Die, Monster, Die!
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Movie Reviews of Die, Monster, Die!
Movie Review: Not Karloff's best, but still enjoyable
Summary: 4 Stars
Released in 1965 Die, Monster, Die was one of Karloff's last movies and at the time thanks to Roger Corman, Karloff was having a resurgence of his brilliant career. The title of the movie makes it sound like some silly monster movie and had this been made a decade earlier it probably would have been (not that it would be a bad thing). But for the most part Die, Monster, Die is played straight, which is good, but does hurt the final act a bit.
While Die, Monster, Die may not go down as one of Karloff's best pictures it's still a solid movie in his career, which in my opinion no horror actor can come anywhere near the level of brilliance Boris Karloff reached. Karloff was one of those gifted actors that could take an average movie and make it better and always brings a touch of class to the movie. Die, Monster, Die is one of those movies in his career that was good that he made far better.
Based off a story by H.P. Lovecraft, the screenplay was written by Jerry Sohl and overall it was pretty good, since I haven't read the Lovecraft story I cannot say how true this stays or even in anyway compare the two. But the screenplay is overall good, the characters are solid and there's an interesting backstory with the Witley family that if explored the script might have been better off. Despite any shortcomings the script might have its still overall pretty good.
Director Daniel Haller makes his directorial debut and would later become a TV director with episodes of Kojak and Knight Rider. For the most part Haller keeps things interesting through most of the movie and I suppose one can say it was slow, but I found it interesting; he's able to keep the pace moving along with some good mystery, but as the plot unfolds is when things get messy due to it being a bit silly with mutated plants and the problem is the scenes are played straight by Daniel Haller, which slightly hurts the final act.
The final few minutes are quite silly and one cannot take it serious even though it's played straight, but despite these problems, Die, Monster, Die in my opinion always remains at least decent, which in part is helped by the location and the cast.
Boris Karloff again delivers a great performance and without Karloff, I doubt Die, Monster, Die would have turned out as well as it did. Though again this may not be the best movie of his career I do believe it's a solid movie due to Karloff. Like I said Boris Karloff is just one of those actors who can make a movie better than it should be. Overall despite the flaws I enjoyed Die, Monster, Die; while not a classic of the genre it's highly enjoyable for what it's worth.
Movie Review: Lurking With Lovecraft
Summary: 4 Stars
Veteran screenwriter Jerry Sohl and scene designer/fledgling director Daniel Haller expand Lovecraft's "colorful" short story into a typical feature-length AIP shocker, with mostly good results.Nick Adams visits his fiance Susan Farmer's ancestral estate in the country, where he is not welcomed with open arms. Farmer's father, Boris Karloff, has a feared and hated name in the region, for reasons no one will disclose. Karloff himself tries to send Adams away upon his arrival, but Farmer won't hear of it - nor will her mother, the sickly and sequestered Frieda Jackson, who sent for Adams in the first place.
Standoffish Karloff is hiding something, and even Jackson isn't fully sure what it is. It has something to do with a meteorite that permanently blasted the nearby heath some years ago, and is somehow killing Karloff's household. Jackson wants Adams to take Farmer away from the unhealthy environment.
But Adams discovers from town doctor Patrick Magee that Karloff's family has always been twisted with a bizarre space-cult religion, which in some way has something to do not only with their penchant for undiagnosable wasting illness, but also seems to have created an unknown poison that is sucking the vital life force out of the entire area and gives birth to mutations.
It isn't long before Adams discovers the hidden source of Karloff's family's - and the town's - woes: Karloff has been keeping the meteorite in his diseased progenitors' religious shrine, where its unearthly cosmic force continues to ravage anything in the vicinity. Before the story is out, most of his household will succumb to it - in colorfully hideous fashion, by way of disintegrating facial makeups and sundry other mutations - and Adams will have a nasty time delivering poor Susan Farmer (and himself) to safety.
The movie is uneven, and takes a while to get going. There are a lot of stalking-through-the-mansion shots. But director Haller's experience as an artistic scene designer shows, and the film is indeed extremely colorful and atmospheric. There are some clever puppet effects used to show mutated plant-creatures and lesser changed animals. Jackson's disintegration is a great moment, very creepy and unsettling. And Karloff undergoes a final unlikely mutation himself, transforming from a wheelchair-ridden irascible old man into a silvery-greenish, bald, athletically powerful alien attacker - which makes no logical sense whatsoever, but is great fun to watch.
A typical movie of the studio and the time, but elevated by a good cast, decent script, and terrific production design and cinematography.
Movie Review: underrated sci-fi horror film
Summary: 4 Stars
I have always liked this film, even though checking through reference books one may find critical comments. It is true that a mistake was made in changing H.P Lovecraft's setting from New England (which of course was the deeply-felt source of all of his horror concepts) to England itself. And the story does not do full justice to his brilliant original, which is a classic of horror-literature. But that aside, the film is extremely atmospheric, and has strong performances by Karloff and all the other actors (including Nick Adams, who despite odd casting does a decent job as a modern American adrift in a strange old-world setting). And on top of that it has one of the eeriest scenes in all horror films, where Nick Adams and the beautiful Susan Farmer sneak into a greenhouse, which is a source of mystery throughout the entire film, and discover a menagerie of mutated monsters, illuminated only by flashlight. This scene is a high-water mark in monster special FX, even though it is very brief. Definitely worth owning in a DVD quality release!Movie Review: Enjoyable, Atmospheric, Midnite Movie!
Summary: 4 Stars
Enjoyable and atmospheric. Although this is not a great film (which is especially in evidence during the finale, which features effects that border on the goofy by today's standards) it is still an entertaining film and, in my opinion, worth owning. The locations are great - an English town and train station, and a spooky old Mansion - giving this film a moody edge. If you're a fan of B-Movies and a collector of the MGM Midnite Movies Series, you will find this a worthwhile entry. The visual quality of the DVD is very high and the packaging of the DVD is one more reason that this series is worth collecting. Each MGM Midnite Movie features fresh cover art, great back cover descriptions, and look great on the shelf since it is a coordinated collection. I also own Pit and the Pendulum, Fall of the House of Usher, Abominable Dr. Phibes, Dr. Phibes Rises Again, and recommend them all. The other customer and Leonard Maltin REVIEWS will help you navigate and decide which of the MGM Midnite Movies are worth the risk of actually purchasing.Movie Review: Another 70s show
Summary: 4 Stars
Well, I got this film for two reasns:
1. It is a 70s Hammer (or Corman) film, starring the horror film legend, Boris Karloff
2. It is an HPL adaption (based on The Colour out of Space)
Well, it was pretty good, even though it was made back when. Thank fully, there was no artsy-fartsy 70s-style hippie geek versions of rituals that ran amok in other films like Dunwich Horror, Crimson Cult, and Wicker Man.
It was, unfortunatley remade into a love story, so watch out for that, but managed to remain pretty good anyway.
Boris Karloff was his usual dark, sinsiter self, the main guy was allright, and the movie ended up being a decent adaption.
Old Hammer, Corman, Arkoff fans will like it and HPL fans will, too.
blah blah blah, four tentacles up...something something.