A college professor acquires a newly discovered specimen of a prehistoric fish. While examining the find he is accidentally exposed to it's blood, turning him into a murderous Neanderthal. Starring Arthur Franz, Joanna Moore, and Judson Pratt. Yea, the prehistoric fish is the Coelacanth from Madagascar environs and here it is turning a man into a Neanderthal, or is it bigfoot?
Slim and Tubby are American cops in London to study police tactics. They wind up in jail and are bailed out by Dr. Jekyll. Jekyll has been murdering fellow doctors who laugh at his experiments. He has more murders in mind. At one point the serum that turns Jekyll into the murderous Hyde gets injected into Tubby. Starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, and Boris Karloff. One of the later Abbott and Costello comedies and Karloff is good in this one.
Scott Carey and his wife Louise are sunning themselves on their cabin cruiser, the small craft adrift on a calm sea. While his wife is below deck, a low mist passes over him. Scott, lying in the sun, is sprinkled with glittery particles that quickly evaporate. Later he is accidentally sprayed with an insecticide while driving and, in the next few days, he finds that he has begun to shrink. Soon he is only three feet tall, and a national curiosity. At six inches tall he can only live in a doll's house and even that becomes impossible when his cat breaks in. Scott flees to the cellar, his wife thinks he has been eaten by the cat and the door to the cellar is closed, trapping him in the littered room where, menaced by a giant spider, he struggles to survive. Starring Grant Williams, Randy Stuart, and April Kent. The original shrinking man movie. Who thought that a house cat could be so scary?
Boxer Tommy Nelson is accused of killing his manager. While detectives Bud and Lou investigate, they come across an invisibility formula with which Tommy injects himself rather than face the police. This sparks an idea for trapping gangster Morgan by having Lou fight champ Rocky Hanlon, with Tommy's invisible help. Starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, and Nancy Guild.
In the Arizona desert, Professor Gerald Deemer (Leo G. Carroll) is experimenting with growth hormones in the hopes of finding a way to increase the world's food supply. His partner in the project was recently found dead in the desert, suffering from a disease that normally takes years to advance, but, in his case, seems to have afflicted him in only a few days. The local doctor, Matt Hastings is puzzled by the strange case and, with Deemer's recently arrived (and very pretty) assistant, Stephanie "Steve" Clayton, tries to figure out what is going on. When cattle remains are found in the countryside, evidence points to a giant tarantula as the culprit. Starring John Agar, Mara Corday and Leo G. Carroll. You’ll remember Leo G. Carroll as Mr. Waverly from the Man from Uncle series. A monster favorite!
In this third Gill-Man feature, the Creature is captured and turned into an air-breather by a rich mad scientist. This makes the Creature very unhappy, and he escapes, killing people and setting fires in the process. Starring Jeff Morrow, Rex Reason and Leigh Snowden. This movie asks, “Who is the monster—the Gill-Man or the mad scientist? More than just a monster movie, this is thought-provoking entertainment. “The jungle or the stars?” asks Dr. Morgan, concerning mankind's destiny. The only Creature movie not in 3D.
The Creature from the Black Lagoon has been captured by scientists and transported to an aquarium in south Florida. Once there, he becomes attracted to lovely female scientist Helen Dobson (Lori Nelson) and manages to escape and kidnap her, and heads to Jacksonville, with her real-life love in pursuit. Starring Stars John Agar, Lori Nelson, and John Bromfield. Yow! With the Creature after you, you might want to stop and play a game of pinball! This movie was also released in 3D!
A scientific expedition searching for fossils along the Amazon River discovers a prehistoric Gill-Man in the legendary Black Lagoon. The explorers capture the mysterious creature, but it breaks free. The Gill-Man returns to kidnap the lovely Kay, fiancée of one in the expedition, with whom he has fallen in love. Starring Richard Carlson, Julie Adams, and Richard Denning. Yes, this movie was first released in 3D. The classic creature feature!
On an archaeological dig in Asia, Dr. Roger Bentley finds a cuneiform tablet referring to an ancient society, the Shadow Dynasty, that was destroyed. An earthquake soon after reveals an ancient artifact and the scientists discover the ruins of an ancient temple world on a remote mountain site. It leads them to an underground world, lost in time, where people have adapted to low light. The High Priest Elinu doesn't welcome the presence of the new arrivals and wants them eliminated. Starring John Agar, Cynthia Patrick, and Hugh Beaumont. One of the great archeological horror movies!
On a naval expedition to Antarctica, three men and reporter Maggie Hathaway crash-land in a crater 1000 m below sea level. There, they encounter steamy tropical forest, dinosaurs, carnivorous plants, and human footprints, as Maggie's clothes become more and more abbreviated. Soon they stumble upon the lonely Dr. Carl Hunter, lost in another expedition twelve years ago. He offers a way out to the three military provided they leave Maggie with him. What will they do? Starring Jock Mahoney, Shirley Patterson, and William Reynolds. This story was allegedly inspired by the discovery, in 1947, of an area of inexplicably warm water in Antarctica. The Tyrannosaurus head from this movie was reportedly used to create Spot under the stairs of the Munster House on The Munsters television show (1964).
The Space Patrol sends Flash’s best friend to investigate a planet where it is reported that mercy is a crime and the weak are exploited. The agent is captured, brainwashed and sent back to murder Flash. Thanks to Dale's timely intervention, Flash survives the attack, and the pair are sent back to the world to learn how Flash's friend was tricked into trying to assassinate his friend. Get your ray-guns out to battle across the Universe with Steve Holland as Flash Gordon, Irene Champlin as Dale Arden and Joseph Nash as Dr. Hans Zarkov. This specially made-for-Retro-Drive-In movie includes six episodes of the television series made in Germany: Akim the Terrible, The Lure of Light, Saboteurs From Space, Subworld Revenge, Struggle to the End, and Return of the Androids.
Based on the BBC teleplay by Nigel Kneale (creator of the "Quatermass" series), this Hammer tale of adventurers in the Himalayas finds our intrepid explorers (Peter Cushing and Forrest Tucker) at odds both with one another and the unforgiving harshness at "the top of the world." After they shoot and kill a Yeti, things get pretty hairy!
Jonathan Drake, while attending his brother's funeral, is shocked to find the head of the deceased is missing. When his brother's skull shows up later in a locked cabinet, Drake realizes an ancient curse placed upon his grandfather by a tribe of South American Jivaro Indians is still in effect and that he himself is the probable next victim. That night he is awakened by the approach of an Indian, his lips sewed together with string, and wielding a curare-tipped bamboo knife. Starring Edward Franz, Valerie French, and Grant Richards. One of the few movies about shrunken heads and headhunters. Better get rid of that shrunken head in your collection! “Your money not refunded if you faint!” said the original poster.
Escaped convicts Gary and Lon are caught hiding in a rocket by scientist Dirk Green, who forces them to pilot the ship to the moon. Dirk, who's secretly a moon being, wants to return to his home satellite. Dirk's partner Steve Dayton and his fiancé June stowaway on the ship by accident. Will they all make it back safely? Starring Richard Travis, Cathy Downs and K.T. Stevens. Watch for the V-2 Rocket footage at the beginning and stay away from the Moon Spiders!
A newlywed couple sit in a train. The husband receives a frantic telegram. He gets off at a station to make a phone call, the train pulls away without him on it, and that's the last his wife sees of him. Years later after a long search she finally tracks him down on his family's southern estate where she discovers that a failed medical treatment has turned him into an alligator mutant. Starring Beverly Garland, Bruce Bennett, and Lon Chaney Jr. Terror on the Bayou! This is one medical center to totally avoid!
The first U.S. spaceship to Venus crash-lands off the coast of Sicily, freeing a small native Venusian creature called the Ymir. Eventually growing to enormous size, it threatens the city of Rome. Starring William Hopper, Joan Taylor, and Thomas Browne Henry. An early Ray Harryhausen special effects movie with a dinosaur from outer space with the final battle taking place at the Colosseum in Rome.
After an encounter at sea with an unknown underwater creature, a naval commander works with two scientists to identify it. The creature they are dealing with is a giant, radioactive octopus that has left its normal feeding grounds in search of new sources of replenishment. As the creature attacks San Francisco, the Navy tries to trap it at the Golden Gate Bridge but it manages to enter the Bay area leading to a final confrontation with a submarine. Stars Kenneth Tobey, Faith Domergue, and Donald Curtis. The first of the giant octopus movies. Except this one only has seven arms!
Aliens come to Earth seeking scientists to help them in their war. Starring Jeff Morrow, Faith Domergue, and Rex Reason. This color sci-fi movie from 1955 has some good special effects and a classic alien that menaces the US scientists taken to another world by humanoid aliens. It doesn’t totally make sense, but what does these days? At least we this island, Earth.
When electronics engineer Mitch MacAfee spots a UFO as "big as a battleship," from his plane, the Air Force scrambles planes to investigate. However, nothing shows up on radar, and one of the jets is lost during the action. MacAfee is regarded as a dangerous crackpot until other incidents and disappearances convince the authorities that the threat is real. Some believe it is a French-Canadian folk legend come to life, but it turns out to be an extraterrestrial giant bird composed of anti-matter whose disregard for human life and architecture threatens the world. Staring Jeff Morrow, Mara Corday, and Morris Ankrum. Finally, a 50s sci-fi movie about a giant Thunderbird! Pretty corny with the turkey buzzard Thunderbird, but worth a look since the giant birds are still flying!
An Inca legend says the Inca Empire was destroyed by the gods when a gold and jeweled star burst was stolen from the Temple of the Sun centuries ago, and the ancient civilization will spring anew when the treasure is returned. The natives want it but so does Harry Steele, an American adventurer of slightly-shady ways who wants it for personal gain, as does his adversary, a grizzled old man even more into skulduggery than Steele. The latter teams up with Elena Antonescu, an Iron Curtain refugee fleeing from the MKVD. She can help him get a plane and he can help her escape Peru for the relative safety of Mexico. Starring Charlton Heston, Robert Young and Nicole Maurey. Some believe that this movie was one of the influences to George Lucas for Indiana Jones and Raiders of the Lost Ark.
