I Keep Watching the Skies: B Movies and Me
by Schizoid MannI have always been a fan of so-called B movies. I’m not sure I like that description because it implies that B movies are not as important as A movies, not as serious, not as good. Well, I’m not so sure about that. Of the B movies that I love, my favorites are, without a doubt, the science fiction monster movies. Yes, those wonderful creations conceived of by some of the most colorful characters in Hollywood and beyond. Studios like AIP, Toho, Daiei, Hammer and Universal are synonymous with creatures that crawl, creep and are able to stamp a city flat.
Names like Ray Harryhausen, George Pal, Bernard Herrmann and H.G. Wells come to mind. As do those of Ken Toby, Less Tremayne, Paul Frees and Whit Bissell. Each of these names, plus thousands and thousands of others, can immediately conjure up a favorite film, a scene or even just a great line or look that impressed us as kids and perhaps continues to do so.
When I think about those elements that I love in my favorite sci-fi monster movies, my mind can easily dwell for hours on the creatures themselves, the settings, the art direction, the machinery and technology and everything in between. I never grow tired of that stuff. But I also love, with equal passion the characters that people the story. They are really what it’s all about. So, indulge me as I invite you to take a little trip through my memory, recalling some character moments that stand out for me in the B genre of scifi monster movies.
The Thing from Another World
This is without a doubt one of my all-time favorite movies, of any genre. There is so much great about The Thing, that I feel it should be used as a template of what to do right in making movies.
Every character from Scotty the newsman to Tex the radioman to the scientists, including my own personal favorite Bob Cornthwaite’s unforgettable Dr. Carrington, is each wholly enjoyable and rich in believable detail, even if they lasted only seconds on screen.
My mind moves along as I recall this great film touching on some memorable moments. Some that come to mind are the constant problem solving by Dewey Martin joined with Captain Hendry’s humorous jabs on his subordinate’s expertise in all things resourceful. Newsman Scotty’s incessant, but enjoyable whining about getting his exclusive story out through the morass that is the military. Without Scotty, the viewer would have needed another in to the technical details of what happens. Scotty serves both as story chronicler and informer for the audience. When thermite is to be used to melt the ice, it’s Scotty who asks, for himself, but really for us, “What will that thermite do?” And it’s Scotty who soon after chastises the men for botching the job. “That’s just dandy. Standard operating procedure.” Brilliant.
How about that great sound cue from the Tiomkin score when the men recreate the shape of what lies beneath in the ice? The overlapping, excited utterances, “It’s almost…” “Yeah, almost a perfect….” “It is.” “It’s round.” “We finally got one!”, “ We found a flying saucer!” is priceless.
Speaking of scoring cues, another that ranks right up there is that great cut to Gort suddenly appearing on the ramp after Klaatu is shot by a nervous soldier in The Day the Earth Stood Still. Still another that comes to mind is an accented William Conrad uttering the dreaded “Marabunta” in The Naked Jungle. The cue itself practically brings Leinengen’s house down to the dirt. Yes, there really is nothing like a good sound cue to raise the blood pressure.
War of the Worlds
“This is amazing!” Gene Barry exclaims at his first glimpses of how the aliens are able to move about. His excitement is that of a boy launching his very first model rocket from the backyard. This amazing film is a bounty of excellence in sci-fi monster movie making. As Stan Winston said, it has just about every special effect in it. He was more than right. The characters on display make the awesome visual spectacle a personal and lasting one.
There’s a throwaway moment in the opening at the ranger watch tower where one ranger while phoning in the ‘meteor’ is distracted while the other subtly takes a peek as his partner’s cards. Great stuff. Les Tremayne’s slow and deliberate sipping from the (empty?) coffee cup directly after uttering his ominous “once they begin to move, no more news comes out of that area” has never failed to stir in me that familiar excitement when watching a monster movie on a Saturday afternoon. Sure his drinking is a bit unnatural – his ‘business’ a bit clunky, but who cares? It’s a great movie moment.
After the kindly Pastor is unmercifully smote by the alien’s heat ray after doing nothing more than just trying to say ‘hello’, the Marine Colonel’s ‘LET ‘EM HAVE IT!” order to his men, unleashing the statement that no being, alien or native is going to get away with that kind of stuff. Our hearts join in as every man, religious or not, strikes back with all he’s got at that unprovoked act.
Most if not all of the actors in these films can be seen and enjoyed in scores of other films as well. This, the B movie, was their bread and butter. But their prolific on-screen work had not only a monetary benefit to their careers, but it also had an emotional one for the audience. Their formidable repertoire of recurring and usually similar roles created a growing bank of emotion within us each time we saw them anew. It grew and grew. Actors we’d seen in television series or other films retained the decency and integrity they evoked each time and that we came to rely on. We’d see their name in the opening credits, or see their face on screen when they walked in the door or answered the phone and think… “Hey, that’s the captain from The Thing. Now here he is in The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms. Boy, am I glad to see him!” Or, “Isn’t this doctor in The Day the Earth Stood Still the same guy who played the reporter in Them! - the one who wants to interview the mother of the missing boys?” This linking of character and body of work helped forged a connection with the audience that is stronger than a block of KL 93.
Some people criticize B movies, calling them pure escapism. I say, so what? Isn’t all film pure escapism? Personally, I think that’s the highest compliment you could ever say about a film, that it’s pure escapism. By the same token one of the worst things you could say is “that film is so much like real life!” Give me a break! Who wants that? As Ray Harryhausen said when remarking about the over reliance of CG in special effects, “you don’t want it to be too real.”
Another criticism of Bs often heard is that the performances are poor, cliched or just plain bad. Sure they are! Some of them, anyway. And that’s often why we love them. But some performances, some scenes, are not bad in the least, and I’d argue, are as moving, as powerful and as emotionally charged as anything else on screen or in print.
To this day, I cannot watch the scene in the sewer pipes at the end of Them! without pure emotion welling up inside me. When James Arness consoles a mortally wounded James Whitmore who in his last breathes lets him know that the boys he rescued got out and are in the tunnel, it’s just too much.
That moment and what leads up to it, chokes me up every time. Even writing about it now, I find I’m moved to the point where I have to take my fingers off the keyboard for a moment. That’s greatness. Aside from Greg Peck’s final stare at a departing Audrey, Montagu Love’s reading of Kipling to the three remaining and one gone, or pretty much every darn thing that happens after Jimmy Stewart finds Zuzu’s petals, there aren’t many other film moments that can evoke such an immediate and powerful effect on me just from memory.
When James Arness continues on in the tunnels and is trapped behind fallen earth and timbers it doesn’t look good. With nothing more than the rounds left in his Thompson he is all alone to fight off the giant ants that are now attacking from all directions. But just as the creatures close in, beams of light and firepower from the other soldiers breaks through the splintered wood and fallen earth and saves him with dramatic punch. Powerful stuff, and I’m quite sure Steven Spielberg lifted it for a scene in Saving Private Ryan, of course without the ants.
It’s true. The Thing from Another World, War of the Worlds and Them! and so many others were meant as escapism, as ‘Drive-in fare, as they called it, when there were things like Drive-ins. But it’s undeniable to many of us that these films, that B movies contain moments that are special, very special for their genuine ability to move us and remain with us for a lifetime.
And that’s what movies are all about, Charlie Brown.
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Thing From Another World is one of my all time faves. The dialogue seems so dead on, between casual conversation to the scientific discussions. Everyone put in 110% on that flic. But you forgot to mention the scene in THEM! where the traumatized little girl who won't speak hears the sound of the ants and screams. Man that scene is some top rate acting from a kid.
Joe, I hear you. One of my first film memories is the "Giant Behemoth" on the Million Dollar Movie seen in our basement rec room in Connecticut on a battered RCA black-and-white. Good old WOR, along with WPIX and WNEW. Then, too, there was The Early Show on CBS, with its famous tick-tock intro music, and the occasional "higher-brow" John Wayne or Errol Flynn flick. Only a handful of channels but a complete classic film education in those days.
Monster From The Surf! ….Yeah, Yeah, Yeah!
The music in Godzilla put it over the top.
Forbidden Planet was an A-rated movie even at the time with an all-star cast, but I do agree it belongs in the pantheon of greats.
You touched it all Huc, nothing more to add to that other than fighting my sister over the blanket we had in the back of the old Plymouth station wagon.. My dad never took us to monster movies though, we had to walk miles to the theatre and sneak into those, he would only take us to Disney rated G flicks. Don Knotts and whatnot..
Rated "B" for best.. Let's not forget other creative outlets like pulp fiction and the golden age of science fiction.. A.E. Van-Vogt and Theodore Sturgeon… The kids wonder why the movies I watch are in black and white and look so "fake" and I'm still at a loss, too busy gorging on them to explain or teach to them why their fancy 3d computer generated movies all suck the big one.
Okay. Point well taken.
Lot's of this dialog makes me think of the classic "Closely Watched Trsains".. To others this might be a little far fetched, but when I see this thing a couple of more times .. I'll investigagte. …. Rating? It's Ok… Sort of a BEM,
Whenever my sons and I get together we have a B Movie night. There's something liberating about not having to worry about an Oscar nominee that lets the B movies tell a good tale that you can simply sit down and enjoy. I much prefer B movies to vast majority of the A movies out today. I didn't like the remake of the "The Thing"; and I didn't even bother with Tom Cruise's or Keanu Reeve's remakes of The War of the Worlds or The Day the Earth Stood Still.
Even today, if I want good escapist movies I turn to Troma Films, Full Moon, or just Sci-fi channel productions. I love that Bruce Boxleitner and Casper Van Dien are getting so much B- Movie action.
What a great walk down memory lane! I STILL enjoy a good "B". I've even gotten family members to sit with me at times . You're correct with all of your "so whats'". Freddie, Jason and Jigsaw would never exist without these films, let alone the Romulens, Darth Vader and HAL. Thnaks for the stroll.
I've found I'm enjoying B movies more and more as time goes on. They usually have a darn good story, some nice effects, and characters I wouldn't mind meeting in real life. I've also found younger children like them too. I work with elementary students and over the years have used monster movies as rewards. They sit spellbound by Destroy All Monsters, the Valley of Gwangi, Godzilla vs. Mothra, and the original Gamera movies. They also love movies like Francis (the talking mule), and Abbott & Costello. It's not that kids think a movie has to be all CG to enjoy it. It's that adults won't introduce them to the great old ones.
You know, B movies are just so much more entertaining than the "respectable" Hollywood movies. How Green is My Valley, snooze fest, 1953 War of the Worlds, gripping drama.
Terms of Endearment, GITMO level torture to sit through, Re-Animator, shear brilliance.
And quite often, bad B-movies are way better than bad Hollywood movies. Like Manos: Hands of Fate vs. Mrs Wintergreen or whatever that horrible Ricki Lake movie was called. Or Mr Wong, OMG! Talk about Apocalyptic levels of horribleness!
And any average Roland Emmerich disaster movie vs the worst of Irwin Allen, goes to Allen no contest. I was snoozing in the first 5 seconds of The Week After The Day After the Night After Tomorrow. Just the title gives me a headache. But The Swarm or Asteroid has some very good entertainment value.
A nice ride down memory lane Huc.
Its nice to watch a movie where it doesn't matter if your black or white, left or right, straight or gay or whatever. Humanity has to unite to fight a threat that will destroy us all. Although the situations are dire its nice to see people come together. Too bad people on all sides let petty gripes and ulterior motives get in the way of genuine problem-solving.
Big Leo, what would you do if your teens came to you and said, "Dad, our town is being attacked by giant rabbits!" I'm a father of teens too so I wonder what I would do too.
The Monolith Monster. Anyone else remember that one?
Every Sunday afternoon I used to watch the movies on Channels 56 and 38 out of Boston. From noon until 6PM they showed movies in 2 hour blocks. This was the early 1970's, long before cable and VCR's.
Memory lane great stuff SM.
Great article and responese here. I love cheesy sci fi, especially the old stuff. What they lacked in budgets and special effects they made up with in adventurous ideas and trying to break the mold by saying something interesting… Or at least being totally ridiculous sometimes.
Either way I love it!
I don't know if this counts, but when I was a kid, me and my friends caught Ray Harrihausen's "Jason and the Argonauts" on tv and thought it was the best thing EVER. The scene with the Harpies looked so REAL to us at the time; we had no idea how it could of been accomplished. (This was back in the early seventies, mind you).
I love all those "fantastic adventure" movies, like "The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad" and such.
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Yes, pretty much everything mentioned in this thread (and lots more similar material) is out on DVD in the USA. Some have probably gone "out-of-print" by now, but most are pretty easy to find at online retailers like Amazon, Walmart.com, BestBuy.com and DeepDiscount, and most for fairly cheap, too. The original 1951 version of THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL is even available on Blu-Ray disc, at this point.
There are still some famous 1950s/1960s creature features missing in action on legit DVD in the USA, like THE AMAZING COLOSSAL MAN, ATTACK OF THE CRAB MONSTERS, NOT OF THIS EARTH (1957), THE GREEN SLIME, THE QUATERMASS EXPERIMENT (1956, a.k.a. THE CREEPING UNKNOWN), I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF, I WAS A TEENAGE FRANKENSTEIN, IT CONQUERED THE WORLD, THE COLOSSUS OF NEW YORK, DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS (1963), CALTIKI, etc, but most of the best-remembered stuff is out there, waiting for you. And the missing stuff may well pop up on the format in the next few years, though the overall market for older films on DVD is drying up.
I watch these movies over and over, and never tire of them. You mention a couple of my favorite moments in them.
After James Whitmore's character's tragic death at his moment of triumph, there are still two more moments worth noting.
James Arness is shortly thereafter trapped. He's attacked by more ants, one of which comes up from behind and touches him. I swear the scream he lets out at this point was real. An actor fully caught in the horror he was enacting and became the character. [Or great sound editing
]
This scream is heard by Joan Weldon's character, and you see her anguish. Later she moves beside him after his rescue and silently touches the tear in his sleeve left by the soldier ant. Their eyes meet as they both realize how close they came to losing what has been building between their characters the whole film long.
Just because these were "B" pictures doesn't mean that the people who made them didn't care about quality.
"Make me a sergeant, bring me the booze," and run these movies again
HI Joe
Yup. We had the same WOR out of Seacaucus, NJ. Saw many a monster flick on that one, and WPIX and WNEW Metromedia.
Loved the movies hosts and movie IDs. (upcoming article topic from me, btw).
Yes, if I had to add one, it would Body Snatchers. But since this was really about monsters and people and enjoyment, rather than fright, I left it out. But yes, it was definitely one of the scariest movies I saw as a kid.
Behemoth, when it melts the trucks and men. Simply horrifying.
I'm glad we're not alone in noticing these things. Yup, love the helmet tap! Great stuff.
Them! is awesome.Giant ants and real flamethrowers is hard to beat.John Carpenter's Thing is not really a remake.The 1982 Thing is actually much more accurate an adaption of the story both are based on,in fact TTFAW is not even really close.I still like the movie though
What? I grew up in New Jersey, the home of the Drive-in!
I have a dream that someday we'll bring 'em back! Crazier things have happened.
@Cobalt Blue
Despite the really cool Tripods, you didn't miss much in regards to the War of the Worlds remake.
I wonder if the original War works because the actors were more interesting in playing their characters than playing themselves. Hence, despite the special effects being obvious to my adult eyes, the original War quickly sucks me into the story.
I'm sorry but at this point Tom Cruise doesn't show any range and thus can't overcome the admittedly cool CGI.
I see your point, but I have to disagree.
I don't think he was presented as a fool at all.
He's actually correct in what he says, though he's naive in thinking that pure reason can always win out against this brutal creature. His ideals are there and they are noble, that there is lots to be learned and gained from this new being. But his naivety about the dangers of what the being presents are what make him wrong.
Even at the end, Scotty the newsman does not blame him or even say how he was wounded, but rather takes the high road and simply states his injuries were caused by the creature, which is true. The co-pilot even 'salutes' this gesture by the newsman by saying 'way to go, Scotty' which is heard in low tones.
I don't think Hawks wanted Carrington shown as a fool, or even as bad. But misguided.
You are right, though about today. If it was remade today, surely he'd be a Christian or Military maniac or Corporate fiend. Look at Aliens, which borrowed heavily from this film, and Paul Reiser's company man character.
No, these were all gents (and two ladies!) at the Polar camp. Unlike the great John Carpenter remake, this The Thing is peopled by great people. Whereas Carpenter's had mostly losers. And the one 'heavy', Gary, is a semi-military man.
I think Dr. Carrington was not a fool, nor was he portrayed as such. He was simply a very brilliant man who wished to understand this new phenomenon, throwing aside caution. It cost him. Reason and common sense were provided by Captain Hendry and most of the rest of the characters.
Well, I didn't mention a lot, for many reasons, time and space being paramount. Heck, the piece is already too long by the site standards! Thanks John, for letting me droll on! (check's in the mail!)
And I really only mentioned those moments that crossed my mind as I casually poured over those three flicks (and some other mentions) and thought about character moments. It's not really a list of great or famous lines or moments in these films. There are tons of books and sites on that kind of thing, so I figured I'd be more personal in my remembrance of them.
But yes, the little girl Newt, who is a direct reference for Cameron's little girl in Aliens, as you probably already know, was quite a screen presence and her scream put new meaning in the title.
I first saw the original "Thing" a couple years ago. And I thought it was cool how the movie uses the scientist so show the stupidity of "understanding" an enemy who's trying to KILL you.
Unlike his fellow humans, the scientist thought belief in moral absolutes was nonsense embraced by the "lowbrow crowd." And he nearly dies for his arrogance. (Similarly. the liberal, appeasing elite will have to be at least maimed by bloodthirsty Islamic terrorists before they quit with the appeasement.)
The best part is that the "Thing" makes delivers its morale without being heavy handed.
"It's not that kids think a movie has to be all CG to enjoy it. It's that adults won't introduce them to the great old ones."
Precisely. You've hit on a very important concept.
Oh, no! Don't say that!! How Green was my Valley is one of my favorite films! And possibly my favorite John Ford. It was one of his own favorites! Haha.
Just goes to show ya! But I agree with you on your other comparisons! Yeah!
Dana Hersey and The Movie Loft!
Sure does count!
Attaboy, Joe! Million Dollar Movie – twice each night (school nights) and three times on weekends – It Came From Beneath the Sea, The Giant Behemoth, Mighty Joe Young, Son of Kong and that classic little noir Too Late For Tears.
Oh sure. Great stuff. Like I said, there are so many worth mentioning, one has to pare down what can be said in a short essay (that ran too long! Again, thanks John. More checks in the mail!;)
What I find rewarding and very enjoyable is that touching briefly on some of the ones that come to mind, remind others of still different ones, continuing the conversation. It's really what I enjoy most about these kinds of sites.
Thanks.
Very true. And Carpenter's love of Hawks' film, one of his stated favorites, was not meant to one-up the original. Very different take indeed.
Another B-movie in that vein is "The Blob," one of my favorites. Despite the best attempts by the teen heroes, none of the adults believes that this shapeless monster is running around eating people.
The coolest scene was when the Blob makes its "public debut" in a movie theater.
Those were indeed the days.
[All the gore and ghastliness they didn't show in the old movies: instead, they showed the actors reacting to it, and that just loosened your imagination so that you imagined more horrific stuff than anything today's splatter artists could possibly create. It's better that way.]
When I saw the Thing for the first time as an adult I was shocked how CREEPY the film is despite being bloodless. That is indeed a credit to the actors, who put their all into the characters.
Real emotion always beats shameless gore in a scary movie.
True, and point taken.
I couldn't get enough of these movies when I was a kid. My brother got me and my little sister hooked. He had a TV set up in his bedroom and used to charge admission when they were on. All we had to do was drop some money into the empty holy water container attached to the wall when we entered his room. The balcony was the top bunk. Great time of my youth! Personal favs:
Invaders From Mars
The Incredible Shrinking Man
The Giant Behemoth
Gorgo
The Monster That Challenged the World
The Tingler
Beast From 20,000 Fathoms
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
…and anything Ray Harryhausen (who can forget the skeleton army)
Oh, man…
They may or may not be "B" grade, but:
Colossus: the Forbin project (mentioned before)
Robinson Crusoe on Mars
Yeah, I went with more brainiac stuff; so sue me…
I recall some things with critters looking like Morbo from "Futurama", some stinky things with needles for fingernails, ants and lobsters and tarantulas creeping across screens, Cushing and Price and Lee messing with my mind…and giant inflatable brains…
Cruise and Reeve should have said, "Hell NO!"
Hopefully Hollywood got the message…
Man, Harryhausen movies own me.
Back in the 70's as a kid in the islands my family and I used to tune into a hole in the wall TV station out of Tortola that played all these great old 'B' films.
The show was run by a unkempt bearded sea salt dude from a desk covered with old video tapes and I loved every cheesy sci-fi/monster movie thing he played. It seemed he had every Harryhausen and Toho film ever made and then some. Aliens, atomic monsters, flying saucers and space exploration ruled. Boy did I get really good at balling up tin foil on the antenna and positioning it in just such a way as to pick up the signal.
I have very fond memories of that time where more than just a few film producers actually loved their countries and invested their work with honest uplifting themes of liberty and faith in human decency. Heck, I still watch a ten times more films from the 20's through the 60's than any of the post-modern crap 'artists' crank out these days.
Its an abiding shame that even the Soviets propaganda studios of the day cranked out more pro-human liberty stuff than is common today in the west.
Well, what I mentioned was not so much what I thought was the best or greatest, but the three films that came to mind for having excellent characters throughout. But, of course, I also mentioned that there were scores of others. So, it's not a list for me, really. Also, time and space constraints limited how many films I could talk about. As it was I was waaaay over the limit. I tend to do that.
I'd have to say Quatermass and the Pit the BBC serial was particularly great and in my opinion the best of all Quatermass stories and productions. The others were good, but that one had just the right look and cast, imho. Plus, it was BBC video, which I usually don't like, but somehow..
Yes, that's what I wanted to talk about, the characters, not the monsters, nor the tech stuff. The people. And The Thing, WOTW and Them! are the tops for me.
Have you ever seen that Charles Addams illustration of the father in easy chair reading paper and casually saying to his son without looking up, "I give up. What HAS a million eyes and crawls?"
Behind them both you can see what only the boy sees, a giant multi eyed creature crawling down the staircase. Great!
The tripods in Bayonne scared the bejesus out of me. I saw in the theater. HUUGE screen and fantastic sound. Man alive, it was scary.
The story dipped and danced about, but I think it was a noble effort. Lots of holes and dumb ending. But there was still enough in it for me to like. And yes, I did like Tom's performance in it. I felt for his character's plight.
If they cut out the Tim Robbins basement scene, changed the ending, it would have improved the film immensely.
Don't tell anyone but I screen many of these B films and more on The Cinemated Man.
http://cinematedman.com
Oh, yeah. I'm a big fan of Toho and Daiei studio monster flicks. Grew up on them too.
Also, I have a couple of other weird connections to those monsters. I went to college in Massachusetts with Ichiro Honda's (Godzilla) granddaughter. And I cast an ex-assistant director for Daiei (Gamera) friend in a short film I did.
And third, a childhood friend of my dad's left the eastcoast and drove out to Hollywood many years ago. among other things and roles, he starred in a couple of the Toho classics as the foreigner or astronaut. You know him as Nick Adams.
Yesiree! Gary!! We love ya! Chime in!!
It's true, there are newer B flicks out there being made and making money! They do very well overseas, too.
Maybe something to think about…
Yes, indeed. I'm researching a little bit on that topic, movie hosts of yesteryear. We miss them terribly.
Kronos: very scary stuff to a kid.
Whit Bissell's sudden realization and head turn, followed by the rapid instructions to his men at the end of Invasion of the Body Snatchers was pure goosebumps and millimeters away from my mentioning in the essay.
I wish I kept it in! I love his performances in everything and that is his best, most priceless moment!
Lol!! The best part of that, is it's true. It's exactly what would happen!
Whitmore served in WWII. It is one of the reasons that his final scene rings true. Great Actor and from what little I know of him was also a great guy.
It was already mentioned that Forbidden Planet was na "A" movie but it is also the first time "Robbie the Robot" appeared on screen. He was used so many times after that.
If you were from the Southeast there was the smell of "Pic" a spiral shaped mosquito repelant that Mom would have burning on the open glove box door.
Oh my Lord – 1950's monster movies were the best! I love The Incredible Shrinking Man so much, and then there's Tarantula (Jack Arnold was a wonderful director) and Jason and the Argonauts and just about anything Ray Harryhausen worked on, and The Tingler (I think that was the first time any character in the movies used LSD).
Good memories
Anybody remember a movie called "Mars needs Women"? I have a dim memory of that movie. Women would suddenly disappear on Earth and would somehow get transported to Mars as Mars had developed some type of Martian Woman shortage. Riviting.
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The original "Invaders from Mars" – absolutely terrified me when I saw it on TV as a 10 y/o. In later years, we teens mocked it for the zippers on the Martian's costumes, but as adults we came to realize why the film terrified us so – everything we believed in – parents, teachers, kindly policemen, all authority figures – were removed from normality and turned onto alien tools.
Plus – the sand pit behind the boy's house and that fearful vocal chorus as the pit would open up and swallow another victim. Horrifying!
Anyone note that the film was directed by an art director, the famed William Cameron Menzies? He'd worked on "Gone with the Wind" amongst many others…..and he took a small budget for "Invaders from Mars" and made the film look like a nightmare come to life.
In the 60's, in Phoenix we had "The World Beyond" Friday night at 8:00 and repeated the next day at noon. From top line horror like Frankenstien and Dracula to b-movie classics like Godzilla and the Harryhausen films to the Tenth Level of b-films like The Killer Shrews and Teenagers From Outer Space. Peppered with live 3 minute-long car comercials, and annoying older sisters, it was a great format to watch these films as a kid.
Wow, someone remembers and APPRECIATES the great MONTAGU LOVE? Thanks for that.
These B movies were the late night fare on Friday or Saturday at about midnight. Turn on the old 19" B&W TV and try your best to get the danged rabbit ears right so the picture would not be so snowy. Then sat there in the dark with the popcorn and hope that doggoned Tingler doesn't come crawling out from under the couch.
Talos…and that skeleton army. Wow!
I loved the Monolith Monsters! The scene of the giant crystals inexorably growing, toppling, and growing again as they approach the town was pure perfect UHF-TV station monster movie bliss! I'm almost reluctant to watch it again for fear it will disappoint.
Carpenter´s remake excels in terms of eerie atmosphere and sense of dread, but the characters are strangely distant. Even before their discovery they seem at odds with each other, there is no authority, no cooperation, little dialogue. Of course paranoia is part of the premise, but there is something very 1970s about people standing around cussing while everything goes to heck. I like both, but if I had to chose I´d go with the1950s version.
To my dying day I will maintain that the original The Thing From Another World is a better picture than John Carpenter's remake.
Carpenter, of course, is partly responsible for the degeneration of B movies into gore fests, where mood and atmosphere were replaced with fake blood and guts as a way to evoke fear. There's probably some interesting explanation as to why that happened in the 1970's.
I concur that Carrington isn't a bad guy, but misguided. But it's a hoot to think that if such a plot point were used today, the moviemakers would probably be accused of being right-wing hacks engaging in anti-intellectualism.
Another great B movie with a message you wouldn't hear today from Hollywood is Destination Moon, where the follow exchange took place (courtesty IMDB):
[Why the government isn't involved if it's so important]
Jim Barnes: Here's the reason. The vast amount of brains, talents, special skills, and research facilities necessary for this project are not in the government, nor can they be mobilized by the government in peacetime without fatal delay. Only American industry can do this job. And American industry must get to work, now, just as we did in the last war!
Industrialist: Yes, but the government footed the bill!
Jim Barnes: And they'll foot this bill, too, if we're successful; you know that. If we fail, we'll take a colossal beating. So we can't fail! Not only is this the greatest adventure awaiting mankind, but it's the greatest challenge ever hurled at American industry. And General Thayer is going to tell you why.
General Thayer: The reason is quite simple. We are not the only ones who know that the Moon can be reached. We're not the only ones who are planning to go there. The race is on – and we'd better win it, because there is absolutely no way to stop an attack from outer space. The first country that can use the Moon for the launching of missiles… will control the Earth. That, gentlemen, is the most important military fact of this century.
The Monolith Monsters is an underrated and unusual sci-fi movie. I checked it out from the library a few months ago. Very effective and features well done special effects for the time. Definitely worth a view.
Yep! Blue Oyster Cult ruled in that one! (Kidding!)
B movies exist for one reason – to be mercilessly mocked on Mystery Science Theater 3000!
I love most – if not all of the films mentioned by the others here, but a great, somewhat recent film that paid homage to many of the great film we grew up with is Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. Flawed? Sure. Fun and gorgeous to look at? You bet!… A crack hit of b-movie nostalgia and ode to every corny movie you ever loved.
War of the Worlds and The Thing get worn out at my home – I am forced to frequently replace them I view the so often.
One thing I do watch for each time I view The Thing is the short views of actor James Arness. I remeber my surprise to learn he played the Thing but the next time I watched it, even the briefest view of him revealed him clearly as a young. tall James Arness… The scene when Kenneth Toby opens that greenhouse room door in the complex and there standds the (James Arness) Thing in the doorway – suddenly swinging a long, clawed hand towards Tobey's face standing there shocked and nealy frozen solid is fright was a remarkable, brief piece of cinema…… And then in the film's conclusion in the electric wired corridor,,, as thge Tghing approaches his electrical doom… again, Arness; face is clearly unmistakable even in the costumery – which upon refelction was really quite modestly done. No question, The Thing IS indeed my fav B flick of all time – as so many have stated.
My favs are:
1). The Black Scorpion
2). Them
3). The Deadly Mantis
4). 20 million miles to earth
5). Valley of Gwangi
6). Any of the Sinbad movies (not the comedian but the Harryhausen ones)
7). The Beast from 20,000 fathoms
8). The Mole People
9). Freaks
10). Creature from the Black Lagoon
11). the thing (both old and new versions)
12). Night of the Lepus (wolf sized rabbits that kill. Love it)
13). Day the Earth Stood still
14). War of the Worlds (both old and new versions)
15). Mysterious Island
16). Terror Island
17). The Dr Phibes movies.
That is all I can conjure up at the moment. but I see that I am not the only one who loves The Black Scorpion. Still one of my most favorite movies ever. I am wearing out my DVD copy. lol
Fantastic essay; you nailed one of the big reasons I love these old sci-fi movies. To your list I'd add Forbidden Planet (maybe it's budget made it an A flick, but I put it in with these – a badge of honor, in my book), Earth vs. The Flying Saucers (Come on, who doesn't get a thrill from seeing Washington get smacked?), and Black Scorpion. Even the bad ones were fun.
One of the reasons these movies worked is that they translated the comfortable character archetypes from other genres such as military or Western pix and laid the science-fiction over them. While the alien and the weird were present, we knew what to expect from the people who were our eyes and ears in the movie. They also captured the wonder of the early age of space exploration, something that's sadly missing now that we're left only with the picked-over leftovers of a space program.
And I'll agree with an earlier commenter who mentioned the dialog in TFAW: it's sharp, energetic without being frenetic, and delivered perfectly. If I were teaching screenwriting, I'd use it as a model.
[...] of Sinbad is a must on Saturday for the terrific Ray Harryhausen effects, but of course … I Keep Watching the Skies: B Movies and Me I love all those "fantastic adventure" movies, like "The Seventh Voyage of [...]
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