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Bride of the Monster
Availability:
In Stock
Price:
$14.99
$4.94*
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| Part No: | B00003XAMP |
| Manufacturer: | Image Entertainment |
| MFG Part: | |
| Customer Rating: | 3.5 / 5.0 |
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For years, conventional wisdom has had it that Ed Wood Jr.'s Plan 9 from Outer Space is the ultimate "bad movie," a sort of Holy Grail of cinematic ineptitude. Often lost in the shuffle, though, is Bride of the Monster (fans of Tim Burton's biopic Ed Wood will already be familiar with it and the offscreen misadventures that went along with it). Bela Lugosi plays Dr. Vornoff, a mad scientist working on a race of superbeings in his lab. His process of clamping a metal lampshade onto the heads of his subjects and zapping them with radiation usually kills them, but the monstrous Lobo (Tor Johnson) survives and becomes Vornoff's assistant. Vornoff's plans go awry, though, when he tries to get a nosy reporter to mate with Lobo and winds up being given the atom treatment himself. Suffice it to say that there's a grappling match between Vornoff and Lobo until the evil doctor falls into a pit and wrestles a rubber octopus. Stock footage of lightning and an atomic explosion round things out for a great non sequitur of an ending. Knowing Bela Lugosi's sad state by the time that he and Ed Wood had teamed up makes it hard to watch this movie without feeling a pang of pathos for the 73-year-old actor; indeed, Bride was his last speaking role. Still, any movie with as many obvious gaffes in direction, editing, set design, narrative (heck, take your pick) as Bride is a must for any connoisseur of bad movies. And of course, the gargantuan Tor Johnson gets to utter the deathless line: "Time for... go to bed." --Jerry Renshaw
Diabolical! Fiendish! Horrorific! Legendary horror icon Bela Lugosi (Dracula) stars as Dr. Eric Vornoff, who with Lobo (Tor Johnson), a crazed man-beast servant, is conducting flesh-burning radiation experiments in an attempt to create a legion of atomic supermen. Co-written, produced and directed by cult filmmaker Ed Wood, Jr., "Bride of the Monster" includes Ed's infamous stable of players: Dolores Fuller (Glen or Glenda?, Jailbait), Tor Johnson and Paul Marco (Plan 9 From Outer Space). This was Bela Lugosi's last screen performance and one of Ed Wood's best efforts.
| Ed could make a decent film when he wanted to | 2008-09-07 | 4 / 5 |
| | Outside of the occasional continuity error (usually the fault of some special effect), this is a really good little programmer. Great pacing, natural sounding dialog, snappy editing, compsition and lighting are right on the money. Wood's direction is vibrant and healthy - enthusiastic performances were pulled out of every actor large or small. No aspect is strained or repeated unnecessarily. The story begins where it should and ends where it should. Its the ideal B movie in the PRC mold. Not his goofiest opus, but much more skillful and well thought out than many scifi/horror genre fare from the major studios. |
| A Towering Masterpiece of Cinematic Genius?? | 2008-04-24 | 5 / 5 |
| Well, not exactly.
But you must admit it's very, very compelling, particularly in light of the Ed Wood biopic by Tim Burton, which devotes quite a bit of time to the filming of this "classic". Despite his wasted look and frail physique--quite a contrast to his powerful, handsome presence in such '30's classics as The Black Cat and The Invisible Ray--Bela still did an admirable job: he was truly one of a kind; no one could do the mad scientist any better.
If you're a fan of real cheesy horror/sci fi flicks from the '50's--which is, besides Italian neo-realism and the French Nouvelle Vague--one of my favorite genres--this is one to add to your collection. |
| CLASSIC CAMPY SCI - FI ! BELA LUGOSI AND ED WOOD! | 2007-05-03 | 4 / 5 |
| | This is another grade Z Ed Wood Film that is so bad it's good. Bela Lugosi and Tor Johnson seem to be having a ball in this creepy cheapy Sci-Fi Horror romp! |
| | This is my favorite Wood picture. Originally called Bride of the Atom, this was Ed's anti-nuclear picture. This one is just bad all the way around. Bad script, bad acting, bad sets, and just some terrible continuity errors. The entire film takes place in a couple of rooms and 1 outdoor set. The laboratory is laughable as is this awful fight between Bela and Tor with the obvious double for a frail Lugosi. But all that badness equals a lot of fun. This is one of those films you just watch shaking your head wondering how it ever got made. It's a strange fun ride. |
| "15 Frightful Horror Films ... Bela Lugosi ... Passport Video" | 2006-10-15 | 5 / 5 |
| Passport Video presents "The Bela Lugosi Box - 15 Frightful Films" (1942) --- (Dolby digitally remastered) --- Béla Lugosi was the stage name of actor Béla Ferenc Dezs Blaskó (October 20, 1882 - August 16, 1956) --- Lugosi was born in Lugos, Hungary, at the time part of Austria-Hungary (now Lugoj, Romania), the youngest of four children of a baker --- best known for his portrayal of "Dracula" in the American Broadway stage production, and subsequent film, of Bram Stoker's classic vampire story.
Late in his life, he again received star billing in movies when filmmaker Edward D. Wood, Jr., a fan of Lugosi, found him living in obscurity and near-poverty and offered him roles in his films, such as "GLEN OR GLENDA?" (1953) (in which his role made no more sense than the rest of the movie) and as a Dr. Frankenstein-like mad scientist in "BRIDE OF THE MONSTER" (1955), during post-production of the latter, Lugosi entered treatment for his addiction, and the premier of the film was ostensibly intended to help pay for his treatment expenses. The extras on an early DVD release of "PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE" (1959) include an impromptu interview with Lugosi upon his exit from the treatment center, which provide some rare personal insights into the man --- this was one of Lugosi's most infamous roles was released after he was dead. Ed Wood (Director) features footage of Lugosi interspersed with a double --- Wood had taken a few minutes of silent footage of Lugosi, in his Dracula cape, for a planned vampire picture but was unable to find financing for the project --- Wood later conceived of Plan 9, Wood wrote the script to incorporate the Lugosi footage and hired his wife's chiropractor to double for Lugosi in additional shots --- notice however the "double" is thinner than Lugosi, and covers the lower half of his face with his cape in every shot --- Leonard Maltin (Famous Film Critic) was quoted - "Lugosi died during production, and it shows."
Lugosi died of a heart attack on August 16, 1956 while lying in bed in his Los Angeles home. He was 73 --- Bela Lugosi was buried wearing one of the many capes from the Dracula stageplay, as per the request of his son and fifth wife, in the Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California --- Contrary to popular belief, Lugosi never requested to be buried in his famous cloak; Bela Lugosi, Jr. has confirmed on numerous occasions that he and his mother, Lillian, arrived at their decision independently.
BIOS:
1. Bela Lugosi (aka: Béla Ferenc Dezsõ Blaskó)
Date of birth: 20 October 1882 - Lugos, Austria-Hungary. [now Lugoj, Romania]
Date of death: 16 August 1956 - Los Angeles, California
2. Edward D. Wood Jr. (Director, Writer and Producer)
Date of birth: 10 October 1924 - Poughkeepsie, New York
Date of death: 10 December 1978 - North Hollywood, California
This collection of "The Bela Lugosi Box - 15 Frightful Films" (1942) --- still has the magic that we remember from those bygone years --- but as long as we have the labels and networks who play and show these wonderful films of yesteryear, they will never be forgotten ... Plus the half-hour tribute "100 Years of Horror: Bela Lugosi", hosted by Christopher Lee --- and a great job by Passport Video for this release --- looking forward to more of the same from the '20s and '50s vintage...order your copy now from or Passport Video, stay tuned once again for more remarkable films from the vaults of classic television and Hollywood during the Golden Era of Entertaiment.
Total Time: 1034 mins on DVD ~ Passport Video #5260 ~ (9/05/2006) |
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