ALL SCI-FI

[Bud Brewster]

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An amazing movie from Bert I. Gordon, chock-full of surprisingly good special effects by Bert and Flora Gordon.

The viewer is treated to giant ducks, dogs, tarantulas, and under-dressed teenagers -- the latter of which are also giant. This is, without question, the most outrageously sexy sci-fi flick of the 1960s — in fact, it's downright racy for its time.

The first 15 minutes contains sexy title work with bouncing teenage girls writhing in slow motion to a pulsing, sensual rock tune that sounds like what Mr. Hyde would use to get in the mood for really nasty stuff.

Immediately after the provocative titles, a group of juvenile delinquents jump out a car and start dancing in the pouring rain — wet girls in thin shirts and tight pants. They end up making out while they roll around in the mud!

Musical numbers by The Beau Brummels, Freddy Cannon, and Mike Clifford are preformed during the first half of the film, always accompanied by dancing, jiggling teenagers in scanty attire!

The tongue-in-cheek story goes like this: boy-scientist Ronny Howard invents a pink goo that turns both animals and people into giants in just ten seconds. He accidentally creates a pair of giant ducks that later wander into the local teen hang-out and start dancing to the rock music (a funny scene).

Eventually the gigantized ducks are barbecued at a poolside party. Beau Bridges and a band of obnoxious teenagers wander into the small town after wrecking their Thunderbird just outside of town, and they steal some of the goo in hopes of getting rich . . . but then they decide to eat it instead. (The scene is actually an effective comment on peer pressure and drug abuse.)

The teens burst out of their clothes (more sexy scenes), and then decide to take over the town!

Tommy Kirk plays a level-headed teen who leads the local kids against the giant teen terrorists. When the over-sized delinquents confront the normal teens, they start dancing to the sexy title theme again, and a luscious blond (Joy Harmon, the car-washing goddess from "Cool Hand Luke") picks up Johnny Crawford and makes him cling to her halter straps while she bounces him up and down on her breasts!

Oh heck, just watch it with this YouTube link. Words aren't enough for this erotic masterpiece.







The climax is a David-and-Goliath showdown between Kirk and the giants. Watch for singer-dancer Toni Bassil (hit record: "Hey, Mickey") as Red, a go-go dancer providing a distraction for the giant boys during an attempt to rescue a few hostages.

In a nice sci-fi "in" joke, one of the giant teenagers is shown reading a miniature copy of Famous Monsters of Filmland with a cover that features the monster from "War of the Colossal Beast" — another Bert I. Gordon movie!

Gordon filmed a serious version of the H.G. Well's classic "Food of the Gods" in 1976, starring Marjoe Gortner, Ralph Meeker and Ida Lupino, with several creatures designed by Rick Baker. But it wasn't as much fun as this movie, for obvious reasons.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[scotpens]

After giving us giant spiders, giant grasshoppers, and a giant cyclops, Bert I. Gordon presents the most terrifying monsters of all -- GIANT TEENAGERS! Oh, the horror . . .

[Bud Brewster]

I think Joy Harmon is considered the Queen of Tease — though I can't imagine why in view of the fact that her career has been limited to dramatic roles in grim movies like Cool Hand Luke.

Who can forgot the moving social statement Miss Harmon made with this dramatic performance?



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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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Enjoy Miss Harmon's wonderful acting in Cool Hand Luke.

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_____________ Joy Harmon in Cool Hand Luke


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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Thinking Outside the "Plot"!
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The H.G. Wells novel (which I read in high school) doesn't acknowledge several serious flaws in the concept of 40-foot human beings. We all know that the larger man or animal gets, the more its body has to deal with the increased weight and the strain this puts on the bones and organs.

But Wells' novel suggests that the giant people consider themselves to be the future of mankind, as if being larger somehow made them superior. However, in what manner they'd be superior is never explained.

Oddly enough, the comical Bert I. Gordon movie includes a humorous reference to the actual problem a race of giant humans would pose.

Food!

Humans who are 40-feet tall would need copious amounts of food — not only because they're larger, but also because the energy they'd use just to move their heavy bodies around would be much greater than a normal person.

In Village of the Giants we see the normal-sized people having to bring huge amounts of food to the giants.

In a world of oversized people — even just twice the normal size — there would be no way to feed the population. And making food animals larger wouldn't help the situation, because we'd have to produce much more food for them as well!

~ A Question for the Members: Why did Wells not realize that a book about a food substance which made human 600% larger than normal should have been about the ecological disaster it would cause?

~ My Theory: Okay, I admit it. I got nothin' on this one . . .

(Come on, guys! I’m asking a question. Now it’s YOUR turn. )
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)