144) Santa Claus vs. the Devil (1959)

"Let's watch the little rich boy's dreams!" 

Director
Rene Cardona

Cast
José Elías Moreno - Santa Claus

José Luis Aguirre 'Trotsky' - Pitch
Lupita Quezadas - Lupita
Nora Veryán - Lupita's mother
Antonio Díaz Conde - Billy
Ken Smith - Narrator

If there's a Christmas movie that's, without a doubt, well suited for a modern remake, it's the 1959 Mexican fantasy film "Santa Claus" also known as "Santa Claus vs. the Devil." 

Honestly, I cannot think of a more unique and fantastic on-screen match than the patron saint of children, St. Nicholas, versus the adversary of God and mankind, the devil.

I was torn between reviewing this Christmas gem, or the1964 sci-fi flick "Santa Claus Conquers the Martians." I had heard from a completely unreliable source that "Santa Claus vs. the Devil" is the better film. Although, I can't say that's saying much for this movie. 

While I'm sure I'll get to "Santa Claus Conquers the Martians" at some point, and post a review of it, I chose to watch this movie now because its title doesn't give away the ending. 

I'm really stretching the meaning of horror to include this particular movie. The horror genre often reflects a culture and what it fears at the time. In this case, I'm really simplifying the meaning of horror when it comes to movies as being a film meant to induce fear. 

"Santa Claus vs. the Devil" does technically attempt to induce fear of wrongdoing, the devil, the possibility of damnation, all in a "child-friendly" manner. The devil can be pretty damn scary. In this case, he's portrayed by some guy (José Luis Aguirre 'Trotsky') with the stereotypical red face, red tights, devil horns, black goatee and fake pointed plastic ears.
In this movie, Santa Claus (José Elías Moreno) doesn't live up in the North Pole. Santa actually lives in a magical castle out in space. He has an observatory in his castle where he checks in on the children of Earth through a large telescope with an eyeball at the end of it. He also has a machine which lets him see what children are dreaming while they're asleep. And he has a device that lets him hear their conversations, along with a large computer with huge lips that speaks. It's all creepy and unsettling though that's clearly not the intention. Regardless, those aspects certainly didn't age well. 

Santa is only allowed to visit Earth on Christmas Eve. 

Instead of Elves helping him build his toys, Santa has children from all around the world living with him in his castle and building all the toys. Again, another aspect that didn't age well. 

The movie starts with a narrator (Ken Smith) introducing the audience to every ethnic group of kids up in Santa's castle. And each group mentioned performs a song and dance native to their respective country as Santa plays an organ. That's not a euphemism, by the way.

As Santa prepares for his trip to Earth, down in Hell, Lucifer orders a demon named Pitch (José Luis Aguirre 'Trotsky') to head up to Earth in order to tempt and entice children to commit evil deeds and ultimately turn their backs on Santa. 

Lucifer warns Pitch that if he fails, he'll be forced to eat chocolate ice cream for the rest of eternity. Keep in mind the movie is keeping things kid-friendly according to 1959 standards.

Knowing that Santa can't interfere much in his evil plans since he can only travel to Earth on Christmas Eve, Pitch starts in on a little girl in Mexico City, Mexico named Lupita (Lupita Quezadas). While she visits a marketplace with her mother, Pitch tries to temp Lupita to steal a doll, which the kid is certainly considering. But she resists the urge. Santa sees all this taking place. 

Santa is also keeping an eye on Billy (Antonio Díaz Conde), the son of wealthy but negligent parents. They often leave Billy alone in their large house while they go out for nights on the town. Santa can see Billy has a dream where he opens up two huge presents on Christmas morning, which turn out to be his parents.

It's certainly the most depressing part of the film. 

Pitch succeeds in tempting three young brothers to hurl rocks through a department store window, hitting a mechanical Santa on display. Their world just goes downhill from there. These brothers plot to sneak into Billy's house and steal his presents. These little punks then decide to write letters to Santa, full of big feckin' lies about how they've been good all year. But Santa isn't fooled and tells them in a looming disembodied voice from his castle observatory that he can see all the things they do. 

Santa checks in on Lupita while she's asleep with his machine that lets him to see children's dreams. She's still tormented by Pitch who wants her to steal the friggin' doll. So, he gives her nightmares in which she's surrounded by life-size versions of the doll which dance around her. Finally, one of the dolls talks to her in a creepy voice trying to get her to steal. 

But, Lupita, being the six-year old bastion of honor and moral righteousness, refuses claiming that stealing is wrong and that she wants to be a good girl. 

As Santa makes the last few preparations for his Christmas visit, he consults Merlin the Wizard (Armando Arriola) for some sleep-inducing powder to use on children trying to catch a glimpse of Santa. He also has Merlin make him a flower that turns him invisible each time he smells it. 

Santa's private blacksmith makes him a key that will unlock any door. 

Equipped with all these tools, Santa gets his reindeer ready to fly through space. The reindeer, by the way, are mechanical. So, Santa has to wind them up like a toy. And they must make the trip around the world before the sun rises in the morning, or they'll turn to dust. 

Santa begins in Mexico City where the three bothers plot of kidnap him and steal all the toys he's going to deliver. 

Also, Lupita and her mother say a prayer to the infant Jesus, asking that she'll get the doll she so desperately wants along with a second one which she'll give to Him as a present. 

Her mother, knowing how poor they are, is worried as they can't afford a doll. Her dad, by the way, can't find work. She doesn't want to break her daughter's spirits and hopes.

Santa turns his focus onto Billy's parents in the hopes that they realize what deadbeats they are, and go spend Christmas Eve with their damn son, for crying out loud. He does this by slipping them a "special drink" while they're at a nightclub on Christmas Eve, while Billy is again home alone. 

As Santa makes his rounds, Pitch does all he can to hinder the trip and force him to fail once and for all. 

The movie is more of a battle of wills than it is a fight. Pitch does more damage against Santa, while Santa does very little. What little Santa does are more gotcha moments, such as shooting Pitch in his ass with a toy canon or blowing soot up a chimney into Pitch's face. 

The "climax" sees Pitch trapping Santa in a tree with an angry guard dog barking at him. Pitch entices the family inside the house to call the police and fire department by whispering to them that there's an intruder outside their home, as well as a fire. Before this happens, Pitch cut a hole in Santa's sleep powder bag, which also leads to the flower of invisibility falling out into the streets of Mexico City along with the sleep powder. 

I can't necessarily recommend this movie. Nor do I feel justified in ridiculing or criticizing it. Sure, it's a really easy target. It's most certainly a product of its time. It's ambitious. And it certainly tries to lead young audiences in a moral and decent direction with the clear understanding that bad actions have bad consequences. Integrity counts for something. That's a fact which is certainly lost on too many of today's "adults." 

"Santa Claus vs. the Devil" even won the Golden Gate Award for "Best International Family Film" at the San Francisco International Film Festival in 1959. 

With the narrator explaining every single scene, along with commentary - "Hurry, Santa, hurry!" or "the devil likes rude little boys" the entire movie feels more like an old school PSA, or teaching film. 

"Santa Claus vs. the Devil" was featured on episode 521 of "Mystery Science Theater 3000." And Pitch became a reoccurring character on the show as well. Again, it's an easy film to mock and laugh it. I certainly laughed while watching it. 

It's an oddity of a film which has the best of intentions. But, like so many other films of its time, it's a movie that can't stand under the weight of today's social climate. The sugary 1950s sentimentalism makes it impossible to take seriously. 

The narration (in the American version, which is the version I watched) is annoying as Ken Smith explains everything the audience is seeing. Granted, it's told in a story time/ teaching format clearly aimed at children. Maybe that's an unfair criticism. But it's still annoying. 

The movie is now public domain, popping up from time to time on lists of strange and unusual holiday films. 

Call it nostalgic kitsch, or banal Holiday sentimentality. Whatever. "Santa Claus vs. the Devil" is something to get a good laugh over on a cold winter's Friday night during Christmas. But, in the end, at least poor little Lupita got her doll without resorting to thievery. Well done, Lupita!

143) NEW HORROR RELEASES - Wednesday (2022)

"Wednesday's child is full of woe."

Directors

Tim Burton, Gandja Monteiro, and James Marshall

Cast

Jenna Ortega - Wednesday Addams, Goody Addams

Gwendoline Christie - Larissa Weems

Emma Myers - Enid Sinclair

Percy Hynes White - Xavier Thorpe

Riki Lindhome - Dr. Valerie Kinbott

Hunter Doohan - Tyler Galpin
Jamie McShane - Sheriff Galpin

Christina Ricci - Marilyn Thornhill

Isaac Ordonez - Pugsley Addams

Luis Guzmán - Gomez Addams

Catherine Zeta-Jones - Morticia Addams

Fred Armisen - Fester Addams

George Burcea - Lurch

Victor Dorobantu - Thing

The new dark mystery series, "Wednesday," available on the streaming service Netflix, is more creepy, mysterious, and a bit spooky than it is ooky or cooky. Honestly, I don't know what "ooky" means, so if this series is actually that, I completely missed it. Still, I think it's safe to assume that the show is completely void of ookiness, which is fine with me. 

Directed by Tim Burton, the series, based on Charles Addams' cartoon "The Addams Family," premiered Nov. 23. 

The humor behind the Addams is the contrast between the strange and macabre family set against the rest of the relatively normal world, which the audience sees when they interact. The Addams think they're the normal ones, and the rest of the world is strange and unusual. 

"Wednesday" takes a more dramatic tone though maintains its comedic roots, unlike the T.V. sitcom "The Addams Family" that ran from 1964 to 1966. The sitcom is goofy and played for chuckles as is the nature of sitcoms. The same is somewhat true for the 1992 movie "The Addams Family" and its 1993 sequel, "Addams Family Values" both of which I enjoy. The movies have a darker, updated tone though still keep the same style of humor the cartoon is known for. 

As the title suggests, the new series centers around Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) - the eldest child of Gomez (Luis Guzmán) and Morticia Addams (Catherine-Zeta Jones). Although, for anyone who follows the canon of the sitcom, Wednesday is the youngest Addams child.
The series starts with Wednesday getting expelled from Nancy Reagan High School. After she finds her brother, Pugsley (Isaac Ordonez) stuffed in his locker, Wednesday has a psychic vision of the bullies who did this to him. So, she retaliates against Pugsley's bullies by letting piranhas loose in the school swimming pool while they're in the middle of water polo practice.

Gomez and Morticia decide to enroll Wednesday into a school where they think she'll fit in - Nevermore Academy.

The Academy, located in Jericho, Vt., has a student body of unusual outcasts, some with unusual powers. It's also the school where her parents first met. 

Wednesday, who has a cold and emotionless demeanor as she intellectually carries herself above everyone else, is bitter at her parents for placing her in Nevermore and swears she'll escape. 

Her cynical and emotionless personality also puts her at odds with the school principal, Larissa Weems (Gwendoline Christie). 

The state has ordered that Wednesday see a counseler, which she does. She reluctantly visits a therapist in town named Dr. Valerie Kinbott (Riki Lindhome) who seems to know a lot about her, to Wednesday's surprise. Dr. Kimbott doesn't react to Wednesday's attempts to intimidate. 

Before heading back home, Gomez and Morticia leave their sentient pet hand, Thing (Victor Dorobantu), at the school to keep a tab on Wednesday. 

Meanwhile, murders have been taking place around Jericho. Wednesday uses her newly found psychic ability to try to solve these mysterious killings. Early in the series, she witnesses a monster attack one of the students whom she followed into the woods. 

As Wednesday's visions become more and more vivid, her drive to solve the murders and find the monster grows more and more acute. 

Luis Guzmán, Jenna Ortega, and Catherina Zeta-Jones star as the Addams in "Wednesday."

She also learns that her father was accused of murder while he was a student at Nevermore back in 1990. The local sheriff (Jamie McShane) thinks Gomez is guilty despite not being convicted. So, he holds a long-time grudge.

Though Gomez was not convicted of the charge, his past comes back to haunt him when the family visits Wednesday in the middle of the school year. Wednesday thinks her father's murder accusation may have something to do with the murders the town is currently dealing with.  

Netflix posted on the platform's Facebook page that "Wednesday" now holds the record for most viewed hours (341.2 million hours) in one week for an English language program on their streaming platform. Netflix claims "Wednesday" is number one in 83 countries, tying the record with the fourth season of their other series "Stranger Things." 

Rather than create a new Addams series contrasting the entire macabre family against a relatively normal society, and then let the hilarity ensue, "Wednesday" puts the oldest Addams child in a boarding school with other outcast students just as strange and unusual (to some degree or another) as she is and turn the premise into a murder mystery. It turns Wednesday into a more relatable character on top of maintaining her dark and death obsessed nature, and razor-sharp personality.

We see Wednesday develop through the series as those who consider her a friend are soon left with telling her what they think of her. For instance, her bubbly werewolf dormmate Enid Sinclair (Emma Myers) tells her just what kind of person she is to her face after Wednesday puts her in a life-or-death situation without any remorse.

One of Wednesday's admirers, Xavier Thorpe (Percy Hynes White), a student who has the ability to give his artwork life (literally), puts Wednesday in her place after he catches her in a shed he uses as a private art space. He caught her outside the shed before, after she asked him to a school dance called the Rav'n only to cover her tracks in her investigations. Once he catches on to how she used him, he gets irate and says, "You are unbelievable."

"It's nothing personal," she nonchalantly replies.

"No, it never is with you, is it," he shouts. "I mean, do you even care about anyone or anything at all, Wednesday?" 

She finds herself speechless as a glisten of a tear looks like it's welling up in her eye.

"Get out," he barks at her. 

Though she tries to hide it, Wednesday can't help feeling the sting of truth that she's observed and critiqued just as much as she observes and critiques others. In other words, Wednesday learns that being an ass is a terrible thing. For someone who revels in pain and turmoil, this kind of pain doesn't feel too great. 

While the show is a mystery series, the "creepy and cooky" Addams style chimes in from time to time. Episode five, "You Reap What You Woe" is where the true Addams form really comes out. This is the episode where Wednesday's family comes to visit Nevermore for the school's yearly "parent's weekend." 

In episode seven, "If You Don't Woe Me by Now," Wednesday's Uncle Fester (Fred Armisen) shows up to visit his niece and brings with him the Addam's family style and feel. 

Of course, like most everything else coming out of Hollywood, the series goes out of its way to mark off all the current ideology checkmarks. 

Then again, such modern ideology fits in a show about someone as dark, strange and void of personality like Wednesday Addams.

In one scene, she accuses a male student of "mansplaining" which made me cringe. Watching Wednesday explain everything to everyone, only to criticize someone - a male student - for explaining something to her doesn't make much sense. And it's even funnier that Wednesday would subject herself to a nonsense word like "mansplain." 

But, for Hollywood, all that matters is stuffing in as many tenets of the modern political credo repeated over and over again like a religious mantra into as much content as possible is all that matters for Hollywood. By this point in time, it just induces eyeroll after eyeroll.  

Outside of that nitpick, the series nicely depicts two sides of Wednesday. There's the Wednesday who's driven. Then there's the familiar Wednesday who welcomes all things sinister and haunting. 

"If you hear me screaming bloody murder, there's a good chance I'm just enjoying myself," she says during one of her investigations. 
Instead of playing to the comically grim side of the character as seen in the comics, sitcom, and the movies, Wednesday is portrayed as a coming-of-age teenager taking a harsh grudge towards her parents, especially her mother, while learning how she's seen by others whether she likes it or not.
No matter how much she holds herself up above her peers and her parents, and no matter how strange and unusual she presents herself, her problems and inner struggles are just like others her own age.
Part of that experience is Wednesday seeing things through the eyes of her parents. Like most teenagers, even Wednesday goes through a rebellion, even towards her mother whom she looks up to in other Addams Family depictions. 
The 2021 animated film "The Addams Family 2" also focuses on Wednesday's (voiced by Chloë Grace Moretz) relationship with her family. In that movie, she tries to distance herself from them after discovering that she may not be their biological daughter despite being similar in personality. So, Wednesday focuses on the differences between herself and the rest of them while on a family road trip.

With this new series, we see a side of the character not necessarily depicted before - bitterness towards those close to her. After her parents drop her off at the Academy, Wednesday threatens to escape and never see her mother again.
"You're a brilliant girl, Wednesday, but sometimes you get in your own way," Morticia says before they leave their daughter at school.
She gives Wednesday a necklace with an obsidian emblem bearing a "W" on one side which turns to an "M" on the other side when flipped, as a symbol of their connection. But Wednesday mocks the gesture, calling the necklace a "toe-curling chotchkie."
"I'm not you, mother," she says. "I will never fall in love, or be a housewife, or have a family." This is the kind of turmoil even the Addams won't relish.

Ortega's performance is full of well-played detail, right down to long periods without blinking. Her furled gaze through her black eyebrows makes her the next best Wednesday since Christina Ricci, who plays the character in the 1992 movie and its sequel. By the way, Ricci has a supporting role as Botany Professor Marilyn Thornhill. 

Wednesday is bright for a dark child. Ortega's inflections and mannerisms are perfect in this role. 

Burton hand-picked the cast, and I can see why he saw Wednesday in Ortega. Her Wednesday puts her intelligence to good use, making her fit to be the detective she is. For the rest of the cast, they resemble the characters from the cartoon better than any other Addams Family movie or series.

Ortega is certainly no stranger to horror as the 20-year old actress previously starred in such movies as "Insidious: Chapter 2" (2013), "The Babysitter: Killer Queen" (2020), "Scream" (2022) "Studio 666" (2022), "X" (2022) and is scheduled to appear in the sixth installment of the "Scream" series.
The atmosphere at Nevermore Academy is certainly a Harry Potter-esque style with its paranormal nature, and odd student body mixed with Tim Burton's macabre gray tone protruding through. I wouldn't call it a stunning style. It's what's to be expected, especially regarding Burton's version of the macabre. 

It's heavier on the eerie and ghastly than on the surreal and nightmarish. I can see Burton's style in the look of the monster, referred to as a "hyde." It would easily fit within his 1988 movie "Beetlejuice." And the truck driver in the beginning of the first episode ever-so-slightly resembles "Large Marge" from his movie "Pee Wee's Big Adventure."

There's a scene in which Wednesday plays her cello in the town square during an unveiling while the statue of the town's founder, Joseph Crackstone, is lit on fire and burns while ceremony attendees run around in a panic. It is truly a heavy scene that sums up Wednesday Addams perfectly.  

Each episode left me eager to watch the next. I appreciate the series doing something different with the Addams rather than just creating an updated live-action series with the humor and style we've already seen before. Using Wednesday's knowledge and brilliance to create a mystery series is enticing. Overall, I can see why this new series became successful so quickly.

142) The Horror of Dracula (1958)

"With God's help, I will forever end this man's reign of terror." 

Director

Terence Fisher

Cast

Peter Cushing - Dr. Van Helsing

Christopher Lee - Count Dracula

Carol Marsh - Lucy Holmwood

Michael Gough - Arthur Holmwood

Melissa Stribling - Mina Holmwood

John Van Eyssen - Jonathan Harker

Valerie Gaunt - Vampire Woman

"The Horror of Dracula" is a movie that shouldn't be forgotten.  Like so many other horror films from British movie company, Hammer Film Productions, it manages to be co-foundational in the horror genre though Universal Studios made the classic monster films first.

It's thanks to Universal that the monsters above all other monsters like Dracula, Frankenstein's monster, and the Mummy still possess a firm place in pop culture. 

Beginning in the 1950s, when Hollywood had moved on to the atomic age of SciFi and horror, Hammer Productions took those Universal characters and made them partly their own. And, thus, Hammer Horror was born. 

I've written about a few other Hammer films on here - Vampire Circus (1972), Tales from the Crypt (1972), and To the Devil...A Daughter (1976). 

Now, I want to get to a Hammer Horror film that's considered a horror classic among horror classics, "The Horror of Dracula." Released in the U.K. as simply "Dracula" and directed by Terence Fisher, it stars British acting legends Peter Cushing as Van Helsing, Michael Gough, and Christopher Lee as Dracula. 

It's also the final film role of British actress Valerie Gaunt, who stars as the vampire woman of Dracula. Her previous film was Hammer's 1957 movie "The Curse of Frankenstein" which also stars Cushing and Lee. 

"The Horror of Dracula" is the first of nine Dracula films produced by Hammer - "The Brides of Dracula" (1960), "Dracula: Prince of Darkness" (1966), "Dracula has Risen from the Grave" (1968), "Taste the Blood of Dracula" (1970), "Scars of Dracula" (1970), "Dracula A.D. 1972" (1972), "The Satanic Rites of Dracula" (1973), and the martial arts horror movie "The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires" (1974). 

The story in this movie takes place in the late 1880s as Jonathan Harker (John Van Eyssen) arrives at the castle of Count Dracula located in the city of Klausenburg, Romania.

Christopher Lee as Dracula in "The Horror of Dracula."

Harker introduces himself as the new librarian for the castle. 

As soon as he walks through the castle doors, a young woman (Valerie Gaunt) begs for his help. She claims she's a prisoner of Dracula who's keeping her in the castle against her will. 

Soon, Dracula (Christopher Lee) enters to show Jonathan to his room. Once Harker is alone in his room and begins writing in his diary does the audience learn his true intentions. Harker intends to kill
Dracula and end his reign of terror.

Later, Harker returns to the main room of the castle where he's confronted again by the same woman.

As she again begs for his help, she bears her sharp teeth revealing herself to be a vampire. She then bites his neck.

Dracula quickly enters the room to chase her down and expel her. 

Harker passes out. By the time he awakens, it's daylight outside near the end of the day. Once he realizes that he has been bitten, it's a matter of time before he becomes a vampire himself. 

He writes one last entry in his journal before searching for Dracula's tomb. 

Sure enough, he finds the undead Dracula in his coffin with the vampire woman in another. 

Rather than stake Dracula first, he kills the woman. This turns out to be a fatal mistake. 

Dracula awakens at her screams as she dies. 

He closes the crypt door, trapping Harker inside with him. 

Days later, Dr. Van Helsing (Peter Cushing) shows up to town looking for Harker. He first stops at an inn.

For some reason, the owner's daughter has Harker's journal, which she gives to Van Helsing. 

He then goes to Dracula's castle. Nobody seems to be around. But he does come across a picture of Harker's fiancée, Lucy Holmwood (Carol Marsh).  

Van Helsing finally finds Harker lying in Dracula's coffin. He checks for bite marks. Sure enough, they're there. 

Knowing what he has to do, though reluctant to do it, he puts a stake through Harker's heart. 

After, Van Helsing wastes no time leaving the castle to tell Lucy's brother and sister-in-law, Arthur and Mina Holmwood (Michael Gough and Melissa Stribling) about Harker's death. 

Lucy, unfortunately, has become ill and bedridden. 

When day turns to night, Dracula visits Lucy, whom she allows into her bedroom, to drink her blood. 

Worried about Lucy, Mina asks Van Helsing to examine her. 

He finds the bite marks on her neck and places garlic cloves around her bed - a common vampire repellant. 

Peter Cushing as Dr. Van Helsing.

Lucy later begs the house maid, Gerda, to remove the garlic. Of course, Gerda is oblivious to everything going on, she ignorantly removes the garlic. Stupid Gerda!

And the next morning, they find Lucy dead.

Three days after they bury her, Lucy rises from the dead and lures Gerda's daughter, Tania (Janine Faye) to the graveyard where she (Lucy) was buried.

But Van Helsing discovers Lucy's empty tomb and is ready to confront her with a crucifix. 

When she shows up, the crucifix wards Lucy off before she can harm Tania. 

Van Helsing tells Arthur that Dracula turned Lucy into a vampire as a replacement for the woman Harker killed earlier.

Lucy goes back into her coffin. And Van Helsing has the brilliant idea to use her as bait to find Dracula. Arthur, however, rejects the idea. 

So, Van Helsing stakes her in the heart.

He and Arthur then go to Ingolstadt to find Dracula's coffin. 

While they're off looking for it, Mina gets a note which she thinks is from Arthur telling her to meet him at a specific address in Karlstadt. Little does she know that Dracula is waiting for her. 

When Van Helsing and Arthur get to the undertaker, Dracula's coffin is gone. 

Concerned about what Dracula has up his sleeve, he gives Mina a cross to wear for protection. The cross, however, ends up burning her. So, that's not a good sign.

Van Helsing tries giving her a blood transfusion to cure her vampirism. 

When he tells Gerda to go get some wine in the cellar, she tells him she's not allowed down there.

Van Helsing goes down himself and finds Dracula's coffin. Now Van Helsing can confront Dracula and try to kill him. But Dracula won't go down easily. 

My personal introduction to the character Dracula begins with a picture of Bela Lugosi as Dracula hanging in the basement of the Cliff House in San Francisco. 

Back in my youth during the mid to late 1980s, my family used to venture once in a while from Oakland to the Cliff House to spend a Saturday drinking hot chocolate, exploring the seaside area, having a picnic and wandering through the Musée Mécanique penny arcade that was once housed in the Cliff House basement. Those old animation machines and coin- operated games are now housed at the Musée Mécanique located at San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf. 

Anyways, I distinctly remember seeing this large black and white photo of Dracula, striking a pose like the one in the image posted here, on the wall and asking my mother who that was. She told me. And my young mind took the story of a man who drinks the blood of women (or moms as I considered all women to be in my youth) as a real possibility. Terrifying. 

"Horror of Dracula" has the same trepidation I sensed back then as my imagination wrapped itself around the disturbing idea that such a person might exist. How would this Dracula character haunt and prey on his victims? Couldn't anyone rid the world of this wicked man? 

Hammer horror films establish a strong branch in the horror genre. After the 1931 Tod Browning film "Dracula," this movie is as classic and unforgettable. It's the quintessential vampire movie and one of the most solid adaptations of Bram Stoker's novel. 

As the movie was shot in and around the U.K.'s Bray Studios, which has an antiquated castle appearance, the wide shots are fantastic in capturing a macabre and haunted atmosphere. 

Bela Lugosi in the 1931 film "Dracula.

Thanks to legendary film set designer, Bernard Robinson, the set on this film is amazing. It certainly builds upon, and rounds out with careful detail, the imagery seen in Universal's "Dracula." The design mixed with unique and sometimes daunting camera angles works impressively well together.

Lee's performance as Dracula is menacing and conspicuous. His presence on screen is demanding as he creates Dracula's apparent evil nature but without having to say or do much to convey. Lee is as sensual as the women he victimizes who both desire and disdain their experience with him. 

Their souls struggle under the weight of temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. It's conveyed on screen brilliantly. 

Yet, Lee makes Dracula's faux charm precisely and intentionally that. His depiction here and in later films is what makes "The Horror of Dracula" truly foundational in the genre. 

With its cast of stellar actors, "The Horror of Dracula" has aged well with time. It has certainly kept its rightful place among memorable horror movies.  

141) NEW HORROR RELEASES - Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (2022)

"Cops, and everything. Teachers. It's like everybody's had it out for me forever." 

Creators

Ryan Murphy

Ian Brennan

Cast

Evan Peters - Jeffrey Dahmer

Richard Jenkins - Lionel Dahmer

Molly Ringwald - Shari Dahmer

Niecy Nash - Glenda Cleveland

Penelope Ann Miller - Joyce Dahmer

Khetphet Phagnasay - Southone Sinthasomphone

Rodney Burford - Tony Hughes

It feels like it's taking me days and days to write my thoughts on the current Netflix series "Dahmer."

The 10-episode series, created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, premiered on the streaming service on Sept. 21. I finished watching it in mid-October. 

It centers primarily on the life of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer (Evan Peters), one of the worst murderers and sex offenders in American history. It's thought that this guy killed 17 victims starting in 1978. Dahmer terrorized the city of Milwaukee for several years before finally getting caught by police in 1991. 

I think it's a safe assumption to say that my initial reaction upon hearing about this series matches those of so many others in the audience. How many series on this guy do we need?

And by the end of the last episode, my mind still pondered why was this made?

Though "Dahmer - Monster" is a biographical true crime drama series, I include it on my horror blog simply because Jeffrey Dahmer was a horrific person. And this series was released just in time for the Halloween season. Was that intentional? I'll assume it is. So, I'm putting it here.

A documentary is one thing. There's a lot of them about this one psychopath. I couldn't find how many movies and documentaries there are about Dahmer. I found one website, bustle.com, that lists nine movies, documentaries and T.V. shows about him "to watch ASAP."  That makes an entire 10-episode tv series seem even more unnecessary. 

MSN posted an article headlined, "10 Jeffrey Dahmer Documentaries, Movies, and Series to Watch After ‘DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story’."

Both articles pretty much list the same titles - "The Secret Life: Jeffrey Dahmer" (1993), "Jeffrey Dahmer: Mind of a Monster" (2020), "Conversations with a Killer: The Jeffrey Dahmer Tapes" (2007), "My Friend Dahmer" (2010), "Dahmer" (2002), "The Jeffrey Dahmer Files" (2012). Or you can just watch the trial itself which is currently available on YouTube. 

This series depicts moments from Dahmer's childhood, including his relationship with his mother Joyce (Savannah Brown as young Joyce, and Penelope Ann Miller as the older version), his father, Lionel (Richard Jenkins) and also his grandmother, Lionel's mother, Catherine (Michael Learned). 

It also covers specific moments during the period his killing spree terrorized the people of Milwaukee. 

The series does include episodes that focus on other people such as his victim, Tony Hughes (Rodney Burford), his suspicious neighbor, and his father. 

The final two episodes depict Dahmer's trial, his time in prison, the fan mail he received, and his final days. 

With the large number of films and such about Dahmer already out there, I don't see this as any different from them aside from details surrounding the events of Dahmer's life and murders. While I haven't watched any of these other productions, though I have seen various episodes of true crime TV shows about Dahmer, I fail to see what sort of new insight this new series covers. In fact, I fail to see why audiences need new insight into the life and crimes this psychopath. 

Audiences certainly have a fascination with the serial killers that have terrorized societies through the decades. And the more demoralized and debased they are, the greater is audience fascination.

While Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan boast that this series strives to put the stories of Dahmer's victims and their families at the heart of the production, it primarily feels like just another Jeffrey Dahmer story... approximately 10-hours long. 

Evan Peters as serial killer, Jeffrey Dahmer.

As of Oct. 27, Murphy responded to the backlash from the angry families who voiced their displeasure at the idea of producing this show. 

During an event for his series at the DGA Theater somewhere in Los Angeles, The Hollywood Reporter quotes Murphy as saying, “And we — over the course of the three, three and a half years when we were really writing it, working on it — we reached out to 20, around 20, of the victims’ families and friends trying to get input, trying to talk to people. And not a single person responded to us in that process. So, we relied very, very heavily on our incredible group of researchers who … I don’t even know how they found a lot of this stuff. But it was just like a night and day effort to us trying to uncover the truth of these people.”

There are more episodes about Dahmer than episodes about victims, their families, and Dahmer's family. Afterall, the show is called "Dahmer." 

Episode six, "Silenced," is where the series really begins to veer attention off of Dahmer. 

It's about Tony Hughes (played by Rodney Burford), a young gay black man who's aspiring to be a model and happens to be deaf. 

He meets Dahmer at the night club the murderer would frequent to pick up young men, and the two start what could have been a solid relationship. But the demons inside Dahmer take over. The episode portrays how close Tony is to his mother and family, and his friends in the gay community.

Episode seven, "Cassandra," centers on Dahmer's neighbor, Glenda Cleveland (Niecy Nash), who's a combination of multiple people personified in Glenda. Nash portrays the character's frustration and anger as she calls police multiple times to report screams and rancid smells that intrude from Dahmer's apartment into her own. The Milwaukee Police ignore calls and concern from Glenda and others in the black community about Dahmer. Glenda is later visited by Rev. Jesse Jackson (Nigel Gibbs) who inserts himself into the situation primarily because Dahmer's victims have mostly been members of the black community.

Nash plays the role incredibly well. Her story is the one I was most invested in. 

The eighth episode, "Lionel" centers on his father and the demons he faces as the crimes of his son are exposed for all the world to see. 

While the series as a whole isn't as exploitative as something like "Dahmer vs. Gacy" (2010) - yeah, that's a thing - it still offers barely anything new on this particular topic. It's another showcase of Dahmer's abhorrent crimes and sick ways that go beyond perverse.  

It could certainly be much more focused on victims and family, but then again, that's not nearly as interesting. 

This series, while well-acted, especially on the part of Even Peters, is just the same sad, horrific true story about a loathsome and maniacal individual told once again. 

A documentary is one (informative) thing. Again, how many documentaries do we need on one murderer? 

Normally a drama series with however many episodes it includes is simply a TV show that's made to entertain. "Dahmer-Monster" is no different. Each episode leaves with a cliff hanger of sorts, making it "necessary" for viewers to quickly get to the next episode to see what happens. Why use the Dahmer murders as the basis of such a show? 

Having content in a series format based on actual people and events seems to be the current growing trend. Shows like "The Crown" and "Unorthodox," inspired by Deborah Feldman's autobiography in which she recounts her escape from a Hasidic Jewish community, come to mind. 

So does the Netflix true crime documentary series "Tiger King" which centers on big cat conservationists and collectors in the U.S. and specifically Joseph Maldonado-Passage, commercially known as Joe "Exotic." 

With that docu-series, underneath the eccentricities is a self-absorbed, greedy, selfish and sick man. Yet, people still love Joe Exotic thanks to all the notoriety he's received. The series ended up with a second season. 

I'm uncertain as to what "Dahmer-Monster" wants me to take from it. Does it want me to see Dahmer's life and crimes like a museum piece? Am I supposed to see him as a sympathetic character? I sure hope not. 

Or does it want me to see Dahmer as the monster that he is and will always be known as? I picked up on elements of each.

Niecy Nash as Glenda Cleveland.

There is a tone of sympathy that is sometimes subtle, and other times perfectly clear towards Dahmer. We see all the drama that he experienced in his life, starting with his parents' tumultuous divorce when he was a child. His mother also took a variety of antidepressants and sleep-aids when she carried him. He had an extensive drinking problem that got him discharged from the military. 

In one scene while in prison, Dahmer suggests to his father how much better he feels since he can't drink in prison. Otherwise, he just carries around this looming sense of failure, topped with more disapproval from his father, throughout the series. 

There's also an incident where during high school, Dahmer sneaks into a group photo of the honor society. However, when the yearbook committee spots him in the photo, he's darkened out of all the copies. When Dahmer sees his blacked-out image in the yearbook, a sense of sadness and dejectedness permeates from his character. 

At one point in the program it's suggested that if Dahmer just received the psychological help he needed, he may not have committed at least some of the crimes that he did. But circumstances prevented him receiving the necessary help. So, someone else is to blame?

Early in the series, Dahmer tells another character, "Cops, and everything. Teachers. It's like everybody's had it out for me forever. They just decide you're a bad guy, and there's nothing you can do about it. They get their mind made up." 

The most demonizing moment for Dahmer comes in episode six about Tony Hughes who is believed to be Dahmer's 17th victim. He was 31 at the time.

In an Oct. 10, 2022 article of "The Guardian" Hughes' mother, Shirley Hughes, stated that the events portrayed in this particular episode, "didn't happen like that" though she admitted she hadn't seen the entire series.

"I don't see how they can do that," she said. "I don’t see how they can use our names and put stuff out like that out there.”

Rita Isbell, the sister of Dahmer victim Errol Lindsey, who famously shouted at Dahmer and referred to him as "Satan" during his trail (also depicted in the series, with DaShawn Barnes as Isbell) wrote that this series is "harsh and careless."

The aspect of a "new angle" on such content seems like the only big selling point for such programs, unless some major celebrities are starring in the lead roles, like Charlize Theron playing serial killer Aileen Wuornos in "Monster," or Jared Leto as John Lennon's murderer, Mark David Chapman, in the 2007 movie "Chapter 27." 

In this case, we have Evan Peters, Richard Jenkins, Molly Ringwald, and Penelope Ann Miller.

With the claim that such content makes people and societies "aware" of serial killers, with "insight" as to what might make them commit such actions, I fail to see why a society needs to be so "aware" of each and every detail about a serial killer's horrific past and the murders they've committed, even when new information comes to light.

And the show goes out of its way to criticize the Milwaukee Police Department rather than let the carelessness and incompetence of the police department then speak for itself. 

The show portrays the officers who brought Dahmer's victim, Konerak Sinthasomphone (Kieran Tamondong), who was 14-years old, back to his apartment after he was found naked, bleeding and under the influence outside of Dahmer's apartment. Dahmer convinced the cops, John Balcerzak and Joseph Gabrish, that Konerak was his lover and was simply drunk. 

After the police left Konerak alone again with Dahmer, he was gruesomely murdered. Cleveland tried to persuade the cops to investigate the situation, as Sinthasomphone was clearly a child. But she was brushed off with the claim "Ma'am, we got this." 

Molly Ringwald and Richard Jenkins in "Dahmer - Monster."

Later in the show, Sinthasomphone's father, Southone Sinthasomphone, receives continuous threatening and racist phone calls about his involvement in Dahmer's trial. 

According to a Sept. 23 article in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the family did receive such threatening phone calls. However, the series depicts police officers as the culprits of those calls. I couldn't find any information claiming cops actually made those phone calls. 

The same Sentinel article states the calls stopped once the family placed a tracker on the phone. That whole premise seems odd and unnecessary. The facts speak for themselves. 

"Dahmer - Monster" feels completely unnecessary.

Perhaps there is something for some people to learn by Dahmer's actions. What that would be, I don't know. But this series in particular, like other such programs and documentaries of the past, attempt to put this monster into a human perspective. No wonder the families of victims found it contemptable. Despite the terrific acting and the effort to keep the facts straight, the entire thing is pointless.

140) Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975)

Halloween 2022's Godzilla-Maniapalloza Extravaganza #15...For the Love of Godzilla.

All Hail, the Monster King!

"Titanosaurus is going to join the ranks of the killers!"

Director

Ishirō Honda

Cast

Tomoko Ai - Katsura Mafune

Katsuhiko Sasaki - Akira Ichinose

Akihiko Hirata - Dr. Shinzo Mafune

Gorō Mutsumi - Mugal
Toru Kawai - Godzilla

Kazunari Mori - Mechagodzilla
Tatsumi Fuyamoto - Titanosaurus

The year is 1975. "Terror of Mechagodzilla" marks the last Godzilla film of the Shōwa era of Japanese kaiju movies. 

It was released in the U.S. as "The Terror of Godzilla" and is a direct sequel to the last film, "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla." 

By this point in the franchise, it's all feeling repetitive. That's not to say these Godzilla movies are getting boring, nor that "Terror of Mechagodzilla" is a dull film. 

The movie begins with the fight between Godzilla and Mechagodzilla as seen in the last movie. 

Interpol (International Criminal Police Organization) agents are searching for what's left of Mechagodzilla at the bottom of the Okinawan Sea. 

Their goal is to gather more knowledge of the Black Hole alien race that built this robotic, ballistic titan. 

During their search, a new monster submerges from the deep and attacks their submarine, killing everyone on board. 

This new monster is an aquatic dinosaur-like creature called Titanosaurus.  

Interpol quickly launches an investigation into the attack. A Marine Biologist named Akira Ichinose (Katsuhiko Sasaki) helps to trace Titanosaurus's origins to Dr. Shinzo Mafune (Akihiko Hirata). Mafune is hellbent on destroying mankind. 

Investigators meet Mafune's daughter, Katsura (Tomoko Ai) when visiting the doctor's house. She claims her father is dead and that she destroyed all his notes on Titanosaurus per his request.

However, Mafune is actually alive. 

The Black Hole aliens are busy rebuilding Mechagodzilla.

Tsuda, an aide to the alien leader Mugal, played again by Gorō Mutsumi, pays a visit to Mafune to offer the service of the aliens by having Mechagodzilla fight alongside Titanosaurus in wiping out mankind. 

Meanwhile, Ichinose falls in love with Katsura. Like the love-struck fool that he becomes, Ichinose inadvertently reveals all the information Interpol has on the Black Hole aliens, Mechagodzilla, and Titanosaurus. 

But little does he know that Mugal is actually a cyborg!

Her scientist father performed a ton of cybernetic surgery on her after she was almost killed by one of his weird experiments when she was a kid. 

Now, she has Mechagodzilla's control device planted inside her. 

Godzilla takes on Titanosaurus and Mechagodzilla - two
against one - in "Terror of Mechagodzilla."

Eager to get the ball of absolute destruction rolling, Mafune releases Titanosaurus on the city of Yokosuka earlier than planned, without any say from the Black Hole aliens. 

The monster goes on a complete and uncontrolled rampage. Interpol agents figure out that they can use supersonic waves to slow down Titanosaurus. 

However, Katsura destroys their supersonic wave machine. 

Just in time, Godzilla shows up and takes down this new foe. But the dinosaur isn't completely defeated...yet. 

The aliens capture Ichinose and force him to watch as they rerelease Mechagodzilla and Titanosaurus on Tokyo. 

Interpol desperately tries to fix their supersonic machine. All the while, Japanese Armed Forces try throwing all the weaponry they can at these two giants.

Godzilla returns to fight both monsters on his own, but is initially outmatched, and collapses. 

Interpol finally repairs their supersonic wave machine and use it against Titanosaurus while Godzilla gathers himself and takes on Mechagodzilla. 

Agents rescue Ichinose and kill Mafune along with a ton of other aliens, who by the way do not turn into ape-like creatures when they die like they do in "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla." 

The remaining aliens attempt to fly away in their ships. But Godzilla takes them down with his atomic breath. 
Now, all that's left is to destroy Mechagodzilla once again and finish off Titanosaurus. 

Godzilla manages to rip the robot's head off, but underneath is a backup brain to control Mechagodzilla. 

That means Katsura must be killed if Mechagodzilla is going to be defeated, unless they can find another way to take it down. Well played, Toho. Well played!

Spoiler!

They don't find another way. Katsura tells Ichinose to kill her, but he loves her too much and can't do it. Katsura then shoots herself and dies. 

Mechagodzilla goes down. Godzilla then focuses his wrath on Titanosaurus. Once the dinosaur is out for the count, Godzilla walks back into the water in a sendoff I can only describe as tear-jerking.

Gorō Mutsumi as "Mugal" of the Black Hole aliens.

Godzilla would take a ten-year rest before returning again to the big screen in "Godzilla 1985," known in Japan as "The Return of Godzilla." 

It's a direct sequel to the original 1954 film, "Gojira." It's also the first Godzilla movie in the Heisei era of kaiju movies (1984 - 1995).

With "Terror of Mechagodzilla" Toho really went out with an entertaining and well-constructed bang. 

The film's campiness is found mostly with the dorky looking space suits and face coverings the Black Hole aliens wear. They unintentionally look fish with flailing arms, like something out of a Super Mario Brothers game. These costumes are even more ridiculous as the movie treats the invading alien part of the story with even more seriousness than before. The suits are cheesier than the Xilien space uniforms from "Invasion of Astro-Monster." 

Despite that, for a sequel movie, it one-ups the previous film in a few ways. The human story manages to be captivating, though it seems like there's more human focus than in "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla." Still, that part of the story plays out well and carries the movie along solidly. I was invested in the human story just as much as I was in the monsters. I think that's thanks to the movie's strong cast.

There are several parts I love in "Terror of Mechagodzilla." 

For one thing, the monster fights all take place within the city rather than taking the match to the country hillside or barren alien planet which always seems to be the case in previous Godzilla movies. 

During one of the fight scenes, Godzilla catches on fire as he takes on two monsters by himself without any help, except from Interpol. I don't know if the costume catching fire was intentional or not, but it helps either way. 

The production quality seems better than previous films as well. 

The use of Godzilla's original theme as heard in the 1954 film works amazingly well and gives me chills. The theme plays when Godzilla makes his appearance in the movie, and it's nothing short of bad ass! 

As Titanosaurus is wreaking havoc on Tokyo, Godzilla's silhouette is seen emerging from behind a building off in the distance. The camera switches back to Titanosaurus, as Godzilla's atomic breath comes from off screen and hits him in the chest, knocking him to the ground in a huge plume of dust. The camera switches to Godzilla's silhouette as bright flashes from behind him illuminate his presence, His face slowly emerges from the shadow, and his theme starts to play. Legendary!

"Terror of Mechagodzilla" marks the end of actor Akihiko Hirata's appearances in Godzilla films. 

He was meant to return in "Godzilla 1984" as Dr. Serizawa. Unfortunately, Hirata became ill before filming commenced and died that same year. 

He plays Dr. Serizawa in "Gojira," Dr. Shosuke Shigesawa in "King Kong vs. Godzilla," Police Chief Okita in "Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster," Captain Ryui in "Ebirah, Horror of the Deep," Dr. Fujisaki in "Son of Godzilla," and Hideto Miyajima in "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla." 

Through the magic of stock footage, he also stars in "Godzilla vs. Destroyah," (1995) and "Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla" (2002). 

Hirata also has roles in other Japanese films such as "Rodan," "Mothra," and two episodes of the series "Ultraman." 

"Terror of Mechagodzilla" is a strong film in the franchise, and a great picture to end the Showa era of Godzilla movies. 

Even with the corny space outfits, the movie is one of the more entertaining in the series with its fight scenes done to perfection. And it's all paced out well. Good job, Toho. 

And for the love of Godzilla, happy Halloween! 

Special Effects Director, Eiji Tsubaraya,
is considered a co-creator of Godzilla.

Actor Haruo Nakajima played Godzilla
in several films, including the first movie, "Gojira." 

139) Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)

Halloween 2022's Godzilla-Maniapalloza Extravaganza #14...For the Love of Godzilla.

All Hail, the Monster King!

"Stupid Godzilla! You're mistaken if you think your powers are a match for Mechagodzilla." 

Director

Jun Fukuda

Cast

Masaaki Daimon - Keisuke Shimizu

Kazuya Aoyama - Masahiko Shimizu

Hiromi Matsushita - Ikuko Miyajima

Hiroshi Koizumi - Professor Wagura

Gorō Mutsumi - Kuronuma, Black Hole Alien Leader

Beru-Bera Lin - Princess Nami

Isao Zushi - Godzilla

Kazunari Mori - Mechagodzilla
Kin'ichi Kusumi - Anguirus & King Caesar

The Godzilla franchise returns to a more terrorizing tone with "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla." A few of the previous films, namely "Ebirah, Horror of the Deep," "Godzilla vs. The Smog Monster," "Son of Godzilla," and "All Monsters Attack" leaned a little too much into the realm of dull, juvenile, or just plain weird. 

Now, Toho turns up the carnage and warfare in their 13th Godzilla film. 

Released in the United States in 1977 under the title "Godzilla vs. The Bionic Monster," it later went through a rerelease under the title "Godzilla vs. the Cosmic Monster." How many titles does one movie need? 

"Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla" marks the 20th anniversary of the King of the Monsters. And it's quite a spectacle. There's explosions and destruction galore!

The story takes place in Okinawa. A priestess named Princess Nami (Beru-Bera Lin), who lives in a warrior tribe called the Azumi, has a vision of the future in which the city is being destroyed by a giant monster. Considering Japan's history with Godzilla and other kaiju in the movies, a premonition of Okinawa destroyed by a monster is a reasonable scenario to come to. 

Keisuke Shimizu (Masaaki Daimon) and his brother Masahiko (Kazuya Aoyama) are attending the traditional Okinawan ceremony Princess Nami is performing when she has this frightening vision.

She freezes in absolute terror, and then collapses in fear. Her grandfather comes to her rescue when she relates the vision she had. And, really, what can anyone do? 

Afterwards, Masahiko heads to Gyokusen Cave where he's working as an excavator. He discovers an unusual metal that he's unfamiliar with.

He takes it to a scientist professor, Hideto Miyajima (Akihiko Hirata), to assess just what kind of metal it is. 

Miyajima is certain this metal came from space and refers to it as "Space Titanium."

Shortly after he comes to this conclusion, an earthquake strikes. 

His daughter, Ikuko (Hiromi Matsushita) comments that earthquakes have been a common occurrence in the area recently. 

Meanwhile, Keisuke and a government archaeologist named Saeko Kanagusuku (Reiko Tajima) investigate an unexplored cave in which they discover a prophetic mural along with a statue of a monster deity, King Caesar. 

King Caesar protects the Azumi royal family in Okinawa. His name is based on "Shisa," the stone lion statues derived from Chinese guardian lions.

Saeko is able to translate the text of the prophesy, which says, "When a black mountain appears above the clouds, a huge monster will arise and try to destroy the world; but when the red moon sets and the sun rises in the west, two monsters shall appear to save the people."

They take the statue, but little do Keisuke and Saeko know that two shady looking agents are following them. 

One of these mysterious guys tries to steal the statue from them, but without success. 

The prophesy begins to come true when a black cloud that looks like a mountain appears. Once it does, Godzilla emerges from Mt. Fuji. 

Though Godzilla has been tolerant of humans in the last several films, he goes on an all-out destructive rampage destroying everything in his path. 

His old ally, Anguirus reveals himself and fights him. During the scuffle, Anguirus tears off a bit of Godzilla's skin revealing glistening metal. But Godzilla attempts to kill him by trying to rip his jaw apart. 

Though seriously wounded, Anguirus survives and retreats to safety. 

Godzilla continues rampaging through Japan making his way towards Tokyo. 

And then, another Godzilla emerges! It turns out to be the real Godzilla. 

The other Godzilla is an imposter which reveals itself to be a giant robot...Mechagodzilla! 

This new foe inflicts some serious injuries on Godzilla, but Godzilla manages to get in a few blows before both titans retreat. 

Miyajima comes to the conclusion that Mechagodzilla is of alien origin based on the massive amount of artillery in bears as well as its space titanium construction. 

Keisuke and Saeko decide to return the King Caesar statue back to the temple, but while they're on the boat heading towards the Azumi temple, one of the people following them steals it while Saeko is asleep. 

When the thief is caught and tries to run from Keisuke around the boat, he's shot by a mysterious assailant. As he lays dying, he transforms into his true nature - an apelike alien creature. 

Meanwhile, Godzilla heads back to Monster Island and is struck by lightning several times which increases his energy and stamina. 

Masahiko, Miyajima and Ikuko explore the cave again where the titanium was found. They're captured by more of these apelike creatures. It turns out these aliens are from the

King Caesar takes on Mechagodzilla in
"Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla." 

 "Third Planet of the Black Hole." They're leader is Kuronuma (Gorō Mutsumi).

His dastardly plan is to use Mechagodzilla to ultimately conquer the Earth, and defeat Godzilla while he's at it. 

As luck would have it, a lunar eclipse takes place. This results in a red moon and a mirage of the sun rising in the west, thus fulfilling more of the prophesy. 

Now is the best time to awaken King Caesar. 

When the statue is returned to the temple, the priestess sings to awaken King Caesar. 

He appears from within a mountain, teams up with Godzilla, and the two battle Mechagodzilla for an ultimate showdown to save the entire world. 

The action and carnage starts around the 30-minutes mark. And when it's on screen, it doesn't hold back.

The writers knew what audiences and Godzilla fans came to see. They make it a point not to disappoint. 

Mechagodzilla can shoot missiles from his fingers, toes, knees, and can also shoot lasers from his eyes. He also spins his head around to shoot what's behind him while simultaneously shooting whatever is in front of him. 

He can also create a force field around his body. As these monsters tromp through buildings and avoid missals, it's one explosion after another.  

"Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla" seems to be one of the most ambitious Godzilla movies yet. It mixes ancient Japanese culture mixed with what was current science fiction at the time. 

In this movie, Godzilla teams up with a new kaiju titan whose history lies in Japanese myth and traditions. 

The two of them face off against the heavily weaponized robotic monster, designed by an alien race. 

When the priestess has to sing to awaken King Caesar, it goes on and on for several minutes.  

The antagonist of the movie, the Black Hole alien leader, Kuronuma, could easily fit within the rogue's gallery of James Bond villains. His appearance in a shiny silver suit with a patch of grey discoloration around his left eye makes him look like he's an agent of Spectre. His evil plans to take over the world with a giant robot also seem standard material for a James Bond movie plot. 

The story is a little difficult to get into. None of the characters are interesting enough to really care about. I think part of that is due to their being rather conventional. 

The fight between fake Godzilla and Anguirus is reminiscent of the duel in "Godzilla Raids Again."  

The initial Godzilla being evil makes Godzilla both villain and hero in one movie. 

All the standard Godzilla movie tropes continue on, with the action being the only aspect that's more intense than before...to some degree. 

The camera work is better when compared to previous movies, especially, "Ebirah, Horror of the Deep." The images are steady rather than constant close-ups, quick cutaways, and shaky camera work done in previous films, which left me wondering what I was looking at. 

One awesome scene includes a closeup of Godzilla peering over a mountain with anger clearly in his eyes. You can see that shot in the Japanese trailer. Another scene shows Mechagodzilla looming above buildings and structures burning in a conflagration of flames glistening off his metallic body. Iconic! 
King Caesar, by the way, shows up again via brief stock footage in the next movie, "Terror of Mechagodzilla" and again in 2004's "Godzilla: Final Wars." 

Toho clearly wants audiences to see Godzilla take on a titan greater than before. In that regard, the movie definitely delivers. 

138) Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973)

Halloween 2022's Godzilla-Maniapalloza Extravaganza #13...For the Love of Godzilla.

All Hail, the Monster King!

"Get Godzilla! You'll find him on Monster Island!"

Director

Jun Fukuda

Cast

Katsuhiko Sasaki - Goro Ibuki
Hiroyuki Kawase - Roku-chan Ibuki
Yutaka Hayashi - Hiroshi Jinkawa
Robert Dunham - Emperor Antonio of Seatopia
Kotaro Tomita - Lead Seatopian Agent
Wolf Ohtsuki - Seatopian Agent
Shinji Takagi - Godzilla
Tsugutoshi Komada - Jet Jaguar

Imagine being this kid. 

According to wikizilla.org, the Japanese business group, Seiyu GK, which owned several grocery stores, shopping centers and department stores, held a monster design campaign called "Children's Monster University" around the end of 1971. 

Robots were quite the rage back then. There were a few of them airing in Japan such as Ultraman, Spectreman, and Johnny Sokko and his flying robot, Giant Robo. 

The campaign was sponsored by Toho Studios and Tsuburaya Productions (the studio that brought us the Ultra Series starring Ultraman.) It sounds like something I wish I could have been a part of.

Anyways, it certainly drew the attention of many young children over in Japan. A lot of submissions were entered. 

At the end of the campaign in 1972, some of those kids and their monster designs were invited to appear on a television program called "Katsura Kokinji's Afternoon Show."

The winner was to be announced on a particular episode of the "Afternoon Show" and the lucky child would see their design in the form of a costume. On top of that, Toho Studios would feature the winning monster in their next Godzilla movie.

Masaaki Sano with his picture of the monster he called "Red Alone" was that lucky winner.

And the next Godzilla movie ended up being "Godzilla vs. Megalon." 

Japanese special effects director Teruyoshi Nakano was given the task of redesigning Red Alone's appearance. Finally, Red Alone was reimagined into a robot and given a new name - Jet Jaguar. 

According to audio commentary from the DVD of "Godzilla vs. Megalon," Jet Jaguar's suit slightly resembles Sano's design with a red, yellow and blue color scheme rather than his white design.

Toho delivered on their promise and included Jet Jaguar in their next Godzilla movie, which is the 13th film in the franchise for those who haven't been following.

Not only does he debut in "Godzilla vs. Megalon," Jet Jaguar also shows up in the T.V. series "Godzilla Island" (1997-1998) as well as "Godzilla Singular Point" (2021). 

I don't know what became of Masaaki Sano, but I recently spotted a Jet Jaguar figure, part of a Toho Classic Series from Playmates, in the toy aisle at WalMart a few months ago. Evidently, Jet Jaguar is still around. Thank you, Masaaki!

In "Godzilla vs. Megalon" well...don't be fooled by the poster. Not only do Godzilla and Megalon not fight on top of the World Trade Center, but neither of them step foot into New York City. They don't even come anywhere near the United States in this story. False advertising.  

What does happen involves nuclear tests, aliens, several monsters, the Japanese military, bad guys trying to take control over a giant robot, Godzilla, and stock footage. All the ingredients necessary to create the standard formula for a Godzilla movie.  

After a second round of several nuclear tests are conducted along the Aleutian Islands, shockwaves from the blasts are felt as far away as Monster Island. 

They eventually cause the ground on Monster Island to split open. The monster Anguirus (remember him from "Godzilla Raids Again?") falls into the earth, but Godzilla narrowly escapes. 

Meanwhile, an inventor named Goro Ibuki (Katsuhiko Sasaki) is hanging out at the lake with his kid brother, Roku-chan Ibuki (Hiroyuki Kawase) and his friend and inventor colleague, Hiroshi Jinkawa (Yutaka Hayashi). While Roku-chan is out on the lake playing with a paddle boat, the water starts bubbling. 

Hiroshi and Goro rescue him just in time as the ground underneath the water opens up, draining the lake in minutes. 

A subterranean civilization called "Seatopia" has been living under the ocean floor for millions of years. And now they're making their presence known. 

The Seatopians look as though they stepped out of the Las Vegas version of ancient Greece.

These underground inhabitants, led by Emperor Antonio (Robert Dunham), haven't minded the world nor its inhabitants above them until nuclear tests horribly affected their capital city. 

Rather than submerge and tell the Japanese government to cut it out with the bombs and stop being so damn loud, they want revenge. They plan on getting it by letting their beetle-like monster, Megalon, loose on the surface. Megalon is no force to be messed with. He spits bombs and has drills instead of hands. So, in other words, Emperor Antonio wants to stop Japan's bombing by unleashing a monster who spits bombs. Take that as you will.

Meanwhile, Goro has been working on a humanoid robot fighting machine - Jet Jaguar.  

When they return from the lake, a group of Seatopian agents try to ambush the three of them and take control over Jet Jaguar. But they fail and are forced to flee. 

After Jet Jaguar is finally finished, the agents return. This time they manage to subdue Goro, Hiroshi, and Roku-chan, and gain control of their robot. 

They want to use Jet Jaguar, who can fly, to lead Megalon in destroying whatever city they choose at will. 

Hiroshi is taken as a hostage while Goro and his little brother are sent to be killed. 

The Seatopians waste no time in putting their plans into action. Megalon is revealed to the world, and Jet Jaguar is under their control. Their sights are first set on Tokyo. So, that's where Megalon goes. 

The Japanese Self-Defense Forces throw the strongest weaponry they have against this new monster, but to no avail. No surprise!

Goro, Hiroshi, and Roku-chan manage to escape alive. And Goro has a remote device he can use to regain control of Jet Jaguar. 

Megalon (left) and Gigan stand over a nearly-defeated
Jet Jaguar in "Godzilla vs. Megalon."

He sends his robot to Monster Island to ask Godzilla for help. The robot obeys, flies over to the island, and Godzilla agrees without an argument to swim to Japan and fight this new monster. 

While waiting for Godzilla to show up, Jet Jaguar decides to ignore all commands and take matters into his own hands. He grows to the same size as Megalon and tries to take him down. 

Seeing that their plans are being sabotaged, the Seatopians send a distress signal to their pals, the Space Hunter Nebula M aliens. They're the same aliens from the previous movie, "Godzilla vs. Gigan". 

They send Gigan to fight with Megalon. Together, they put Jet Jaguar through a pretty nasty beating. 

Finally, Godzilla shows up and teams up with Jet Jaguar. It gets brutal. 

The ending fight, two against two, is like a WrestleMania match before that was a thing. The two of them really start fighting dirty 

In one scene, Jet Jaguar throws Gigan into the air, and Godzilla nails him with his atomic breath. 

And the pièce de résistance to this masterpiece of a monster fight comes when Jet Jaguar puts Megalon in a hold as Godzilla gets some distance, and then runs towards Megalon. He leaps and slides on his tail to drop kick him in the stomach. The producers must have thought they shot a scene so brilliant, it needed to be shown twice. So, they show the same shot twice. 

Jet Jaguar certainly looks like he was designed in the mind of a child. I appreciation this kid's imagination. However, Toho could have at least made his appearance not-so-laughable. He carries this dopey grin on his face which is hilarious as the fighting gets serious.

After Megalon and Gigan are defeated, Godzilla and Jet Jaguar shake hands and Godzilla heads back to Monster Island. 

Goro, Hiroshi, and Roku-chan wave goodbye to Godzilla, and don't forget to thank him for his help. 

They walk away, with Jet Jaguar tossing the kid on his shoulders. The end. 

Emperor Antonio's mustache, sideburns and hairy chest don't make him look like the leader of an ancient hidden subterranean civilization. He looks more like he was working as the set's key grip or, perhaps, the caterer and the part needed to be filled on the spot. 

He just happened to be at the right place, at the right time. So they offered him a paycheck, told him to put on a costume that was previously used in the entertainment line-up at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, and gave him the direction to "Get out there, Bob, and... earn that paycheck."

Seriously, Robert Dunham, who plays the Emperor, is no stranger to Godzilla fans. He plays the police chief of New Kirk City in "Mothra." He also has roles in "King Kong vs. Godzilla," "Mothra vs. Godzilla," and the next film "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla." 

"Godzilla vs. Megalon" follows the same formula as before while trying to turn up the fight sequence a few notches. Though film after film is formulary, writers try to be more ambitious than before to some small degree or another. That's certainly true with "Godzilla vs. Megalon."

At least the story flows well, and the effort to write something entertaining is obviously there. It gives fans what they want. 

And Jet Jaguar even has his own theme song played proudly at the end of the movie. Masaaki Sano should still be proud. 

Go, Jet Jaguar!