atomic age

[3] The Gill Man’s second sequel starts off okay and gets progressively worse. It’s cool enough while a team of scientists are hunting the Creature, especially when they catch him on fire (the highlight scene of the movie), but once they capture him and begin experimenting on him, the movie takes a nosedive. You’ll have to forget that genetic mutation doesn’t happen overnight. And then …

[4] This sequel to The Creature from the Black Lagoon finds the Gill Man captured and put on display in a Florida theme park. Before long, he escapes, takes a woman hostage, and terrorizes the local community. Away from the darkness and depths of the Black Lagoon, the Creature is far less intimidating. I mean, how hard is it to spot an amphibious mutant on …

[8] Pools of water are often used as symbols of our collective subconscious. Since Creature from the Black Lagoon is about a humanoid creature who emerges from the depths to kidnap a beautiful woman, you might then say the Creature is a symbol for male sexual desire. And then you might have a B-movie monster I can really sink my teeth into. Sure, it’s just …

[5] A car crash victim (Steven Ritch) is injected with wolf serum by experimenting scientists and before long, hirsute hijinks ensue. This werewolf flick from prolific B-movie producer Sam Katzman plays up the emotional and psychological angles better than most, but still ends like any other we’ve seen before. The best scenes are ones in which the afflicted man interacts with his wife and young …

[7] A British couple and a mad scientist embark on the world’s first trip to the moon and end up getting more than they bargained for in this colorful fantasy featuring visual effects and animation by Ray Harryhausen. First Men in the Moon is beautifully rendered with imaginative set design, color-saturated cinematography, and a grand score by Laurie Johnson. It’s also a bit more sophisticated …

[7] In this Howard Hawks production, an arctic science team finds an alien buried in the ice, so they bring it back to their facility for closer inspection. Things go awry, the monster gets loose, and before long, all the men are in danger of becoming food for the alien’s progeny. This is a great atomic-age monster movie that well exceeds expectations for the genre …

[10] This terrifying tale of emasculation is my favorite sci-fi/horror flick from the atomic age. Grant Williams stars as Scott Carey, a man who gets caught in a strange mist while boating with his wife. Afterwards, he notices his clothes don’t fit quite like they used to. His wife assures him everything is fine, that he just needs to eat more. A few days later, …

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