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Science fiction and fantasy movies

[September 18, 1965] Disastrous! (The Day the Earth Stood Still and When Worlds Collide)

September 18, 2020 Lorelei Marcus 5 Comments

by Lorelei Marcus

Dark Age for the Boob Tube

Mop-tops and Munsters are on the rise, replacing the theoretical with the fantastical. With the end of pioneering anthology shows like The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits, television has transformed into a wasteland for science fiction. Gone are the prospective and predictive contents depicting the wonders of space, sea, and air. Instead, we have spies, saIlors, and sorceresses clogging our TV screens – with mixed results.

But there is hope for the science fiction aficionados of the world. Upcoming productions like Lost in Space and Star Trek hold promise for the revitalization of the genre on TV. My father and I are both eagerly awaiting this new dawn. However, Lost in Space is just starting, and Star Trek is at least four months away (there is rumor of it being a mid-season replacement starting in January 1966).

Luckily, there is a plethora of now-classic science fiction movies that came out in the last decade that we missed the first time around, but which are occasionally revived at theaters and drive-ins. These shows allow us to sate our viewing appetite while we wait for the TV crop to come in.

That's how we ended up in a dingy old theater on the edge of town watching a double feature billed as "They Came from 1951!" – The Day the Earth Stood Still and When Worlds Collide shown back to back. It was an interesting experience, to say the least.

The Day the Earth Stood Still

The story of The Day the Earth Stood Still is probably well known to everyone. However, since my dad and I managed to go in completely unaware of anything about the movie, other than what we could discern from the poster, here's a brief summary:

The Day the Earth Stood Still is a black and white film about an alien named Klaatu who comes to Earth in a flying saucer (those being all the rage in 1951) to deliver a momentous message to humanity. He looks just like us despite having traveled more than 250 million miles to get to the Earth.

To be fair, Klaatu could have picked a less menacing gesture to start with.

It's a good thing that tank crew had pistols!

After a hostile reception, Klaatu refuses to convey his message to anyone but an assemblage of all the world's leaders. When this proves impossible for primitive Earth to manage, Klaatu escapes military custody and tries to assimilate with human society so as to find an alternate solution.

Wow! Bill aids owner on foreclosure!

"Land sakes! There's an alien among us! Better not tell Opie – it'll give him nightmares…"

Hysteria ensues as the media report on the unleashing of a twisted, horrific alien monster on the streets of D.C. With the aid of a boy, his mother, and a scientist, Klaatu must find a way to connect with all of humanity, while dodging the agents of the U.S. Government, to prevent the destruction of our world – which will happen one way or another if Earth does not cease its warlike ways.

"I'd like to meet all of your assembled leaders." "Oh, you mean like a United Nations?" "Sure." "Nah. Too much trouble."

Ultimately, the film is a cautionary tale which left me with two overriding messages: "Don't shoot on sight" and "Listen to children, women, and scientists" (scientists can be of any gender).

"Are you a scientist?" "What gave it away?"

I actually appreciate what this movie was trying to say, but its execution was so heavy-handed, populated with more straw men than Iowa, it weakened the message. The US military is portrayed as so hilariously incompetent, it creates inconsistencies in the plot. I'm left wondering how the army can afford to send every jeep and tank in its arsenal to capture Klaatu but only leaves two men to guard his spaceship. What could have been a nuanced social commentary on the moral ambiguity of the U.S. Government's policies turns into a laughable mess.

"Night, Tom…Jerry. I'm sure you two will be just fine guarding that spaceship next to the big robot!"

There's the rest of the army. A bit too late…

The science is slightly better, though the idea there could be advanced life on other planets in our solar system feels incredibly old fashioned in light of the recent Mariner mission. [The distance he traveled suggests he came from Mars, but he may not be a Martian – there may simply be an alien outpost on Mars (ed.)]

However, the movie did get the special effects and set design right. I was particularly impressed by the slick interior of the spaceship. The glowing buttons and glass instruments are both beautiful and the embodiment of the science fiction aesthetic.

The latest in blinky light and glass chic!

I was also entertained by the design of Gort, Klaatu's all-powerful robot. While silver mittens and underwear over a metallic motorcycle suit would not have been my first fashion choice, it's charming none the less.

"I'd like to say it's been a pleasure, but…"

The acting and pacing were fine. I especially enjoyed the performance of Patricia Neal, the tough mother character, and also Michael Rennie (clearly inspired by Robert Oppenheimer). Young Billy Gray is good too, more remiscent of Kurt Russell than Ron Howard.

You know that awkward moment when you're stuck in an elevator with a stranger?

"I like this guy. He seems like a good guy. Find me more like him."

In total, the movie was a thoroughly OK experience. It could have done a lot better in many places, but in the end, it did make an effort, which is more than can be said for many SF films these days.

Three stars

When Worlds Collide

When Worlds Collide's title literally exploded across the movie screen with tongues of flames blazing in glorious color accompanied by a screeching score. No five year olds were wriggling in their seats anymore. With an intro like that, and with producer George Pal's name in big print, this move held real promise…

…and then the camera zoomed on a giant Bible, which flipped to a passage from the tale of Noah's Ark, to keep us from missing the theme of the movie.

Apparently, subtlety wasn't a widely known concept in the early '50s.

But I still had hope. After the dramatic introduction, the story began in a South African observatory in which an astromer glances through a telescope and realizes that, by God, he's confirmed the end of the world!

"You see it too, right, old chap?"

Dave Randall, professional aviator and the movie's protagonist, is ordered to deliver these findings in complete secrecy to an astronomer in the United States. Upon doing so, and meeting said astronomer's lovely daughter, he is let in on the secret: Bellus, a "star" (just twelve times more massive than the Earth) and its lone Earthlike planet, Zyra, are on a direct collision course with our world. We have only eight months to prepare.

"My, you are dull!"

I turned to my father, who is much more knowledgeable of orbital mechanics than I am, and asked, "Is that even possible?" To which he responded, "No." And then all the five year olds turned around and shushed us.

This was only the first of many such instances in this movie. Willy Ley, it isn't.

The astronomer presents this information to the United Nations and claims the only hope is building a spacecraft to fly to Zyra before Bellus destroys the Earth. The UN quite literally laughs in the astronomer's face, and thus he turns instead to private investors to make the Modern Noah's Ark a reality.

"Sit down, Mr. Addison! And shut that talking horse up while you're at it!"

New at Walt Disney's Tomorrowland!

Some of the investors provide their funds freely, but one rich man only backs the project after securing the promise of passage on the ark. The ensuing scenes of candidate selection for the engineering team and the commencement of ark construction are intertwined with a typical love triangle between Randall, the astronomer's colorless daughter, and her fiancee, Tony. These bits fall flat; indeed, by the end of the movie, Tony and Randall have far more chemistry with each other than the daughter. And you can imagine the dismay I felt at hearing the names "Tony" and "Randall," yet knowing that the person bearing both of those names was nowhere to be seen.

Tony & Randall: the sparks fly.

And that isn't the worst part of the movie! The story is progressively more convoluted and unbelievable (and worse, rather dull). The selection of the Ark's passengers becomes increasingly arbitrary despite the earlier emphasis given on relying on a random lottery. The science is atrocious, the characters shallow, the dialogue lousy.

"Sure, space is at a premium, but let's take this tyke and his dog!

"And this couple! I mean, they're in love and all!

"But this guy? I know he paid for all of this, but he's a jerk. He needs to die."

"Mein Fuhrer! I can walk!"

But the film's biggest fault, out of everything, is its lack of vision. If The Day the Earth Stood Still is a progressive film, When World's Collide is reactionary. The women passengers/technicians and the all-male engineer corps are always segregated. All of the passengers are strapping young college students. All seem to be of a similar class. And they are all white.

The audience at this point in the film.

I can understand wanting young candidates to weather the harshness of space travel, but to exclusively choose young colonists discounts the immense wisdom and knowledge held by the old. The men and women colonists are equal in number, but that has nothing to do with the scientific prowess of the women; rather, this is just to ensure that every man has a wife.

And even setting aside the morality of excluding all but the lily white from the candidate pool, it's a fatal mistake biologically. If a colony can only start with 40 people, it needs as diverse a gene pool as possible to prevent the perils of inbreeding.

Never mind that. What's important is that a small cadre of white, rich, Christian youngsters inherits the mantle of humanity.

When Worlds Collide is a celebration of the worst parts of society in the 1950s. I can look past the bad acting. I can look past the gratuitous religious imagery. And I can even ignore the fact that the completely alien world has perfectly breathable air. But I cannot excuse the lazy and offensive message this film chose to convey.

The only thing that keeps this movie from getting a one-star rank is its production values. The special effects are incredible, with some of the best painted backgrounds I have ever seen in a movie. The Earth's destruction sequences are also good, what little we get of them. For a movie about the end of our entire world, George Pal spent an awful long time filming the inside of a shaking office set… Nevertheless, judged on visuals alone, When Worlds Collide is impressive.

What we paid to see.

If only it weren't so terrible everywhere else.

Two stars.

Emerging into the Light

Kvetching aside, I don't regret watching either of these two movies. It gave me a great perspective on the history of science fiction on the silver screen, and it was interesting noting the impact of these two blockbusters on subsequent stories, both on television and in the movies. I'm particularly keen to see if any elements of these movies live on in upcoming releases, from Roddenberry's Star Trek to Kubrick's upcoming 2001 (formerly Journey Beyond the Stars). Only time will tell. Until then,

This is the Young Traveler, signing off.

We'll be discussing these movies and more at our next Journey Show: At the Movies!

DON'T MISS IT!

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Movies, Science Fiction/Fantasy

[August 14, 1965]: A Killer Thriller Double-Feature: Again the Ringer and The Face of Fu Manchu

August 14, 2020 Cora Buhlert 5 Comments

by Cora Buhlert

Scenes from Germany

So far, it's been a cool and rainy summer here in West Germany. Perfect to read a book or go to the cinema, the latter of which I'll be talking about today.

But first, the news: Two days ago, tragedy struck in the West German town of Lampertheim, when the Trans-Europ-Express "Helvetia", en route from Zurich to Hamburg, crashed into a freight train. Four people died, forty-five were injured. The cause of the accident seems to have been an error of the train dispatcher.

Lampertheim train disaster — The aftermath of the Lampertheim train crash

In happier news, the current number one in the German music charts is "Il Silenzio" ("Abschiedsmelodie" in German), a haunting instrumental piece by Italian trumpeter Nini Rosso, that is perfect for a slow dance on a summer's night.

The 15th annual (West) Berlin International Film Festival concluded last month. The Berlinale, as it is commonly known, is one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world, on par with Cannes and Venice, and therefore not normally focussed on the kind of movies we discuss here at the Journey. However, the winner of this year's Golden Bear is a dystopian science fiction film, Alphaville by French director Jean-Luc Godard. Other winners include Le Bonheur by young French director Agnés Varda and the divisive thriller Repulsion by young Polish born director Roman Polanski. Satyajit Ray from India won the Silver Bear for the best director. The two acting awards went to Hollywood star Lee Marvin for his performance in the western Cat Ballou and Madhur Jaffrey, also from India, for her performance in Shakespeare-Walllah.

Alphaville poster — The dystopian science fiction film "Alphaville" by Jean Luc Godard, winner of the 1965 Berlin International Film Festival.

Agnes Varda Berlinale — Young French director Agnés Vrada, winner of the Silver Bear at the 1965 Berlin International Film Festival

Shakespeare-Wallah cast Berlinale 1965 — The cast of the British Indian movie "Shakespeare Wallah", Felicity Kendal, Shashi Kapoor, Madhur Jaffrey and Jennifer Kapoor, pose in front of the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in West Berlin

It will be a while before we will get to the see the Berlinale winners in cinemas. So let's take a look at what audiences can watch in West Germany's movie theatres right now.

The Ringer is Back

The wave of movies based on the novels of British thriller author Edgar Wallace shows no sign of abating. To date, twenty-three official Edgar Wallace adaptations and a number of unofficial ones have been made. And the series shows no signs of exhaustion. Indeed, last year's Der Hexer (The Ringer), about the exploits of the eponymous vigilante and master of disguise, was a new highpoint for the Edgar Wallace series.

Program book "Again, the Ringer" — The program book for "Again, the Ringer".

The Ringer was also a big financial success, so it was perhaps inevitable that there would be a sequel. And so part of the original cast reunited for Neues vom Hexer (Again the Ringer).

As most Wallace movies, Again the Ringer begins with a murder, in this case that of the wheelchair bound aristocrat Lord Curtain. Unusual for the mystery genre, we see not only howdunnit but also whodunnit, namely Lord Curtain's nephew Archie Moore (Robert Hoffmann) collaborating with Butler Edwards (Klaus Kinski, who was sorely missed in The Ringer). In order to deflect suspicion from themselves, Archie and Edwards leave a card next to the body inscribed with the words "News of the Ringer".

Klaus Kinski in Again, the Ringer — Butler Edwards ("Klaus Kinski" serves up tea and murder."

This turns out to be bad idea, because it attracts the attention of the real Ringer Arthur Milton (played once again by René Deltgen) who has retired from his vigilante ways and is now living in Australia. However, the Ringer is not at all pleased that criminals are using his good name and so he travels to London together with his wife Cora Ann (Margot Trooger) and trusty secretary Archibald Finch (Eddi Arent).

Eddi Arent in Again, the Ringer — Archibald Finch (Eddi Arent) is on the case.

The involvement of the Ringer also attracts the attention of Scotland Yard, represented here by the delightfully dim-witted chief of police Sir John (Siegfried Schürenberg in a recurring role) and Inspector James Westby (Heinz Drache, reprising his role from the previous film), who is on loan from the Australian police. Westby knows that the Ringer cannot be responsible for the murder of Lord Curtain, but would still love to apprehend him for the events in the previous movie.

A Game of Masks

The Ringer first makes his presence known by appearing at his own murder trial in absentia, where he disguises himself as one of the judges and quickly dismantles Archie Moore's alibi by exposing what the viewer already knows, namely how Archie managed to kill his uncle without any suspicion falling upon him. Archie flees the scene, as does the Ringer.

Siegfried Schürenberg, Hubertus von Meyenrinck and Heinz Drache in Again, the Ringer — Sir John (Siegfried Schürenberg) and Inspector Westby (Heinz Drache) discover that this most honourable judge (Hubertus von Meyerinck) is not the Ringer.

Because this is an Edgar Wallace film, more murders happen. First, Lady Curtain is killed and then prime suspect Archie Moore turns up dead as well. By now it is clear that the unseen mastermind, who directs his henchpeople via miniature radios, is targeting the Curtain family, but why? And who will be next?

Heinz Drache in Again, the Ringer — Inspector Westby finds the miniature radios via which the villain is directing his henchmen.

The mysterious case forces Scotland Yard and the Ringer to team up to protect the remaining members of the Curtain family, particularly Lord Curtain's young heir Charles (Teddy Naumann) and his estranged niece, artist Margie Fielding (Barbara Rütting).

Margie Fielding (Barbara Rütting) confronts Inspector Westby (Heinz Drache) in her very hip attic studio.

What follows is an exciting cat and mouse game, as the various characters try to outwit each other. In the original movie, the Ringer was the only master of disguise, using make-up and latex masks to impersonate others. However in Again, the Ringer, other characters join in the fun and so the villain impersonates the Ringer at one point, while the Ringer impersonates his secretary Archibald Finch and Inspector Westby impersonates a taxi driver.

Barbara Rütting and Rene Deltgen in Again the Ringer — Margie Fielding (Barbara Rütting) tangles with the Ringer (René Deltgen)

In the end, the mastermind behind everything is revealed to be Philip Curtain, Lord Curtain's disgraced brother. Now their truce has ended, the Ringer, Cora Ann and Archibald Finch plan to take off for Australia again, but their plans are foiled by Inspector Westby, who manages to outwit even a master strategist like the Ringer and returns the trio to Scotland Yard, because – as Westby puts it – their help is needed once again. Why does Scotland Yard need the help of the Ringer? I guess we'll find out in the inevitable sequel.

Again the Ringer — The mask is off and the villain is dead, as the surviving cast looks on.

A Sequel That Doesn't Quite Measure Up

Even the weaker Edgar Wallace films always guarantee an evening of good entertainment. But last year's The Ringer was a true delight and one of the best films in the series to date. Alas, the sequel, while still a lot of fun, pales in comparison to the original.

For starters, much of the suspense of the original is gone, now we know who the Ringer is. And the hunt for the mysterious mastermind behind the attacks on the Curtain family is not nearly as exciting, especially since villain Philip Curtain remains unseen until the final scene and even there he is hidden behind the mask of the Ringer. When his face briefly is seen, it belongs to director Alfred Vohrer.

That said, there is a lot to like about the movie. As always with the Wallace movies, the cast is excellent. The returning cast of Eddi Arent, Margot Trooger, Siegfried Schürenberg and Heinz Drache are clearly having a lot of fun and René Deltgen as the Ringer gets a lot more to do this time around than in the original, where he only appears in the final scene. However, Margot Trooger's delightful Cora Ann Milton is woefully underused. Klaus Kinski is always a welcome addition to any Edgar Wallace movie, though Butler Edwards is one of his more restrained performances. Brigitte Horney, who was a big star in the 1930s and 1940s in spite of not getting along with Joseph Goebbels, is wonderful as the mysterious Lady Aston, sister-in-law of the late Lord Curtain. And Barbara Rütting's Margie Fielding is not only a deadringer for op art artist Bridget Riley (even though Margie's art is expressionist), but also one of the more liberated Wallace heroines, though she is reduced to damsel-in-distress in the end.

Barbara Rütting and Brigitte Horney in Again the Ringer — Margie Fielding (Barbara Rütting) and Lady Aston (Brigitte Horney)

There are also many great set pieces such as the initial murder, the courtroom scene, a tense moment where an unseen killer is menacing young Charles Curtain in an old windmill and a stunning scene where the villains literally throw young Charles into a tiger cage, only for Charles to befriend the animals. Young actor Teddy Naumann is the son of circus lion tamer Heinz Naumann and is therefore familiar with wild beasts from early childhood on.

But in spite of many good moments, the movie never quite gels. Whereas The Ringer was a great movie, Again, the Ringer is a just collection of great scenes.

An Explosive Beginning

The popularity of the Edgar Wallace series has set off a run on other British thriller authors of the early twentieth century to adapt. And so West Germany has seen adaptations of anything from the novels of Edgar Wallace's son Bryan Edgar to G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown mysteries in recent years.

The latest British thriller author unearthed by West German film companies is Sax Rohmer. And so, Constantin Film, producers of the Edgar Wallace and Karl May series, have teamed up with the British company Hallam Productions to bring Rohmer's most famous creation Fu Manchu back to the big screen after twenty-five years.

Poster: The Face of Fu Manchu — The very psychedelic UK poster for "The Face of Fu Manchu"

However, watching Ich, Dr. Fu Man Chu (The Face of Fu Manchu) in the theatre, you might be forgiven for thinking it is the sequel to some other film, for the movie starts with the execution of Fu Manchu (Christopher Lee) for his myriad crimes. Fu Manchu lies face up on the executioner's block, the axe comes down and that should be the end of the story.

German poster The Face of Fu Manchu — The lurid West German poster for "The Face of Fu Manchu"

But since Fu Manchu "dies" five minutes into a ninety-six minute movie, it's obvious that he will be back. And indeed, Fu Manchu's archenemy Colonel Nayland Smith (Nigel Green) has his doubts about Fu Manchu's death from the start. These doubts are confirmed when Danish scientist Professor Merten (Walter Rilla, last seen as an unwitting vessel for that other villainous mastermind Dr. Mabuse in the eponymous series) is kidnapped in a London cemetery, while his chauffeur is strangled to death with a Tibetan prayer scarf, a murder method favoured by Fu Manchu's henchpeople.

Christopher Lee in The Face of Fu Manchu — Fu Manchu (Christopher Lee) plots villainy.

Nayland Smith and his friend and associate Dr. Petrie (Howard Marion-Crawford) deduce that Fu Manchu is still alive – the man executed in China was a hypnotised double – and continuing his reign of crime in London.

Flowers of Evil

Professor Merten's assistant Carl Jannsen (Edgar Wallace stalwart Joachim Fuchsberger, which explains why he did not appear in Again, the Ringer) informs Smith and Petrie that the professor was experimenting with an extract of a rare Tibetan flower, the blackhill poppy. Under the right conditions, this extract can be turned into a biological weapon capable of killing millions.

Joachim Fuchsberger in The Face of Fu Manchu — Carl Jannsen tangles with one of Fu Manchu's henchmen.

The professor's research has drawn the attention of Fu Manchu, who just happens to have a handy supply of blackhill poppies, but no way of using them. So Fu Manchu sent his henchmen to kidnap the professor and when the professor refuses to cooperate, Fu Manchu kidnaps Merten's daughter Maria (Edgar Wallace regular Karin Dor) as well to use her as leverage against her father.

Walter Rilla, Karin Dor, Tsai Chin and Christopher Lee in The Face of Fu Manchu — Fu Manchu (Christopher Lee) and Lin Tang (Tsai Chin) confront Professor Merten (Walter Rilla) and his daughter Maria (Karin Dor).

In order to convince Professor Merten that he is serious, Fu Manchu executes a henchwoman, who failed him, in front of the professor and his daughter, much to the disappointment of his equally villainous daughter Lin Tang (named Fa Lo Suee in the books and played here by Tsai Chin) who'd rather whip the unfortunate woman first. The doomed henchwoman is locked into a tank that slowly fills with water and then dumped into the Thames, a murder method that's identical to the one used in the 1961 Edgar Wallace film Dead Eyes of London.

Karin Dor and Tsai Chin in The Face of Fu Manchu — Lin Tang (Tsai Chin) engages in her favourite hobby of whipping young woman, while a horrified Maria (Karin Dor) and Professor Merten (Walter Rilla) look on.

Now Professor Merten is willing to cooperate. However, he needs the notes of one Professor Gaskel who took part in an expedition to Tibet, notes which are kept in a vault in a museum. So Fu Manchu and his daughter steal the notes and hypnotise the inconvenient Professor Gaskel into committing suicide, while they're at it.

Professor Merten manages to syncretise the deadly poison from the blackhill poppy extract. Fu Manchu promptly stages a demonstration by wiping out the village of Fleetwick plus soldiers from a nearby army camp. Via a radio message, Fu Manchu announces that London will be next, unless the British government obeys him.

Walter Rilla and Karin Dor in The Face of Fu Manchu — Professor Merten (Walter Rilla) and Maria (Karin Dor) oversee the extraction of the fatal poison.

While Fu Manchu is plotting, Nayland Smith, Dr. Petrie and Carl Jannsen, who also happens to be the fiancé of the kidnapped Maria Merten, follow his trail, always one step behind. But now, they have finally located Fu Manchu's subterranean hideout under the river Thames and raid it. However, Fu Manchu manages to escape once again with Lin Tang, Professor Merten and Maria.

Things come to head in Fu Manchu's Tibetan fortress, where Fu Manchu is about to receive a shipment of blackhill poppy seeds large enough to bring the entire world to its knees. However, Nayland Smith has planted a bomb among the boxes of poppy seeds. Together with Dr. Petrie and Carl Jannsen, Smith infiltrates the fortress to free the professor and Maria. They escape, as the fortress explodes in the distance.

Nigel Green, Walter Rilla, Joachi Fuchsberger and Karin Dor in The Face of Fu Manchu — Nayland Smith (Nigel Green) and Carls Jannsen (Joachim Fuchsberger) rescue Professor Merten (Walter Rilla) and Maria (Karin Dor)

Alas, Fu Manchu's face appears superimposed over the explosion and he promises that the world shall hear from him again – in the inevitable sequel.

Yet Another Criminal Mastermind

The Face of Fu Manchu is an enjoyable addition to the supervillain mastermind genre, particularly now that the Dr. Mabuse series is taking a much deserved break. Christopher Lee is truly chilly as the titular villain, though it is a pity that the role is played not an by an Asian actor, but by a white man in make-up. Though at least Fu Manchu's sadistic daughter Lin Tang is played by Chinese British actress Tsai Chin.

If there is one problem with The Face of Fu Manchu it is that the villain is so charismatic that he overshadows the good guys. Nayland Smith and Dr. Petrie are bland characters, a bargain basement Holmes and Watson (and indeed Dr. Petrie actor Howard Marion-Crawford has played Watson in the 1954 Sherlock Holmes TV series). One wonders what Siegfried Lowitz or Gert Fröbe could have done with the role. Joachim Fuchsberger is okay as Carl Jannsen, but he is playing the standard action hero he has played so many times before. Walter Rilla as Professor Merten once again gets to be the unwitting instrument of a criminal mastermind, but at least he has a lot of fun. Karin Dor as Maria is given little to do except scream.

Nigel Green, Howard Marion Crawford and Joachim Fuchsberger in The Face of Fu Manchu — Nayland Smith (Nigel Green), Dr. Petrie (Howard Marion-Crawford) and Carl Jannsen (Joachim Fuchsberger) on the hunt for Fu Manchu.

Some critics have compared The Face of Fu Manchu to the popular James Bond movies, but I believe that the Edgar Wallace and Dr. Mabuse movies are a better comparison and not just because they share many of the same actors. For even though it is a British co-production, The Face of Fu Manchu very much belongs to the wave of West German thrillers that engulfed our cinemas in the wake of the success of the Edgar Wallace series.

However, there is one big difference and that is colour. For while the Edgar Wallace and Mabuse movies are shot in stylish black and white, The Face of Fu Manchu is in glorious, lurid colour, which director Don Sharp uses to create nigh psychedelic visuals.

Perils from the East

Fu Manchu has been criticised for being an outdated yellow peril stereotype and fostering prejudice against Asians. And indeed, complaints by Asian American groups and the Chinese embassy are the reason why Hollywood stopped making Fu Manchu movies in 1940. Nor is there any doubt that Fu Manchu and Lin Tang are stereotypes. In fact, Fu Manchu was the original yellow peril stereotype, spawning a host of imitators from pulp villains Wu Fang and Yen Sin to James Bond opponent Dr. No.

Is always portraying people of a certain race, ethnicity or nationality as villains problematic? Of course, it is. And considering that people of my nationality will inevitably turn out to be villains in any international movie I watch, I can certainly sympathise with the complaints by Asian viewers who no more want to be associated with Fu Manchu and his imitators than I want to be associated with the German villain du jour.

Nonetheless, I find The Face of Fu Manchu much less problematic than The Manchurian Candidate or even Dr. No. For Don Sharp and producer Harry Allan Towers have wisely kept Fu Manchu in the early twentieth century that birthed him and turned the movie into a period piece. As a result, The Face of Fu Manchu is very much fantasy and has no more to do with the modern People's Republic of China than a random western has to do with the contemporary United States.

East meets West?

At this point, it seems very likely that we will see Fu Manchu again on the big screen. Indeed, the villain promised as much in the final moments of the movie. And I for one certainly look forward to watching Fu Manchu and Lin Tang continue their villainous ways. Maybe we could even introduce Fu Manchu to Dr. Mabuse someday. I'm sure the two of them would get along swimmingly, though I'm not sure if the world would survive two criminal masterminds.

[Come join us at Portal 55, Galactic Journey's real-time lounge! Talk about your favorite SFF, chat with the Traveler and co., relax, sit a spell…]

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Movies

[July 24, 1965] Sun, Sand, Surf, Swimsuits, And The Supernatural (How To Stuff A Wild Bikini and a Brief History of Beach Movies)

July 24, 2020 Victoria Silverwolf 3 Comments

by Victoria Silverwolf

Guilty Pleasures

We all have secret vices. I have to confess to a few myself. One of them is so embarrassing that I blush to mention it.

I watch beach movies.

You know, those things where a bunch of young folks go to the side of the ocean to dance, surf, make out, and engage in comic antics? These films are really, really stupid, cheap little catchpenny efforts designed to lure teenagers to the drive-in, where they'll most likely ignore the screen and pay more attention to each other.

I like them.

There are too many of these goofy movies to talk about in detail, so I'll just mention a few before I get to the main topic of discussion.

The genre probably started with Gidget (1959), adapted from the novel Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas (1957), about a teenage girl surfer.

Yes, I've read the book.

And I saw the movie. The nickname Gidget, by the way, comes from the phrase girl midget, oddly enough.

Other early examples include Where the Boys Are (1960), dealing with the misadventures of four man-hungry college co-eds enjoying spring break in Florida, and the inevitable sequels Gidget Goes Hawaiian (1961) and Gidget Goes to Rome (1963). (Weirdly, a different actress plays the title role in each film in the trilogy. I should know, because I've seen every darn one of them.)

As a change of pace, there was the serious drama Ride the Wild Surf (1964), which had a great theme song by Jan and Dean.

And I would be remiss if I didn't mention the all-time classic The Horror of Party Beach (1964), so eloquently celebrated by our Noble Host.

The trend really got started, however, with the unexpected success of Beach Party (1963), the first in a series of films starring ex-Mousekeeter Annette Funicello and teen idol Frankie Avalon.

At this point, the second question you're asking yourself (the first being Has she lost her marbles?) is What does any of this have to do with science fiction and fantasy? Well, besides the obvious relevance of the Party Beach Horror, many of these Frankie and Annette epics contain elements of these genres, sometimes minor, and sometimes major. Let's take a quick look at previous entries in the series before we get to the latest one, which arrived in theaters a couple of weeks ago.

Werewolves, Martians, Mermaids, and Other People You Find at the Beach

Beach Party (1963)

Plot: An anthropologist studies the primitive mating habits of teenagers.

Fantasy content: A couple of characters, who will show up again in later films, have bizarre telekinetic powers, of the kind you'll never see in Analog.

First of all, there's Candy, played by Candy Johnson, a woman who can dance incredibly fast. She has the ability to literally knock men down by — how can I put this delicately? — thrusting the lower back part of her body at them.

Then there's Erik Von Zipper, played by talented comic actor Harvey Lembeck. (You may remember him from Stalag 17 and The Phil Silvers Show.) He's the leader of the Rats, the local motorcycle gang that serves as the primary antagonist in most of the films. The anthropologist puts him in a trance by touching his head with his finger. Von Zipper uses the same technique in later movies, often accidentally doing it to himself.

Robert Cummings, as the anthropologist, freezes Harvey Lembeck's brain.

Personal note: Watch for a last-minute cameo role from a famous horror movie actor.

Muscle Beach Party (1964)

Plot: A group of bodybuilders try to take over the favorite beach area used by our heroes. Meanwhile, an Italian countess tries to steal the affections of Frankie away from Annette.

Fantasy content: In a scene so brief you'll miss it if you blink, a werewolf answers a telephone.

Personal note: Another cameo by a famous horror movie actor.

The movie suffers terribly from the absence of Erik Von Zipper and his gang, a mistake which will not be repeated in the following films. On the other hand, it's got a great musical performance by Little Stevie Wonder, not yet fourteen years of age at the time.

Little Stevie Wonder sings, and Candy Johnson dances; a combination that can't be beat.

Bikini Beach (1964)

Plot: A millionaire tries to prove that a trained chimpanzee is smarter than the teenagers at the beach. Meanwhile, a British rock 'n' roll star threatens to win Annette's heart.

Fantasy content: The chimp displays abilities far beyond those of a normal member of its species.

Like riding a motor scooter, for example.

That's because it's played by Janos Prohaska, who makes a specialty of wearing costumes as primates and other creatures. You may have seen him in The Outer Limits, as the monster in the episode The Probe.

Personal note: Yet another famous horror movie star has a cameo role.

The British musician, known as the Potato Bug, is played by Frankie Avalon in a double role. He's quite funny in what is clearly a spoof of the Beatles.

Pajama Party (1964)

Plot: As the first step in an invasion, a Martian named Go-Go arrives on Earth.

Fantasy content: See above. Because of its science fiction theme, I have to include it as part of the series, although it's somewhat different. No beach, for one thing. Annette plays Connie, instead of her usual role as Dee Dee, and Frankie Avalon only has a cameo appearance. However, Erik Von Zipper shows up, which justifies placing it on the list. Note that I do not include Ski Party (1965), although it is somewhat similar in tone to the beach movies, because it lacks any of the same characters. (I think too much about these things.)

Personal note: Watch for the great Buster Keaton, unfortunately cast as a stereotypical American Indian. We'll see a lot more of him later.

Keaton in the embarrassing role of Chief Rotten Eagle, with assistant Helga, played by Bobbi Shaw. We'll see her again, too.

Beach Blanket Bingo (1965)

Plot: A singer and her publicity agent get mixed up with the beach gang. She gets kidnapped by the Rats and our heroes have to rescue her from the clutches of the sinister South Dakota Slim. There's also some skydiving.

Fantasy content: In a major subplot, one of the beach boys falls in love with a mermaid.

Her name is Lorelei, and she is played by Marta Kristen.

Personal note: South Dakota Slim is played by Timothy Carey. You may have seen him in a couple of Stanley Kubrick films. He was the guy who shoots the horse in The Killing, and one of the doomed soldiers in Paths of Glory.

That Old Black Magic; Or, The Voodoo That You Do So Well

How to Stuff a Wild Bikini (1965)

Any film that has a trailer narrated by a pelican is OK in my book.

With all of that background in mind, let's take a close look at the latest offering from American International Pictures. Before I get started on the film itself, however, allow me to praise the opening credits. The clay animation is the work of Art Clokey, best known for creating Gumby, and it's very cool.

Just a sample. I seriously suggest that you go to your local drive-in and watch the movie, even if you drive away after the titles are over. They're well worth a look.

We begin with Frankie, serving in the Naval Reserve on a Pacific island named Guna Guna. His tour of duty seems like a pretty soft one, as he spends his time hanging out with a lovely young woman. Without any sense of irony, he wonders if his girlfriend Dee Dee is fooling around back in the States. The local lass brings him to a witch doctor, oddly named Bwana.

Irene Tsu, whose character is only known as Island Girl, and Buster Keaton as Bwana.

In exchange for torpedo juice — what you and I would call booze, although we'll later see that it literally comes out of torpedoes — Bwana will work his magic. With the help of his daughter, as yet unseen, he casts a couple of spells.

Bwana at work, with his assistant Khola Koku, played by Bobbi Shaw. She has a Swedish accent, like the character she played in Pajama Party.

One spell creates a pelican that will follow Dee Dee around and let them see what she's doing, in a sort of transoceanic television. The other sends an empty leopard skin bikini to the beach where Dee Dee hangs out.

The wild bikini before stuffing, in the movie's brief animated sequence.

This leads to some memorable dialogue.

BOY: Wow! Dig that wild bikini!
GIRL: It ain't nothin' without the stuffin'!

Recognizing a song cue when they hear one, the beach guys break into the title tune.

Thirty-six
Twenty-two
Thirty-six
That's how you
Stuff a Wild Bikini!

A moment later, the stuffing arrives, in the form of a stunningly gorgeous and shapely redhead named Cassandra, created by the powerful magic of Bwana's daughter.

Beverly Adams as the stuffing.

The idea is that every red-blooded male on the beach will drool over Cassandra, and not bother with Dee Dee. A reasonable plan, as Annette Funicello was pregnant during filming, and wears loose blouses and slacks throughout the film, instead of the skimpy swimsuits adorning all the other young ladies in the movie.

Unfortunately, Cassandra was created with one little problem.

BWANA: Daughter blew it with decoy. Mix up important ingredients. Use one ounce dove’s blood instead of one ounce gazelle blood. Dove blood make love, gazelle blood make graceful. Boy come along, jar her giblets, now all we have is lovesick stumblebum. (Turns to face audience) And that’s all the plot you’re gonna get out of me.

This speech from Keaton explains why Cassandra falls in love, and why she's as clumsy as she is beautiful. Her klutziness leads to a lot of slapstick antics.

Complications arise in the form of an ad man with the unlikely name of Peachy Keane. It seems that he's looking for the perfect Girl Next Door for a new ad campaign. Along for the ride is his assistant, Ricky.

Very Special Guest Star Mickey Rooney as Peachy eyes his choice for the Girl Next Door.

Meanwhile, Ricky, who is something of a playboy, has his eye on Dee Dee as his next conquest. I guess he prefers the sweet and innocent type rather than any of the countless bikini-clad sirens populating the film.

Dwayne Hickman as Ricky. Note the large bowl of popcorn, one of the many ways that Funicello's delicate condition is hidden from the camera.

As if all this weren't enough, our old friend Erik Von Zipper shows up, falls hard for Cassandra, and decides that he wants to be the Boy Next Door. This all leads up to a madcap motorcycle race, the winners — either Cassandra and Von Zipper, or Dee Dee and Ricky — to be chosen for the ad campaign.

I was rooting for these two. They're a lot more fun.

Well, we have to have a happy ending, so it won't surprise you that Frankie and Dee Dee, with some more help from Bwana's daughter, get back together. We only get to see the daughter, said to be the witch's witch, near the end, in another celebrity cameo.

I don't have to tell you who this is, right?

Worth a Trip to the Beach?

Let's face it; this is the silliest thing in the world. Even fans of the series will be disappointed by the fact that Frankie Avalon is barely in the movie, and has only one scene with Annette Funicello, which lasts a few seconds. The plot, such as it is, comes to a complete halt every few minutes for a song. (Even Erik Von Zipper sings twice.) Notable among these is The Perfect Boy, which contains some remarkable lyrics, provided by Dee Dee and a chorus of bikini girls.

The perfect boy doesn't have to be a Hercules
(Hercules)
The perfect boy doesn't have to be Euripedes
('Ripedes)

I didn't know beach bunnies were into ancient Greek playwrights.

On the other hand, there's something appealing about the unapologetic ridiculousness of the whole thing. The nutty story and wackiness of the gags encouraged me to turn off my brain and enjoy a sunny day by the sea.

It's not a cinematic classic, of course. I mean, you can't expect to have some film expert provide an introductory statement about the movie before showing it, the way you might for, say, Citizen Kane.

So rub on suntan lotion, grab your surfboard, and head down to your local seaside drive-in theater for some mindless entertainment.

Maybe not this one.

Our next Journey Show features Dr. Lisa Yaszek, a Professor of Science Fiction at Georgia Tech; Hugo Finalists Tom Purdom and Cora Buhlert; Marie Vibbert, author of 50 science fiction stories in magazines like Analog and F&SF; plus a musical performance by Lorelei!

DON'T MISS IT!

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Movies, Science Fiction/Fantasy

[July 6, 1965] Same Difference (Dr. Who And The Daleks)

July 6, 2020 Jessica Holmes 3 Comments

By Jessica Holmes

Welcome to another round of my ramblings on Doctor Who, where this time I’ll be talking about something a bit different. I’ve had the opportunity to see the Doctor, Ian, Barbara and Susan in full colour on the big screen, but not quite as you know them.

I’ve just previewed the new film (so new, in fact, that it doesn’t come out in the UK theaters until August) Dr. Who And The Daleks, Milton Subotsky’s adaptation of Terry Nation’s serial, The Daleks. Directed by Gordon Flemyng and starring Peter Cushing, this adaptation manages to be too much like the original and not enough, both to its detriment. How? Well, let me explain.

For anyone who didn’t see the original The Daleks, or missed my review back then, here’s a basic rundown of the plot. If you’re familiar with the original, you can skip this next bit. Aside from the setup, it is almost exactly the same.

Continue reading [July 6, 1965] Same Difference (Dr. Who And The Daleks) →

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Movies

[April 20, 1965] Less Satanic Than Expected (John Sturges' The Satan Bug)

April 20, 2020 Erica Frank 2 Comments

by Erica Frank

When I heard about the new movie, The Satan Bug, I was excited. I have a deep interest in the occult and "lunatic fringe" religions, so I was looking forward to something exotic. I expected it'd be a horror movie with no real research behind it, but I hoped for a verse or two of Aleister Crowley's poem, Hymn to Satan, or perhaps a mention of Anton Lavey's occult workshops in San Francisco.

Maybe it involves alchemy? An evil sorcerer's laboratory? Souls extracted from bodies and poured into a beaker?

Alas; it was not to be. Once I saw the trailer, I realized this is not a story about a giant demon-possessed insect, nor is it a hellish romance inspired by Roy Orbison's song, With the Bug. Instead, it's a mystery-thriller centered around a bioengineered killer disease.

Middle-Aged Men in Suits

The story opens in a remote government scientific laboratory with extensive security measures. (Station 3 is "the most secret chemical warfare establishment on this hemisphere," we discover later.) Mr. Reagan (pronounced ree-gan, not ray-gan like the actor from last year's The Killers) is the "Washington guy." He arrives by helicopter and gets checked in at the gate, and the guards know him personally. Doctor Ostrer is just leaving as Reagan arrives, but arranges to speak with him in the morning. Reagan goes through multiple checkpoints inside as well. The actual lab has thick vault doors with a timer at night; there's no way to get in once they shut.

Three doctors are present: Doctor Baxter, who is in charge, Doctor Hoffman, and Doctor Yang. I hoped this wouldn't be a case of "the Asian fellow is the villain" – and it was not! Instead, we see Doctor Yang for less than thirty seconds and he never appears again.

After showing off the security measures for several minutes, we get a moment of suspense: Reagan tells Dr. Baxter that Washington is worried. Doctor Baxter points to the flask on his desk and says, "What they're really worried about is that." Reagan asks him to get some rest, and warns him that mistakes could be worse than deadly here.

We don't yet have a name for the red-topped flask, just the awareness that a very tired scientist is staring at it in frustration.

By morning, although they don't know all of this yet, Reagan is dead, Ostrer is dead, Baxter is dead, several flasks are missing, and they've called in a special investigator: Lee Barrett. He's a former US Intelligence officer who quit because "war had aged him so fast" he felt "too old to play with toys." Barrett is a rebel, an extremely competent man who doesn't cooperate with authority. Coincidentally, he formerly worked at Station 3.

The Handsome Hero

The subterfuge of Barrett's introduction is a delightful lagniappe of a spy-thriller story: To bring him into an active case, first they had to test his loyalty with a fake job from the World Peace Organization: "Deliver this flask of botulinus vaccine–don't ask how we got it–to this address in Europe." Barrett is very clever and immediately spots the scam: Vaccines aren't stored at Station 3 and he personally knows the loathsome fellow who's behind the World Peace Organization.

Once he's established as "loyal, although insubordinate," he's brought to Station 3, where he chats with one of the security guards before looking at the crime scene. This shows that Barrett has true investigator talents: He knows who notices the details that will matter, and he trusts Johnson's judgment.

Jonhson: "Mr Tasserly says, and Mason, he swears, that nobody got into E Lab. But I don't think Reagan committed suicide in there." Barrett agrees.

Barrett quickly establishes how the murderer escaped, and realizes he must've gotten in through the crates of "lab equipment" that came in yesterday. That means there was inside help, but sorting that out can wait. The real risk is not the lives of the base personnel, but the release of the chemical weapons being developed in E Lab. Dr. Hoffman insists the lab must be destroyed immediately, before opening the vault doors.

Our Villain: A Small Jar

Hoffman first discusses the dangers of the previously mentioned botulinus. He explains, "We have 1200 grams in six flasks. If ten grams of it were allowed to contaminate a city, that city is a morgue in four hours. It is an… ideal weapon, God forgive the phrase, because it destroys only people. And it oxidizes itself, in effect, dies–disappears–after eight hours."

Any persons with medical training should be warned not to laugh, as the music here indicates tension and danger. A virus that vanishes literally overnight cannot reach all the people in a city unless the initial distribution is perfectly and widely dispersed; air does not instantly reach all places in a city. After an initial tragic wave of deaths, people hiding indoors would avoid the rest of the attack. People driving to hospitals might never arrive, and not have the chance to infect anyone else in the few hours they have. It would indeed be a super-weapon, but not the catastrophic one the movie seems to imply.

Such a virus could never happen in nature, as it would kill its host and then die itself. The disease cannot spread by normal routes–eight hours is not a very long contagious period, if it can be spread by bodies. Four hours for spreading via a living host is even less time.

Barrett points out this means the base is safe; the vault door was closed last night. Dr. Hoffman then reveals a new danger: "It is only three weeks since Doctor Baxter refined it, and only three days since he communicated its existence to anyone." Another chemical weapon, an airborne virus, but unlike botulinus, this one is "self-perpetuating, indestructible," and may last forever. "To this virus," he says, "we have given a highly unscientific name, but one which describes it perfectly: The Satan Bug."

Hoffman continues: "If I took the flask that contained it and exposed it to the air, everyone here would be dead in a few seconds. California would be a tomb in a few hours. In a week, all life, and I mean all life, would cease in the United States. In two months, two months at the most, the trapper in Alaska, the peasant from the Yangtze, the aborigine in Australia–dead. All dead, because I crushed the flask, and exposed a green-colored liquid to the air."

This must be some newfangled definition of "green" with which I am unfamiliar. But you can still tell it's worse than the other flasks of deadly disease, because the cap is red.

Satan Must Be Anti-Science

At this point, I questioned Dr. Hoffman's medical credentials, because the idea of an airborne virus that would kill all eighteen million people in California in hours is ridiculous. It really doesn't matter how deadly the disease is, nor how resilient: the air just doesn't move that fast.

California spans over a thousand miles from north to south. At five hours–a reasonable estimate of "a few"–the bug would need to travel at 200 mph to cover the state. I don't know where my readers reside, but I assure you: California is not normally wracked by 200-mile-an-hour winds. Perhaps he means "if it started in the middle." In which case, we only need 100 mph winds, which are also exceedingly rare. Or we could say that 20 hours is "a few," but still short enough from a day that he wouldn't use that. To cover 500 miles in 20 hours, the bug needs to travel at 25 mph. Certainly we get winds that fast… but not constantly, and not covering the full length of the state.

Moving on to his claim about a week to cover the entire United States: 2800 miles wide, 168 hours: 16.666 miles per hour. (AHA! There's our Satan reference!) But the wind does not consistently blow at that speed, nor do breezes from one area reach every other part of the country. Winds from the California coast reach Oklahoma and New York, sometimes quickly – but they hardly get to Montana at all.

The Jetstream on April 11, showing the cause of one of the worst tornado incidents in history: 12 tornadoes touched down in 4 hours; over 50 people were killed and several hundred injured.

Danger! Action! Gunshots! (but no blood)

Having established the extreme danger, our hero Barrett (you know he's the hero; he's younger and better-looking than all the other men in the movie) volunteers to go into the lab to find if there's a spill. He makes sure the other men are armed and ready to shoot him if he is exposed. How they're going to kill him and close the glass doors if the disease kills "in seconds," I don't know. But it doesn't matter, because of course the disease has not been spilled in the lab; it's been stolen. They identify the mastermind behind the theft as a Mr. Ainsley, a mysterious wealthy man who vanished several months ago.

Thus begins the chase-and-action portion of the film: tracking down leads, car chases, abductions, and a hint of romance. (An old friend of Barrett's shows up; she sometimes has a useful suggestion, but mostly serves to give him someone to explain what he's figured out.) One flask of botulinus is rigged with a bomb, somewhere in Los Angeles. The men assigned to help Barrett mostly die, because he is faster, smarter, and luckier than they are. Ainsley's goons assigned to kill Barrett mostly die, for the same reasons. The red-topped flask changes hands a few times, but every time Barrett or his allies get it, the villains quickly recover it.

How to search a baseball stadium for a bomb: assign one cop per row and have them walk through the seats. Also, you check the results by yelling, because nobody carries a radio on a search.

At one point, Barrett, his girlfriend, and a couple of lawmen are captured. I have no idea why they're not all immediately killed–the goal is to release a virus that kills thousands nearly instantly with the threat of killing millions as leverage… why would they hesitate at killing a small handful of people who might escape to undermine their plans? You'd think that an evil mastermind would find less squeamish goons.

Does Everyone Die?

As one might expect, the plans are foiled. Ainsley is revealed to be Someone We've Known All Along, and there is an energetic fight scene for control of the deadly flask. This takes place in an out-of-control helicopter, with both people and the flask at risk of falling over Los Angeles. Our hero prevails! (I hope I haven't spoiled the ending for you, but he really is just too pretty to die by an evil plot.) Of course he knows how to fly a helicopter (he admits he's "a little rusty") so, he heads off to LAX to be reunited with his team.

Autopsy Report

In the end, while there's nothing particularly wrong with this film, there's nothing outstanding about it either. The science at its core is deeply flawed, reduced to being a plot gimmick instead of anything an educated person could believe possible. The cast is: one handsome hero; one good-looking ladyfriend; a swarm of distinguished white guys in suits (the cops/federal agents); a swarm of somewhat-ugly white guys in casual clothes (the goons); a sparse handful of non-white people who mention a few details and then vanish; one villain who's pretending to be one of the good guys. None of them is unique or even memorable. The plot is so simple that there's no room for nuance: if the hero succeeds, all is well; if he fails, all human life will be destroyed.

The poster lies: this is not about "the ultimate evil." There is no evil at all in the "Satan bug" itself; it's a mindless organism with no motivation of any sort. All the evil is in the men trying to use it for gain… and they don't fail due to incompetence or greed. Good triumphs, evil fails–because "good" happens to include the former special ops agent with a law degree who can take over a helicopter in mid-flight and safely land it. This is not a lesson about the folly of evil; it's a lesson that talented, handsome heroes can beat aging, sour-faced villains.

If you enjoy this kind of action-thriller with the barest hint of science fiction, this movie won't disappoint. The acting is good, if a bit emotionless (these are stoic government agents, for the most part); the settings realistic; the action well-paced. But if this is not your normal fare, it won't convince you to seek out similar films.

Three stars out of five.

Our last two Journey shows were a gas! You can watch the kinescope reruns here). You don't want to miss the next episode, April 25 at 1PM PDT featuring flautist Acacia Weber as the special musical guest.

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Movies

[April 8, 1965] Twisted but Classy (Mario Bava's "Blood and Black Lace")

April 8, 2020 Rosemary Benton 1 Comment

By Rosemary Benton

I’ll be the first to admit that my tastes do not run toward mysteries. I much prefer modern science fiction with its hopefulness and cautious approach to new realms of science. Horror, either written or filmed, has likewise fascinated me. But unlike science fiction's surety that logic can always triumph, horror focuses on the deep human fear of things unknown and mysterious.

Thrillers are a territory that I'm developing a growing appreciation for due to their usually modern setting with heavy horror elements. As such, when I heard about the new Mario Bava film "Blood and Black Lace" I thought I would give it a look. Not being one to pay much heed to what magazine or newspaper critics have to say about horror films, I thought I would go ahead and check it out. Now having seen it, I wonder if I should have taken the critics more seriously.

"Blood and Black Lace"

The film opens upon the glamorous life of the people working within a successful avant garde Italian fashion house. In short order one of the models is strangled by a faceless masked killer. Upon her death one of her coworkers discovers the victim's diary. In short order the killer returns to take out one model after another as the diary switches hands and the knowledge held within it comes to light.

Despite leading charmed lives, each victim of the killer is revealed to have been involved in one way or another with drug addictions, infidelity, scandal and extortion. All of which ties back to the records within the diary. Ultimately the identity of the killer is revealed upon completion of their grisly work. But it soon becomes apparent that in order to cover their tracks the killer's work is not done yet. At the end the final murder proves to be their undoing when the most jealously guarded manipulation comes to light.

Initial Thoughts

"Blood and Black Lace" is a windy road of secrets and twisted loyalties. The mystery element of the plot is very entertaining to watch as it unfolds, but unfortunately there are a few things that made the film nearly impossible to finish. Put simply, the acting is so good and cinematography so dramatic that it makes the violence very disturbing to take in.

The brutal beatings rained down on the female victims are all uncomfortably real looking (with the exception of one suffocation death that is acted and shot in a way that makes the victim’s writhing weirdly sexual). One expects there to be struggling as the masked killer corners each of the models and proceeds to dispatch them in different ways, but the camera time given to each death is obscene.

The sexualization of each victim before and after their death is likewise unsettling. Clothing is ripped open to expose undergarments, and bodies are dragged away with lingering looks at long legs and breasts. Worst of all is the suspenseful buildup in several deathblows. During the murders of house models Nicole and Peggy the camera zooms in on the slow approach of the murder instrument before the frightened victim is killed.

It's effective, but even I, horror film connoisseur that I am, thought that this was a bit much. It's frightening, but that kind of violence taken with so much anticipation and pleasure by the killer slides well into the realm of just being gross.

Why? Why is any of this necessary artistically or plot-wise? Extremely violent eroticism with dramatic execution was my conclusion. Is this something new in horror? Well, not really. It's new to see Italian filmmakers taking a crack at the thriller film category, but Germany has long been producing adaptations of mysteries and pulp thrillers.

The works of Edgar Wallace, Agatha Christie, and Erle Stanley Gardner all contain a potent mix of scandal, sex, drugs and murder. Understandably, this scintillating content could very easily be adapted to film. Although virtually unknown in the U.S, the studio Rialto Film has been churning out film adaptations of Edgar Wallace's works for years now.

"Blood and Black Lace" is no mere sleazy mystery/thriller story, however. Mario Bava, perhaps looking to outdo himself following "The Girl Who Knew Too Much" (1963), really stepped up the psychologically twisted elements in this film. With each new movie of his, the thrill of seeing beautiful guilty women "pay" for their misdeeds with a kind of vigilante justice seems to be a common element. It’s an element that, I hope, has a limited appeal.

The Mario Bava Method

What did Mario Bava hope to achieve in this film? The deep dive Bava takes into the psychological camera work is admittedly astounding. His experience as a cinematographer is undeniable. The panoramas of beautiful architecture and the creative closeups and camera angles show far more suspense than mere dialogue could ever achieve. The vibrant neon lighting and clever placement of artwork and statues helps the audience to really feel the fear and anxiety of the characters.

Bava has shown a distinct flair as a writer, director and cinematographer who can bring new life to a project that either due to budget or well-trodden story, could be mired in mediocrity. In his directorial debut "Black Sunday" (1960), his ability to bring together his experience as a cinematographer and writer resulted in a unique gothic vampire story. Despite its critical success, the special effect and violence of the film actually got it banned in several countries. Clearly Bava's controversial love affair with gore is not anything new.

I hesitate to describe "Blood and Black Lace" as a revolutionary addition to the horror genre because the violence that advances it in the genre unfortunately also works against it. Thankfully "Blood and Black Lace" has more than that to offer as an example of modern horror film. Its modern setting, contemporary high fashion aesthetic, and refreshingly riveting musical score all speak to progress away from the stale hallmarks of recent horror films. It is a stark departure from the horror themes which have dominated theaters in the last half century.

In Conclusion

"Blood and Black Lace" demonstrates an advanced approach to camera work and lighting that push it beyond the flat panoramas and muted colors of most other horror films that have made their way to American theaters. This movie is certainly not your grandparent's book-to-film adaptation of a Victorian melodrama. As a sensory experience Mario Bava's "Blood and Black Lace" is exceptional. It grips its audience and pulls them along until the very end. The escalation of Bava's focus of violence against women is deeply troubling though. Is it cheap thrills or thoughtful social commentary that spur someone like Bava on? Only continued analysis of Bava's future films will tell.

We had so much success with our first episode of The Journey Show (you can watch the kinescope rerun; check local listings for details) that we're going to have another one on April 11 at 1PM PDT with The Young Traveler as the special musical guest. As the kids say, be there or be square!

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Movies, Science Fiction/Fantasy

[March 6, 1965] Breaking Up Is Hard To Do (Crack in the World and Other Planet-Destroying Movies)

March 6, 2020 Victoria Silverwolf 2 Comments

by Victoria Silverwolf

Start With an Earthquake and Build to a Climax

The above phrase, or some variation on it, has been attributed to Samuel Goldwyn, although this is almost certainly apocryphal. In any case, it represents the interest Hollywood has long had in depicting disasters on the silver screen. Sometimes these have been recreations of historic events, from San Francisco (1936, the 1906 earthquake) to In Old Chicago (1938, the 1871 fire) to A Night to Remember (1958, the sinking of the Titanic.) Watch for these on the Late, Late Show.

Here in the Atomic Age, it seems that fear of the Bomb has replaced some of the fear of Nature. Going back at least as far as Five (1951), films dealing with nuclear disasters have filled the theaters and drives-ins for quite a while now. There are far too many of these to discuss in any detail, from low-budget quickies full of folks in rubber suits pretending to be monsters, to sober and serious dramas. The best of these have been the topics of full articles by Galactic Journeyers, so I direct you to the archives for more information.

Humanity gets wiped out, or at least reduced to very few, in most of these apocalyptic flicks. But what about those in which the entire planet Earth is threatened with destruction? I can only think of a few.

Read the book!

Based on the 1933 novel by Philip Wylie and Edwin Balmer, George Pal's 1951 production of When Worlds Collide dealt with a wandering star on its way to crash into Earth, and the effort to build spaceships to carry a few survivors to the star's only planet. (They sure were lucky that it turned out to be habitable.)

See the movie!

It was a handsome production, winning an Oscar for special effects and nominated for cinematography.

Nifty spaceship. Looks like an Astounding cover, doesn't it?

See the movie; there isn't any book.

1961's The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a British production. Filmed in black-and-white on a modest budget, it depicted the effect that simultaneous nuclear bomb tests by the United States and the Soviet Union had on Earth's orbit, tilting it on its axis and sending it spiraling into the Sun.

Some scenes were tinted to suggest the devastating heat.

An unusually realistic portrait of the possible end of the world, with an ambiguous ending, I found it made for compelling viewing.

Will the latest entry in this small group of Earth-In-Peril films prove as exciting as its trailer suggests? Let's find out.

Dig We Must

All this destruction going on, and Dana Andrews is making a phone call.

The plot of the new movie Crack in the World seems to have been inspired by Project Mohole, so a brief review of that troubled effort to reach deep into the Earth is in order.

First proposed in 1957, Phase 1 of this mighty engineering project got started in 1961. Five holes were drilled at the bottom of the sea off the coast of Baja California, the deepest about six hundred feet below the ocean floor. (You have to consider the fact that these holes start about twelve thousand feet below the surface of the water.)

You can see from this diagram why it makes sense to drill from the bottom of the ocean rather than from the land.

The rumor mill has it that there's a lot of controversy over the multiple scientific, political, and economic factors involved in moving on to Phase 2. Eventually, Phase 3 of the project is supposed to achieve the ultimate goal of reaching the Mohorovičić discontinuity, which is the boundary between the Earth's crust and the mantle. (It's named for the Croatian seismologist Andrija Mohorovičić. No wonder most folks call it the Moho layer.) It's too early to tell how low things will go.

The Core of the Problem

The opening title, in cracked letters.

Project Inner Space, our cinematic version of Project Mohole, begins on land rather than at sea. A brief scene of warriors carrying spears and shields establishes the fact that we're in Africa. We'll find out later that the location is Tanganyika. (That former nation only joined with Zanzibar to form Tanzania last year, so I'll cut the filmmakers some slack on the misnomer.)

It's hard to see here, but that scaffolding contains a rocket pointed down into the Earth.

A jeep carrying people of many different ethnicities and accents arrives at the site. They're here to talk to the head of the project, who needs their approval for his ambitious plan.

Dana Andrews as Doctor Stephen Sorenson.

You see, Project Inner Space is a lot more ambitious than Project Moho. Its goal is to reach all the way down to the Earth's core, so that the magma can be used as a virtually limitless supply of energy and raw materials. Since the Moho discontinuity is twenty-odd miles below the surface of the land (something less than five miles if you go under the sea) and the core is about eighteen hundred miles down, you can see that Moho is really small potatoes compared to Inner Space.

Doctor Stephen Sorenson (American actor Dana Andrews, leading man of the 1940's and 1950's, perhaps best known to most moviegoers for The Best Years of Our Lives, but familiar to horror film buffs for Curse of the Demon) wants the committee in charge of the political side of the project to give the OK to shoot an atomic bomb down into the Earth. (He's already got a rocket set up to deliver the thing, so it's obvious he expects to win them over to his side.)

On the right is Kieron Moore as Doctor Ted Rampion.

Stephen has a very strong sense that his notion of using an A-bomb is safe, but he's honest enough to admit that a fellow scientist, Doctor Ted Rampion (Irish actor Kieron Moore, best known to SF fans for appearing in The Day of the Triffids, and familiar to me for having the lead role in Doctor Blood's Coffin) opposes him. Ted thinks the massive explosion might create a crack in the world, leading to massive destruction. Well, given the title of the movie, you can guess who's right.

Janette Scott as Doctor Maggie Sorenson.

Complicating matters is the fact that Doctor Maggie Sorenson (British actress Janette Scott, also in The Day of the Triffids, and known to me from the psychological shocker Paranoiac), Stephen's wife and fellow scientist, was formerly in a relationship with Ted. Adding to this soap opera subplot is the fact that Stephen has a terminal illness that he is hiding from everyone, even his wife.

Stephen gets the go-ahead from his bosses, and the atomic bomb is rocketed deep into the Earth. The resulting explosion destroys the scaffolding and releases a fountain of magma. Everything seems just fine, but since we've still got about an hour of running time left, you know it's not going to be that easy.

Reports of massive earthquakes and tidal waves indicate that, yes, we've got a crack in the world. It's racing across the globe, too, threatening to rip the planet apart. Desperate to save Earth from total destruction, Ted and the other scientists attempt to stop the progress of the crack by dropping another nuclear bomb into the heart of an active volcano on an island.

Inside the volcano

Because the bomb has to be guided into the volcano by hand, requiring two people in spacesuits to descend with it, this is a particularly tense scene. (It's not a big surprise that Ted, our hero, is one of the two.) The device is dropped into the molten lava successfully, and triggered from a safe distance.

A nice little detail is the fact that the scientists carefully record all this.

Unfortunately, this doesn't halt the crack, but only reverses its direction. It looks like it will head back in the general direction of Project Inner Space, threatening to link up with itself and send a chunk of the planet off into space.

Scenes of massive destruction follow, portrayed through stock footage and some really good miniature effects. A railroad disaster, done with models, is particularly convincing.

The crack is approaching the doomed train from behind the bridge.

Will Earth survive? Will any of our three lead actors survive?

This scene may give you a hint.

Worth Digging Up?

The science in this movie may be questionable — there's an amusing moment when Doctor Maggie Sorenson, who should know better, pronounces the word seismograph as SEIZE-mograph — but overall I found it entertaining. The visual effects are quite good, and the story (written by Jon Manchip White and Julian Halevy, directed by Andrew Marton) is never stupid, even if it's implausible and clichéd at times.

I like the fact that Project Inner Space is truly an international effort, and that the scientists generally act like scientists. The sets look like places people could really work.

I also appreciated the fact that Doctor Stephen Sorenson isn't a megalomaniac, but simply a man who makes a terrible mistake, and does everything he can to correct it.

Four stars. I dug it.

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Magazine/Anthology, Movies, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Serial

[January 24, 1965] A New Beginning… New Worlds and Science Fantasy Magazine, January/February 1965

January 24, 2020 Mark Yon 9 Comments

by Mark Yon

Scenes from England

Hello again!

As I mentioned last month, I now am in the fortunate position of getting two British magazines a month. Both New Worlds and Science Fantasy have returned to monthly issues after being published in alternate months throughout most of 1964.

This doesn’t leave much time for other things this month. However, I can’t resist one update. Since our last article I have had to bite the bullet due to familial pressure and have been dragged along to the cinema to see the 170 minute epic that is My Fair Lady. Given my reluctance about musicals, I must admit, albeit quietly, that it wasn’t bad. Whilst I could make derogatory comments about Rex Harrison’s ‘singing’, Audrey Hepburn was quite charming. It’ll never make me want to see more musicals by choice, but it was tolerable.

And I must admit that it did relieve the sense of gloom that seems to have descended on the country following the sad news of Sir Winston Churchill's death. Moving on..

The First Issue At Hand

So: which magazine arrived first? The winner was the January/February 1965 issue of Science Fantasy.

The Editor is particularly pleased to point out that Keith Roberts, who seems to be our current favourite, will return with another Anita story next month (although the back cover tells us that it will be this month!)

Back Cover. Notice anything wrong?

Multi-talented Mr. Roberts is also who we blame for this month’s rather obtuse cover art for the story Present From the Past.

To the stories themselves.

Present From the Past, by Douglas Davis

This is, to quote the editor from the Editorial, “a new twist on the time safari”. Doctor Messenger, palaeontologist, is transported by the Chronotransporter Research Department in a one-man machine to the Triassic to do research. Unsurprisingly, having been warned to be careful, things go wrong. This is a good old-fashioned adventure tale of Man against the dinosaurs. The descriptions of the landscape and the dinosaurs are vivid and suggest that this would make the start of a good movie, although despite the editor’s protestations, really is nothing that different from the sort of pulp story published in the 1930’s. It ends weakly and feels like there should be more, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but therefore doesn’t feel like a story with a point. 3 out of 5.

The Empathy Machine, by Langdon Jones

Not content with being the Assistant Editor over at New Worlds, here we have the latest story from Langdon Jones, the writer. As we might expect, it is odd story, one that seems to be an internalised fever dream by Henry Ronson, a man who has the urge to kill his frigid wife whilst on holiday on Mars. The story takes an odd turn when Ronson damages the wall screen in frustration at the incessant advertising that he is bombarded by and is then beaten up by the police who arrive to investigate. The next day Ronson and his wife discover a strange Martian building, which on entrance shows Henry life from the perspective of his wife. And guess what – she wants to kill him as well! Now having empathy for each other they kiss and make up (I presume).

Really though, this is a salutary tale on the need for partners to communicate with each other – as well as point out the maddening impact of constant advertising! It just reads strangely to me, an uneven attempt to combine the mysticism of Ray Bradbury with the angst of J G Ballard, which doesn’t work, although the effort is appreciated. 3 out of 5.

Harvest, by Johnny Byrne

And here’s the return of the writer of appropriately weird stories, Johnny Byrne, last seen in the September – October 1964 issue. Harvest has a similarly odd, disjointed tone to the Langdon Jones story, telling of characters who seem to be living in a post-apocalyptic place. It is odder than Langdon Jones’s story, and whilst I liked the lyrical nature of the prose, not really for me. 2 out of 5.

Petros, by Philip Wordley

A new writer to me. The title evokes a sense that it is something akin to Burnett-Swann’s re-imagining of Grecian myths, but instead it is another story that shows us that post-Armageddon life is bad. This time the Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Christ on Earth appears to be living in (another) post-apocalyptic world surrounded by what appear to be Mafia gangsters transported to Britain. This was easier to understand than Johnny Byrne’s story, but as yet another tale about the enduring importance of religion in difficult circumstances (a common theme in the magazines in the last few months!) it left me strangely unmoved. 3 out of 5.

Flight of Fancy, by Keith Roberts

Another story from Science Fantasy’s current flavour of the month – he appears later in the issue as well. It helps that I generally like Keith’s writing, although this very short story is underwhelming. Flight of Fancy is a minor tale that tries to use humour to tell us how science could become unimportant in a future where science has allowed civilisation to be bombed back to a more primitive level. 3 out of 5.

Only the Best, by Patricia Hocknell
A new writer. This is a short story that is a variant of the adage “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.” A marvellous new invention that appears from who-knows-where has negative consequences. Even if I accepted the point that “Washing clothes can be fun”, there were issues with the story for me. I think that it’s meant to be funny but comes across as both silly and creepy. It’s OK, but is a one-point tale. 2 out of 5.

The Island, by Roger Jones

Another new writer. A fairly unpleasant tale of how three characters named Erg, Rastrick and Minus spend their time surviving on some island of the future. It’s all rather grim and depressing, not helped by some rather dreadful people. There’s a weak attempt to develop a sense of mystery – what did Erg see Rastrick doing in the copse on the island? – but the solution is pretty unremarkable. With such misery, the ending is a bit of a relief, but I did wonder what was the point at the end. A story intended to score on its shock value, I believe, but just comes across as unremittingly bleak. 2 out of 5.

The Typewriter, by Alistair Bevan

Here’s the second story in this issue by Keith Roberts this issue, albeit written under the name of one of his pseudonyms. After all that unrelenting misery of The Island, here’s a lighter tale, telling us of what happens to Henry Albert Tailor, the creator of ‘Flush Hardman’, an action hero whose similarity to the overheated exploits of James Bond is surely just a coincidence. There’s a touch of The Twilight Zone here when the author’s typewriter seems to have a mind of its own and is perhaps more the creator of the popular stories than Henry realises. It’s silly but quite fun and not nearly as jarring as some of the other stories in this issue have been. 4 out of 5.

The Blue Monkeys (part 3), by Thomas Burnett Swann

The last part of this serial is as good as its previous parts. Here we discover what happens when Ajax attacks Eunostos the Minotaur’s home in an attempt to retrieve our two wayward teenagers Thea and Icarus, although really, it’s about Ajax trying to get Thea, having being spurned before, and, to quote the story, “ravish her”. Much of the first part of this month's serial deals dramatically with the battle between Ajax and the beasts of the forest, which is very well done. The last part of the tale is surprisingly elegiac with an unexpectedly delightful bitter-sweet ending.

I am surprised how much I have enjoyed this story. I might even go as far as to say that for me this is one of the best serials I have read in years. 4 out of 5.

Summing up Science Fantasy

Bit of a mixture this issue. It’s not bad, but at the same time not the best issue I’ve read. Nothing really stands out other than the Burnett Swann serial. Overall it feels a bit depressing and downbeat. More worryingly, we seem to be repeating the same ideas over and over, things that are variations on what we’ve read before. I’m getting a bit fed up of bleak post-apocalyptic tales for one. In summary though, this is an eclectic mixture of the good and the downright odd, and I suspect that the range will elicit a range of responses.

The Second Issue At Hand

And so, hoping for a more positive experience, I turned to the February 1965 New Worlds. Last month’s issue was a cracker, so I was keen to read this one.

Cover by Jakubowicz

Whereas I’ve noticed both of the Editors stamp their personalities in the two magazines lately, New Worlds’s editorial this month is more of a news summary than an actual Editorial.

Both Moorcock and Bonfiglioli have used the space in the past to put forward a particular view, like say John W. Campbell in Analog, but instead the New Worlds Editorial this month appears to be a perfunctory one about what is going on in the genre scene around Britain. There's some things that are good to know, but with the resultant loss of identity, I suspect that this is less Moorcock’s handiwork and perhaps more by Assistant Editor Langdon Jones.

The most exciting thing mentioned this month is that Britain will host a World Convention for only the second time, in August in Mayfair, London. The Guest of Honour will be Brian W. Aldiss, which all sounds very thrilling.

The Power of Y (part 2), by Arthur Sellings

The second and final part of this story turns all James Bond-ian, with Max Afford’s revelation last month of a big conspiracy – that (warning: plot revelation ahead!) the President of the Federated States of Europe is a Plied copy, and only he can tell! No reason for this new skill is ever given, incidentally, but it’s not really relevant to the bigger picture. The last part of this story continues the idea that someone is covering up what happened, and this includes getting rid of the inventors of the Plying method and Max rescuing the copied President. It is an excitingly written, fast-paced tale that had a great twist in the end that managed to actually tie things up – I wish I could say that for every story I read in these magazines!

Oh look- more rubbish artwork!

Despite the artwork, I am very pleased with this one overall, one of the few serials in New Worlds I’ve really liked over the past year or so. 4 out of 5.

More Than A Man, by John Baxter

Although this follows a similar theme to Sellings’ story of secret identity, this is a rather old-fashioned story. It’s an adventure tale, combining Galactic Empires (not the first time we’ll hear of those this month!) and spymanship, as Graves and Bailey travel the Galaxy servicing robots that have been placed in key positions of power in an ongoing covert war. Think of it as a Space Opera version of Rudyard Kipling’s Empirical adventure Kim mixed up with Asimov’s Robotics stories. Australian John Baxter (last seen in Science Fantasy last April) tells us an exciting yet perfunctory tale. It’s fun and I enjoyed it a lot, but it is nothing that would be out of place from the magazines of the 1950’s. 3 out of 5.

When the Sky Falls, by John Hamilton

The second of our stories involving someone named John this month is another story examining religion, a topic I’m heartily sick of, to be honest. But I can’t deny that it’s a weighty topic, even when this story is brief, and one that many seem happy to examine through the auspices of a science fiction magazine. As the title suggests, this is a tale of Armageddon and what happens when the day of judgement arrives. For such a momentous event there’s nothing particularly notable about it. 2 out of 5.

This is better! Artwork by James Cawthorn

The Singular Quest of Martin Borg, by George Collyn

This lengthy tale treads a similar path to Mr. Collyn’s last story, Mixup, in the November-December 1964 issue, as it is a parody. It is undoubtedly hyper-enthusiastic, telling of how Martin Borg came to be. It is a story with everything thrown in, deliberately using the purpliest of pulp prose to flit across science-fictional ideas of Cosmic Minds, matter transference and Galactic Empires, as we are told of Martin’s odd parentage and ensuing education and growth.

As a result, it varies wildly from parts that hit their target well to other sections that are just over-excitedly silly. It is rather amusing to have this parody of Asimov’s robotics and Galactic Empire stories alongside John Baxter’s more straightforward version earlier in the magazine. Which, in itself, is a point, I guess. I liked some of it, but at the same time I’m a tad uncomfortable with a story that makes a joke out of rape. 3 out of 5.

The Mountain, by James Colvin

Moorcock’s latest under his nom de plume is a story of two men in (another) post-apocalyptic environment who are in Swedish Lappland on the trail of a young woman. As the story progresses the purpose of the plot changes from trying to meet the young girl to surviving climbing a mountain. It’s really all about the need for human challenge. There’s some nice musing on time and place and Man’s insignificance in all of this, but it is a story with limited potential and the now inevitable dour conclusion. 3 out of 5.

Box, by Richard Wilson

A strange tale of Harry McCann, whose existence is in the latest space saving economy, a 7 x 7 x 5 feet box. Eating, sleeping and basically living his life as an artist & illustrator is all contained in this restricted space. It sounds unlikely but this story of a future with no physical human contact gets its message across without becoming tedious. 3 out of 5.

Articles

I suspect partly inspired by the new critical magazine SF Horizons, mentioned last month, Moorcock seems to be reintroducing more reviews and literary criticism than we’ve seen for a while. There’s an increased amount of articles this month, scattered through the magazine.

Biological Electricity attempts to do what the Good Doctor Asimov does so much better in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. This short article looks at how electricity generated spontaneously by living creatures could be used in the future. It’s informative but not as accessible as your American equivalent.

Can Spacemen Live With Their Illusions? is an article that shows us how space exploration may be hampered by the psychological as well as the physical effects on the intrepid travellers dealing with a new environment.

Book Reviews

In terms of Books this month, Mike Moorcock as James Colvin reviews The Worlds of Science Fiction by Robert P. Mills, and Introducing SF by the already mentioned soon-to-be-Worldcon-Guest-of-Honour Brian W. Aldiss. Brief mention is also made of Harry Harrison's The Ethical Engineer, The Paper Dolls by L. P. Davies, Galouye's The Last Leap and John Lymington's The Sleep Eaters as well as the reissue of some classic horror novels.

We also have a number of more in-depth reviews. James Colvin (remember him?) writes another celebratory review of Burroughs – that’s William S., not Edgar Rice – this time for his novel The Naked Lunch. At 42 shillings, though – nearly three times the price of an average hardback book – you've got to have some serious money to take the plunge.

Newcomer Alan Forrest pens an enthusiastic essay entitled Did Elric Die in Vain? about Mike Moorcock’s Fantasy character Elric (who was once a staple of Science Fantasy, now seemingly transferred over to New Worlds) in the novel Stormbringer and Hilary Bailey (aka Mrs Mike Moorcock) reviews Who? by Algis Budrys, summarised nicely by its title, Hardly SF.

No ratings this month but there is news that the next issue will include a JG Ballard story. Hurrah!

Summing up New Worlds

New Worlds is an eclectic mixture this month and there are signs that Moorcock is making his own stamp on the magazine. The addition of factual science articles and more literary reviews reflect this, and it must be said that the expansion of literary criticism has been one of Mike’s intentions since he took over as Editor. It’ll be interesting to see how the regular readers respond to it.

By including such material of course means that there’s less space for fiction, and I suspect that whilst that might ease Moorcock’s load a little – he is writing and editing a fair bit of it, after all – it may not sit well with readers. But then we are now monthly…

Summing up overall

Both issues read this month are pretty strong. I enjoyed the eclecticism of New Worlds, whilst Science Fantasy had some of the best stories amongst the less endearing. Consequently, both score well, but for different reasons. However, in this battle of the magazines I declare New Worlds the winner for me this month.

And that’s it for this time. Until the next…

[Come join us at Portal 55, Galactic Journey's real-time lounge! Talk about your favorite SFF, chat with the Traveler and co., relax, sit a spell…]

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Magazine/Anthology, Movies, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Serial, TV

[December 29, 1964] Be Ye All of Good Cheer… New Worlds, January 1965

December 29, 2019 Mark Yon 3 Comments

by Mark Yon

Scenes from England

Hello again!

I hope Christmas for you was a good one. Christmas was good to me in that I received a copy of Charles L. Harness’s The Paradox Men. So far I’m really enjoying it as an over the top Space Opera. Why has it taken so long to be published here in Britain, though?

More good cheer: this month’s New Worlds editorial begins with a loud “Hurrah!”, announcing that both New Worlds and Science Fantasy are to return to monthly publication in 1965.

This is wonderful news for both New Worlds and Science Fantasy. Clearly the increased readership has paid dividends on both counts. Let’s hope this continues. More on this particular issue later.

News-wise, politics has been on its Christmas break. So not a lot to particularly report there.

The contest for the Number 1 single slot is always competitive, but Brits have a particular obsession for the Christmas Number 1 single. This year that enviable position was held by (unsurprisingly) The Beatles with another catchy tune – I Feel Fine.

Music-wise, most of the year’s reviews seem to have focused on the global domination of our Fab Four as they travel the world, permanently surrounded by screaming teenagers. Not only having the British Christmas single, they will also be pleased to know that their single Can’t Buy Me Love, is the single to have spent longest as Number 1 for a majestic 3 weeks, back in March and April. More seriously, it really has been their year and I can see 1965 carrying on in much the same way.

At the cinema I am pleased to write that I enjoyed our Christmas movie, Father Goose, starring Cary Grant. A rather comedic role with a feel-good family tone. It’s not Cary's best, but it was pleasant enough. And in the middle of Winter, pleasantly tropical.

But be warned – My Fair Lady is due at the end of January. I know that you’ve had to endure this film already in the US – all 170 minutes of it – and the reviews have been quite good, but I still haven’t managed to come up with an excuse of sufficient importance to avoid it. Can I claim that I’m much too busy reporting to you to go? I doubt it, sadly. I may have to bow to the inevitable.

On a more positive note, on the television I am enjoying the latest Doctor Who, which seems to be regaining its confidence after a couple of so-so episodes, and hopefully that upswing should continue in 1965. Jessica’s already mentioned this, but the latest Dalek episodes are in my opinion the most enjoyable series yet.

The Issue At Hand

cover by Robert J. Tilley

This month’s cover shows that, as hinted at last issue, circles are ‘in’.

Personally, I still yearn for art with some detail, but am resigned to the current vogue, whilst at least appreciating that, despite being crude and simple, it’s still not as bad as Carnell’s last issues.

The Editorial, as shown earlier, is pleasingly upbeat. It is akin to a state of the nation address, showing us where we are in the current state of things artistic and literary. There’s mention of a new critical magazine edited by Messrs Aldiss and Harrison, which sounds intriguing.

To the stories themselves.

The Power of Y (part 1), by Arthur Sellings

The triumphant tone hangs over to this first part of a serial by Arthur Sellings, who is highlighted in the Editorial for producing “stories of a consistently high standard since he began writing.” To me this does sound a little like faint praise, though I must admit that the serial is one of the most enjoyable I’ve read for a while. Max Afford is an art dealer in a world where Transdimensional Multiplying, or Plying, allows an object such as a painting or a car to be borrowed from multiple universes. You want the original Mona Lisa? You can borrow it and have it in your home, for a price. There are limits, however. It is a very expensive process and an object can only be plied to a maximum of twenty copies. Plying living objects, such as a beloved pet, is seen as impossible.

This is an intriguing concept, but one that becomes more complicated when Max suddenly finds that he can tell the difference between plied objects and the original simply by touching them. The story then ends on a cliff-hanger involving the President of the Federated States of Europe.

It’s all written in a deceptively chatty style that Heinlein is so good at, a combination of charming bonhomie and sly digs at both the establishment and the world of art – although Sellings is clearly an author the editor Mike Moorcock prefers. Nevertheless, it read well and was entertaining, and most of all I’m intrigued to see where this one goes. The most negative thing I could find about it was the awfully childish art throughout the prose! A great start. 4 out of 5.

Childish art? I rest my case, m'lud. But perhaps it's intentional irony in a story about art…

The Sailor in the Western Stars , by Bob Parkinson

A debut author. You can tell from the artwork at the beginning that this is a story retold as if it were ancient myth, a folk-tale rather like a science-fictional Arabian Nights. I liked the romantic tone of this, that the main character is some sort of wandering pirate-trader destined to sail across space. It’s similar to Bertram Chandler’s Rim stories or even Poul Anderson’s David Falkayn /Star Trader stories, but deliberately more lyrical and enigmatic. Behind the poetic sheen there’s not a lot going on, admittedly, but I remembered it more than many stories. File under “Interesting”. It’s nicely done, but fairly inconsequential. 4 out of 5.

Tunnel of Love, by Joseph Green

And here’s the return of Moorcock’s friend, Joseph Green, after Single Combat in the July-August 1964 issue. The title suggests a cheap fairground ride, but it is actually an ethnologic study with a creepy twist. Two young graduates, realising a way to make money, attempt to make a movie on Procyon Nine, a planet known for its beautiful people but whose strict moral code is that visitors do not seduce them. The twist is that the would-be suitors of the girls have, as a rite of passage, to crawl through an interdimensional portal that connects Procyon Nine to the nuptial bed! This is not quite as outré as it sounds and there’s a big old twist at the end. I found it better than I thought it was going to be, an adventure story that also made me think of it as a raunchier take on Chad Oliver’s themes. 3 out of 5.

There’s A Starman in Ward 7, by David Rome

And now something a bit darker. Very pleased to see the return of this writer, last seen in the August 1963 of New Worlds. As far as the New Wave type stories go, this is actually one I liked.

It is the story of a psychotic murderer who is locked up in an insane asylum and who claims to have been in a ward with a new inmate – a Starman from Alpha Centauri. It’s written in a deliberately disjointed and irrational manner and is filled with those stylistic typing patterns and fragmented streams of consciousness that you may remember in Alfred Bester’s work. It is something that the New Wavers should love – and for a change, I also liked. Unlike most stories that try this technique I found that David’s story doesn’t lose its purpose or its narrative thread along the way. 4 out of 5.

Election Campaign, by Thom Keyes

Oh-oh. Here’s the return of Thom Keyes, whose last story, Period of Gestation, was in the September – October 1964 issue of Science Fantasy. I really didn’t like it. But actually, Election Campaign is a more straightforward tale than I thought it was going to be. General Aldheyer is sent on a mission to secure the votes for the General Dynamics Party of an obscure and out of the way colony. Unfortunately, the brain-in-a-box space pilot malfunctions on the way and the only solution is to create a replacement pilot. Consequently, Aldheyer’s brain is transplanted into the ship. There’s a lengthy description of the surgical process and the story ends with the spaceship’s arrival on the planet to begin its electoral campaign.

After our recent change of government, this story is perhaps surprisingly topical. Some politicians will do almost anything for power! I must admit that this was more enjoyable than Keyes’ last story, but the purpose of it seems a little pointless, other than to make the reader question what makes a machine human and vice versa. Anne McCaffrey’s done all this before, of course. 3 out of 5.

Space Drive, by Gordon Walters

We then get a lengthy chunk of the magazine concerned with reviews and non-fiction. Gordon Walters is a writer new to me, although you may know him better as George Locke. This is an article that discusses the different means of travelling around science-fictional space that have been used by authors in the past. It’s a nice discussion that sums up concepts from a range of books and authors.

Books: Fancy and Imagination, by Michael Moorcock, James Colvin and Langdon Jones

As expected from previous comments there’s reviews of Charles L. Harness’s The Paradox Men and Brian Aldiss’s Greybeard. Michael Moorcock likes both.

The bulk of the reviews from Colvin (aka Moorcock, of course!) and Langdon Jones pick up a rag-bag of books. Honorary mentions go to Andre Norton’s Judgement on Janus, which is OK, James Blish’s A Life for the Stars, which is ‘better’ and Alan E. Nourse’s Scavengers in Space (good for children.) On the other hand, Poul Anderson’s Time and Stars and Damon Knight’s Beyond the Barrier both get a mauling. The second New Writings in SF anthology is ‘disappointing’, which probably means that I will like it. The Best from F & SF is above average yet summarised as overpraised, but A Decade of Fantasy and Science Fiction, with stories from the magazine originally published between 1949-59, is 'excellent'.

There’s also the usual endorsement of J G Ballard, this time for the US publication of The Burning World, and praise for Anthony Burgess’s 'powerful and horrifying' A Clockwork Orange, which is one of the most unusual books I’ve recently come across.

Langdon Jones then positively reviews Arthur Sellings’ The Uncensored Man and C. M. Kornbluth’s The Syndic.

The Letters pages show that I Remember, Anita, published in the September-October 1964 issue, seems to have generated some controversy. There’s also a letter complaining about the return of illustrations, which shows that people are never satisfied.

Summing up

It may be the season, but I’m pleased to say that this issue of New Worlds was one I enjoyed more than I didn’t. I enjoyed the range of stories, but most of all I liked the actual stories, which were not anything particularly radical yet made me feel like it was worthwhile paying my money to read them. Last month I said that I was enjoying Science Fantasy more. If this is New Worlds’s response, then the differences between the two magazines might not be as much as I had thought. Science Fantasy may have a fight on its hands for my attention!

And with this in mind, next month I should have two magazines to review – New Worlds and Science Fantasy! It’ll be interesting to see which one turns up first.

All the very best to you and yours for 1965.

[Come join us at Portal 55, Galactic Journey's real-time lounge! Talk about your favorite SFF, chat with the Traveler and co., relax, sit a spell…]

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[November 25, 1964] The Times They Are a-Changin’… Science Fantasy December 1964/January 1965

November 25, 2019 Mark Yon 6 Comments

by Mark Yon

Scenes from England

Hello again!

As I report, we’re on the countdown to Christmas here. I hope you had a good Halloween. I must admit that after last month’s surprisingly mediocre New Worlds, I was quite looking forward to picking up the new copy of Science Fantasy.

Politics seems to have calmed down a little after the shock election result last month. Mr. Wilson seems to be intent on trying to change the laws created by 13 years of continuous Conservative rule. Although he’s only been in office for just over a month, it is noticeable that there are changes, but at the same time obvious that major change isn’t going to happen straight away. Nevertheless, there has already been a vote to suspend the death penalty for murder in Britain, which should happen in 1965. I suspect that we will see more and possibly even bigger changes in the next few months.

In music, I’m pleased to let you know that after I wrote last time, Sandie Shaw has been replaced as Number 1 by…. the return of Roy Orbison and Oh Pretty Woman.

I really like it, so I am pleased.

Perhaps it is only fair that we see some quality American acts in our charts in return for our British exports. I understand that you’ve recently had a deluge of British acts hoping to emulate the success of The Beatles, including another Brit favourite, The Rolling Stones, who were on the Ed Sullivan Show a couple of weeks ago. Their singer, Mick Jagger, had a few moves to show you!

At the cinema I am pleased to write that I have had a stay of execution regarding the musical My Fair Lady. As sometimes happens, the trailers led me to believe that the movie would be here in the next couple of weeks. I now understand that the film will be appearing at my local Odeon in January. The good news then is that it gives me more time to come up with an excuse to avoid it, hopefully.

As we always go as a family to see a 'movie for Christmas’, it looks like the movie we will see as a family this year will be Father Goose, starring one of my favourites, Cary Grant.

Looks like quite a different role for Cary…

On the television the genre pickings have still not been many. I am still enjoying most of Doctor Who, and Jessica’s excellent reports on that series’ progress need no further comment from me, but my latest find this month has been another popular series for children. I am quite surprised how much I have enjoyed its undemanding entertainment, as Gerry Anderson’s Stingray has been shown on ITV. Be warned though – it’s a puppet series! Nevertheless, its enthusiasm and energy, combined with great music in a wonderful title sequence has made this unexpected fun. I understand that it has been entirely filmed in colour, although like the majority of the 14 million British households with a television, we’re forced to watch it in good old black-and-white.

The Issue At Hand

Just to reinforce the mythical theme, this month’s cover of a Bronze Centaur is quite striking and would not perhaps be out of place on the front of a History magazine. It is, of course to do with the second part of Thomas Burnett Swann’s serial, The Blue Monkeys (started last issue), of which more below.

The Editorial, like the snippet in New Worlds last month, extols the virtues of Brian Aldiss’s new novel Greybeard. I haven’t got a copy yet – Christmas is coming! – but I must admit that I like what I’m hearing.

The Editorial also seems to rate Charles Harness’s The Paradox Men as a superior Space Opera, although it has been around a while. I understand Brian Aldiss likes it a lot, and it sounds like it could be my sort of thing as well. Let’s hope that Santa is kind this year.

Other than that, the Editorial makes a valid point about not labelling book covers with “A Science Fiction Novel”, as if it is something to be ashamed of, and finishes with the good news that Science Fantasy may soon go monthly. Sales must be up, then.

To the stories themselves.

The Blue Monkeys (part 2), by Thomas Burnett Swann

The second part of this serial tells us what happens to teenage Thea and Icarus now that they are under the care of Eunostos, the Minotaur. This part of the story is written from the perspective of Eunostos. It appears that taking Thea and Icarus into his world has not been easy. Much of this part is about how bringing up Thaea and Icarus has changed his world, firstly by affecting Eunostos’s relationship with his friends Moschus the Centaur (presumably the cover star this month) and Zoe the Dryad and then when Icarus is coerced into bed by Amber the Thria. There’s some history – we are told how Eunostos knew the children’s parents and has been in the background of their lives since they were born, for example. The story ends when we discover what Ajax plans to do to get the children to return to the human world, which will no doubt be concluded in the final part next month. I really like this reinterpretation of ancient myths. The style is engaging and written in a wryly amusing manner throughout which appeals to my own sense of humour. What is still surprising is how adult in tone the story is – much of this is about getting the teenagers into bed, which was a little disconcerting, but on the whole this one reads as effortlessly as last month. So, like last time, 4 out of 5.

Room With A Skew, by John Rackham

To lesser things, now. The last time I read a John Rackham story was in New Worlds with his story Crux in November 1963, although he was in Science Fantasy in the July/August issue. This is a light story about the things mad inventors create – in this case, a means of creating extra space in a flat by accessing the fourth dimension. Doctor Who would not have this problem! It is a one plot idea that is better than the pun-ish title suggests, but really is just an amusing space-filler. 3 out of 5.

EJ Carnell – A Quick Look, by Harry Harrison

It’s nice to see the return of Brian Aldiss’s friend, editor and author Harry Harrison in this issue, although the subject matter of his non-fiction article is something less palatable to my tastes – recently departed New Worlds editor John Carnell. Despite my own personal grumbles about the poor last few issues of New Worlds, there’s no denying that John has had an impact on British SF and it would be wrong of me to not appreciate that, but really this is nothing more than a sycophantic promotional post for him. 3 out of 5.

The Charm, by Keith Roberts

Very pleased to see the return of this writer, who impressed me in the last issue. The Charm is another ‘Anita’ story, about the “very lovely but rather inexperienced” teenage witch finding her feet in a modern world. Think of her as a sexualised Sabrina the Teenage Witch (from Archie’s Mad House). This does involve her *cough* ‘finding experience’ in this story by being firstly captured by a witch-hunter and then going to bed with him. Using a witch’s power to make it work, the two use a Time Charm to travel backwards in time, where it all borrows heavily from H G Wells. The end of the story is a bit abrupt but generally Anita’s as amiable as she was last issue, albeit still with the annoying Granny. “I’m allus the same…” the Granny says. Quite. Whilst Anita as a character is an alluringly engaging enigma, and there’s not really a great deal to this story, The Charm is an entertaining read. 3 out of 5.

Not Me, Not Amos Cabot!, by Harry Harrison

And here’s Harry returning, this time to write fiction. I enjoyed this more than his non-fiction article. Not Me, Not Amos Cabot! tells the story of a grumpy old curmudgeon who when he receives a glossy magazine in the post with the cheery message that he is about to die – and is he prepared for it? – is determined to prove the magazine wrong. It’s all a bit Twilight Zone, emphasised by the fact that it seems to be set in New York rather than, say, London. I get the impression that it’s meant to be a parody of advertising, an exaggeration of what can happen in today’s commercialised world, but it all sounds quite possible to me. Entertaining enough. Harrison’s gently humorous writing style carries a story that’s actually not very original. 3 out of 5.

The Madman, by Alistair Bevan

A writer new to me. Like Harrison’s story, this is another one about an old man, set in the future. This centenarian upsets his family and his neighbours for saying how much better things were in the past, to the point that he is regarded as insane and incarcerated into a Sector Asylum for causing disruption. I guess that the message is that the future’s not what it’s supposed to be, but we should spend our time looking forward, not back. There is little value in the old – something I suspect historians and archaeologists may disagree with. 3 out of 5.

Joik, by Ernest Hill

After his appearance in last month’s New Worlds, Ernest returns with a poor novella that’s about a dystopian future where African people rule the planets. In the Rationale (what that actually is is unclear) any idea of beauty is severely dealt with. It’s basically Big Brother but where the dictator is black, not white. Imagine, for example, a British Empire run by the oppressed, not the oppressors.

To give it a futuristic feel, not to mention New Wave anxiety, there’s artificial intelligence and spaceships but also metaphysical angst, weird dream states and torture. The plot, for what it is, is an investigation where Dadulina’s partner, Tantor, has disappeared. We discover that Dadulina has actually been arrested and tortured. This appears to be to do with Joik, the means of travelling around the universe, although it all rather disappears up into some sort of metaphysical mess. Obviously, this also involves taking narcotics to gain the full experience of whatever it is they are experiencing, from which I emerged confused and decidedly uninterested.

I can see why some readers might like it. It’s determined to be edgy and controversial (Drugs! Sex! Race!), creates words to make it sound like the dialogue of the future and has a fast pace. However, for me its drug-induced navel-gazing all seemed a little dull. One of those where you have to be there to gain the full experience, I feel. 2 out of 5.

One of Those Days, by Charles Platt

We finish this issue with a minor story about a character having a miserable existence in a hotter future climate, who having complained about the noise, the hot weather and his wife and children, then dies. Seems a bit pointless, other than a chance to moan about domestic life for the future male. I was almost tempted to think of it as a Ballard-ian parody, but that would give the story more value than it deserves. There’s not a lot to fuss about over here. We finish with a whimper. 2 out of 5.

Summing up

This is a tough one to summarise, as it is an issue that I both enjoyed and I got frustrated by. It starts well, but seems to run out of steam by the end. Overall though, I’m pleased to say though that, despite my grumbles, there’s a lot in this issue of Science Fantasy that I’ve enjoyed, and it is still more enjoyable than the last New Worlds. Despite both issues having stories that are quite depressing, Science Fantasy is just more engaging for me. I think I am still enjoying the variety and range of the stories more with Science Fantasy than I am with New Worlds.

The bottom line is that when I have finished reading the two magazines, I remember the stories from Science Fantasy much more positively than the ones in New Worlds. Where New Worlds does score is that it seems to be more determined to experiment with form and style whereas Science Fantasy is more about just telling a story. At the moment though, for me plot is winning over form. It’ll be interesting to see if this continues into 1965.

I should be back to a new issue of New Worlds next month. Until next time… have a great Christmas!

UK Beatles fans, of which there are many, have been sent a Christmas greeting from the Fab Four on flexidisc.

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