Indestructible Man

Low budget; simple dialogue; filmed in shades of black and white; this is a great example of those early Sci-fi/horror flicks that entertained our imaginations. The body of a violent criminal, 'Butcher' Benton(Lon Chaney Jr), is accidentally brought back to life and the speechless bad man is determined to kill the three people responsible for his ride in the electric chair. Many close ups of Chaney's raised eyebrows and grimacing face. Marion Carr plays the killer's love interest. Three well traveled character actors(Max Showalter, Ross Elliott and Joe Flynn) provide support. This is really fun to watch.

MORD39 RATING: **1/2 out of ****

I'm partial to this guilty favorite since I saw it hundreds of times as a youngster on television. Even so, it's just plain fun as Lon Chaney knocks off the traitors who sent him to death with their treachery. The L.A. locations are terrific, and the Dragnet-style narration adds spice to the proceedings. It's speedy and nostalgic, very much a "fifties" film.

As for the Roan DVD, I'm sorry to say that it has not been restored and is a disappointment. I have had much trouble acquiring the "perfect" version of this film, even though I've had it on VHS from FOUR(!) different companies, as well as on TNT. Some day I hope this personal fave of mine will get a clean and proper transfer on disc.

INDESTRUCTIBLE MAN stars Lon Chaney Jr. as Charles "The Butcher" Benton, who is sentenced to die in the gas chamber, after being double-crossed by his former partners in crime. This was a bad idea on the part of these crooks, since Benton is miraculously resurrected through mad science! This turns him into the invulnerable, unstoppable entity of the title, hellbent on tracking down his old "pals"!

Since Benton has been rendered unable to speak, we mostly get a series of silent, grimacing closeups of Benton and voice-over narration by Lt. Dick Chasen (Casey Adams), the cop on the case. The rest is mostly Benton's killing spree, as he bumps off anyone attempting to keep him from completing his mission.

EXTRA BONUS POINTS FOR: #1- The "battle in the sewer system", complete with a bazooka and flamethrower! #2- The "jolting" finale!

A very entertaining slab of 1950's super-cheddar!...

I viewed this film recently for the first time in many years, then went to the IMDb to see what other viewers had to say about it. I was pleased to learn that many feel the same way as I do about this film; that it is entertaining and holds up well within the limits of it's time and 1950's B film genre. In case you are unfamiliar with the storyline: A small time hoodlum known as `The Butcher' (Lon Chaney, Jr.) is executed for a crime his underworld companions set him up for. A bizarre scientific experiment brings him back to life via a massive dose of electricity, which destroys his vocal cords but makes his skin impenetrable, thus becoming the `Indestructible Man.' The story revolves around the Butcher seeking revenge on those who double-crossed him and a zealous police lieutenant chasing he and a missing $600,000 down, with said policeman, (the versatile Casey Adams), falling in love with the Butcher's would-be love interest, (Marion Carr). The Indestructible Man reminds sci-fi fans of Them!, as much of the action takes place in Los Angeles' massive sewer system. This is not the best film to come out of it's era, but it was not meant to be. I would say it rates in the top half of it's class. The editing is a little weak, but there are some good 1950's era location shots of downtown LA which should be of interest to historians, plus it contained some interesting players. Casey Adams, AKA Max Showalter, is not generally known to the viewing public but appeared in hundreds of film and television programs throughout his lengthy career. Joe Flynn had an interesting bit part as the lab assistant, this coming several years before McHale's Navy fame. Female lead Marion Carr should have had a more successful career, as she was very attractive with a pleasing screen personality.

Of course, Lon Chaney, Jr. was the lead. In 1956, he still looked fit and menacing. It would not be long until his well documented personal troubles would diminish him physically and professionally. All in all, a solid effort by director Jack Pollexfen. View this one when you have a chance. It is interesting and will be time well spent.

This is another one of these "not bad" sci-fi/horror/crime/drama/whatever you want to label it 1950s B-films.

The cast actually has some fine actors, men like Casey Adams who starred in "Niagara" with some no-name dames called Marilyn Monroe and Jean Peters, and Lon Chaney, a familiar name among fans of this genre.

The is the tried-and-true revenge story. In this case, a man who is executed is taken from a mortuary to a scientist's lab where the doctor is experiment on cancer research. That doctor, by the way, is another familiar face - that of Inspector Henderson of Superman television fame (Robert Shayne). Oh, the assistant is Joe Flynn, also of TV fame (McHale's Navy.) I'm telling you, this had a pretty good cast.

Well, Charles "The Butcher" Benton (Chaney) is brought back to life, much to the surprise of the doctor and his assistant. "The Butcher" then shows his gratitude by killing those two guys and then grabbing a car and hightailing it from San Francisco down to Los Angeles. He's searching for his shyster lawyer and two other gang members who turned stoolie on him. His mission: kill those three guys.

I won't give away the rest but it's enjoyable to watch to see the "B" floozies in here and the generally schlocky-like story. It's a low-budget fun movie. Yet, despite all that, when it was all over - frankly - I thought this film could have been better, even on a small budget. I wonder if anyone else feels that way.