Reviews (44)

i'm gonna come right out and say it...
...i don't like season 1!

i don't like dr. erhardt as much as tv's frank (who does?) and the riffing is more sparse and of a slightly weaker style. but i was thinking, for a new fan seeking to discover mst3k, this may not be a bad jumping off point (although manos is a better start).

this episode is indicative of the true original philosophy of mst3k. most of the best episodes aren't mystery or science-oriented (manos, mitchell, many sci-fi eps such as jack frost or final sacrifice), but the crawling hand is a true, cheesy, BAD scifi/horror movie. and that was the original intent of the show: to riff on bad scifi/horror flicks. and the riffing IS good, it's just not as good as it would become in later seasons.

nobody should miss out on this episode, but other episodes are better, and once you're well-versed in mst3k-dom, you'll revisit this episode less often than the others.

You will believe a hand can crawl!
Ah, MST3K Season One. I can see how some people, even MST3K fans, might be disappointed by this video. Instead of TV's Frank, Dr. Forrester has Dr. Larry Erhardt (John Weinstein) for a sidekick, and it is Weinstein rather than Kevin Murphy supplying the voice of Tom Servo. The set looks as cheap as it really was, the silhouettes in the theater are sort of green-looking, Joel sometimes seems to forget which bot is which, and the jokes are sometimes rather lame. However, the show is still hilarious. If you've never seen a Season One episode before, cut Weinstein's Servo voice some slack. Initially, I hated it, but being fortunate enough to have the whole first season on tape, I found that this initial Servo incarnation was actually pretty funny in his own right after I got used to him. This one video probably won't make you a Weinstein fan, but give him a chance.

As for the movie itself, The Crawling Hand was perfect MST3K material--there's a silly plot, an annoying teenager, and some incredibly bad acting. America's space program is apparently run in a little warehouse somewhere in the middle of nowhere, and the scientists there are in a tizzy. On two occasions, a guy has been sent to the moon, landing successfully, then being lost on his way back to earth. This second time, communication is reestablished with the astronaut 20 minutes after he has run out of oxygen. He begs the men in the control room (actually, it's really just a desk) to blow him up before he reenters the atmosphere. The doctor-type guy finally hits the red button. Meanwhile, a supposedly smart slacker goes swimming in the ocean with his Swedish girlfriend, and while they are frolicking around they run across a human hand lying on the beach. Naturally, our hero decides he must have that hand; he sneaks back that night (apparently this is the one beach in California that no one whatsoever goes to) and makes the wonderful hand his own, lovingly placing it in his landlady's storage room behind some relish. Soon, the hand (which does crawl, just like the title says) begins strangling people (that's gonna happen, you know). At this point, the sheriff, AKA Alan Hale (Skipper!), commences an investigation. One print found on the body of the first victim is matched to the fingerprint of the blown-up astronaut, and that's when the Space Boys come out to try and clean up a little of their mess. To complicate matters, our boy who found the hand begins having episodes wherein he turns into an "Elvis zombie" with heavy mascara under his eyes and feels compelled to strangle people himself. As you may have guessed, it all comes down to some hand to hand combat in the end.

I think this is one of the best Season One episodes. I particularly enjoyed one skit in which the guys all pretend to be William Shatner being choked by a disembodied hand. Joel and the bots are still developing the real spirit and style of the show, but the genius is already unmistakably there. Most importantly, I can assure you that this show is very funny.

Haven't we all had a crawling hand in bed?
This DVD set is from the cable tv show, "Mystery Science Theater 3000". They sometimes cut the film down and on-screen throughout the entire film, they mock and criticize it. Just as if you are in the real movie theatre with people talking during the film.
But if you would like to see the entire, uncut version of the movie without MST 3000 intervening, just turn the DVD over for the entire, uncut version in all its glory.
This is the second space mission to go wrong. While space engineers Peter breck and Kent Taylor haggle over the failure of no communication with the astronaut Lockhart who is running out of oxygen, the astronaut begs for space operations to press the red button. This would explode the craft instantly. After merciful pleading from the astronaut, operations comply. This is the second man they have lost upon return entry. Only four astronauts left. They need these men to handle the lunar rocket. What is it on the moon that is driving these men crazy to the point of near-death?
The debris from the exploded space craft has landed like a meteorite. What terror will escape and attack the young teenagers in this California beach town?
Haven't we all had a crawling hand in bed?
Also in the cast: Rod Lauren as "Paul". Allison Hayes as "Donna". Allan Hale Jr as "Sheriff Townsend" (Gilligan's Island tv series). The Crawling Hand was Joseph F. Robertson.

"Mrs. Burke, I thought you...were Dale!"
This episode is just one of many that contain the "deathless" line: "Mrs. Burke, I thought you...were Dale!"

Naturally, our whole family likes these episodes, because we starred in the original 1968 Grape-Nuts TV commercial from which this riff comes. (Yes, Mrs. Burke AND Dale are real, alive, well, and living in the USA.)

Many thanks to MST3K's Best Brains for riffing our commercial decades after it ran (and to Mr. Murphy for helping to clear up the trouble about the origin of this riff)!

The Sound Of One Hand Clasping...
Peter Breck (Big Valley) plays a very intense scientist with the space program. How intense? So intense that I expected his head to sail off at any minute! You see, one of his astronauts (named Lockhart) has gone nuts, pleading with ground control to "push the red button" and blow up his ship. They comply, detonating Lockhart. Meanwhile, a young med student and his girl go swimmig on a california beach. Low and behold, they find a severed arm in an astronaut uniform sleeve! Paul (the med student) comes back for it later, taking it home in a shower curtain. He hides it behind some preserves in his landlady's pantry. The arm starts creeping around, knocking some jars over, waking the landlady, who must investigate. Of course, she gets choked bug-eyed! Unfortunately, the hand doesn't do much else, as it possesses Paul and uses him to cause further mayhem. Enter Alan Hale jr. as the portly sheriff. The rest is pretty dull. Watch it late at night and don't feel too bad if you fall asleep... ... Read more

Description

In an effort to escape jail, a woman takes a job as a lion tamer. After her successful debut in New York, she attracts the atttention of two friends. One is engaged and the other isn't. ... Read more

Reviews (18)

Quintessential Mae West.
Tira (Mae West) is a gold-digging circus performer who reluctantly agrees to a dangerous lion-taming act to get herself out of a jam. The act is a great success, making Tira the talk of the town. Her flashy show at Madison Square Garden catches the eye of a wealthy businessman named Kirk Lawrence (Kent Taylor), who becomes infatuated with Tira and lavishes her with expensive gifts. Concerned for Kirk's social situation, his cousin and business partner, Jack Clayton (Cary Grant), attempts to convince Tira to reconsider their relationship. She does, and falls head over heels for Jack. But just as it looks like Jack and Tira will live happily ever after, Jack breaks off the relationship. A heartbroken but still stubborn Tira decides to sue him for breach of promise.

1933's "I'm No Angel" was Mae West's second starring role on the silver screen. After her previous film, "She Done Him Wrong", saved Paramount Pictures from financial ruin, the studio gave her carte blanche to do whatever she liked on this one. "I'm No Angel" was written entirely by Mae West. It's a romantic comedy, but West's character is not a romantic. Tira is nothing if not practical in her relationships with men. And there is no mistaking that the film exists entirely to showcase Ms. West's oversized personality and eye-catching figure. This is Self promotion and Star vehicle with capital S's. Mae West was 40 years old and a tad chunky when she made this film. But she didn't hesitate to cast herself as a sex goddess whom men of all ages found irresistible. And she gets away with it by sheer force of personality. West deserves a lot of credit for making audiences root for a union between a trash-talking middle-aged strumpet and a 29-year old gentleman of means. Such a relationship wouldn't gain approval in real life in 1933, and it wouldn't now. The success of "I'm No Angel", then and now, is testament to its star's great charisma. Cary Grant is more handsome than he would be during his years of star status, and surprisingly thinner. I don't think any actor could hope to share a scene with West without being upstaged by her, but Grant does a nice job of making Jack Clayton sympathetic, especially during the trial scenes. "I'm No Angel" is sometimes absurdly contrived, but that's the nature of romantic comedy. No bigger personality than Mae West ever graced the screen, and it's her presence that makes this film worthwhile. The DVD has no menu, only scene selections. And the movie begins as soon as the disc is inserted into the player.

The Wild, Wild West
Mae West was purportedly quoted as saying, "I fear no man". Whether she actually did, I have no trouble believing it. In "I'm No Angel", Miss West plays "Tira", a carnival hootch dancer who becomes a lion-taming headliner in "The Big Time", and has numerous men orbiting her, like moons around Venus. She is a women completely at ease with herself, fears no one, makes no apologies, and the men love her for it, in spite of themselves. Miss West played, essentially, the same role in real life, the "Bad but not Evil" woman. No beating around the bush for Mae-she told you who she was, what she wanted, take her or leave her-and made you laugh! She was "Women's Lib" in flashy gowns, big hats, and lots of diamonds. There are many of West's famous lines in "I'm No Angel", such as "When I'm good, I'm very, very good, but when I'm bad, I'm better", "Beulah, peel me a grape!", and many more. Her co-star is screen legend Cary Grant, whom Mae selected for 2 of her films on sight. The first was "She Done Him Wrong", and then this one. She said, "He was so good I had him twice-in pictures, I mean." The lady was an original. She was not "beautiful" or slender, but men were drawn to her (her brains being her sexiest feature), progressive (she defended homosexuals long before Stonewall), had interracial friendships and romances (she had lovers of African descent, as well as having black performers in her films), and was still attracting men well into her 70s! She also wrote her own material. So, if you're feeling a bit adventurous, go West, because "You can be had!"

"Oh Beulah... peel me a grape!"
Mae West basically saved Paramount Pictures from bankruptcy with this and her other hit film of 1933 "She Done Him Wrong" (her other career highlight, also with Cary Grant). She was 40 when she made this film, and even for the early 30s she was plumper than the female ideal, and her face was wide and her nose was too long. But since she acted like she was the sexiest thing who ever was, and told you so too, you believed her: her uncontrollable sex appeal was her costant running joke and it never ever palled. Here she's Tira the lion tamer, who tames the richest men in New York society with equal ease: when Cary Grant withdraws his engagement she sues him for breach of promise, and she has great fun cross-examining the witnesses in her trial. Years before Lucille Ball or Carol Burnett, Mae West proved the old sexist canard that "female isn't funny" is an out and out lie. Who could be funnier than she is, sashaying around with her African-American maids delivering her ripest lines?

A knockout in its time -- and still packs a wallop
Decades before the women's movement was to gain momentum in this country, Mae West, with her inimitable combination of feminine wiles and macho, and a keen wit thrown into the mix, began her own revolution by standing all previous conceptions about women and their societal roles on their ear. Her substantial talent in singing, acting and one-liners give her the wherewithal to have the whole act succeed where many others' attempts would not. The result is great entertainment, a hallmark in the history of American cinema, and an impression on the audience that we were all better off for this woman having graced our culture.

WONDERFUL MAE.....
It's hard to believe they let this go out of print. It's one of Mae West's brightest and funniest films. Before the censorship czars got after her, that is. Legendary Mae struts and sings her way through this tale of circus hootchie Tira who gets in a legal jam thanks to her hoodlum boyfriend. Needing fast cash for an attorney, she reluctantly agrees to be the show's lion tamer and put her head in a lion's mouth. She becomes an immediate star and rises to the top. She hooks a rich beau (Kent Taylor) but falls for his business partner Kirk (Cary Grant) and they become engaged to marry. But her old circus cronies won't let her retire and try to frame her in a scandal to break up the engagement. When the ruse works and Kirk breaks off with Tira, she takes him to court for breach of promise. "I'm No Angel" is all Mae. From the screenplay (which she wrote) to the gowns (which are knockouts---especially the "spider web" gown) she's the star and dominates every scene she's in. She's absolutely wonderful. From strutting around and singing with her maids to taking over her own case in the courtroom, you can see there was no one like her and never would be. She was totally unique and unequaled in terms of sheer star power. Some of her racy quotes are here in "I'm No Angel" but, alas, the better ones lie in "She Done Him Wrong" (also with Grant) and that one never made it to DVD. These two are the better of her films---"My Little Chickadee" with W.C.Fields notwithstanding---and it's a shame they're not in print. The Universal DVD of "Angel" looks good and is a collector's item now. But I'm for re-releasing ALL of her films on DVD. As I'm sure she would love to know, Mae West still has an audience and always will. ... Read more

Description

Witness director Al Adamson’s disturbing and socially significant cinematic portrait of a biker gang’s anti-social rampage! Motorcycle maniacs on wheels terorrize the southwest! After this sadistic gang wreaks havoc on the patrons of roadside diner, a waitress and ex-marine are the only surviving witnesses.The pulse-pounding suspense inscreases rapidly as the duo find themselves pursued through the desert by The Satans in a bloodthirsty chase.This seventies cult hit features chilling performances by Russ Tamblyn and Greydon Clark as "Acid." ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Life Imitates Art
This movie is a classic example of "Life Imitates Art". Many a bike club was built on the premise of this and many other 60's scooter tramp flicks like this one. Own a piece of American counter-culture and add this jem to your library!

violent and sexy biker movie
The movie starts promisingly with a couple indulged in petting suddenly interrupted by a gang of bikers. They drug the girl and rape her, then set the forcibly drugged and drunk couple in their car and roll the car over the edge of a cliff.
And the action never stops in this fine drive-in classic biker movie dubbed by producer Sam SHERMAN as the "CITIZEN KANE of biker movies". Well, I don't agree to that (in my view the best biker film of all time is the Spanish THE MAD FOXES), but SATAN`S SADISTS is great fun nevertheless.
The further plot concerns a former marine hitchhiking through the California desert, who is offered a lift by a middle-aged couple, a cop and his wife on second honeymoon. They decide to have a meal at a roadside diner. Suddenly the biker gang arrive at the diner! You can probably guess, what happens next: the bikers make trouble, molesting the waitress and harrass the cop's wife, prompting the cop to draw a revolver. Things get nasty, resulting in the policeman's wife getting raped (unfortunately we don't get to see too much nudity here) and the death of the cop, his wife and the diner's owner. The ex-marine and the waitress escape in the desert, killing two bikers in the process. One guy meets a particularly nasty end by being drowned in the toilet! The furious bikers give chase and the couple must fight for their life...

WOW! They don't make movies like that anymore. SATAN`S SADISTS is a sleaze masterpiece, full of violence, nudity, violent sex and drug abuse. The film is rather anti-establishment, like many movies of the period. And the characters are really cool! Sure, the ex-marine is a bit boring as well as his new found girlfriend, the waitress. But the bikers deliver. Particularly Russ TAMBLYN is great as the cool but psychopathic gang's boss Anchor. He delivers a nice anti-establishment speech before shooting the cop and the other victims at the diner. And his accomplices are a rather weird bunch! Two of the gang members are handicapped, a biker is one-eyed (but wears sunglasses nonetheless), another even needs a hearing aid (!). The only concern of the bikers seems to be sex and getting stoned. And the dialogue is sometimes over the top - like when the bikers encounter three girls in the desert, one of them sunbathing topless, which prompts one biker to remark "She is keeping her milk warm."
Oh yeah, I really love this movie.

The DVD itself is filled with lots of extra features. First, there is an introduction to the movie vy producer Sam SHERMAN, who talks about how cool the film is and that it has gained a cult following worldwide. This segment however looks like it was shot 100 years ago.
Producer SHERMAN also appears in an interesting interview. This guy knows some stories to tell and it is fun to listen to him. The producer also provided an audiocommentary on which I can not comment, because I did not listen to it and I am generally not a fan of audiocommentaries. However I did listen to the radio interview with Regina CARROL, wife of director Al ADAMSON and staring in SATAN`S SADISTS as "freak-out girl". It is a promotional piece and again fun to listen to. There is also a gallery of behind-the-scenes photographs, presented in a way, as if they were shown in a drive-in theatre.
Then there is the film's trailer, which is outstanding. It starts with a disclaimer: THE SHOCKING SCENES YOU ARE ABOUT TO SEE ARE NOT SUGGESTED FOR THE WEAK OR IMMATURE. IF YOU CANNOT TAKE IT, WE ADVISE YOU TO NOW PATRONIZE THE CONCESSION STAND OR LOOK AWAY FROM THE SCREEN DURING THIS PREVIEW OF "SATAN'S SADISTS". The trailer promotes the film with the tagline A REBELLION OF HUMAN GARBAGE! Seeing is believing.
There are also 3 TV teaser trailers for the film as well as four additional trailers for other films, all directed by Al ADAMSON: DRACULA VS. FRANKENSTEIN (trashy beyond belief, only for diehard trash film fans), the slightly better zombie romp BLOOD OF GHASTLY HORROR, ANGELS WILD WOMEN (a promising looking exploitation flick) and GIRLS FOR RENT (titled erronously I SPIT ON YOUR CORPSE on the trailer menue) starring XXX actress Georgina SPELVIN of THE DEVIL IN MRS. JONES fame.
A great disc!

If you like entertaining, violent, politically incorrect B-movies, buy it! You won't be disappointed.

Overrated
This is the most overrated film I've seen in a while. I hoped for a violent, sexist, stark, disturbing biker film, and I got cheese. The motorcycles are awful, some of them are like dirt bikes and others no self-respecting biker would ever ride. The Satans colors look like iron-on patches. The violence is very antiseptic, with very litte gore, almost no nudity, and no realism. The plot and continuation are pathetic; could someone explain to me how the manniken-haired "good guy" got up that mountain so quick at the end to fight Firewater, or better yet, why? Also, the picture and sound quality are abyssmal, rendering whole sections of the movie unwatchable. A total waste of time and money, and completely misrepresented by anyone who gives it a good review.

from Fringe Video Fanzine Issue #005
One of the greatest biker films of all time. Very nasty, raw and violent. "...Released during the height of the biker film craze, the film made enough money to finance several more movies..." The simple western good guys vs. Bad guys type plot consists of a bike gang who "...terrorize some people at a desert diner until the gang is done in by a drifting Vietnam vet..." This is Al Adamson's breakthrough film, which propelled him and partner Sam Sherman into business with the introduction of a company called Independent International Pictures Corp. The film was intended to be the jewel which they would market to the drive-in crowd. "...not at all typical Adamson fare... It contained no footage from other movies..." Extreme for the time, the film starts with the rape of a large breasted women, and later LSD being forced to unwitting girls before they are raped and murdered. Miles away from the usual Hollywood type exploitation biker movies that regulars like Casey Kasem [Cycle Savages (1969) / Wild Wheels (1969) acted in. This is a film that strayed far away from the mainstream, and found an audience amongst the anti-establishment film going crowd who were eating up such films as: The Wild Angels (1966) or Easy Rider (1969). Said to be "...the Citizen Cane (1941) of biker films..." So extreme that many say that the film almost ruined the career of the main star Russ Tamblyn [West Side Story (1961) Twin Peaks (1990 - 91). The anti-police speech Tamblyn does, as he sits on top the car is probably the highlight of the movie. Shot in 16mm and blown up to 35mm to save money for the casting. Al Adamson managed to hire such notables as John 'Bud' Cardos [Hells Angels on Wheels (1967) / Psych-Out (1968)], Greydon Clark [Skinheads (1989)], and Regina Carrol [Beat Generation (1959) / Viva Las Vegas (1964)] who later married director Al Adamson. Audio commentary on the disc by Sam Sherman, also features a radio interview with Regina Carrol, some behind the scenes photos, and short documentary called 'Producing Schlock'

An Excellent movie!
This 60's biker movie is a lot of fun. Rampaging biker gang with psycho leader, older couple on vacation, good-guy marine and the young waitress - priceless. I could have done without the rape scenes, but the camera didn't dwell on them too long.

The acting really couldn't be much better. Excellent characters. Apparently filmed in 11 days. Doesn't get much better for b-biker flicks. ... Read more

Description

Fright and sensuality collide when Blood Island chiefs sacrifice beautiful young virgins to "The Evil One," a horrid creatured bred by radiation and metamorphosed from an innocent man. New arrivals to the island include scientists Kent Taylor and John Ashley, along with the alluring Beverly Hills, but their jungle search for mutated life forms is interrupted by attacks from living vegetation and terrifying beasts! This second entry in the hugely popular "Blood Island" series from Eddie Romero and Gerardo De Leon is a fast-paced drive-in classic filled with monsters, maidens, and mayhem, newly remastered with its original tinted footage presented correct and intact for the first time! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

"Consider that a divorce!"
The brides of blood are the young women of an isolated island who are being sacrificed to The Evil One, a fearful monster who tears them apart to satisfy his blood lust. To the island comes scientist Kent Taylor, who wants to investigate mysterious radioactivity that is causing the plant life to mutate in strange ways, and Peace Corps worker John Ashley, who has been sent to help the natives improve their lot. The natives are not too appreciative of his interference in their primitive ways at first, but he convinces them to band together and fight the beast.

This DVD has good sound and image quality and several interesting features. There's a sexy pictorial layout of stripper Miss Beverly Hills (who became an ordained minister in 1986 and now has her ministry in Hawaii!) There's an interview with director Eddie Romero and a short commentary that has little to do with this particular movie and eight trailers for other Hemisphere movies, some of which are quite hilarious! I recommend this DVD to "blood island" completists, and all fans of outlandish horror.

Brides of SOME Blood......
Native girls ae being sacrificed to a monster called "The Evil One" in this ULTRA-tacky Philipine made outing---part of the "Blood Island" series from the sixties. I liked "TERROR IS A MAN", the first of the series directed by Gerry DeLeon. I DID NOT like "Mad Doctor of Blood Island" and I havn't seen "The Blood Drinkers" so my point of view is rather limited. However, after some shaky credits, "Brides" becomes a low-budget but colorful exercise in perverted exotica. The characters are not defined enough to really care about except Carla(Beverly Hills) the scientist's over-sexed wife who is merely around for eye candy. "The Evil One" is a decidedly lumpy looking monster who tears the female victims apart to "satisfy humself"!!! There is virtually no blood or gore (save for a few limbs here and there) and the island seems to be alive with carnivorous plant life due to radiation exposure. There's a lot of running around and some scientific mumbo-jumbo that is none too convincing. However, I enjoyed it because parts of it were so damn ludicrous it was laugh out loud funny and it IS a colorful diversion from the 1968 drive-in period. Plus there's something to be said for the nice on location shooting that gives it that steamy feeling of being in the jungle. And, when all is taken care of in the end, you get a near orgy as the natives celebrate their freedom from the beast---sexed up to the max! As if they're saying "Great! We're free! Let's all have sex right now!" You've got to see this to believe it. Actually, you should see the whole thing to believe it. AND, in the "extras", Miss Beverly Hills is revealed to have been a stripper before she made this! What can I SAY? ... Read more

Reviews (4)

OVERLOOKED NOIR THRILLER
I like this 50's pulp film because it's an example of what must have been considered "adult" back then. Tough, brutal--with "girlie" shots of redhead Rhonda Fleming in scanty outfits and the all-out performance of Arlene Dahl as her klepto/nympho/psycho sister-both vying for the he-man pleasures of hunky John Payne and everyone caught up in Big City Corruption and Scandal. Lushly photographed and tightly directed ,this is fun stuff--worth repeat viewings any time. Good quality DVD product from VCI that's in vivid 50's color.
I recommend this for buffs who like a little cheese on their cracker--like me.

FABULOUS FILM NOIR
I stumbled upon this film while surfing the amazon.com website, and was intrigued by the other reviews written about it. What a find this film is! The technicolor photography is stunning - almost garrish in its intensity, and quite gorgeous to look at. The story is vintage noir, with fine performances from Rhonda Fleming, Arlene Dahl and John Payne. The score of the film is rich and sumptuous, adding much to the overall feel of the film. All in all, well worth having if you enjoy motion pictures about the seedier side of life. Treat yourself - you won't be disappointed!

when style was in style
This is the kind of movie i didn't expect to find on DVD and very happy i did.If there is a word for Technicolor ladies Rhonda Fleming and Arlene Dahl are it.The plot is okay and the acting pretty good especially by Arlene Dahl.This is a film noir but works fine in color.I hope more movies with these gorgeous actresses are released on DVD.I didnt know VCI and was a little
sceptical to buy this at first but it looks great and is anamorphic when some much better known and more recent movies aren't.

"Slightly Scarlet" : Definitely Get It
The DVD from VCI presents this film in its widescreen version and the technicolor photography by JOHN ALTON looks terrific. I admit I was at first perplexed by the color: it did not seem necessary. So I turned the color off on the TV and watched some scenes in black & white--they looked terriic, vintage Alton. But watching again in color I realized what may be the very special quality this film has: it looks like those PULP CRIME NOVEL COVERS we have all enjoyed over the years. The reds, greens, blues, yellows, etc of those wonderful old covers seem to be reproduced here. In combination with the very pulpy, James M. Cain-based plotline, we have an extremely FUN movie.
Rhonda Fleming and Arlene Dahl play sisters who share some sort of duplicitous secret from childhood. Director Alan Dwan (who replaced Kurt Neumann for this film) makes sure we appreciate the doppelgangerishness of the actresses from the opening scene--Fleming picks up Dahl as she exits prison and the two embrace in that movie-ish way, cheek-to-cheek, so their striking similarity of features and RED HAIR can be fully displayed. Fleming really could act, and she gets some choice scenes, but Dahl tends to steal most of Fleming's thunder with her pouty, Dorothy Malone-like, bad girl characterization.
John Payne--by 1956 and aging matinee idol--makes a pretty good conflicted lead. But the other real standout is Ted de Corsia as a mean, mean villain along the lines of Lawrence Tierney or Ward Bond. De Corsia gets to chew garishly colored scenery at several turns.
It's always a pleasure to see the ubiquitous Ellen Corby as Fleming's thankless and clueless housekeeper ("what should I make for supper?"..oops she's being arrested!). And one never tires of Frank Gerstle and Lance Fuller (one of de Corsia's thugs)

The disc has an informative commentary by mystery writer/filmmaker Max Collins. Extras really make the package: a static, luridly-colored main menu leads (via realistic-sounding gunshots!) to the extras menu, which includes a nicely done James M. Cain bio and a little panorama of color reproductions of Cain pulp covers from Collins' own collections. There are also some trailers: for "Slightly Scarlet" (this one looks good) and atrociously awful-looking ones for "Double Indemnity" and "The Postman Always Rings Twice".

Highly enjoyable all around. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Tough biker babes stomp a couple of vicious racist rapists and then cool their heels in a rural commune while the men hit the road for a biker rally (they actually spend most of their time getting drunk and passing out). The vacation is short-lived when the women discover the seemingly peace-loving guru is actually a drug kingpin with a vicious gang and a side business in human sacrifices. That's just one of the unexplained twists in this oddball thriller made at the end of the biker-movie craze. When the genre died, according to producer Sam Sherman, they couldn't give the film away so director Al Adamson reshot it to cash in on the explosion of female-centered action pictures. The result is a schizophrenic production, a biker buddy film full of macho posturing and brutal violence against women that suddenly gives way to girl-gang vengeance. Cameraman Gary Graver (Orson Welles's F for Fake) uses the California desert and back roads to good effect and frees his camera to leap into the dynamic free-for-all brawl and the high-powered chase that climaxes the film. But for all the wild, butt-kicking energy of the Angels' women, it's the men to the rescue.

The DVD features a commentary by producer Sam Sherman, along with a newly recorded introduction, a profile taken from the cable TV series Split Screen, and trailers to this and four other Al Adamson-Sam Sherman collaborations. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Vro-o-om, vro-o-om
An independent biker film with cheap production values and a swiss cheese plot that will probably become a cult classic in a few years. Hard to follow the theme in some places. Utterly forgettable. I will probably give my copy away.

End of an Era
Al Adamson was always much better at making action films, especially those starring bikers, than the horror films he is mostly known for. "Satan's Sadists", for example, is still one of the best biker films ever made. However, in the early 1970s he found himself stuck with a just completed biker film at a time when the public had grown bored with biker films and stopped attending. So, seeing the success of films about groups of tough women like Roger Corman and Jack Hill's Pam Grier prison films, he decided to change the emphasis of the film and its marketing. Thus Angels' Wild Women was created, placing greater focus on the women in the bike group and ads greatly exaggerating how tough and mean they are were released.

Actually, the bikers in the film are quite tame. In contrast to Al's classic "Satan's Sadists", this film provides a positive perspective on bikers. The men do get into a bit of macho posturing, but otherwise they're nice folk looking for fun and freedom.

The plot of this film is quite worthwhile, however, and provides an excellent look at the end of an era. When the film was made, the Manson family trials had just occurred, which led those equating Manson's family with the hippies to declare that the hippy movement was dead. This movie, which was largely shot at the Spahn ranch, out of which Manson operated, taps into this.

The plot is simple: The females of the Angels gang are left on their own while the men attend a convention with another gang. One of the Angels gets involved with a love cult run by a sadist while visiting a ranch, and it is up to the other women to try to get her out after she learns that the leader is a criminal. Thus tragedy enters the Angels' attempt at creating a new society based on love and freedom. The women are all portrayed strongly and positively, however, it is up to the men to come to their rescue in the end. As with most of Adamson's action films, not all the good guys survive, and a certain level of sadness underlines the fun and excitement.

Though a well acted and directed movie with a decent script, Angels' Wild Women is more like a good action movie than great art like "Easy Rider", but is similar in its bitter-sweet examination of the end of an era.

Decent, but falls short
Biker gangs cruising around, causing little trouble.

Having scene Satan's Sadists first, I was not as impressed with AWW. The chicks could have been a little meaner and some more violence might have helped. Dragged at several spots. ... Read more

Description

Human brain transplants and blood-soaked operations highlight this saga filled with blood, shock, and sheer fright, featuring mad doctor antics, an evil dwarf ("Freaks'" Angelo Rossitto), and a pure gold drive-in cast including Kent Taylor (The Mighty Gorga), Grant Williams (The Incredible Shrinking Man), Regina Carrol (Dracula vs. Frankenstein), and Vicki Volante (Horror of the Blood Monsters). Inspired by the wildly popular success of the "Blood Island" series, this follow up (shot in Hollywood) follows the tradition of those Philippine favorites with cult filmmakers Al Adamson and Sam Sherman bringing you an unforgettable whirlpool of horror featuring a deformed and lumbering monster, a basement filled with chained women, and an entire country trapped in this horrific struggle! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Re-discovery of a closet classick
I first saw this movie back in 1978 on a little b+w television on the late night horror film (hosted by Detroit/Toledo icon "The Ghoul"). Over the years all I could remember of the movie was image of the evil dwarf drawing blood from the female victims chained up in the baesment...
Well, I finaly figured out that "Brain of Blood" was that movie which I ordered and watched last night.
What a treat, this is standard but classic early 70's blood schlock.
Brain of Blood has plenty of enjoyable/expected cliches...
a mad doctor, evil dwarf, big dumb oaf, busty blond, a twisted political plot, brain transplants, plastic ray guns, rubber spiders, and lots of thick, red movie blood.
The story is silly, but there's enough of a storyline to require the viewer to pay attention in order to follow it.

Other than the blood which may unsettle the very squeamish the movie is fine for family viewing (PG). There's no sex (real or implied) and no foul language (although some of the trailers may show a brief flash of nudity).
Plenty of good disc extras make this package all the sweeter.

Al Adamson strikes again
This is another in a long line of films made by the late great Al Adamson. The story is about a scientist who transplants the brain of a dying leader of a foreign country into the body of his hulking mentally retarded helper. You get a lot of gory brain surgery footage and a really mixed up plot involving government cover up's, sadism, spies, torture, and chained women. The cast is very good it includes Kent Taylor, Regina Carroll (Al's Wife), John Bloom and Grant Williams.
I happen to like Adamson's films a lot and this is really no better or worse than any of them. If you like verteran actors playing monsters and dress up, you'll like this film. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Director Al Adamson and producer Sam Sherman picked a suitably vague title for their incoherent horror film about jewel thieves, a psychotic Vietnam vet with an electronic brain, and a vengeful killer with a bright blue zombie henchman. Laden with flashbacks and sidetracks, this was another of Adamson's do-overs, an unfinished picture reborn with new scenes and an entirely new story. "It's a little choppy," says Sam Sherman with deadpan understatement in his introduction. "If you fall asleep I swear you'll think you've woken up in two different movies." Only two?

Former Disney star Tommy Kirk stars as the tough detective who gets a severed head in the mail, Regina Carrol (Adamson's wife) is an innocent targeted by the mad killer with revenge on his mind, and John Carradine receives top billing for what must be a single day's work as Dr. Van Ard, whose misguided science project starts the whole mess. It's not hard to see where the two films--the heist picture and the horror film--were stitched together because the seams are glaring, but that's hardly the worst Blood of Ghastly Horror has to offer. Wooden performances, clumsy drama, bizarre dialogue ("Dr. Van Ard died a much more horrible death than he really deserved," eulogizes Kirk), awkward editing, and the worst camera work ever attributed to future Oscar winner Vilmos Zsigmond (Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Deer Hunter) all contribute to this mind-boggling mess.

The DVD features a commentary by producer Sam Sherman, along with a newly recorded introduction, a profile taken from the cable TV series Split Screen, and trailers to this and four other Al Adamson-Sam Sherman collaborations. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (44)

i'm gonna come right out and say it...
...i don't like season 1!

i don't like dr. erhardt as much as tv's frank (who does?) and the riffing is more sparse and of a slightly weaker style. but i was thinking, for a new fan seeking to discover mst3k, this may not be a bad jumping off point (although manos is a better start).

this episode is indicative of the true original philosophy of mst3k. most of the best episodes aren't mystery or science-oriented (manos, mitchell, many sci-fi eps such as jack frost or final sacrifice), but the crawling hand is a true, cheesy, BAD scifi/horror movie. and that was the original intent of the show: to riff on bad scifi/horror flicks. and the riffing IS good, it's just not as good as it would become in later seasons.

nobody should miss out on this episode, but other episodes are better, and once you're well-versed in mst3k-dom, you'll revisit this episode less often than the others.

You will believe a hand can crawl!
Ah, MST3K Season One. I can see how some people, even MST3K fans, might be disappointed by this video. Instead of TV's Frank, Dr. Forrester has Dr. Larry Erhardt (John Weinstein) for a sidekick, and it is Weinstein rather than Kevin Murphy supplying the voice of Tom Servo. The set looks as cheap as it really was, the silhouettes in the theater are sort of green-looking, Joel sometimes seems to forget which bot is which, and the jokes are sometimes rather lame. However, the show is still hilarious. If you've never seen a Season One episode before, cut Weinstein's Servo voice some slack. Initially, I hated it, but being fortunate enough to have the whole first season on tape, I found that this initial Servo incarnation was actually pretty funny in his own right after I got used to him. This one video probably won't make you a Weinstein fan, but give him a chance.

As for the movie itself, The Crawling Hand was perfect MST3K material--there's a silly plot, an annoying teenager, and some incredibly bad acting. America's space program is apparently run in a little warehouse somewhere in the middle of nowhere, and the scientists there are in a tizzy. On two occasions, a guy has been sent to the moon, landing successfully, then being lost on his way back to earth. This second time, communication is reestablished with the astronaut 20 minutes after he has run out of oxygen. He begs the men in the control room (actually, it's really just a desk) to blow him up before he reenters the atmosphere. The doctor-type guy finally hits the red button. Meanwhile, a supposedly smart slacker goes swimming in the ocean with his Swedish girlfriend, and while they are frolicking around they run across a human hand lying on the beach. Naturally, our hero decides he must have that hand; he sneaks back that night (apparently this is the one beach in California that no one whatsoever goes to) and makes the wonderful hand his own, lovingly placing it in his landlady's storage room behind some relish. Soon, the hand (which does crawl, just like the title says) begins strangling people (that's gonna happen, you know). At this point, the sheriff, AKA Alan Hale (Skipper!), commences an investigation. One print found on the body of the first victim is matched to the fingerprint of the blown-up astronaut, and that's when the Space Boys come out to try and clean up a little of their mess. To complicate matters, our boy who found the hand begins having episodes wherein he turns into an "Elvis zombie" with heavy mascara under his eyes and feels compelled to strangle people himself. As you may have guessed, it all comes down to some hand to hand combat in the end.

I think this is one of the best Season One episodes. I particularly enjoyed one skit in which the guys all pretend to be William Shatner being choked by a disembodied hand. Joel and the bots are still developing the real spirit and style of the show, but the genius is already unmistakably there. Most importantly, I can assure you that this show is very funny.

Haven't we all had a crawling hand in bed?
This DVD set is from the cable tv show, "Mystery Science Theater 3000". They sometimes cut the film down and on-screen throughout the entire film, they mock and criticize it. Just as if you are in the real movie theatre with people talking during the film.
But if you would like to see the entire, uncut version of the movie without MST 3000 intervening, just turn the DVD over for the entire, uncut version in all its glory.
This is the second space mission to go wrong. While space engineers Peter breck and Kent Taylor haggle over the failure of no communication with the astronaut Lockhart who is running out of oxygen, the astronaut begs for space operations to press the red button. This would explode the craft instantly. After merciful pleading from the astronaut, operations comply. This is the second man they have lost upon return entry. Only four astronauts left. They need these men to handle the lunar rocket. What is it on the moon that is driving these men crazy to the point of near-death?
The debris from the exploded space craft has landed like a meteorite. What terror will escape and attack the young teenagers in this California beach town?
Haven't we all had a crawling hand in bed?
Also in the cast: Rod Lauren as "Paul". Allison Hayes as "Donna". Allan Hale Jr as "Sheriff Townsend" (Gilligan's Island tv series). The Crawling Hand was Joseph F. Robertson.

"Mrs. Burke, I thought you...were Dale!"
This episode is just one of many that contain the "deathless" line: "Mrs. Burke, I thought you...were Dale!"

Naturally, our whole family likes these episodes, because we starred in the original 1968 Grape-Nuts TV commercial from which this riff comes. (Yes, Mrs. Burke AND Dale are real, alive, well, and living in the USA.)

Many thanks to MST3K's Best Brains for riffing our commercial decades after it ran (and to Mr. Murphy for helping to clear up the trouble about the origin of this riff)!

The Sound Of One Hand Clasping...
Peter Breck (Big Valley) plays a very intense scientist with the space program. How intense? So intense that I expected his head to sail off at any minute! You see, one of his astronauts (named Lockhart) has gone nuts, pleading with ground control to "push the red button" and blow up his ship. They comply, detonating Lockhart. Meanwhile, a young med student and his girl go swimmig on a california beach. Low and behold, they find a severed arm in an astronaut uniform sleeve! Paul (the med student) comes back for it later, taking it home in a shower curtain. He hides it behind some preserves in his landlady's pantry. The arm starts creeping around, knocking some jars over, waking the landlady, who must investigate. Of course, she gets choked bug-eyed! Unfortunately, the hand doesn't do much else, as it possesses Paul and uses him to cause further mayhem. Enter Alan Hale jr. as the portly sheriff. The rest is pretty dull. Watch it late at night and don't feel too bad if you fall asleep... ... Read more

Amazon.com

Director Al Adamson and producer Sam Sherman were never ones for subtlety. The original name for this low-budget drive-in action thriller was Girls for Rent, but according to Sherman (who introduces the film with a few anecdotes) the title was changed when it went to video, and it stuck. And why not? It's an appropriately incendiary title for a violent, raw production. Legendary X-rated star Georgina Spelvin (Behind the Green Door) stars as a hard-bitten hit woman sprung from a Mexican prison by a mob boss with big plans. Her first job is the murder of a blackmailing politician, but when a witness flees in panic Spelvin and tough-as-nails partner in crime Rosalind Miles hit the road to silence her for good. Shot on the cheap by longtime collaborator Gary Graver (who also photographed Orson Welles's last films), it's a lean, brutal film with some unexpectedly affecting moments. Spelvin is awkward with dialogue but makes a wicked psycho killer, cackling with maniacal glee as she murders her way through the California desert. Miles has charisma to spare as the more calculating of the pair. Unlike many of Adamson's productions, it's a coherent film from start to finish with a hard, vicious edge and a nihilistic twist rarely seen in the low-budget action films made today.

Sam Sherman's commentary is full of production anecdotes, notably including a "revolt" on the set by the actresses and a pair of lawsuits launched by two of the actors, and once again he gives a tutorial on practical low-budget shooting. The DVD also features a newly recorded introduction, a profile taken from the cable TV series Split Screen, and trailers to this and four other Al Adamson-Sam Sherman collaborations. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (5)

A Trash Treasure from Al Adamson
I've just recently started checking out the works of Al Adamson after reading the his bio "Schlock-O-Rama," by David Konow. In a brief chapter in that book about "I Spit on Your Corpse" (originally released as "Girls for Rent"), Konow describes how it contains the most offensive scene Adamson ever filmed, in which Georgina Spelvin's character sexually torments (and worse) a mentally handicapped character. So, right away, I knew I had to see it (movies described as "vile," "offensive," "shocking" usually attract my interest). But "I Spit on Your Corpse" is also a pretty entertaining action/exploitation pic. Oh, sure, it's not technically refined and has plenty of those laughable elements movies of this type are known for: continuity errors (like how Spelvin is barefoot when doing roadwork as a prisoner, then has shoes for her escape a few minutes later), cheap sets (an obviously abandoned gas station is used for several scenes), and, of course, bad acting. But it's also a tighter tale than Adamson's more popular "Satan's Sadists." And a lot meaner, too, thanks largely to porn star Spelvin, a far more effective villain than "Sadists"' Russ Tamblyn. Looking more like an angry PTA president than sexpot (even if she is wearing her shirts unbuttoned well past her bra-less breasts), Spelvin fully embodies her tough-as-nails role, showing herself to be the best actress of the bunch. Curiously, though the movie largely trades on Spelvin's notoriety as a porn star, she has only one sex scene, and with the exception of occasionally exposing her breasts, she's usually clothed. Don't worry, though, there are plenty of other women around to provide the requisite T&A, most notably the T&A of Susan McIver.

The DVD's extras include commentary by the late director's friend and business partner, producer Sam Sherman, trailers for other Adamson movies ("Angel's Wild Women," "Dracula vs. Frankenstein," "Blood of Ghastly Horror") and a "documentary" entitled "Making Schlock!", although it's really nothing more than an interview with Sam Sherman.

If you're looking for slick production, deep characters and witty dialog, buy a different DVD. If, however, you enjoy David Friedmans' '60s roughies and producer Harry Novak's sexy action movies like "A Scream in the Streets," "I Spit on Your Corpse" is just what you need to round out your collection.

A True Drive-In Classic!!!
This drive-in classic finally gets the full DVD treatment from Troma!!! This is a true relic of the past!!! Lots of action!!! A Great commentary track by Sam Sherman. A cool documentary, trailers and more!!! This movie was directed by the late Al Adamson(He was sadly murdered in 1995). A seventies classic!!!

Sure, It's Pretty Bad...
But I wish people would leave Al Adamson alone. As Sam Sherman states in the dvd's honest and illuminating commentary, this is nothing more than a drive-in movie, aimed at a drive-in audience. Its value lies in the sociological import such films (inadvertently) carry, capturing an era that has since completely vanished, and, as such, it's pretty entertaining. The only differance between films like this one and the latest STAR WARS film (as but one example) is about 100 million dollars, and I'd argue the performances, energy, and inventiveness of the worst of Adamson outshine the best of the equally exploitative Lucas.

Why?!
Let's face it - cheesy movies definitely have their place in society. Who hasn't wasted away an evening with frozen pizza, beer and a movie? And once the beer begins to make its mark it really doesn't matter what the little people on your tv are saying and doing. So, in this respect, "I Spit On Your Corpse" is a worthy enough movie to fill this niche. But for crying out loud - don't buy the DVD! Just ... rent it as you will not be wanting to watch it twice.

This is on DVD?
It's hard to believe that a movie like "I Spit On Your Corpse" is coming to the general public in digital format, while most normal people would love to see real films like "Star Wars", "Indiana Jones" and heck, even "Puff The Magic Dragon" show up on DVD. But instead we get this? The only reason I even know this movie exists is because my brother and I were bored one night and decided to grab pizza, beer and the worst-looking movie we could find at the video store. This one won, of course. In fact, until this very moment I was convinced that we were the only two people on earth that had ever even heard of this movie. It's about half-naked women that escape from prison (I think) and get involved in shady mob work, chasing one of their former members after she witnessed a murder, got scared, and ran off. So the rest of the film is a chase scene pretty much. It's soft-core porn at its most uninteresting, I'm guessing (not too familiar with the genre). The parts that are supposed to be funny (both of them) aren't and the rest of it is. As far as acting, plot and other more esoteric film elements go, I have seen worse. But most of the time I've sure seen a lot better. Unless you were personally in this movie and would like to have a copy for archival purposes, I wouldn't suggest buying it. In fact, if you have even seen this movie once in your life, I'd highly recommend hypnotherapy to get rid of the memories. However, if you literally have every other movie in existence, and you have plenty of money to blow on nothing better, I suppose I can't stop you from getting this one as well. ... Read more