Rebel With a Jelly Cause

THE BLOB (1958)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

I never found anything scary about a gooey mass of Jello crash landing on Earth and devouring everything in its path. Still, this is something of a cult film in the 50's sci-fi B movie genre and you could do worse, but you could also do better.

Steve McQueen, in his acting debut, is a young teenager named Steve who is on an innocent date with his girlfriend, Jane (Anita Courseaut). They observe a meteor crashing in the distance and they go investigate. An old-timer's hand is sucked by this blob from the meteor and almost runs into the teens' car. Before long a doctor and his assistant are involved, a cute little pooch, the disbelieving policemen who do not believe Steve's story, and a movie theater and diner (50's consumerist icons) are being corrupted by the pink slime that is slowly growing. The police think it is all a prank except for Lt. Dave (Earl Rowe), who doesn't think Steve has a lying bone in his body.

For 50's fans of the Rebel Without a Cause variety, there is a bizarre scene of a chicken race except it involves the cars driving in reverse. Steve McQueen gives the best performance in the film, which may not be saying a whole lot considering the indifferent, undistinguished cast. I suppose the picture is mild fun for a while, though it stalls frequently and takes an eternity to get to its slimy climax. "The Blob" is a 50's replica of a B-movie though it is considerably bland and played far too straight. I wanted to laugh when McQueen calls for the police's attention by honking on car horns and issuing an air raid siren! How did he manage to get an air raid siren to go off? 

Believe it or not, that is the question

CURSE OF THE DEMON aka NIGHT OF THE DEMON (1957)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

"Curse of the Demon" could pass itself off as a 50's B monster movie but it has A talent and an A+ director so attention must be paid. Despite a rather silly-looking monster, "Curse of the Demon" is a sophisticated, creepy flick that will make you feel uneasy.

Dana Andrews is Dr. Holden, an American psychologist and author who is skeptical of demonology and demonic monsters on the loose. He travels to London to attend a demonology seminar when he gets wind that his friend, Professor Harrington, was killed in a strange accident involving power lines. Harrington's niece, Joanna (Peggy Cummins), a kindergarten teacher, feels differently  - she feels it was a demon. Adding to his skepticism is a weird seance where a lively song is sung; a certain goateed Karswell (lucidly played by Niall MacGinnis), a demonology expert and worshipper who can summon evil spirits and bad thunderstorms and entertain kids in clown makeup; parchments containing runic symbols, and Stonehenge itself.

"Curse of the Demon" is smoothly and masterfully directed by Jacques Tourneur, who helmed one of my favorite films, 1942's "Cat People." Here, the accent is also on shadows, specifically two eerie nighttime sequences involving a forest and Karswell's ginormous home. And there are some clever touches, including Holden's point-of-view after his meeting with Karswell where the screen seems to vibrate in a trance-like manner. There are several shots of corridors where a menace may or may not linger. I also love a scene where there is an examination of one patient who is hypnotized - you'll wonder what will happen next and when Holden will realize that demons might exist. Plus the music score with its screeching sounds of incoming trains, wild animals and thunder are sure to make your palms sweat.

"Curse of the Demon" (originally titled "Night of the Demon" and recut for U.S. audiences) does have the aforementioned silly-looking monster who appears right at the beginning of the film and in a later scene. I can forgive its inclusion because the ending of the film retains a certain ambiguity through the lead character. Even if you witness supernatural evil, that doesn't mean you believe it.

Karloff the Uncanny Monster

FRANKENSTEIN (1931)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

 Although Boris Karloff's makeup and performance have entered the pop culture realm, this "Frankenstein" version from 1931 is not the best or the most faithful of Mary Shelley's novel. Still, compared to most other film versions (there have been over 100), it is one of the most effective and, perhaps, one of the most atmospheric.

James Whale's "Frankenstein" stars the harsh presence of Colin Clive as the mad Dr. Frankenstein, slaving away at creating life from a corpse inside a remote watchtower. He gets assistance from Fritz (Dwight Frye), a hunchback who inadvertently steals a criminal brain from the local medical school. Once the creation, now with a criminal brain, is brought to life with the use of electrical devices and a brewing storm, it begins to wreck havoc, escaping his prison and tormenting the local villagers. Eventually, Frankenstein leaves the castle for more modest surroundings, and is ready to marry his adoring Elizabeth (Mae Clarke) until terror strikes again in the face of the wandering Monster.

There are far too many inconsistencies in the film to warrant the heaps of praise it has received since it was initially released. Number one: how does the Monster know about Frankenstein's bride-to-be and why does he attack her? Number two: how is it that a villager knows his drowned daughter was murdered by the Monster? Could she not have just drowned? Number three: where does the film take place? Germany? Scotland? And what is with all the German and Slavic names when everyone speaks with an English accent?

Such inconsistencies aside, "Frankenstein" certainly has a lot to recommend it. Karloff is menacing, tender, sympathetic, cruel, and pathetic as the Monster - his first appearance where he walks slowly facing Frankenstein and stares inertly still sends chills to my spine. I admire Colin Clive's hard-edged performance as the scientist - he shows the doctor's mental breakdown and exhaustion perfectly. Mae Clarke does not have a lot of screen time but she is sweetly innocent - her scenes with John Boles as Victor, Henry and Elizabeth's mutual friend, suggests that Victor has mutual affection for her. Edward Van Sloan (who appeared the same year as Professor Van Helsing in "Dracula") is the most watchable presence on screen as an old professor who has a keen interest in this creation, though he is nonplussed by it at the beginning. He also presents the film in a prologue, which had not been in all existing prints, where he warns the audience that it may shock them, perhaps terrify them.

"Frankenstein" had some major trims in its original release thanks to the Production Code. One was the deletion of Maria's drowning, as she is thrown in the lake by the Monster who expects her to float like the daisies. Originally, it had just shown the Monster smiling and reaching out its hands to the girl. This minor trim makes the preceding scene of her father carrying her lifeless body far more violent than intended.

The other deletion was a line of dialogue said by Dr. Frankenstein after the first signs of life in the Monster. The deleted line - "In the name of God, now I know what it feels like to be God" - was certainly essential and in keeping with Mary Shelley's theme of man's attempt to emulate God.

"Frankenstein" is not a perfect film and not nearly as unifying as a whole as the superior "Bride of Frankenstein," the latter in my estimation is the best damn version ever. If nothing else, Karloff still makes one shudder and that is enough to consider the film a horror classic - he makes the film his own.

Lugosi sinks his teeth into the most famous bloodsucker

DRACULA (1931)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

 Whether it is Bela Lugosi's frighteningly icy stare or Dwight Frye's madly incessant need for bugs, this "Dracula" is among the most beautiful interpretations of Bram Stoker's famous novel (though it does take all kinds of liberties from the original text). It is certainly Lugosi who brings an eerie sense of menace to the film, and he makes you actually feel uneasy while watching it.

At the beginning of this dreamlike film, we are treated to the sight of a carriage on its way to Transylvania. Mr. Renfield (Dwight Frye) is in the carriage which will take him to Castle Dracula for a business venture. "Castle Dracula?" asks one of the superstitious gypsies. "No!!!" Nevertheless, despite ominous warnings from the townspeople, Renfield continues on his journey. He finally arrives at the castle (minus a driver) and meets the graceful Count (Bela Lugosi) at the top of a staircase. Here Lugosi has one of his many famous lines during the first half-hour: "I am Dracula, and I bid you welcome," says Lugosi.

We finally enter the vast dining room where dinner awaits but there is no servant. The Count acts as host and stares at Renfield, wraithlike and obviously hungry for his blood. Renfield cuts his finger with a butterknife and attracts some bloodcurling attention from Dracula before being abruptly stopped by a dangling crucifix.

Afterwards, Renfield falls victim to the Count's fangs and becomes his servant, as they make the trek to Dracula's new property at Carfax Abbey in England. It is there where the Count immerses himself in the company of Dr. Seward (Herbert Bunston), his daughter, Mina Seward (Helen Chandler), and Jonathan Harker (mild-mannered David Manners). Of course, there are some pretty necks to take advantage of in the meantime, while the corpses with neck wounds baffle everyone except for vampire expert Dr. Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan). Meanwhile, the deliriously mad Renfield (with his famously chattering laugh) is a patient at Dr. Seward's hospital, and thus contemplates with his lack of sanity and unwillingness to do his Master's bidding.

"Dracula" was directed by Tod Browning, who a year later helmed the controversial and frightening horror film "Freaks." Here, his astute direction plays tricks with the audience, and he does a competent job with the superb cinematographer Karl Freund. This telling of Dracula leaves everything to the imagination. In one shockingly good scene, Harker notices that there is a wolf outside the house after Dracula hastily leaves. Naturally, the wolf is Dracula, but in this film, we never see him change into a bat, wolf or fog. In fact, Lugosi never has any noticeable fangs! To make the film really work your imagination, we never see him arise from a coffin. Each time a coffin's lid is open, we see a close-up shot of a hand lifting it while the camera pans away to the left and back to the right to witness the Count standing next to the coffin with the lid closed!

What makes this "Dracula" indelible in everyone's minds is Lugosi - he was perfectly cast as the Hungarian accented Count. His frozen stares and piercing eyes evoke an unforgettable image of an animal seeking its prey yet doing it with poise and subtlety. This by no means is the best of the vampire flicks (both "Nosferatu" versions can lay claim to that status) yet all the sequels and remakes of the world will never match Bela Lugosi's bloody good performance.

Footnote: Originally, "Dracula" was released without an actual musical score, despite the use of the famous "Swan Lake" excerpt by Tchaikovsky played during the introductory and closing credits. Recently, avante-garde composer Philip Glass composed a truly melodic and moody score to accompany the film for the first time.