QUIET PLEASE: MURDER

George Sanders

QUIET PLEASE: MURDER (1942). Director: John Francis Larkin. 

"We're really a couple of walking horror stories." -- Myra. 

Jim Fleg (George Sanders of Bluebeard's Ten Honeymoons) is a murderous and completely immoral reprobate who steals a priceless manuscript from the public library and tries to sell off copies of it to unsuspecting and unscrupulous collectors. His partner is the equally reprehensible and dangerous Myra (Gail Patrick). Private eye Hal McByrne (Richard Denning of The Black Scorpion) romances Myra to try to get to the ringleader of this illicit operation. Everyone winds up at the library, where Fleg pretends to be a phony detective so he can rip off the place some more, placing Hal and librarian Kay (Lynne Roberts) in danger. Will the real police get there in time? Quiet Please: Murder is a minor crime meller with an expectedly notable lead performance from Sanders, who is always fun to watch, although others in the cast -- including Sidney Blackmer, Byron Foulger [The Magnetic Monster], Arthur Space and the ones already mentioned -- are all on top of things. 

Verdict: Stay out of the library! **3/4. 

DAY THE WORLD ENDED

Mike Connors and Adele Jergens

DAY THE WORLD ENDED (1955). Produced and directed by Roger Corman. In SuperScope. Colorized version. 

The world has been mostly destroyed in an atomic war. In a sheltered valley, scientist Jim Madison (Paul Birch) and his daughter, Louise (Lori Nelson of Hot Rod Girl), horde food supplies and mourn the apparent death of Louise's fiance. Over Madison's objections, several people converge on the house: gun-toting crook Tony (Mike Connors); his hard-boiled if slightly soft-in-the-middle moll, Ruby (Adele Jergens); the old prospector Pete (Raymond Hatton of Girls in Prison) and his beloved donkey; handsome geologist Rick (Richard Denning of Assignment Redhead); and Radek (Paul Dubov), a man so contaminated by radiation that he's transforming into a mutant who prefers raw meat. Meanwhile, hovering around the house is a fully-transformed mutation who might have some connection to Louise even as Tony makes a play for Louise, Ruby seethes, and Rick does what he can to protect the frightened young lady from rape.

Day the World Ended is an absorbing melodrama which has some surprisingly adept performances -- even Nelson is better than usual -- and a creepy atmosphere. The monster (Paul Blaisdell) somewhat resembles one of the Zanti Misfits that later turned up on The Outer Limits. The characters could be categorized as types, but Lou Russoff's screenplay adds some dimension to them. It's interesting that the hood Tony never touches alcohol, and ill-fated Ruby is so devoted to her man even though she knows he's a total crumb-bun. Several years before Night of the Living Dead, this movie has man-eating ghouls, although in this case it's the living eating the dead instead of the other way around. As usual there's an interesting score by Ronald Stein. 

Verdict: Low-budget yet intriguing end of the world (more or less) story with Corman's customary cheap flair. ***. 

NAKED PARADISE

Beverly Garland and Richard Denning

NAKED PARADISE (aka Thunder Over Hawaii/1957). Produced and directed by Roger Corman. 

Duke Bradley (Richard Denning of The Black Scorpion) owns a charter boat and takes on passengers including gangster Zach Cotton (Leslie Bradley of Attack of the Crab Monsters), his "secretary" Max MacKenzie (Beverly Garland of Gunslinger), and nasty gunsels Mitch (Dick Miller) and Stony (Jonathan Haze). After pulling a robbery the gang set out for an island where Duke learns that Zach plans on forcing him to take them all in his small boat to the mainland, a ridiculous proposition. Duke and Max set sail by themselves but have to turn back due to an approaching hurricane, and are at the mercy of Zach and his cohorts. But all may not be hopeless ... 

Creeps: Miller, Bradley, Haze

Obviously Naked Paradise was considered a more exploitable title than the original Thunder Over Hawaii. The movie, which moves at the expected brisk pace, is reasonably entertaining and also unpredictable -- you're not really certain which of the participants will survive. A major asset of the film, also as expected, is the performance of Garland, who always raises things a notch. The others are all competent but unexceptional, and Bradley completely lacks charisma, essential when playing a gang leader. Miller and Haze have done better work elsewhere, and Denning displays his customary bland charm. The picture has a satisfying wind-up. Shot by Floyd Crosby and with a score by Ronald Stein. 

Verdict: At least the actors got a trip to Hawaii out of it! ***. 

CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON

Stunning portrait of the Gill Man

CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON (1954). Director: Jack Arnold. Colorized.  

A group of scientists go the Amazon to search for more fossils from a presumably extinct creature, possibly the missing link. Dr. Reed (Richard Carlson), his girlfriend, Kay (Julie Adams) Dr, Maia (Antonio Moreno), Dr. Thompson (Whit Bissell), and the ambitious project head Dr. Williams (Richard Denning) should have known something was up after they find the torn bodies of Maia's crew, but they proceed to the "black lagoon" where this creature hangs out anyway, upon the advice of ship's captain, Lucas (Nestor Paiva). Williams wants to capture the creature and bring it back to civilization for study, but as this clawed and dangerous animal begins to decimate the members of the party, this seems more and more unlikely ... 

the gill man is fascinated by Kay swimming above

Creature from the Black Lagoon gets points for being something decidedly different from the other Universal monsters. Although at times the creature looks perhaps more comical than frightening, he is still a formidable figure. Creature is often illogical -- and forget about the "science" of the piece -- but that doesn't matter up against the tension and atmosphere that the film often generates. The best scene has the lonely gill man (why does no one wonder if he has a mate or if there are others of its kind in the vicinity?) swimming underneath Kay and reaching out to nearly touch her, a strangely erotic moment. 

Denning, Paiva, Adams, Carlson

The acting is credible even if no one in the film has much of a reaction to the horrible deaths of the hired men, and the characters only seem to show emotion towards the end when one of their number is mauled. The colorization process is generally good on the version I watched, giving the film a new dimension, and helping with the often murky underwater scenes. The blasting musical score, from a variety of sources, helps put over some of the slower sequences. There were two sequels to this film, although neither were as good, and a projected remake never materialized. Originally shown in 3-D.

Verdict: Entertaining classic horror flick with a very lively and unusual monster. ***. 

THE BLACK SCORPION

The voracious black scorpion

THE BLACK SCORPION (1957). Director: Edward Ludwig. Colorized. 

The eruption of a volcano in Mexico causes enough loss of life, but things are made much worse by the emergence of gigantic man-eating scorpions from suspended animation. Rancher Teresa Alvarez (Mara Corday of Naked Gun) and geologists named Hank (Richard Denning of Assignment Redhead) and Artur (Carlos Rivas of Machete) help Dr. Velazco (Carlos Muzquiz) and the military wipe out the monsters, but one gargantuan scorpion -- a black scorpion -- survives to wipe out any others and then advances on heavily populated Mexico City. 

The Black Scorpion downs a copter!

The Black Scorpion is one of the zestier -- and grimmer -- giant bug features that came out in the wake of Them! Stop-motion animation work by Willis O'Brien of King Kong fame and Pete  Peterson helps create some very lively, scuttling horrors to give the creeps to the audience, and the close-ups of the salivating monstrosities with their movable fangs are also unnerving, especially when accompanied by the rattling, scary sound FX. One scene in particular -- an attack on a train when the giant pincers of the scorpions pick out hapless, screeching passengers to devour and tear apart -- is a vision of hell. 

Mara Corday, Carlos Rivas, Richard Denning

The colorizing process makes the movie seem even more intense and horrifying, although it can't compensate for the fact that some of the sequences are underlit. Other highlights of the film include a tense business with a scorpion grabbing hold of a cable and nearly pulling a crane down into an abyss, and the exploration of said abyss with its scorpions, giant worms and so on, An unintentionally comical moment occurs when Dr. Velazco says that the monsters "are somewhat slow and lethargic," which scene after scene proves is definitely not the case! The Black Scorpion has a standard B movie cast and all are perfectly okay even if they offer nothing more than what is indicated in the script. Paul Sawtell offers an eerie and effective score.

Verdict: Absorbing monster movie with more than decent FX work. ***. 

INSURANCE INVESTIGATOR

Audrey Long and Richard Denning

INSURANCE INVESTIGATOR (1951). Director: George Blair. Colorized.

Insurance investigator Tom Davison (Richard Denning) is called in when the head of a real estate company, Sullivan (Roy Gordon), is found dead on the staircase outside his office. His associate, Hammond (John Eldredge), suspects that Sullivan was drinking heavily and had a tragic fall, but Sullivan's daughter, Nancy (Audrey Long), doesn't find this credible. Davison decides to pretend to be Nancy's cousin, and she gets him a job at the real estate office, where he can spy on Hammond and another agent, Addie (Hillary Brooke), who's having an affair with Hammond. Then someone inadvertently steps into an elevator shaft and has a deadly fall ...

Reed Hadley and Roy Barcroft

Insurance Investigator is a $1.99 item from Republic studios, and plays, like many of these B productions, like a TV show. Denning is, as always, a likable player, but he adds absolutely no nuances to his performance and his Tom Davison is no different from his Michael Shayne, Mr. North, or other characters that he's portrayed. Audrey Long is appealing and professional as the (supposedly) grieving daughter who carries on a romance with Davison, or at least tries to. Reed Hadley and Roy Barcroft add a bit of tension to their scenes as the resident bad guys behind a nasty insurance scheme. We're supposed to believe that an unsuspecting person can open the door to the elevator even though the car is on another floor. Well, maybe ... George Blair also directed Exposed. 

Verdict: Even color doesn't add much to this cheapie. *1/2. 

TWICE-TOLD TALES

TWICE-TOLD TALES (1963). Director: Sidney Salkow. 

Star Vincent Price appears in three stories freely adapted from the works of Nathaniel Hawthorne. In Heidegger's Experiment Price and Sebastian Cabot play love rivals who discover the dead woman they both loved has been preserved by a natural chemical like a fountain of youth. As portrayed by Mari Blanchard, however, the lovely Sylvia comes off more like a hard-boiled slattern than anything else, but there's no accounting for taste. In Rappaccini's Daughter a young man (Brett Halsey) falls in love with a woman (Joyce Taylor) who has been raised on poison by a jealous father (Price) and whose very touch means instant death. This is the best of the three stories but it isn't well served by the insufficient playing of the lovers. As an actor, Halsey was good-looking and little else. Primarily a TV actress, Taylor was vivid enough in George Pal's Atlantis the Lost Continent but in this she's simply bad. The weakest segment is a poor and loose adaptation of The House of Seven Gables which is somewhat bolstered by the appearance of Beverly Garland and not at all by the unlikely presence of Richard Denning, although he's not terrible. More derivative of other horror films than of Hawthorne. 

Verdict: Has its moments. **1/2.

GIRLS IN PRISON

Joan Taylor

GIRLS IN PRISON (1956). Director: Edward L. Cahn. 

Anne Carson (Joan Taylor) is incarcerated in a woman's prison after being convicted of robbery, although she claims she didn't know that the two men she was with were going to commit a crime. She also claims that she has no idea where the money is, a notion that doesn't sit well with fellow inmates Jenny (Adele Jergens), Melanie (Helen Gilbert), and others. Paul Anderson (Lance Fuller of This Island Earth) goes to see Anne's crusty pop (Raymond Hatton) and the two try to find the stolen money. The prison chaplain, Reverend Fulton (Richard Denning), believes that Anne should be transferred to a prison farm where things will be easier for her, but then an earthquake and a prison break -- not to mention a run for the money -- changes the scenario dramatically, 

Taylor and Jergens on the run

Girls in Prison is a lively, engaging "chicks-in-stir" movie and it's one of the better ones. The prolific Edward L. Cahn also turns in one of his best directorial jobs and the picture moves at a swift, exciting pace. Joan Taylor of Earth vs the Flying Saucers is effective in a sort-of bad girl persona, Denning is typically professional and blandly pious, but of the jailed ladies Adele Jergens gets the acting honors with her vivid portrayal of Jenny; Jergens keeps you guessing as to which side she will ultimately be on. Jane Darwell also makes an impression as the unsentimental but sympathetic wardress. Raymond Hatton nearly steals the movie as Pop Carson, always complaining of assorted trials and tribulations while also hoping he can get his hands on some money. 

Richard Denning

Helen Gilbert scores as Melanie, but the rather obvious hints at her sexuality go unexplored. Phyllis Coates is fine as another inmate who murdered her cheating husband and still thinks her little boy is alive. Laurie Mitchell of Queen of Outer Space has a small role as another nasty inmate. The earthquake sequence is handled quite well on a limited budget, and Ronald Stein's score effectively underlines the busy action. The slight touches of religiosity are silly but brief. Cahn also directed the similar Betrayed Women the previous year. This is not to be confused with the inferior Women's Prison also made the previous year. Girls on the Loose, directed by Paul Henreid, is another entertaining flick about an all-girl gang. 

Verdict: Zesty B movie is well-acted and a lot of fun. ***. 

ASSIGNMENT REDHEAD

Carole Mathews and Richard Denning

ASSIGNMENT REDHEAD (aka Million Dollar Manhunt/1956). Director: Maclean Rogers. 

Major Gregory Keen (Richard Denning) of Army Intelligence (temporarily attached to MI-5), is assigned to look for a mysterious man known only as Dumetrius (Ronald Adam) who murdered a man and took his place on a flight from Berlin to London. Keen questions the other people on the flight, trying to get a description, but they either wind up murdered themselves or don't recall what the man looked like. In the latter category is Viennese-born Hedy (Carole Mathews), whom Keen rather rapidly falls in love with. Does she feel the same about him or she is hiding something -- or both? 

Alex Gallier and Ronald Adam

The most memorable scenes in Assignment Redhead don't have to do with the star-crossed lovers or even the manhunt but focus on the interplay between the two main villains of the piece, Dumetrius and Max Rubenstein (Alex Gallier), who was formerly the Nazi collaborator Armand Yannis. Dumetrius has discovered that Yannis has in his possession 12 million dollars of counterfeit American money and he wants it, hoping to strike a deal with the reinvented Rubenstein. Watching these two try to outwit and outfox each other is a delight, and both actors play the roles with restrained zeal. As for the others, Denning and Mathews are professional enough, although Denning "underplays" the more emotional moments which are outside his range. The supporting actors -- Brian Worth as Captain Ridgeway, Jan Holden as a helpful cigarette girl -- are a bit more flavorful in their interpretations. Mclean Rogers also directed Calling Paul Temple.

Verdict: British suspense flick holds the attention. **3/4.