Splodge! Guerrilla Community FilmEdSoc Project 18 Sept 2001:I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE (1958), WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE(1973), KERMIT & THE MONSTER(1970)aka LEO & THE MONSTER, THE COFFEE-BREAK MACHINE (1970), RED NIGHTMARE(1962)aka THE COMMIES ARE COMING,THE COMMIES ARE COMING

Monday,17th SEPTEMBER 2001
MONSTER MASH!!!!
featuring:

I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE(1958)
On the eve of his wedding,a bridegroom is kidnapped and impostered by Aliens able to take on human shape who have escaped from a dying planet. Slowly,his new wife realizes something is wrong,& her suspicions are confirmed when her husband's odd behaviour begins to show up in other townspeople.
Just compare this little wonder,shot in only 8 days for $125,000 with the usual hazardous mixture of improvisation and foolishness of late '50s B movies, and you'll get the picture. Director(& Fritz-Lang-protege) Fowler,working unto exhaustion (according to Gloria Talbott)does things unheard-of in a cheap little monster movie, like the pointless but elegant crane shot at the beginning of the movie, & carefully-disguised cuts & dissolves.

His loving staging & lighting show that he understood the real tradition of paranoia sci fi.The film's obvious role model,Don Siegel's INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS,didn't look noir-ish before the finale (& then it was overdone.)Other films of the time tried to emulate film noir ,but usually looked preposterous -THE BRAIN EATERS('58)for example.IMAMFOS makes creative use of shadows & darkness whenever possible.While the movie's plot is basically a cliche,one has to respect a movie allowing heroine & monster from space an exchange like:"Are you telling me that you're beginning to love?" - "I am telling you that I'm beginning to understand what love is." Gene Fowler jr.1958 An interesting variant on the theme of possession, recurrent in sci fi films of the 50's.The atmospheric interplay between sexual & cold war politics has often been dismissed because of its outlandish title."I Married a Monster from Outer Space" deals with a woman's fear of entering into a relationship which proves disappointing & disturbing. Gloria Talbot is persuasive & appealing as the puzzled but faithful wife.The almost-too-good-to-be-true looks of Tom Tryon are put to effective use as the husband,& the film's makers find an excuse to get his shirt off so we can get a look at that much-photographed torso. In the same scene, you'll also spot a bare-chested Ty Hungerford, just before he changed his name to "Ty Hardin" & became "Bronco" on the TV series. Tagline:"Shuddery things from beyond the stars,here to breed with human women!" Prod Co:Paramount Pictures. Prod,dir:Gene Fowler. Wr:Louis Vittes. Phot:Haskell Boggs. Cast:Tom Tryon,Gloria Talbott,Valerie Allen(Francine,the hooker),Max'Slapsie Maxie'Rosenbloom(Max Grady,the bartender)78 mins.NFVLS.

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE(1973)
Classic MAURICE SENDAK fantasy about (who else but...)Max & his Wild Things-taming adventures.
Animation:Bohumil Sejda. Prod Co:Kratky Film Studios/Weston Woods.Prod:Morton Schindel. Dir:Gene Deitch. 7 mins.CAC.

KERMIT & THE MONSTER (aka LEO & THE MONSTER)1970
What started out as a pep-talk turns into an anaesthetic! Leo's "short" list of the secrets of success has turned into about 80 or 90 items. He just needs the right motivation to summarize his list. An enormous ogre breathing down his back ought to do it. A Muppet Coffee-Break short. Prod Co:Henson Ass,Inc. Prod:JIM HENSON. 2 mins CAC

THE COFFEE-BREAK MACHINE 1970
The ultimate user-friendly coffee machine meets the ultimate abuser.As the technologically-advanced 'Coffee-Break Machine' explains the intricacies of its functions, Cookie Monster is thwarted by its complexity & goes crazy.He soon realizes that the whole machine isn't too big to swallow.But what happens when his stomach starts to percolate? Maybe next time he should try the decaf. Stars an early incarnation of the COOKIE MONSTER. Muppet Meeting Films series. Prod Co:Henson Ass,Inc. Prod:JIM HENSON.3 mins.31 secs CAC.

RED NIGHTMARE
(aka THE COMMIES ARE COMING,THE COMMIES ARE COMING)1962
During the communist scare of the 1950s,some Hollywood studios & stars tried to distance themselves from leftist associates by churning out incredible,if not incredulous,anti-Communist propaganda.Warner Bro.s & Jack("Just the facts,ma'am,just the facts")Webb teamed up to create this doozie offering a look at what life under Communism might be like.Jack tells us that Commies have a secret training base for spies in Russia that looks like a perfect replica of an American town.We don't know it exists, he tells us,but we can assume it does.Apparently standards of proof & evidence don't apply in the fight against Communism.Enter Jerry. Jerry takes his American liberties for granted,(the lazy cur goes bowling instead of to PTA meetings)till one morning he wakes up & finds his town controlled by a lying,dirty,shrewd,Godless,murderous,international criminal conspiracy -Communists have taken over America!Discovering how bad it is to live under a Commie system,Joe commits treasonous acts and is tried.Friends & family,now emotionless automatons, turn against him,leading to his arrested & conviction for "subversive" activities.On awakening,Jerry has a new appreciation of America's freedom,resolving to shoulder a greater portion of his civic responsibilities.25-min film produced by Warner Bros for the Dept.of Defense.(The DOD felt compelled to attach a disclaimer to this thoroughly silly film.It reads:"This film is considered of historical value & does not necessarily reflect current policy or plans of the sponsoring agency.") Note the young actress who would go on to become the first Bobbie Jo Bradley on PETTICOAT JUNCTION: Patricia WOODELL.In the year of filming,under contract to Warner Bros, she put in guest shots on shows such as HAWAIIAN EYE(whose star ROBERT CONRAD also appears here) & THE GALLANT MEN.Narrator:JACK WEBB.Photography:Robert Hoffman.Writer:Vincent Fotre.Music:William Lava.Editor:Folmer Blargsted.Starring Jack Kelly,Jeanne Cooper,ANDREW DUGGAN,Peter Brown,Patricia Woodell,PETER BRECK,ROBERT CONRAD,Mike Road.Prod Co:Warner Bros. Prod:William L.Hendricks.Dir:George Waggner. 28 mins. CAC.

I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE(1958) On the eve of his wedding,a bridegroom is kidnapped and impostered by Aliens able to take on human shape who have escaped from a dying planet. Slowly,his new wife realizes something is wrong,& her suspicions are confirmed when her husband's odd behaviour begins to show up in other townspeople. Just compare this little wonder,shot in only 8 days for $125,000 with the usual hazardous mixture of improvisation and foolishness of late '50s B movies, and you'll get the picture. Director(& Fritz-Lang-protege) Fowler,working unto exhaustion (according to Gloria Talbott)does things unheard-of in a cheap little monster movie, like the pointless but elegant crane shot at the beginning of the movie, & carefully-disguised cuts & dissolves.
His loving staging & lighting show that he understood the real tradition of paranoia sci fi.The film's obvious role model,Don Siegel's INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS,didn't look noir-ish before the finale (& then it was overdone.)Other films of the time tried to emulate film noir ,but usually looked preposterous -THE BRAIN EATERS('58)for example.IMAMFOS makes creative use of shadows & darkness whenever possible.While the movie's plot is basically a cliche,one has to respect a movie allowing heroine & monster from space an exchange like:"Are you telling me that you're beginning to love?" - "I am telling you that I'm beginning to understand what love is." Gene Fowler jr.1958 An interesting variant on the theme of possession, recurrent in sci fi films of the 50's.The atmospheric interplay between sexual & cold war politics has often been dismissed because of its outlandish title."I Married a Monster from Outer Space" deals with a woman's fear of entering into a relationship which proves disappointing & disturbing. Gloria Talbot is persuasive & appealing as the puzzled but faithful wife.The almost-too-good-to-be-true looks of Tom Tryon are put to effective use as the husband,& the film's makers find an excuse to get his shirt off so we can get a look at that much-photographed torso. In the same scene, you'll also spot a bare-chested Ty Hungerford, just before he changed his name to "Ty Hardin" & became "Bronco" on the TV series. Tagline:"Shuddery things from beyond the stars,here to breed with human women!" Prod Co:Paramount Pictures. Prod,dir:Gene Fowler. Wr:Louis Vittes. Phot:Haskell Boggs. Cast:Tom Tryon,Gloria Talbott,Valerie Allen(Francine,the hooker),Max'Slapsie Maxie'Rosenbloom(Max Grady,the bartender)78 mins.NFVLS.
WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE(1973) Classic MAURICE SENDAK fantasy about (who else but...)Max & his Wild Things-taming adventures. Animation:Bohumil Sejda. Prod Co:Kratky Film Studios/Weston Woods.Prod:Morton Schindel. Dir:Gene Deitch. 7 mins.CAC.
KERMIT & THE MONSTER (aka LEO & THE MONSTER)1970 What started out as a pep-talk turns into an anaesthetic! Leo's "short" list of the secrets of success has turned into about 80 or 90 items. He just needs the right motivation to summarize his list. An enormous ogre breathing down his back ought to do it. A Muppet Coffee-Break short. Prod Co:Henson Ass,Inc. Prod:JIM HENSON. 2 mins CAC
THE COFFEE-BREAK MACHINE 1970 The ultimate user-friendly coffee machine meets the ultimate abuser.As the technologically-advanced 'Coffee-Break Machine' explains the intricacies of its functions, Cookie Monster is thwarted by its complexity & goes crazy.He soon realizes that the whole machine isn't too big to swallow.But what happens when his stomach starts to percolate? Maybe next time he should try the decaf. Stars an early incarnation of the COOKIE MONSTER. Muppet Meeting Films series. Prod Co:Henson Ass,Inc. Prod:JIM HENSON.3 mins.31 secs CAC.
RED NIGHTMARE (aka THE COMMIES ARE COMING,THE COMMIES ARE COMING)1962 During the communist scare of the 1950s,some Hollywood studios & stars tried to distance themselves from leftist associates by churning out incredible,if not incredulous,anti-Communist propaganda.Warner Bro.s & Jack("Just the facts,ma'am,just the facts")Webb teamed up to create this doozie offering a look at what life under Communism might be like.Jack tells us that Commies have a secret training base for spies in Russia that looks like a perfect replica of an American town.We don't know it exists, he tells us,but we can assume it does.Apparently standards of proof & evidence don't apply in the fight against Communism.Enter Jerry. Jerry takes his American liberties for granted,(the lazy cur goes bowling instead of to PTA meetings)till one morning he wakes up & finds his town controlled by a lying,dirty,shrewd,Godless,murderous,international criminal conspiracy -Communists have taken over America!Discovering how bad it is to live under a Commie system,Joe commits treasonous acts and is tried.Friends & family,now emotionless automatons, turn against him,leading to his arrested & conviction for "subversive" activities.On awakening,Jerry has a new appreciation of America's freedom,resolving to shoulder a greater portion of his civic responsibilities.25-min film produced by Warner Bros for the Dept.of Defense.(The DOD felt compelled to attach a disclaimer to this thoroughly silly film.It reads:"This film is considered of historical value & does not necessarily reflect current policy or plans of the sponsoring agency.") Note the young actress who would go on to become the first Bobbie Jo Bradley on PETTICOAT JUNCTION: Patricia WOODELL.In the year of filming,under contract to Warner Bros, she put in guest shots on shows such as HAWAIIAN EYE(whose star ROBERT CONRAD also appears here) & THE GALLANT MEN.Narrator:JACK WEBB.Photography:Robert Hoffman.Writer:Vincent Fotre.Music:William Lava.Editor:Folmer Blargsted.Starring Jack Kelly,Jeanne Cooper,ANDREW DUGGAN,Peter Brown,Patricia Woodell,PETER BRECK,ROBERT CONRAD,Mike Road.Prod Co:Warner Bros. Prod:William L.Hendricks.Dir:George Waggner. 28 mins. CAC.