Do the Jellyfish!

by Kimberly Lindbergs | October 12, 2011

Categories | Movie Reviews, Horror, Science Fiction

STING OF DEATH (1965) tells the strange and tragic story of Igor Egon (John Vella), a horribly disfigured loner who just might be Oliver Reed’s ugly American cousin. Egon works for a scientist (Jack Nagle) in the Florida Everglades who is studying jellyfish, in particular the extremely dangerous Portuguese Man of War. Egon also happens to be in love with the scientist’s pretty daughter Miss Karen (Valerie Hawkins) but Miss Karen only has eyes for John (Joe Morrison), a clean-cut and incredibly dull young man that also assists her father. John smiles a lot, seems to enjoy berating Egon and likes to take his shirt off. Things get interesting when Miss Karen arrives at her father’s swanky Florida home with a bunch of her cute girlfriends. John throws Miss Karen a wild party and a group of local hipsters arrive to drink, dance and assault poor Egon. But unbeknownst to them, Egon has been hatching a sinister plan! Undoubtedly inspired by a steady diet of comic books and low-budget Japanese monster movies, Egon transforms himself into a deadly jellyfish-like monster and begins eliminating the rhythmless party guests who seem determined to prove the old adage is true: white people can’t dance.

“Wella, I’m saying fella, forget your Cinderella and do the jella, the jilla-jalla jellyfish!”
- Neil Sedaka

Before this no-budget movie comes to an end you’ll see people “Do the Jellyfish” and witness some of the most unconvincing special effects ever captured on film. It might be hard to believe but STING OF DEATH is probably my favorite William Grefe film. Grefe directed and produced a batch of vaguely interesting American B-movies shot in Florida during the ’60s and ’70s such as DEATH CURSE OF TARTU (1966), THE WILD REBELS (1967) and STANLEY (1972). STANLEY, which tells the odd tale of a Vietnam vet with a penchant for killer snakes, is probably the director’s most respected and best-loved film but I personally prefer STING OF DEATH. Maybe it’s the “Do the Jellyfish” ska inspired tune sung by Neil Sedaka? John Vella’s scene stealing turn as the sympathetic Egon? Or could it be the cheap jellyfish monster costume that stuntman Doug Hobart risked his life to wear? Whatever the case may be, I found STING OF DEATH a hell of a lot of fun to watch and it’s available from Something Weird Video. If you have cable TV you can currently see STING OF DEATH on demand, which is where I recently watched it.

Trailer for STING OF DEATH (1965)

One of the film’s highlights!
A ska influenced musical number “Do the Jellyfish” sung by Neil Sedaka

Recommended links:
- William Grefe’s Official Homepage
- Eccentric Cinema’s review of Grefe’s STING OF DEATH & DEATH CURSE OF TARTU with jellyfish monster sound effect!
- STING OF DEATH was the subject of a B-Masters blogathon & you can find a batch of reviews for the film at their site.

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Reinventing Lolita

by Kimberly Lindbergs | September 8, 2011

Categories | Movie Reviews, Giallo, Actresses, Science Fiction, Spanish Cinema, Gay Interest, Movie Morlocks, TCM, Stanley Kubrick

Top: Sue Lyon in Murder in a Blue World (1973)
Bottom: Sue Lyon in Lolita (1961)

From my latest post at The Movie Morlocks:

One of the most iconic images to emerge from the cinema in the 1960s is the figure of a young Sue Lyon, peering over her sunglasses at a leering James Mason in Stanley Kubrick’s LOLITA (1961). And I’m definitely not alone in my view. The Spanish genre director Eloy de la Iglesia must have agreed with me when he decided to cast Sue Lyon in his intriguing futuristic thriller, MURDER IN A BLUE WORLD (aka CLOCKWORK TERROR; 1973). Eloy de la Iglesia’s film has often been labeled a low-budget and poorly constructed Spanish knock-off of Stanley Kubrick’s A CLOCKWORK ORANGE (1971) and it’s easy to understand why. But its meta-referencing goes way beyond A CLOCKWORK ORANGE and tips its hat in equal measure to Kubrick’s LOLITA. In fact, MURDER IN A BLUE WORLD is really an homage to Kubrick himself and possibly one of the most interesting films released in Spain during the early ‘70s.

If you’d like to read more about Sue Lyon in Eloy de la Iglesia’s MURDER IN A BLUE WORLD please follow the link:
- Reinventing Lolita in MURDER IN A BLUE WORLD (1973) @ TCM’s Classic Movie Blog

I’ve also compiled a Flickr gallery of images from the film that you can find here.

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Our Primal Fear of the Primordial Ooze

by Kimberly Lindbergs | June 30, 2011

Categories | Horror, Science Fiction, Steve McQueen, Ishiro Honda, Movie Morlocks, TCM

Yumi Shirakawa in The H-Man (1958)

This week at the Movie Morlocks I discuss our primal fear of the primordial ooze and highlight some of the slimy scares to be found during TCM’s Drive-In Double Features tonight. Some of the movies being played during this evening’s line-up are personal favorites and include THE BLOB (1956), THE H-MAN (1958) and X THE UNKNOWN (1955). A brief excerpt from my post:

“Whatever the reasons may be, I definitely have a fear of slime. It’s not a full-blown phobia but when I watch THE BLOB or THE H-MAN my heart starts to race and I get a little jumpy. I find these classic science fiction films genuinely scary. There’s just something incredibly creepy about a giant mass of ravenous slime that deeply unnerves me and I think being engulfed by a thick gooey substance would be absolutely horrifying.. There’s one scene in THE BLOB that I’ve always found particularly disturbing. It takes places in a car garage at night. Ralph Carmichael’s creepy score builds quietly in the background using a two-note progression to create suspense that predates John Williams’ similar score for JAWS (1975) by some 20 years, while we watch helplessly as one of the mechanics talks about his weekend plans to go hunting unaware that he’s been left alone. THE BLOB was a smartly scripted science fiction film and the irony of that scene isn’t lost on me. When the mechanic is hunted down and suddenly consumed by the creeping blob I have to fight the urge to close my eyes and cover my ears so I won’t have to listen to the grown man’s earth rattling screams.”

You can read the entire piece by following this link:
- It Creeps and Leaps and Glides and Slides @ TCM’s Movie Morlocks

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Comic Book of the Week: Land of the Giants

by Kimberly Lindbergs | June 16, 2011

Categories | Television, Science Fiction, Comic Books, Irwin Allen

Land of the Giants was a short-lived comic book series published between 1968-1969 by Gold Key Comics. I’m not sure who the artist and writer were because there are no credits in the comic but it was based on the television show of the same name. The series only lasted two seasons and I think it was one of Irwin Allen’s most interesting creations. It’s sort of a strange hybrid between Gulliver’s Travels, Lost in Space, Planet of the Apes and the 1965 film Village of the Giants, which Allen undoubtedly borrowed his title from. I wrote a little bit about the show a few years back when it was released on DVD so if you’d like to know more about Land of the Giants you can find information here.

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Remember My Name (1976) & TCM News

by Kimberly Lindbergs | June 2, 2011

Categories | Movie Reviews, News, Horror, Japanese Cinema, American Cinema, Science Fiction, Anthony Perkins, Thrillers, Movie Morlocks, TCM

Anthony Perkins & Geraldine Chaplin in Remember My Name (1976)

I’ve been really busy lately so please excuse the lack of updates around here. Lately it seems like I only have enough free time to share my Movie Morlock updates and today is no exception. I recently got the opportunity to watch Alan Rudolph’s unusual thriller Remember My Name (1976). I was originally interested in seeing the film because one of its stars was the one and only Anthony Perkins but I was surprised by how terrific the movie was. Follow the link to read my thoughts about this intriguing neo-noir:
- Remember My Name …or else. @ TCM’s Classic Movie Blog

I also wanted to let my readers know that during the month of June TCM is hosting a bunch of Drive-In Double Features every Thursday night! If I had my way TCM would make these Drive-In Double Features a regular part of their programming schedule but at least me and my fellow monster lovers will be able to enjoy some great movies this month. TCM put together a terrific promo video for this event that I just couldn’t resist sharing. June is going to be a fun month!

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Comic Book of the Week: Logan’s Run (1976)

by Kimberly Lindbergs | April 22, 2011

Categories | Television, Science Fiction, Comic Books

Logan’s Run was originally a movie tie-in comic published by Marvel Comics between 1976-1977 and illustrated by the great George Perez. One of the best things about the comic series was the fact that it followed the original script and included scenes that were cut from the film but it also censored a few scenes that Marvel thought were inappropriate for kids. The first five issues of Logan’s Run adapted the film pretty faithfully but by issue #6 Marvel was free to take the material in a creative new directions and they did. The series was extremely popular at the time that it was published but due to a sudden licensing disagreement Marvel was forced to cancel the comic after issue #7 and MGM decided to turn Logan’s Run into a television series.

I actually tried to follow the Logan’s Run comic books series when I was a kid but the only place you could buy comics in my hometown was at the local 7-11 and their spin rack was always half empty. They seemed to get random issues so I’d be stuck reading issue #2 followed by issue #5 and have no idea what I was missing. I loved the series though and Logan’s Run (Michael Anderson; 1976) is still one of my favorite science fiction films. These pages are from Logan’s Run #2 but I’ve also included an ad that ran in this issue for toy tie-ins with The Six Million Dollar Man television series, which was one of the best shows on TV in the ’70s.

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Frankenstein: “It’s Alive!”

by Kimberly Lindbergs | April 8, 2011

Categories | Horror, British Cinema, Science Fiction, Movie Morlocks, TCM, Danny Boyle

I rarely get out to see new films for a variety of reasons. First and foremost is my lack of disposable income but my desire to see new films is also limited by my tastes as well as geography. I simply have little interest in what’s currently playing at my local multiplex and very few options to see foreign and independent films. So what finally got me out of the house? Danny Boyle’s stage adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. To say I’m obsessed with Shelley’s original book is an understatement but in short, I’ve seen every film adaptation of Frankenstein that I could get my hands on and I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to see Danny Boyle’s take on Frankenstein, which happens to feature an absolutely terrific cast that includes Jonny Lee Miller (Trainspotting; 1996, Byron; 2003), Benedict Cumberbatch (Atonement; 2007 , Sherlock; 2010) and Naomie Harris (28 Days Later; 2002, Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story; 2005).

The play is currently a huge hit on the London stage but American audiences have the opportunity to see it performed live in selected movie theaters across the country throughout the month of April. You can find my lengthy look at Danny Boyle’s Frankenstein over at TCM’s Movie Morlocks blog as well as a link to the National Theatre site where you can find showtimes and purchase tickets to this exciting event.
- Frankenstein: “It’s Alive!” @ TCM’s Classic Movie Blog

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Anne Francis in The Satan Bug (1965)

by Kimberly Lindbergs | January 13, 2011

Categories | Movie Reviews, Spies & Secret Agents, American Cinema, Actresses, Science Fiction, Anne Francis

Anne Francis in (1965)

I was disappointed to learn that Anne Francis had passed away on January 2, 2011 so I decided to revisit one of her best films, John Sturges’ action-packed sci-fi thriller The Satan Bug (1965) for the Movie Morlocks. Sturges is an undervalued director and like many of Sturges’ movies, The Satan Bug deserves much more praise than it’s received since its initial release. If you’re an Anne Francis fan or just enjoy smart stylish thrillers I highly recommend heading over to the Movie Morlocks where you’ll find my tribute to the actress and Sturges’ terrific film.
- Anne Francis in The Satan Bug (1965) @ TCM’s Classic Movie Blog

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Summer Under the Stars: Julie Christie

by Kimberly Lindbergs | July 30, 2010

Categories | Movie Reviews, Horror, British Cinema, Actresses, Science Fiction, Donald Cammell, Julie Christie

Julie Christie in an early promo shot for Billy Liar (1963)

I recently wrote a lengthy piece about Donald Cammell’s science fiction thriller Demon Seed (1977), which has been published at the Turner Classic Movies site. My article coincides with TCM’s annual Summer Under the Stars event that celebrates the careers of various actors and actresses all summer long. This year many of my favorite screen stars will be represented in TCM’s lineup including Steve McQueen, Errol Flynn, Gene Tierney, Elizabeth Taylor, Peter O’Toole and the lovely ’60s icon, Julie Christie. Demon Seed will be shown on August 2 along with many other terrific Julie Christie’ films such as The Go-Between (1971), Doctor Zhivago (1965), Far From the Madding Crowd (1967), Billy Liar (1963), Darling (1965) and Petulia (1968). You can read my piece on Demon Seed as well as articles about all the other Julie Christie films being shown on August 2 at the TCM site.

- Summer Under The Stars - August 2/2010: Julie Christie

Julie Christie in Demon Seed (1977)

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