What monster movie are you currently watching?

[edgaguirus]

I saw Laserblast via MST3K. This movie is not a good one, but it works for passing an hour or two at night. The stop motion aliens look better than the green skinned villain of the movie in my opinion, which surprises me. Ve Neil did make up for this one, and I expect better from a judge of Faceoff.

[H-Man]

Deep Freeze (2002) - aka Ice Crawlers - In this upteenth Alien rip-off, a team of grad students (plus a few grizzled old laborers) are working at an oil-drilling installation in the Antarctic when they discover a giant, live trilobite. Lots of people running around corridors, getting separated from the rest of the pack, and killed. Directed by John Carl Buechler of Carnosaur and Friday the 13th Part VII fame. The creature effects are all practical, which is good. Too bad we don't see enough of the creature. The movie is also extremely tame on the gore, which is surprising, given who directed it. Whenever someone gets offed, Buechler opts for a strobe-light series of quick cuts to earlier scenes involving the character. I'm sure it was meant to invoke emotion, but it's annoying and distracts from the drama of the kill. The film ends with the two leads kissing despite a) they might not make it back to civilization, b) everybody else is dead, and c) two of their friends were killed, but that knowledge never actually reached them--for all they know, they might have been casualties of the Big Explosion. Martial arts fans will recognize Goetz Otto (Mr. Nice Guy and Tomorrow Never Dies) as the unhinged member of the team.

[Tyrant_Lizard_King]

I saw Laserblast via MST3K. This movie is not a good one, but it works for passing an hour or two at night. The stop motion aliens look better than the green skinned villain of the movie in my opinion, which surprises me. Ve Neil did make up for this one, and I expect better from a judge of Faceoff.

David Allen could do amazing work on a budget.

Added in 4 minutes 3 seconds:

Python (2000) - I don't think anybody expected Anaconda to be as successful as it was. It certainly benefitted from a great cast, a PG-13 rating, an almost decade-long dearth of killer animal films, and dare I say the success of Scream. So it was only logical that in its wake, a slew of killer animal movies--including a handful of snake movies--would be made. I also don't think anyone expected these things to become permanent fixtures of the DTV and made-for-Sy-Fy markets, but it's been 23 years and here we are. Python was one of the earliest cash-in's. It's an obvious choice for a snake, although this one isn't very python-like, with all that acid spitting and biting. No suffocation here! The CGI is dire, as is to be expected. There is a lot of gore in the form of partially-digested remains of people being found by the authorities. The characters are fun enough that the film can sustain itself whenever they aren't in mortal danger. The cast is pretty good, too: William Zabka, Robert Englund, Casper Van Dien, and a cameo by Jenny McCarthy.

Python isn't good but really doesn't take itself very seriously and is just ridiculous enough to work for the most part. I mean the film starts off with a lesbian sex scene, kinda tells you all that you need to know about what you're getting yourself into.

[Mac Daddy MM]

I mean the film starts off with a lesbian sex scene,

Yeeeeep. And it was at that moment, a 12-year old MM discovered exactly what he likes.

Python ranks up there with King Cobra as my favorite low budget monster snake films. Might just have to throw it on, haven't watched it in years.

[mikelcho]

I saw Laserblast via MST3K. This movie is not a good one, but it works for passing an hour or two at night. The stop motion aliens look better than the green skinned villain of the movie in my opinion, which surprises me. Ve Neil did make up for this one, and I expect better from a judge of Faceoff.

David Allen could do amazing work on a budget.

Added in 4 minutes 3 seconds:

Python (2000) - I don't think anybody expected Anaconda to be as successful as it was. It certainly benefitted from a great cast, a PG-13 rating, an almost decade-long dearth of killer animal films, and dare I say the success of Scream. So it was only logical that in its wake, a slew of killer animal movies--including a handful of snake movies--would be made. I also don't think anyone expected these things to become permanent fixtures of the DTV and made-for-Sy-Fy markets, but it's been 23 years and here we are. Python was one of the earliest cash-in's. It's an obvious choice for a snake, although this one isn't very python-like, with all that acid spitting and biting. No suffocation here! The CGI is dire, as is to be expected. There is a lot of gore in the form of partially-digested remains of people being found by the authorities. The characters are fun enough that the film can sustain itself whenever they aren't in mortal danger. The cast is pretty good, too: William Zabka, Robert Englund, Casper Van Dien, and a cameo by Jenny McCarthy.

Python isn't good but really doesn't take itself very seriously and is just ridiculous enough to work for the most part. I mean the film starts off with a lesbian sex scene, kinda tells you all that you need to know about what you're getting yourself into.

And don't forget that Python was part of a series, along with New Alcatraz (a.k.a. Boa), Pythons II and Boa vs. Python.

[H-Man]

I saw Laserblast via MST3K. This movie is not a good one, but it works for passing an hour or two at night. The stop motion aliens look better than the green skinned villain of the movie in my opinion, which surprises me. Ve Neil did make up for this one, and I expect better from a judge of Faceoff.

David Allen could do amazing work on a budget.

And according to Leonard Maltin, Laserblast occupies the same level shared by Forest Gump; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; and Amadeus.

[Terasawa]

And according to Leonard Maltin, Laserblast occupies the same level shared by Forest Gump; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; and Amadeus.

[Lecontinentperdu]

I'm not watching any monster movie right now, but that thread title always bugs me when it pops up:

This is it, we are watching movies like we read books? I mean, bits by bits, not on one sitting? I more than often do that (sleepy me...), but with a guilty conscience...

So pleased to see that I'm not alone!

[JAGzilla]

Well, me, I usually need a break or two during a movie. I have to get up and stretch my legs, get a drink or whatever, or I start getting antsy and can't properly enjoy the show. One reason I don't bother seeing many movies in theaters.

[Rando Yaguchi]

Yeah, I like the little luxuries of watching at home - being able to take a break without missing anything, being able to rewind if I miss a line of dialogue, etc

[H-Man]

Not quite a monster movie, but...

Silent Predators (1999) - I'm guessing that this was the first spawn of Anaconda's unexpected success. This is a TV movie starring Harry Hamlin (of the original Clash of the Titans). He's the new fire chief in a small Southern California town that is beset by unusually-aggressive rattlesnakes, the hybrid of the Western Diamondback variety and a deadlier Central American species. Standing in his way is a greedy land developer and the town mayor. The story feels like a combination of both Jaws and Arachnophobia. Thankfully, real snakes are used instead of CGI. Nothing great, but a pleasant diversion for a snake lover like myself.

[Spuro]

Dracula A.D. 1972 was hilarious. I knew going in this was one of the weaker Hammer Dracula films, but I wasn't expecting to enjoy it nearly as much as I did. It's not good, exactly, but the groovy and hilariously unfitting 70's music, Alucard the Clumsiest Vampire, and the the return of Peter Cushing made it easy for me to have a good time with this. I still can't believe Alucard

Spoiler:

killed himself by falling in the shower. That was the highlight for me right there.

[Terasawa]

That's my least favorite Hammer Dracula film, even more than the maligned Scars and Satanic Rites (both of which I thought were kinda OK). I've only completed A.D. 1972 once, and Stephanie Beacham was the only reason I kept my eyes on the film then. I think I'd revisit the Cushing/Lee scenes again but that would probably be it.

[edgaguirus]

Those guys make a good pair in any movie.

[Spuro]

That's my least favorite Hammer Dracula film, even more than the maligned Scars and Satanic Rites (both of which I thought were kinda OK). I've only completed A.D. 1972 once, and Stephanie Beacham was the only reason I kept my eyes on the film then. I think I'd revisit the Cushing/Lee scenes again but that would probably be it.

That's fair. I mostly liked A.D. from a campy, "so-bad-it's-good" perspective. I'm about to watch Satanic Rites now, so we'll see how that one holds up for me.

I actually really enjoyed Scars, and it wasn't the ironic enjoyment I got from A.D. either. Christopher Lee had a lot more dialogue and screentime than in other Hammer Dracula films, and I particularly adored the castle sets in that one. And the opening (ignoring the random bat resurrection scene) with all the corpses in the church was probably one of my favorite scenes in this entire Hammer Horror marathon.

[Terasawa]

On second thought, I guess if you consider The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires a Dracula film then that would be my least favorite Hammer Drac pic. Seems to me that's typically excluded, either because it's so different or because it wasn't good.

Although, I'll say I had a chance to see a 35mm print of the U.S. version ("The 7 Brothers & Their One Sister Meet Dracula") 10 years ago and I absolutely still regret not going. Oh well.

[H-Man]

On second thought, I guess if you consider The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires a Dracula film then that would be my least favorite Hammer Drac pic. Seems to me that's typically excluded, either because it's so different or because it wasn't good.

Although, I'll say I had a chance to see a 35mm print of the U.S. version ("The 7 Brothers & Their One Sister Meet Dracula") 10 years ago and I absolutely still regret not going. Oh well.

I really enjoyed The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires, although having fight choreography by Tong Gaai and Lau Kar-Leung, plus the hawt Shi Szu in the cast definitely helped. I also enjoyed Scars of Dracula. I haven't seen A.D. 1972 or Satanic Rites yet, though.

Last night I had a rattlesnake double-feature, so:

Rattlers (1976) - This one has a den of aggressive rattlers terrorizing people living along the Mojave Desert in Southern California. A herpetologist and a freelance photographer are hired by the local sheriff to investigate. They discover that the illegal disposal of an outlawed biological agent by the local military base has gotten the snakes riled up. It was diverting, but there is not much of a climax: a brief gunfight between the now-crazed Colonel and the sheriff's deputies, followed by an explosion. Followed by the sound of rattling in another abandoned mine shaft. The end. Meh.

[JAGzilla]

So a Hammer vampire Kung Fu movie exists. Whether it's any good or not, I have to see that. What a bizarre combination.

[H-Man]

So a Hammer vampire Kung Fu movie exists. Whether it's any good or not, I have to see that. What a bizarre combination.

It has been uploaded to Youtube:

[mikelcho]

So a Hammer vampire Kung Fu movie exists. Whether it's any good or not, I have to see that. What a bizarre combination.

It has been uploaded to Youtube:

I have this film on Blu-ray, but first saw it on DVD. It was...different, to say the least, but I liked it a lot! However, I'd definitely recommend the original unedited U.K. version over the horribly edited U.S. version any day.

Does anyone know that the film was going to have a sequel (or prequel; I'm don't know which) called Kali, Devil Bride of Dracula, also (possibly) in 1974? Hammer's bankruptcy killed that idea, of course.