracula vs Frankenstein too!

Two beers out of five.

MST3K E207 – Wild Rebels

     There may be something better than getting to see a MST3K episode you’ve never seen before, but nothing comes to mind right away. I used to have a Turkey Day Marathon from The Comedy Channel with nearly all Season One episodes. But I’ve seen precious few season two thru four. So I’m always excited when the new Rhino set includes them. Even though these early episodes are not as funny (to me) as, say, season 7 – 9, I still love them.

And this movie is a real dump. I knew we were in trouble just as soon as I saw the opening credits. Its directed by William Grefe, the man who gave us Hooked Generation (he made it right after Wild Rebels) and Death Curse of Tartu (made right before). Both of these titles are released by Something Weird Video. It is hard to believe that the man who gave us Mako: Jaws of Death could be credited with 30 titles.

This is a solid MST3K episode, with some very good bits.

Four beers out of five.