THE BLOB (1958) / THE BLOB (1988) - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!!

THE BLOB (1958) d. Irwin J. Yeaworth (USA)
BEWARE! THE BLOB (1972) d. Larry Hagman (USA)
THE BLOB (1988) d. Chuck Russell (USA)

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By the 1950s, sci-fi had taken Hollywood by storm, with all manner of tales involving Man exploring the galaxy, or various intergalactic neighbors swinging down to our neck of the woods for a visit. Meanwhile, juvenile delinquent pics became all the rage following the 1955 smash Rebel Without a Cause. Misunderstood teenagers already flocking to the drive-ins to see their onscreen counterparts and giant monster flicks, so entrepreneur Jack H. Harris hit upon the idea of combining the two elements. The resulting film, THE BLOB (1958), became an instant sensation, making back its modest budget many times over, as well as generating a Top 40 hit on the radio with its catchy title tune, and launching a young upcoming actor, Steve McQueen to superstardom.

THE BLOB (1988) Blu-ray Review

Scare-A-Thon Totals to Date:

Total Movies Watched: 21
Total First Time Views: 9
Amount raised for AMAZON WATCH: $1,737.96

The Blob (1988) d. Chuck Russell (USA) (95 min) (3rd viewing)

Small-town America comes under attack when a mysterious meteorite crashes outside Arborville city limits, unleashing an all-consuming gelatinous mass that devours any living creature it comes in contact with while growing at an exponential rate. Among the residents in its ravenous path are football hero Paul (Donovan Leitch), cheerleader Meg (Shawnee Smith), motorcycle-riding tough Brian (Kevin Dillon), stern-but-fair sheriff Herb Geller (Jeffrey DeMunn), and everyone’s favorite diner waitress Fran (Candy Clark). Without shape or remorse, the monstrous menace appears unstoppable, and the government troops sent in to protect seem more concerned with corralling and hushing up a very dangerous secret than with protecting the local citizens.

Fool's Views 8/9 – 8/20

Howdy, kids! Yep, it’s been nearly two whooooooole weeks since the 21-day flurry of Fantasia, and how best to celebrate the reprieve from the madness? Why, watching a boatload of flicks, of course! The difference being that I was able to resume my regular role of program director, actually choosing the features to watch on any given day. Considering I’d been sitting on a pile of flicks both borrowed and queued (including a Nicholas Winding Refn triple feature), it wasn’t hard to fill the slots and the time.

No surprise, Kitley’s Krypt dictated a few of my choices, fulfilling my Kryptic Army assignment for July (giant monsters) as well as joining my fellow blood brothers and sisters in celebrating the great man’s birthday, breaking in Jon’s new backyard DVD projector and movie screen with a gooey double feature complete with sing-a-long cards and trivia prizes. Such a wonderful gathering of food, friends and fun, one that came hard upon the awesomeness that was Flashback Weekend/Wizard World Comic-Con. I love this town. (Blessings to Jason Coffman as well, for his generosity in lending out an array of recent fright fare.)

As always, feel free to leave your two cents worth – we’ll make sure you get some change back.

Enjoy!

THE BLOB (1958) review

Blob, The (1958) (3rd viewing) d. Yeaworth, Jr., Irvin S. (USA)

Considered by many the quintessential drive-in flick of the ’50s due to a memorably amorphous monster, Burt Bacharach’s hit title song and an unabashed “adults just don’t understand” message aimed squarely at its under-25 audience base. Future Hollywood superstar Steve McQueen (billed as “Steven”) might well have never graduated to the big time had producer Jack Harris’ film not been such a roaring success at the turnstiles – truth be told, the King of Cool comes off pretty mannered and awkward in his first starring role and his so-not-teenaged castmates don’t help matters. Luckily, the reddish-hued creepin’ leapin’ glidin’ slidin’ menace from space generates a venerable amount of fright factor as it oozes under doors, cruises around corners and swallows victims whole. Any scenes featuring Bart Sloane’s Blob effects are easily the highlights, especially Olin Howlin’s initial wooded encounter with the extraterrestrial goop, a doctor’s office attack and most memorably, the gooey assault on a packed movie house (screening the 1955 classic Daughter of Horror), an event revisited yearly at the annual Blobfest in Phoenixville, PA.