990WBOB
  • WBOB Radio
  • Past Casts
  • F Bomb Friday
  • Weather
  • Contact
  • About
    • WBOB Press Releases
    • Join Our Team!
    • CHARITY GALA

Haunted Cabaret Top 5: Good Movies, Bad Effects

9/30/2013

Comments

 
By George Goner (The Haunted Cabaret)
Picture
This week's Top 5 discusses a rare breed: Movies with bad special effects that are well worth watching. In other words, the filmmakers did the best they could with difficult circumstances or a limited budget. The movies have good acting, decent writing, and fine cinematography. The money just ran out before they got to the effects studio.

In no particular order:
1) It! The Terror From Beyond Space: The monster is from Mars, not beyond space, but I forgive the hyperbole in the case of this forerunner to Alien because of the overall quality. A bloodthirsty martian sneaks aboard an earth ship and murders the crew members one by one until the creature is finally killed by suffocation. The zipper down the back of the monster's rubber  suit is visible more than once, and the mask doesn't allow for many facial expressions. Nevertheless, this '50s science fiction epic is well-written,  well-acted, and suspenseful.

2) The Wizard of Oz: You know right away it's not really a lion acting cowardly, right? Or a scarecrow that's made out of straw, or a Tin Man that's made of metal. Even when you're five, you realize this. You also realize it doesn't matter one bit, because this film proves conclusively that effects-good, bad, or indifferent- don't make a  movie. Imagination conquers all, with the help of great acting, songs, and plenty of greasepaint. Margaret Hamilton as The Wicked Witch and those flying monkeys still cause nightmares for the sensitive.

3) Suspiria: The effects in question here involve blood and internal organs. Even space aliens don't have the same color blood that spews from the hanged and heart-stabbed female at the beginning of Dario Argento's horror masterpiece. But then the maggots rain from the ceiling, the blind guy crosses the plaza, the secret of the dance academy is revealed, and you realize you're watching something unique.

4) Jaws: Whenever the shark sticks its head out of the water, I cringe, but not with fear. The fake-looking mechanical beast seems to dare us to take the rest of the movie seriously. But we do, because of actors named Shaw, Scheider, and Dreyfus. The acting is excellent. So is the direction by Steven Spielberg. The screenplay manages the difficult task of keeping a perfect balance between humor and horror, causing each emotional response to enhance the other. (There is one annoying writer's error for trivia fans: in a movie about a killer shark, neither fishing boat captain Quint, or oceanographer Hooper, realize ORCA is the scientific name for a killer whale, not a great white shark. Oops.) 

5.) Tarantula: Another '50s science fiction movie. The back-projected (obsolete fx technique) giant spider of the title has a way of just walking out of its scenes into nothingness, especially the ends of its legs. Watch this creepy science-run-amok thriller and you'll see right away what I mean! (Spiders are notorious for not following the director's  instructions.) In addition, more than one writer has suggested the filmmakers accidentally used the negative of the tarantula footage, because throughout the movie the nutrient-enlarged critter is so dark it's impossible to see detail. On the plus side, this error lends an unintentional, H.P. Lovecraft-style atmosphere to several scenes. A night scene, where the giant tarantula attacks a ranch, is nightmarish. The acting of Leo G. Carroll as the mad scientist, and a jet fighter attack on the spider led by Clint Eastwood, are among the reasons this low-budget movie is much more fun than it should be.

Next time: Horror movies that are great without any special effects to speak of at all. (Just great acting, directing, and screenplays.)

Comments

    WBOB
    Original
    ​Reads

    Picture

    Unbiased, Unfiltered. WBOB's Original Reads feature our brightest and boldest personalities, offering their two-cents on the goings on of news, sports, politics, entertainment, and business. -- Are our opinions always PC? Nope. Are they always perfect? Nah. But, are they always 100% authentic? Absolutely!


    LISTEN
    ​TO WBOB ORIGINAL PODCASTS

    Picture
    Listen to
    ​Past BOBCasts

    WBOB 
    Best Reads
    Brought To You By
    TripAdvisor.com

    Picture

    Celebrating David Clyde: A Wild Passionate Friend To All


    Picture

    Search 
    The Archives


    Reads From Our Friends

    Picture

    The Best Game Development Tools: How to Make Your Own Game


    Contact Us
    info@990WBOB.com


Search For Your Favorite WBOB Author,
​or BobCast

990WBOB 
An Independent Media Outlet.

The views opinions and thoughts expressed do not  reflect those of 990WBOB, its management or its staff. All Rights Reserved 990WBOB.com 2007-2020
​
Contact WBOB HERE

WBOB Reads

Weather

Live BOBCasts

Past Casts

Contact Us

Join Our Team!

Featured Supporters

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Photo used under Creative Commons from nzhamstar
  • WBOB Radio
  • Past Casts
  • F Bomb Friday
  • Weather
  • Contact
  • About
    • WBOB Press Releases
    • Join Our Team!
    • CHARITY GALA