Devil Girl From Mars - 1954

Nice British 1950's SciFi Flick


A fun movie and decent presentation
With a title like DEVIL GIRL FROM MARS you're not expecting much, so when you get a movie with at least a little bit of substance you're inevitably pleased. Almost a quiet, character ensemble movie buoyed considerably by its rural English setting and its well-defined (if somewhat broadly drawn) characters. Sure, it's a B-movie, but it's not nearly as campy as some would describe - in fact, it's played rather seriously. Overall, not a bad way to pass a Saturday afternoon; great home matinee material.

The DVD presentation is sparse - there's a trailer, and chapter selections, but nothing else. It's tough to justify the list price on this, but it IS a very nice print overall and shows excellent tone and definition. Sound is excellent as well. It goes without saying that it blows away those VHS EP copies out there.

Interesting And Well Acted British Sci Fi Story With A Memorable Lead female Character
Being a 1950's sci fi buff I've long wanted to see this British film produced by "Spartan Productions", but not being your typical, splashy, colour filled production overwhelmed with special effects it has always been hard to find. Despite it's decidely "B", movie title that screams "forgettable cheapie!" this production is in actual fact well done and takes a distinctly different approach to your standard 1950's space saga story telling. Most importantly it has a strong and memorable female lead in the "Devil Girl", of the title played here by a most alluring Patricia Laffan who I have always enjoyed for her playing of the evil Roman Empress Poppea in MGM's collosal production of "Quo Vadis?" in 1951. Unlike many low budget sci fi's from this period this film takes a far less sensational slant in its telling relying more on some interesting character work while of course incorporating the standard element of romance for good measure. Despite the film's obviously limited budget it is...

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Crucible of Terror - Color -1971

Curious oddity grows with repeated viewing -- get the DVD
Victor Clare (former BBC DJ, Mike Raven) is an artist. He "worships" beauty. He wants to "preserve" and "possess" beauty. That's why he never sells his work. It's not his job, it's his devotion. Fortunately, his workload is manageable because his taste in beauty is narrow. No trees or sunsets or daffodils. No landscapes, or still lives, or abstracts. He only paints women. Young women. Young nekkid women. And nothing but.

Hey, he's an artist.

Actually, Victor doesn't just paint. He also sculpts. If you've seen House of Wax (1953), you've got a rough idea of his technique. It's one reason the film is called Crucible of Terror. A crucible is "a vessel used for melting or calcining materials at high temperatures." It's also "the bottom of an ore furnace in which the molten metal collects." Victor owns one of each.

A crucible is also "a severe test or trial." People trapped in a tense, suffocating social setting are said to be in a...

This New Release Does The Film Justice!
A psychotronic gem and a rather original tale in the "mad artist" subgenre of horror film, this is the first version of "Crucible of Terror" not to suffer from ghastly editing and bad prints that have so far been the norm. Having seen the entire film while vacationing in London, I can say that this is 99% intact but I am not complaining about the missing 1%. The print is clear and some of the more erotic and disturbing scenes have not been hacked out. Character actor Ronald Lacey is a hoot as the embittered toad of a son to an equally piggish and megalomaniacal reclusive artist played by former BBC DJ Mike Raven. Raven definitely looks the part and a whole slew of other British character actors round out this macabre tale of art, obsession, and murder most foul. Recommended for lovers of bizarre low-budget cinema!

Bad treatment of a classic psychotronic film.
A good bad film is a thing to treasure, as with this dark gem that shows character actor Ronald Lacey years before he stalked the screen as the Nazi interrogator in Raiders of the Lost Ark. However, this has ten minutes of the original footage edited out and it spoils the whole thing. To discuss it further is pointless. I have heard similar treatment has struck some classic Hammer films as they made their way here. I am very disappointed.

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MINDS OF TERROR

Osvaldo picks-
A breath of fresh air on low budget American horror, 26 October 2008
7/10
Author: osvaldobneto from Brazil

I'm beginning to get tired of movies with the same tired script that was used in a lot of other movies. The only thing that changes is the character names. MINDS OF TERROR is a example of what is possible to do something original and different enough with such a low budget. It's very good to know there is people trying to make the difference on the genre.

Really good editing, camera work and some quality acting, specially Randy Allen (who look as a less ugly Michael Berryman) and Joe Estevez. The "farm story" is a great little short feature to this great little horror movie. I was only a bit disappointed because i read a plot summary talking this was a anthology horror movie, something i think this isn't. The other two stories are way too short, even if they feature people like Conrad Brooks (clearly enjoying himself and having fun with the bit...





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Il Bidone

A.K.A. The Swindle - Overlooked Minor Fellini Classic
Il Bidone aka The Swindle is one of Fellini's least known films and part of his trilogy of loneliness (La Strada and Nights of Cabiria) Nights. .. recently received a complete restoration, limited theatrical release and Criterion DVD release. Il Bidone is available on DVD now, but without a single solitary extra. It's still worth getting though.

I recently revisted Il Bidone (The Swindle) and was mesmerized by it's restrained style, story, and acting. I had forgotten how Fellini had somehow managed to get a superb performance out of Broderick Crawford (who's raging alcoholism in real life caused Fellini to have to make script changes during it's filming -changes Fellini later believed helped the over-all film).

The film begins by introducing us to it's main trio of con men. They perform a masterful swindle where they dress up as priests, to swindle hardworking peasants and farmers. I won't spoil the mechanics of the con, since it's fascinating to watch it unfold and ponder...

Simple and elegant
Il Bidone is a stark, gritty, unyielding portrait of the life of small time con men in Rome. Augusto sees those who've escaped the rounds about him, at forty eight he is far past his prime and just beginning to realize that he has no idea to escape the rut. The movie is very spare, the cons not particularly interesting as cons, but very weighty in symbolism. The script is playful, sly and heartless, until Augusto bumps into his estranged daughter and begins to work his way back towards humanity. That it will cost him dearly is rarely in doubt, but the passage is fascinating to watch.

If you've heard comparisons to The Sting, forget about them. That would be like calling the South Pacific and Lord of the Flies similar since they're both set on islands. Il Bidone does not function as a story of revenge, or as an example of the grand old life of con men. As a piece of neorealism, we can expect a somber mood and only passing happiness, but it is well worth watching the awakening...

I liked it
My friends hassled me for starting off my Fellini collection with Il Bidone but I've seen the classics and have pretty easy access to seeing them any time. Something a little bit more obscure like this one is harder to track down, so I figured that I'd buy it based on the reviews here. I wasn't disappointed. people were pretty accurate in their impressions. The story is told well, the acting is good and it's something that I lok forward to watching many more times.

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El Bulli

Not What You Expected
If you are a real foodie, chef, and someone involved in the business of food you might like this. If you are expecting a Gordon Ramsey or Bourdain style documentary then you will be disappointed. You will not learn how to cook any of what legendary chef, Ferran Adrià, makes at the now retired El Bulli restaurant. The documentary starts with the closing of his restaurant for the season then turns into a dialogue between chefs on the creativity and science of the creation of new dishes. You are like a fly on the wall. Jose Andres operates arguably the most advanced kitchen in the world, very interesting to see how everything comes together, but this film won't be for everyone

Pretty boring.
I really enjoyed Bourdain's documentary about El Bulli,Decoding Ferran Adria: Hosted by Anthony Bourdain (and the episode of No Reservations with Ferran Adria), and in those you really got to see what cooking and eating at El Bulli was like. I also enjoyed Lisa Abend's book The Sorcerer's Apprentices: A Season in the Kitchen at Ferran Adrià's elBulli. This movie, however, was much less interesting to watch.

The movie is 1hr 50mins long, and all dialogue is in Catalan, Spanish, or French, with English subtitles. The first half of the movie is almost all video of Ferran's sous-chefs working in the lab. There is no narration at all, very little cooking, and it is somewhat tedious to watch. Yes, it is interesting to see what they do, but most of the time it is unclear exactly what they are doing and what ingredients they are...

Ultimate for foodies
If you classify yourself as a foodie, you have got to see this movie. This is where food preparation is takes to almost a scientific level. I do not believe anyone else in the entire world has done this approach to food preparation.
Too bad if you never got to el Bulli, it closed in 2011. The brothers opened Tickets and 41degrees in Barcelona while the featured chefs opened Compartir north of Barcelona, with Faran's blessings to continue along the same path, and not too far from the el Bulli original site.

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The Long Autumn

Very very good short loved it!
I enjoyed the story. It had a very good meaning behind it. The actors were amazing and it moved nicely.





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She Demons

Quintessential B-flick looks better than ever
First off, I'll admit that this is one of my long-time favorite cheesey movies. It's got just about everything you could want in a B-movie: a shipwreck on an uncharted island, spunky heroine (Irish "Sheena" McCalla), stiff-as-cardboard hero, nubile native dancing girls, papier-mache cave walls, lecherous evil scientist, whip-cracking Nazis, embarrassing racial stereotypes, pasty-faced monsters, heart-touching sentimentality, low-key humor, volcanoes, lava, and a Hideously Disfigured Wife, whose face the scientist is trying to restore, natch. This heady mix of numerous beloved B-genres remains probably Richard Cunha's most technically accomplished work, and the most thought-provoking in his oeuvre. ...not as dizzyingly awful as an Ed Wood film, or as leaden as a Herbert L. Strock movie, but campy, enjoyable, rainy-Saturday-afternoon fare nonetheless. Bad film junkies cannot possibly be disappointed. As for the DVD, this has got to be the best presentation yet for this film...

Everything a cult B movie should be
She Demons turned out to be a much better film that I expected it to be. While there is absolutely nothing original about the plot, the film manages to retain one's interest from start to finish. Native girls, a mad Nazi scientist, atavistic she demons, bombs, volcanic eruptions -- what's not to like?

The film opens sort of strangely, with a news report about a recent hurricane followed by a plea for information from some rich guy whose daughter's boat is missing. Then we cut to our shipwreck survivors: poor little spoiled rich girl Jerrie Turner (stalwart blonde Irish McCalla, whom some may recognize as Sheena, Queen of the Jungle), scientist Tod Maklin (Tod Griffin), comic-relief sidekick Sammy Ching (Victor Sen Yung), and a native captain who doesn't even survive long enough to witness the big native girl dance scene. And what a native girl dance scene it is. These aren't your run-of-the-mill natives; these girls, made up of the Diana Nellis Dancers, include some real...

Ricard Cunha's Lasting Memorial to Cheese
First off, let me say that "She Demons" is a favorite Z picture of mine. As a kid I always looked forward to the times it played on "Chiller Theater." I mean, where else could you get mad scientists, Nazis, disfigured go-go dancers (with the phoniest make-up), paper mache scenery, AND Irish McCalla?

To be fair, the film has a few scares at the end, especially when the mad scientist's wife discloses all too clearly her reason for not leaving with the heroes and the death of Mr. Nazi Mad Scientist himself. The DVD transfer is excellent, and though this is not the sort of picture in Ed Wood's league, it is still enough fun for inviting a few friends over and doing your own version of "Mystery Science Theater 3000."

And the best reason for owning it? Where can you get such sublime awfulness...

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