Classic Sci-Fi Ultimate Collection 1 & 2 (Tarantula/Mole People/Incredible Shrinking Man/Monolith Monsters/Monster on the Campus/Dr. Cyclops/Cult of the Cobra/Land Unknown/Deadly Mantis/Leech Woman)

Classic Sci-Fi Ultimate Collection 1 & 2 (Tarantula/Mole People/Incredible Shrinking Man/Monolith Monsters/Monster on the Campus/Dr. Cyclops/Cult of the Cobra/Land Unknown/Deadly Mantis/Leech Woman)
Studio: Uni Dist Corp. (mca) Release Date: 05/13/2008 Rating: Nr
Customer Review: The big, the small, the lost and the shifty
In the early days of talkie films, many of the major studios carved out their own niches: MGM did the spectacular movies and the musicals, Warner Brothers did the social issue and gangster movies and Universal did the monster movies. By the 1950s, Frankenstein and company were generally played out, so Universal switched from the supernatural to the "scientific" monsters. These films were for the most part B-movie fare and generally fun, but also formulaic enough to merit parody, most notably on Mystery Science Theater 3000. In fact, at least three of the ten movies in The Classic Sci-Fi Ultimate Collection were redone on MST3K. These ten movies fit into four categories, each with two or three films: the big, the small, the lost and the shifty. The "big" films deal with oversized monsters: Tarantula, The Monolith Monsters and The Deadly Mantis. Tarantula, one of three in the set directed by Jack Arnold (of Creature of the Black Lagoon fame) deals with an oversized arachnid that terrorizes a small town. Guns can't stop it, dynamite can't stop it: is the world doomed? B movie stalwart John Agar leads the cast, while Clint Eastwood appears briefly in one of his earliest roles (His first role? A cameo in Revenge of the Creature (not part of this set)). The Deadly Mantis (parodied on MST3K) features a thawed out giant insect that heads south from the Arctic. The Monolith Monster feature the monster that is simultaneously the most interesting and the most boring: giant rocks that tear up the landscape and multiply when wet. The "small" films are the closest to classics in the bunch. Dr. Cyclops is unique in this set for three reasons: it is not only the only one not made by Universal (but by Paramount instead), it is the only one not made in the 1950s (it was made in 1940) and it is the only one in color. The story focuses on the title character, a mad scientist who creates a device that can shrink animals, including some people who get too close to his secrets. The Incredible Shrinking Man has the title character facing doom as he gets smaller and smaller, ultimately winding up in mortal battle with a spider. The "lost" films deal with lost worlds. The Mole People (another MST3K victim) has archaeologists (including future Ward Beaver Hugh Beaumont) finding an ancient Sumerian civilization living underground. They are distrusful of outsiders, but are so sensitive to light that a flashlight is blinding and sunlight can kill. The Land Unknown has a group of people finding a lost world in Antarctica, complete with dinosaurs and carnivorous plants. The "shifty" movies deal with people transforming into beasts. In Monster on the Campus, the main character changes into a primitive savage after being "bitten" by the fossil of an ancient fish. In Cult of the Cobra (the one really supernatural movie in the bunch), some ex-soldiers run afoul of the title group, which sends a woman after them, one who can transform at will into a cobra. Finally, The Leech Woman has a middle-aged woman who can turn young briefly, but only if she kills. Despite being another film that MST3K spoofed, it does stand out in one respect: it stars B-movie beauty Coleen Gray. While the actresses in the other films are little more than eye candy who scream at appropriate times, Gray is exceptional in her more human character. It is little wonder that Gray is the only actress in the set to have a decent career (including films like Kiss of Death, Nightmare Alley, Kansas City Confidential and The Killing). It'd be a little much to say these are great movies, but they are all fun to watch. The low-budget effects, the cheesy writing (except for the Richard Matheson penned Incredible Shrinking Man) and the often wooden acting do not hurt these films but somehow enhance them. There aren't many extras (only movie trailers), but this is still a nice set, and with no movie topping 81 minutes, these films are quick and entertaining.
Customer Review: Great Deal. You Can't Go Wrong.
There is no much to add to the existing reviews. It is just a great collection.