The Monster That Challenged The World (1957) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_325" align="alignright" width="263"] Official Score = 3 Devils[/caption]

Before Joe Dante (Innerspace) created the B Movie sensation in the monster movie having to do with Piranha (1978 ), and even before, Steven Spielberg (Minority Report) created the international monster movie sensation based on your standard Shark in the movie Jaws (1975), there was, The Monster That Challeneged The World (1957)!

Written by: Pat Fielder (The Vampire), and Directed by: Arnold Laven (Slaughter On Tenth Avenue). Starring: Tim Holt (Road Agent), Audrey Dalton (Titanic), Hans Conried (Lost In Space), And Gordon Jones (The Green Hornet).

The Monster That Challenged The World (A movie which inspirationally speaking I believe was direct ancestor of both Piranha and Jaws) tells the story of a small salt lake in the middle of the California desert that as it turns out is a top secret research facility for the U.S. Navy.

Now during an earthquake, a group of ancient sea monsters eggs that had been housing ancient sea monsters, that had been known as, 'Krakens' (creatures that are the ancestors of modern day Mollusks.

At first no one suspects anything until one day while during a parachute test, the parachutist and the launch that has been posted to pick up the parachutist go missing.

Well after they go missing, the communications operator informs a Naval Intelligence Agent by the name of, Lt. Cmdr John Twilliger (Holt), who when he and his team discover the launch end up discovering a substance that they end up sending to the lab.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="320"] The Communications Operator informing the Commander about the Launch![/caption]

Now as Commander Twilliger begins to start assembling his team, which will include: a Navy Doctor by the name of, Dr. Jess Rogers (Conreid), Dr. Rogers assistant by the name of Gail McKenzie (Dalton), Sheriff Josh Peters (Jones), along with a small team from the Navy, and Sheriff Peters deputies, everyone in his growing team will discover a threat to the world that they will have to stop before these Kraken can escape from the Salt lake, and eventually make it out in to the ocean where they can begin to take over the world!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Commander Twilliger and his team as they are trying to destroy the monster![/caption]

As an ancestor of movies like Jaws and Piranha, I gotta say that this movie is an interesting one, you see, in Jaws, (as is with Piranha, i'm sure,) you get to see where some of the modern filmmaking legends came up with some of the stuff in their movies, and I believe that this is no exception. 

What I mean by this is:

1. In Piranha (1978) the monster is a group of genetically engineered Piranha, in Jaws (1975) it was a large Shark that was the monster. In The Monster That Challenged The World, it was a group of Giant Mollusk... All in all, creatures that for the most part can be seen in the ocean today.

2. In all 3 movies, the monsters threaten areas where swimmers usually swim.

3. Lastly, in similarity between The Monster That Challenged The World and Piranha, the monsters surfaced next to a U.S. Navy Research Facility, and in Piranha, the Piranha are from a U.S. Army facility.

The next thing that I thought that I would mention here is the acting. In the 50s and 60s the Special Effects in Science Fiction and Horror movies was not a great, but what they loose in special effects they gain in the amazing talent that the actors and actresses bring to the game, (and I gotta say that this movie's acting talent was amazing!)

All in all folks, if you’re a fan of Science Fiction or Horror movies of the 1950s, then you might like this one!

http://youtu.be/YM7b0-HoTlc

The Vampire (1957) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_322" align="alignright" width="258"] Official Score = 1 1/2 Devils[/caption]

Over the last few years, since I have been really begun delving deeper in to movies then I would have ever gone before, I have started watching these really great black and white movies, and you know what? I have found that I really like them!

Now I mention this for two reasons. The first reason that I mention this is that another interesting fact about movie goers that I am slowly beginning to realize is that a lot of movie fans primarily (but often not exclusively) tend to gravitate toward the movies that and styles of movie that they grew up watching when they were kids!

A great example of this is that I knew a guy who I was talking with about movies, and he was talking about all of these great movies from the new millennium that he just thought were truly fantastic (and I have to admit that more than a few he had mentioned genuinely were quite fun,) but at the time I was deeply involved in the works of Bela Lugosi, and trying to talk to him about it was going right over his head! (Of course there was a few that he was talking about that were going over my head as well.)

Now if you’re a fan of old black and white horror or science fiction movies then the other reason I mention the above is because I recently watched a kick ass classic black and white horror movie called, The Vampire (1957)!

Written by: Pat Fielder (The Monster That Challenged The World) & Directed by: Paul Landres (Daktari). Starring: John Beal (Amityville 3-D), Coleen Gray (The Killing), Kenneth Tobey (The Thing From Another World), Lydia Reed (The Seven Little Foys) and Dabs Greer (Invasion Of The Body Snatchers).

Now, The Vampire, is an interesting tale, you see in a lot of respects, although it does have elements of the, ‘Vampire’, story line, it is really more closely related to the tale of, ‘Dr.Jekyll & Mr. Hyde’.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="530"] Mr. Hyde... The Vampire![/caption]

What I mean by this, is that Dr. Paul Beecher (Beal) is a small town Doctor with a quiet little practice where he is liked by his patients and the rest of the community, and is respected with in the scientific community that has set up shop in the small town.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="671"] Dr. Paul Beecher (John Beal) as he is seeing patients... But before he begins to transform in to the man he is going to be... Literally![/caption]

One day though Doctor Beecher is called out to the base of operations for the lab that had been set up by Doctor Campbell (Played by: Wood Romoff). You see this solitary Doctor who had developed a drug that was supposed to eventually expand the intellect of mankind… The only problem is that the drug is hideously addictive and every time the person who is addicted to the drug doesn't take it, then the killer that the drug created is awaken (very Jeykll & Hyde, eh?)

Anyway, Doctor Campbell ends up dying, but before he does, he gives Beecher the drugs that he had been taken…. Well Beecher takes them home with him, but when he gets home, Doctor Beecher comes down with a headache and asks his daughter, ‘Betsy’ (Reed) to give him one of his headache pills from his coat pocket, big mistake!

You see the pill that Betsy ends up giving Beecher is the drug that killed Doctor Campbell, and now that Doctor Beecher is addicted, the more he tries not to take the drug, the more his own personal, ‘Mr. Hyde’ will go on his own literally blood thirsty rampage that will end up slowly destroying the Doctor!

Now I have to say that this movie is more of an interesting take on the old, ‘Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde’ premise, I mean there are elements of Vampirism in this movie, (when Beecher changes, he does appear to drink blood through the jugular,) but un like most vampires (who just kind of are vampires,) Beecher’s monster came out because of the drug, and the change was more like changing in to, ‘Mr. Hyde’ then any of the more traditional vampire archetypes that we are used to seeing in Vampire movies even going that far back!

With all of this in mind, this movie is a fun one, and if you like black and white movies, then you should atleast try this movie once!