This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post Reply
RedRiver
Posts: 4200
Joined: July 28th, 2011, 9:42 am

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by RedRiver »

I watched the horror classic, HORSE FEATHERS last night. Spine tingling! Thelma Todd's scariest performance. This gothic nightmare is a masterpiece of fright. I only wish they'd gotten Karloff and Lugosi to do the "swordfish" scene!
User avatar
moira finnie
Administrator
Posts: 8024
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 6:34 pm
Location: Earth
Contact:

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by moira finnie »

RedRiver wrote:I watched the horror classic, HORSE FEATHERS last night. Spine tingling! Thelma Todd's scariest performance. This gothic nightmare is a masterpiece of fright. I only wish they'd gotten Karloff and Lugosi to do the "swordfish" scene!
And wasn't Harpo chilling in the way that he played Igor without any dialogue? :wink:
Avatar: Frank McHugh (1898-1981)

The Skeins
TCM Movie Morlocks
RedRiver
Posts: 4200
Joined: July 28th, 2011, 9:42 am

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by RedRiver »

Looks like Svengoolie is back on track this week with THE MUMMY'S CURSE. I'll watch it. But it won't be the same without Zeppo!
RedRiver
Posts: 4200
Joined: July 28th, 2011, 9:42 am

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by RedRiver »

Wow! It was hard to sit through all those Svengoolie parodies. Is THE MUMMY'S CURSE that short? They sure used a lot of filler! Not a great movie either. But I liked the dead lady popping out of the mud. That was pretty cool! All in all, not a real exciting night with Svengoolie. Wonder what's up next?
User avatar
intothenitrate
Posts: 397
Joined: January 11th, 2010, 3:12 pm
Location: Cincinnati

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by intothenitrate »

Is that the one where they use file footage of irate Tyrolean townspeople with torches?
"Immorality may be fun, but it isn't fun enough to take the place of one hundred percent virtue and three square meals a day."
Goodnight Basington
User avatar
moira finnie
Administrator
Posts: 8024
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 6:34 pm
Location: Earth
Contact:

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by moira finnie »

Wow! It was hard to sit through all those Svengoolie parodies. Is THE MUMMY'S CURSE that short? They sure used a lot of filler! Not a great movie either. But I liked the dead lady popping out of the mud. That was pretty cool! All in all, not a real exciting night with Svengoolie. Wonder what's up next?
Hi Red,
That movie was so intellectually undemanding that I was able to finish two sewing projects while that was on---and that may be the best thing about it. I kept the mute button on an awful lot, hitting it whenever Sven started to go down melody lane or to promote "the club"...No, this movie was no one's finest moment in classic horror.

I was pretty amused by the weird way that the filmmakers depicted Louisiana Bayou's residents---as though they were all straight from Bordeaux, complete with a jug of wine, a loaf of French bread, berets and "sacre bleu!"-spouting extras.
intothenitrate wrote:Is that the one where they use file footage of irate Tyrolean townspeople with torches?
I don't remember such a scene, which would have upped the production values of this movie considerably, but maybe I missed it while sewing.

I amused myself by feeling compassion for poor Martin Kosleck's efforts to get a girl and elude his boss-man, Peter Coe (the clown in the fez). I imagine that poor Kosleck was just relieved that he didn't have to imitate Joseph Goebbels once again. And don't get me started on the archeologist in the pith helmet, played by the clueless Dennis Moore! (Honestly. A pith helmet. In America. Tsk, tsk).
Image

I also kept trying to decide if the cheerfully blowsy lady innkeeper was really Blanche Yurka in disguise, then it dawned on me that it was Ann Codee! She is always popping up as a movie Frenchwoman (she was born in Belgium) as she was as the astringent ballet mistress in The Unfinished Dance (1947) and as a kindly if frightened lady tending to Gene Barry in War of the Worlds (1953).
Image
Image

I was amazed to learn that the lady mummy in The Mummy's Curse (1944) was Virginia Christine, a very young Mrs. Olsen from the old Folger coffee commercials! She also played Burt Lancaster's awfully understanding cast-off girlfriend in The Killers (1946)--good thing Sam Levene was around for her and I seem to remember that she was the meekly defeated, forelock-tugging housekeeper for Spencer Tracy in Judgment at Nuremburg!!
Image
Image
Image

For those of you who "have a life" and don't find dumb movies as a good background when doing projects around the house, here is the best dang scene in the entire movie, as pointed out by RedRiver:

[youtube][/youtube]

For more about this epic, you might enjoy this post on a blog called Dwrayger Dungeon: The Wild Side of Movies and TV.
Avatar: Frank McHugh (1898-1981)

The Skeins
TCM Movie Morlocks
User avatar
moira finnie
Administrator
Posts: 8024
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 6:34 pm
Location: Earth
Contact:

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by moira finnie »

RedRiver wrote: Wonder what's up next?
Here is the lineup for June for Svengoolie. This month includes more of the Universal pics and a few latter day entries. It looks like pretty good fare, don't you think?:

JUNE 2nd
Brides of Dracula (1960-Terence Fisher)
Hammer horror with Peter Cushing and Martita Hunt (!) in the leads. This movie sounds like fun and I don't think I've ever seen it. Reliable British character actors Miles Malleson and Mona Washbourne also show up in the cast list. The movie can be seen here too. It sure has a heckuva trailer:

[youtube][/youtube]

JUNE 9th
I Saw What You Did (1965-William Castle)
Joan Crawford, John Ireland and Leif Erickson picking up a paycheck on the horror route thanks to some bad teenagers playing with the telephone. Based on the trailer, this one always looked like schlocky fun.

[youtube][/youtube]

JUNE 16th
The Mummy's Hand (1940-Christy Cabanne)
Well, Dick Foran and Peggy Moran head a great supporting cast that includes George Zucco, Eduardo Ciannelli, Wallace Ford and Cecil Kellaway. I will probably take a look at this one just to see how they use those tanna leaves again. The entire film can be seen on youtube, beginning here.

[youtube][/youtube]

JUNE 23rd
Son of Dracula (1943-Robert Siodmak)
With the Siodmak brothers behind the camera, Lon Chaney, Jr. as Count Alucard (get it?), and a cast that includes Evelyn Ankers and J. Edward Bromberg, it looks like stylish, frothy fun to me. The people who wrote about this on IMDb seem to be mad about this movie, which can be seen here in its entirety.

[youtube][/youtube]

JUNE 30th
The Mummy's Tomb (1942-Harold Young)
Lon Chaney, Jr. Dick Foran, George Zucco, and Wally Ford again investigate the phenom of ancient taxidermy along with Elyse Knox, Virginia Brissac, and Mary Gordon---but this time Turhan Bey is around to class up the production a bit with his exoticism. I have not seen this one. Hope that those who have might offer their guidance 'round the pyramid of Mummydom.
[youtube][/youtube]
Avatar: Frank McHugh (1898-1981)

The Skeins
TCM Movie Morlocks
RedRiver
Posts: 4200
Joined: July 28th, 2011, 9:42 am

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by RedRiver »

I SAW WHAT YOU DID? William Castle's delightfully cheezy teen thriller? This made my day! I haven't seen this "Killer B" in years. And I mean YEARS! Not everybody likes Svengoolie's program, but if you like Mr. Castle, do not miss this one.

Wasn't THE MUMMY'S TOMB just on a few weeks ago?
User avatar
moira finnie
Administrator
Posts: 8024
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 6:34 pm
Location: Earth
Contact:

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by moira finnie »

RedRiver wrote:I SAW WHAT YOU DID? William Castle's delightfully cheezy teen thriller? This made my day! I haven't seen this "Killer B" in years. And I mean YEARS! Not everybody likes Svengoolie's program, but if you like Mr. Castle, do not miss this one.

Wasn't THE MUMMY'S TOMB just on a few weeks ago?
I honestly don't know if it was on before and I must admit I don't watch Svengoolie every week but have DVRed some of the movies that interested me. The Mummy's Tomb sounds awfully derivative, so maybe we will just feel like we have seen it before.

I'm glad that I Saw What You Did has your recommendation on the cheez-o-meter. Speaking of William Castle, don't you wish they would show Matinee (1993) with John Goodman as the Castle-like schlockmeister?
Avatar: Frank McHugh (1898-1981)

The Skeins
TCM Movie Morlocks
MikeBSG
Posts: 1777
Joined: April 25th, 2007, 5:43 pm

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by MikeBSG »

I love "Matinee"! It is one of Joe Dante's best movies, and it is a shame that it didn't do better at the box office.

"Mant! Half-man, half ant, ALL TERROR!!!"
User avatar
moira finnie
Administrator
Posts: 8024
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 6:34 pm
Location: Earth
Contact:

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by moira finnie »

MikeBSG wrote:I love "Matinee"! It is one of Joe Dante's best movies, and it is a shame that it didn't do better at the box office."Mant! Half-man, half ant, ALL TERROR!!!"
Image

Yeah! Veterans Robert Cornthwaite, William Schallert, Kevin McCarthy and those joyous, too often under-utilized younger actors, Goodman and Cathy Moriarty were all on screen in one light-hearted nuclear sideshow. And unfortunately, the newer DVD of Matinee doesn't include the movie-within-a-movie, MANT!, which spoofed the fifties-style sci-fi classics so brilliantly. Luckily, some kind soul did upload Mant to youtube. When is this classic going to come to TCM?

[youtube][/youtube]
[youtube][/youtube]
Avatar: Frank McHugh (1898-1981)

The Skeins
TCM Movie Morlocks
RedRiver
Posts: 4200
Joined: July 28th, 2011, 9:42 am

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by RedRiver »

Another thumbs up for MATINEE, an extremely clever, unpredictable satire. I like Count Alucard (Get it?) in Mr. Siodmak's SON OF DRACULA. The last time I saw it, I was drinking in a bar, went home to watch the movie, then back to the bar. That's dedication! To what, I'm not sure. As for the Castle film, I was about twelve when I saw it. I'm not sure if it's as good as I thought it was. But based on my youthful impression, it's one of the director's best. Suspenseful, exciting, and so over-the-top it's just ridiculous. I'm not sure I ever enjoyed a silly thriller more.

Last night's show was BRIDES OF DRACULA. It's no reflection on this tasteful Hammer production that I kept falling asleep. It happens! So I didn't really attempt to follow the plot. But the scenes and moments I was alert for impressed me. Creepy and atmospheric. Genuinely scary. Filmed in rich, "painting- like" color, as this elegant British studio was known for. Next time I'll have some coffee before the movie!
User avatar
moira finnie
Administrator
Posts: 8024
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 6:34 pm
Location: Earth
Contact:

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by moira finnie »

RedRiver wrote:Another thumbs up for MATINEE, an extremely clever, unpredictable satire. I like Count Alucard (Get it?) in Mr. Siodmak's SON OF DRACULA. The last time I saw it, I was drinking in a bar, went home to watch the movie, then back to the bar. That's dedication! To what, I'm not sure. As for the Castle film, I was about twelve when I saw it. I'm not sure if it's as good as I thought it was. But based on my youthful impression, it's one of the director's best. Suspenseful, exciting, and so over-the-top it's just ridiculous. I'm not sure I ever enjoyed a silly thriller more.

Last night's show was BRIDES OF DRACULA. It's no reflection on this tasteful Hammer production that I kept falling asleep. It happens! So I didn't really attempt to follow the plot. But the scenes and moments I was alert for impressed me. Creepy and atmospheric. Genuinely scary. Filmed in rich, "painting- like" color, as this elegant British studio was known for. Next time I'll have some coffee before the movie!
I fixed the first video of "Mant!" above, which apparently was Part 2 put up by mistake by me. Mea culpa. Now they are in the right sequence and still awfully funny. I really like the way that Robert Cornthwaite keeps interjecting the simpler words for Cathy Moriarty after he uses terms like "metamorphose" and "magnify," when diagnosing Bill's illness.

The Brides of Dracula (1960-Terence Fisher) was fun, with an outstanding turn by Peter Cushing as one of the best Van Helsings ever. The scene when he cauterized his neck using a hot poker and holy water after the vamp got him was a corker! What a good actor he was, even when the movie wasn't quite as good as he was. The atmosphere in the family chateau where the pneumatic Yvonne Monlaur took shelter at the invitation of the Baroness (Martita Hunt) was wonderfully spooky though if I saw that sonny boy was chained at the ankle for his and my own good, I think I would have walked back to town.

Once he was off his chain, Baron Meinster (David Peel) just didn't cut it for me as far as menace or sex appeal goes, though his Mom (Martita Hunt) was hard to read, becoming pretty scary and even a bit tragic. The nutjob servant enacted by a ferociously weird Freda Jackson really took the cake with her cackling, rantings and chiding of the dead Baroness (Hunt) for spoiling her son, as though his unchecked boyish high spirits were really the cause of his becoming one of the "undead." This scene probably helped this Hammer movie get past the censors as one heckuva an argument for stricter parenting--though there was more than a hint of lesbianism in the scene when the victim of the Baron asked his fiancee for a kiss and a hug. I think the Baron's hair threw me. In my mind's eye, I have never pictured a vampire with a blonde pompadour held in place with an entire can of Final Net. Despite some qualms, it was enjoyable.
Avatar: Frank McHugh (1898-1981)

The Skeins
TCM Movie Morlocks
User avatar
CineMaven
Posts: 3815
Joined: September 24th, 2007, 9:54 am
Location: Brooklyn, New York
Contact:

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by CineMaven »

:lol: Red...Moira, you two Svengoolie-ites are killing me with your quips, barbs, and humor. You guyz are funnier than the movie...and are giving me some movies to watch. :lol:
"You build my gallows high, baby."

http://www.megramsey.com
User avatar
moira finnie
Administrator
Posts: 8024
Joined: April 9th, 2007, 6:34 pm
Location: Earth
Contact:

Re: This week on SVENGOOLIE...

Post by moira finnie »

CM, I hope you and anyone else who likes these movies or has seen any of them will interject your thoughts here too. They are great fare--especially for the summer. Or a rainy day. Or any day they catch your fancy.

Do you get Me-TV?
Avatar: Frank McHugh (1898-1981)

The Skeins
TCM Movie Morlocks
Post Reply