Predator

Predator on VHS. Starring  Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers, Kevin Peter Hall. With Elpidia Carrillo, Bill Duke, Jesse Ventura, Sonny Landham. Directed by John McTiernan. 1987.

Predator on VHS. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers, Kevin Peter Hall. With Elpidia Carrillo, Bill Duke, Jesse Ventura, Sonny Landham. Directed by John McTiernan. 1987.

From the VHS box:

A creature from another world and this time Schwarzenegger is the prey!

Arnold Schwarzenegger stars in this action-packed adventure story of fighting men pitted against an unseen enemy, a force more powerful than their fiercest weapons. Recruited by the CIA to rescue hostages held by guerrilla fighters in a Central American country, Schwarzenegger and his men encounter an enemy unimaginably more deadly than any on Earth — because the Predator is not of this Earth. Packed with spectacular special effects and combat scenes of gut-wrenching power, PREDATOR is the most terrifying — and most exciting — Schwarzenegger movie yet.

DVD upgrade: Predator

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Bride of the Monster

Bride of the Monster on VHS. Starring Bela Lugosi, Tor Johnson, Tony McCoy, Loretta King, Harvey B. Dunn. Directed by Edward D. Wood Jr. 1955.

Bride of the Monster on VHS. Starring Bela Lugosi, Tor Johnson, Tony McCoy, Loretta King, Harvey B. Dunn. Directed by Edward D. Wood Jr. 1955.

From the VHS box:

It’ll Make Your Skin Crawl!

Bela Lugosi is featured in his last speaking role as a mad scientist who tries to harness atomic energy into the creation of super beings. Together with his sidekick slave Lobo he finds a willing bride for his monster (sensitively portrayed by a rubber octopus found rotting on a back lot, without its motor) in the person of a nosey girl reporter.

Good eventually defeats evil in a hysterical chase through the marshes as Lugosi (or his stand in, looking nothing like Lugosi) is eaten alive by his own “monster.”

There are loads of laughs in store as you watch Lugosi literally wrapping the octopus’ tentacles around him, vainly trying to give the impression of life to an otherwise flabby, inactive stage prop.

The film was financed by cattle rancher Donald McCoy under two conditions: 1) that his son Tony would star in the movie and 2) that Wood would make a powerful anti-nuke statement with the film. The results of this “deal” make the movie much more hilarious, keeping the Wood legacy of stiff acting and endless pontification continuing.

DVD upgrade: Bride of the Monster

More Ed Wood: The Ed Wood Box (Glen or Glenda / Jail Bait / Bride of the Monster / Plan 9 from Outer Space / Night of the Ghouls / The Haunted World of Ed Wood)

Most Ed Wood: Ed Wood’s Dirty Movies







Barbarella

Barbarella, Queen of the Galaxy on VHS. Movie starring Jane Fonda, John Phillip Law, Anita Pallenberg, Milo O'Shea. With Marcel Marceau, Claude Dauphin. Directed by Roger Vadim. 1968.

Barbarella, Queen of the Galaxy on VHS. Starring Jane Fonda, John Phillip Law, Anita Pallenberg, Milo O’Shea. With Marcel Marceau, Claude Dauphin. Directed by Roger Vadim. 1968.

From the VHS box:

Barbarella is marked by the same audacity and originality, fantasy, beauty and horror, cruelty and eroticism that make comic books such a favorite. The setting is the planet Lythion in the year 40,000, when Barbarella makes a forced landing while traveling through space. She acts like a female James Bond, vanquishing evil in the forms of robots and monsters. She also rewards, in an uninhibited manner, the handsome men who assist her in her adventure. Whether she is wrestling with Black Guards, the evil Queen, or the Angel Pygar, she just can’t seem to avoid losing at least part of her skin-tight space suit!

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Years after Dr. Durand Durand inspired their name, Duran Duran released a single: Electric Barbarella by Duran Duran







The Day Of The Triffids

The Day of the Triffids on VHS. Starring Howard Keel, Kieron Moore, Janette Scott, Nicole Maurey. Based on the novel by John Wyndham. Directed by Steve Sekely. 1962.

The Day of the Triffids on VHS. Starring Howard Keel, Kieron Moore, Janette Scott, Nicole Maurey. Based on the novel by John Wyndham. Directed by Steve Sekely. 1962.

From the VHS cover:

BEWARE THE TRIFFIDS… they grow…know…walk…stalk… and KILL!

Stay inside and lock the doors for The Day Of The Triffids is coming! For reasons unexplained by science, hundreds of meteorites begin to fall to Earth and blind those who witness the phenomenon. The few who retain their sight are horrified to encounter dandelion-like fluff known as triffids. These triffids multiply and grow into man-eating plants that begin to march on civilization, destroying everyone in their path. Join four survivors of the terrifying onslaught of triffids as they search for a means of destroying the menacing plants.

DVD upgrade: The Day of the Triffids

Read the book: The Day of the Triffids (20th Century Rediscoveries)

Get your own triffid: Medicom Karz Works: History Monster Triffid Sofubi Action Figure







Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie

Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie on VHS. Starring Trace Beaulieu, Michael J. Nelson, Jim Mallon, Kevin Murphy, John Brady. MST3K Created by Joel Hodgson. Directed by Jim Mallon. 1996.

Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie on VHS. Starring Trace Beaulieu, Michael J. Nelson, Jim Mallon, Kevin Murphy, John Brady. MST3K Created by Joel Hodgson. Directed by Jim Mallon. 1996.

From the VHS cover:

Every Year Hollywood Makes Hundreds Of Movies. This Is One Of Them!

Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie delivers laughs that are out of this world! A demented scientist, Dr. Clayton Forrester, has concocted a diabolical scheme for world domination. He’s going to subject the human race to the worst movies ever made! But his test subject, Michael J. Nelson, possesses mankind’s ultimate defense: a sense of humor. So as the classic sci-fi “B” movie This Island Earth unspools, Mike and his robot companions, Tom Servo and Crow, heckle the film mercilessly, providing a hilarious running commentary!

DVD upgrade: Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie (Widescreen)

Watch Now: Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie

Make your own hilarious running commentary: This Island Earth







Progeny

Progeny on VHS. Horror movie starring Arnold Vosloo, Jillian McWhirter, Brad Dourif. Directed by Brian Yuzna. 1998.

Progeny on VHS. Horror movie starring Arnold Vosloo, Jillian McWhirter, Brad Dourif. Directed by Brian Yuzna. 1998.

From the box:

Evil in a Bottle

Their dreamchild turned into a nightmare.

After hoping and praying Craig and Sherry Burton’s dream of having a baby just came true. But it’s nothing like they expected. Because this baby is definitely not of this world. Fearing the worst, Craig teams up with alien abduction expert Bert Clavell to unravel the truth. Through hypnosis, they discover in horrific detail that Sherry was impregnated by aliens. Now the only way to save themselves is to face the terror within. The impossible cannot be denied when you feel it inside you.

DVD upgrade: Progeny



Attack of the Puppet People

Attack of the Puppet People on VHS. Movie starring John Agar, John Hoyt, June Kenney, Susan Gordon, Michael Mark, Jack Kosslyn. Directed by Bert I. Gordon. 1958.

Attack of the Puppet People on VHS. Starring John Agar, John Hoyt, June Kenney, Susan Gordon, Michael Mark, Jack Kosslyn. Directed by Bert I. Gordon. 1958.

From the box:

Terror Comes In Small Packages!

“She’s a living doll!” changes from a flattering expression to a terrifying reality when a certifiably deranged maniac creates a shocking device that shrinks people to foot-high figurines! An “amazing triumph of special effects” (Hollywood Citizen News), this menacing mini-sized movie is so big on realistic terror, you’ll never turn your back on dolls again.

Mr. Franz is a kindly, old, silver-haired doll-maker… who turns people into living puppets! He forces his human inventions to put on parties and sing to him, but one day, tired of being toyed with, the puppets launch an attack, and suddenly Mr. Franz finds he better stop playing — and start praying — because these miniature moppets are hell-bent on revenge!

Upsize to DVD: Attack of the Puppet People

Free the puppets! (Watch instantly for free with Amazon Prime): Attack Of The Puppet People

Connection to Watergate? Trivia: Puppet People changed the history of the United States

Akira

Akira on VHS. Starring Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama, Mitsuo Iwata. Directed by Katsuhiro Otomo. 1988.

Akira on VHS. Starring Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama, Mitsuo Iwata. Directed by Katsuhiro Otomo. 1988.

From the box:

Neo-Tokyo Is About To Explode!

In the 21st century, 30 years after a devastating global nuclear war, mankind is once again on the brink of total annihilation. In a world populated by rival motorcycle gangs and petty politicians, a powerful psychic force, known only as “AKIRA,” suddenly resurfaces in Neo-Tokyo. Tetsou — a young, inexperienced biker — driven beyond the boundaries of sanity by the power of AKIRA, is forced to conjure up demons laying within his subconscious.

AKIRA redefines the very essence of the medium… a mindboggling film unlike anything seen before… a milestone in the history of Japanese animation.

DVD upgrade: Akira: 25th Anniversary Edition (DVD)

Fantastic Planet

Fantastic Planet on VHS. Starring Barry Bostwick, Cynthia Alder, Jennifer Drake, Eric Baugin. Music by Alain Goraguer. Animation by Roland Topor. From the book by Stephan Wul. Directed by René Laloux. 1973.

Fantastic Planet aka La Planète Sauvage on VHS. Starring Barry Bostwick, Cynthia Alder, Jennifer Drake, Eric Baugin. Music by Alain Goraguer. Animation by Roland Topor. From the book by Stephan Wul. Directed by René Laloux. 1973.

From the VHS box:

This acclaimed animated science-fiction/fantasy classic from France weaves a spell with its colorful imagery and strange beings. The inhabitants, 39 feet high Draags, have tiny human looking creatures called Oms, as pets. Education is obtained electronically through headsets. When one on the Oms escapes with the educational device, he rallies the others to resist the giant Draags.

Upgrade the Fantastic Planet: Fantastic Planet on DVD

Read the Fantastic Planet: Fantastic Planet Paperback by Stephan Wul

Listen to the Fantastic Planet: La Planete Sauvage Soundtrack by Alain Goraguer







Creature From The Black Lagoon

Creature From The Black Lagoon on VHS. Classic horror movie starring Richard Carlson, Julie Adams, Richard Denning, Antonio Moreno, Nestor Paiva, Whit Bissell. Special appearances by Ricou Browning, Ben Chapman. Directed by Jack Arnold. 1954.

Creature From The Black Lagoon on VHS. Starring Richard Carlson, Julie Adams, Richard Denning, Antonio Moreno, Nestor Paiva, Whit Bissell. Special appearances by Ricou Browning, Ben Chapman. Directed by Jack Arnold. 1954.

From the box:

Terrifying Monster Ravages Mankind!

A member of a scientific expedition traveling the dangerous Amazon River discovers an unidentifiable and mysterious web-fingered skeleton hand. The team searches further in this treacherous region to recover the rest of this terrifying beast. The search ends when they encounter a gruesome half man/half fish creature… who is alive! [The adventures of the Gill-man continue, but you won’t read it here as the remaining description just gives away the whole plot.]

DVD creature collection: Creature From the Black Lagoon: The Legacy Collection (Creature from the Black Lagoon / Revenge of the Creature / The Creature Walks Among Us)

Amazon Instant Video: Creature from the Black Lagoon

Sing it: Dave Edmunds — The Creature From The Black Lagoon