Starring - Michael Emmet (Perry Mason, Attack of the Giant Leeches), Angela Greene (The Day of the Locusts, Futureworld), and John Baer (Terry and the Pirates, The Beverly Hillbillies)
Release Date - 1958
Genre - Horror/Sci-Fi
Tagline - "No girl was safe as long as this HEAD HUNTING THING roamed the land!"
Format - Bluray (Personal Collection) (Screener)
Rating (out of 5):
I've always looked forward to reviewing older titles. When I saw older, I don't mean films released in the 80s and 90s. While that may seem old to some, I don't see those films as "older" releases. When I say I want to review older titles, I'm referring to films from the 40s, 50s, and 60s. These are the movies I would sit up late with my grandmother watching with the lights out and a bowl of popcorn placed between us. She loved sci-fi and would leave her television on the original incarnation of the Sy-Fy Channel before it was rebranded. It was around this time that I first saw Night of the Blood Beast. It's not the most memorable film but it just happens to be a film that was on television during many memorable moments. The first viewing was with my grandmother, the second was when I was in college and needed some background noise while I was playing Fallout 3, and the third time was late at night with my daughter when she was a baby and wouldn't sleep. It may not be my favorite movie but it's a movie that has a lot of fond memories tied to it. That's why I jumped at the chance to review the new blu from Film Masters who I would like to thank for sending it over for review!
The film follows an astronaut returning to Earth but something catastrophic happens. He plummets to his death but his body doesn't show signs of decomposition. As they begin to study it further they soon realize that an alien organism has taken control of the body and is now going on a murderous rampage.
Night of the Blood Beast is one of the films that Roger Corman and his brother produced early on in their careers that found it's home in the drive-in circuit of the time. With that being said, it's a film that most mock or ridicule for being bad. While it is far from perfect, it still has it's own charm especially for later generations looking back at a bygone era. I'm a millennial and watch these films a little differently than those who were alive during it's initial release in the same manner a younger generation will watch films from my youth. It's a trip back in time where we get to see the different styles, slang, and culture of decades long gone before I was born. Night of the Blood Beast is not perfect but I've always enjoyed it. The acting in this one is classic camp. The female cast in this one does that iconic scream that is often shown in vintage throwbacks to this time period. They are overdramatic and ham up the screen. The male cast is the exact opposite. They are masculine to a fault and extremely corny. This was the acting of the time but someone not from that era may find it unintentionally funny. The story for this one melts horror and sci-fi themes of the time into a pretty solid, yet predictable, story. Space travel and alien invasion films were taking over the drive-in circuit of the time. Mix that with fears of infections an disease of the time and you have a great premise for a horror/sci-fi mash up. While the film does have this great basis for a film in place, it does struggle with creating atmosphere and the lack of tension makes a lot of the more pivotal scenes fall flat. Mix that with the editing, cheap sets, and campy acting and you have a film that may not be one of the most memorable films of it's time. Finally, the film doesn't have the bloody deaths that many modern horror fans are looking for. In fact, this is pretty mild for out standards. We get a few make-up effects here and there but that is the extent of the carnage we get to see with this one. Overall, Night of the Blood Beast is a film no one expected to have last as long as it did. The Cormans were clearly cutting costs and rushing films out for various distributors with no regard to quality. However, here it is. A time machine for younger generations to see what horror and sci-fi films were like for the late 50s. It is unintentionally funny an extremely cheesy but that's part of the charm. I highly recommend checking out this release from Film Masters.
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