THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD

"Watch the skies, everywhere! Keep looking.

Keep watching the skies!"

Based on the novella, "Who Goes There?", by Don A. Stuart (a pseudonym for John W. Campbell), RKO's THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD released on April 7, 1951, is recognized as one of the great science fiction films of the 1950s. It grossed $1,950,000 and out-performed two other scifi classics released that year, THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL and WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE. Cited by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant", in 2001 it was selected for preservation by the United States National Film Registry.

The crew get their first look at The Thing.

The film was shot at Glacier Nation Park in Montana, the Ice & Cold Storage Company in Los Angeles and RKO's Encino Ranch. It has the distinction of being one of the earliest stunts where the stuntman was engulfed in flames. The familiar last line of dialogue in the film, "Keep watching the skies!" has since entered into the lexicon of UFO and extraterrestrial enthusiasts.

The Thing is destroyed by electrocution.

The six-foot-five James Arness had yet to become famous as Dodge City's Marshall Matt Dillon in TV's GUNSMOKE when he played the role of The Thing. It took makeup artist Lee Greenway two hours to turn the actor into a menacing alien. This was after two months of experimentation (see photos in article below).

This widely-reproduced publicity photo was not released until the 1980s.

And one more thing: it scared the stuffing out of a certain young monster kid. I mean, come on, that giant, lumbering thing turned out to be a plant! How creepy is that?

This exceptional article by the late cinephile George Turner from CINEFANTASTIQUE July-August 1982 provides a detailed background of the picture in a retrospective published over three decades later.

DON'T LOOK IN THE WITCH'S MIRROR!

“Chano Urueta’s The Witch’s Mirror is an exercise in pure cinema, in which countless allusions to previous movies and a virtual catalog of special effects techniques are used to illustrate a delirious tale of witchcraft vs. mad science.”

- David Wilt, editor, The Mexican Film Bulletin

So far as I can recall, I was somewhere between 10 or 12 when a very strange movie on one of the L.A. weekend afternoon TV horror shows was broadcast. Until then, I was mostly familiar watching the gothic fare of Universal's monster movies and the giant bug and science-fiction films of the 50's. But this one had a decidedly different feel to it.

It was called THE WITCH'S MIRROR and in later years I learned that it was one of the Mexican imports that producer K. Gordon Murray had obtained and dubbed in English for marketing to U.S. audiences. One thing is for sure, despite an attractive blonde running around in her nightgown, I thought it was creepy as hell and scared the dickens out of this monster kid. That was it, and it remained an occasional memory as I came across a still in a monster magazine or other reminder of its unsettling effect on me.

EL ESPEJO DE LA BRUJA as it was titled in the original 1962 Spanish language version is heavily influenced (if not outright lifted) by Georges Franju's EYES WITHOUT A FACE released two years earlier in 1960. The plot is also similar to THE HANDS OF ORLAC (1960) with Mel Ferrer and Christopher Lee, which was essentially a remake of the 1924 silent film, as was Karl Freund's MAD LOVE (1935), starring Peter Lorre and Frances Drake.

The story is a mash-up of the supernatural, mad science, gruesome medical transplants, murder and revenge with a generous helping of the occult and black magic to boot.

"A benevolent witch (Isabela Corona) enchants a magic mirror to protect her adopted daughter Elena (Dina de Marco) from her cruel husband (Armando Calvo). When the incantation fails and the girl is murdered, the witch vows revenge using every unholy principle of the supernatural that she can conjure." [Source: Casa Negro/Panik House Entertainment DVD]

Abel Salazar.

Filmed during what has since become known as the "Golden Age" of Mexican cinema, THE WITCH'S MIRROR was produced by Cinematográfica ABSA, a film company owned by actor Abel Salazar, who released seven full-length horror pictures from 1957 until 1963, including EL VAMPIRO (THE VAMPIRE, 1957)  EL HOMBRE Y EL MONSTRUO (THE MAN AND THE MONSTER, 1958, EL MUNDO DE LOS VAMPIROS (THE WORLD OF THE VAMPIRES, 1961), LA MALDICIÓN  DEL LA LLORONA (THE CURSE OF THE CRYING WOMAN, 1961) and perhaps his most well-known film here in the States, EL BARON DEL TERROR (THE BRANIAC, 1962).

Chano Urueta.

The director was the praised Chano Urueta (b. Santiago Eduardo Urueta, alt. Santiago Eduardo Urueta Sierra), who had previously helmed horror films such as PROFANACIÓN (1933), EL SIGNO DE LA MUERTE (1939) EL MONSTRUO RESUCITADO (THE REVIVED MONSTER, 1953) and LA BRUJA (THE WITCH, 1954) from a script by Alfredo Ruanova and Carlos Enrique Taboada.

"Based on a script by Carlos Enrique Taboada—later widely known for his own horror tetralogy, which culminated with the Ariel Award winner Poison for the Fairies (1984)—The Witch’s Mirror is an endlessly suggestive, cleverly film-literate supernatural chiller from pioneering director Chano Urueta (The Great Champion). A whiplash-inducing cross between Rebecca, Eyes Without a Face, and The Hands of Orlac, set inside a nondescript hacienda in Mexico, the film concerns a housekeeper/witch (Isabela Corona) who concocts a beyond-the-grave revenge scheme after her goddaughter is murdered by her philandering doctor husband… who experiments on corpses. Making the absolute most out of a modest budget, Urueta constructs an increasingly unsettling film with unhinged twists and profound ideas concerning fate and societal standards of beauty." [From the Film at Lincoln Center website]

CAST

• Rosita Arenas - Deborah (once married to Abel Salazar; also starred in THE AZTEC MUMMY and THE CURSE OF THE AZTEC MUMMY in 1957, THE ROBOT VS. THE AZTEC MUMMY in 1958 and THE CURSE OF THE CRYING WOMAN in 1961).
• Armando Calvo - Eduardo Ramos (a Spanish actor who specialized in leading man roles).
• Isabela Corona - Sara (a popular actress during this period).
• Dina de Marco - Elena (an actress and film director)
• Carlos Nieto - Gustavo (appeared in THE BRAINIAC in 1962)
• Alfredo Wally Barrón - Inspector (had a long film career, appearing in many horror films including HOUSE OF TERROR in 1960 with Lon Chaney, Jr., THE WORLD OF THE VAMPIRES in 1961 and several Santo movies.

Jorge Stahl Jr.'s cinematography and Horacio Calvillo's lighting set-ups contributed greatly to the eerie atmosphere and deep shadows that permeate the film. Jorge Stahl Jr. photographed other genre features including the U.S.-released animated dinosaur movie set in Mexico, THE BEAST OF HOLLOW MOUNTAIN (1956), THE REVENGE OF THE CRYING WOMAN (1974) and the controversial SATANICO PANDEMONIUM (aka LA SEXORCISTA, 1975).

Production designer Javier Torres Torija and set decorator Dario Cabañas created a number of moody sets, including the gothic-influenced interiors and a foggy graveyard. The makeup was created by María del Castillo and Teresa Sánchez was the hair stylist. Composer Gustavo César Carrión rounded out the production with a brooding music score befitting the story.

One of Goya's drawings used in the pre-titles sequence.

A pre-titles sequence opens the film (cut from the U.S. release), with a voice over against a series of Spanish artist Francisco Goya's witch images. The narrator intones:

“To use their diabolical powers, witches resort to special potions, brooms, skeletons of children and animals, every kind of untanned hide, flasks and vessels of every shape, secret powders and dreadful poisons, and an infinite variety of lethal herbs. All this is used by an average witch. But only a superlative witch, endowed with a genuinely profound knowledge of the occult, can make use of a magical object of infinite powers and properties… the mirror!”

In 2005, Casa Negra Entertainment released the first of their Mexican horror series distributed by Panik House Entertainmnt, THE VAMPIRE COLLECTION, a two-disc DVD set featuring EL VAMPIRO (THE VAMPIRE, 1957) and EL ATAÚD DEL VAMPIRO  (THE VAMPIRE'S COFFIN, 1958).

In their few short years of business, Casa Negra released a total of ten DVD's, including THE WITCH'S MIRROR in 2006. You can bet that when I found out about that, I ordered a copy ASAP and watched it soon upon arrival. While it didn't give me goosebumps like it did when I was younger, I still thought that it was worthwhile seeing it again after all those years.

Sadly, the following year, Casa Negra folded, leaving behind two un-released titles, WORLD OF THE VAMPIRES and THE LIVING HEAD. Synapse Films acquired the last of Panik House's inventory in 2009 and the remaining copies have all been sold since then.

VARIETY (AUGUST 22, 1962)

MEXICAN LOBBY CARDS:

PRODUCTION STILLS:

SCREEN SHOTS [from BluRay.com]:

TRAILER:

EXTRA!

Powerhouse Films, Inc.'s Indicator label has a U.S. version of their Blu-ray box set containing THE VAMPIRE and THE VAMPIRE'S COFFIN, which have been remastered and restored and jam-packed with extras.

From Powerhouse Films/Indicator:

El Vampiro: Two Bloodsucking Tales from Mexico (US Limited Edition Blu-ray)

Director: Fernando Méndez

Cast: Ariadne Welter, Abel Salazar, Germán Robles

El Vampiro: Two Bloodsucking Tales from Mexico brings together two atmospheric and terrifying classics of Mexican Gothic, directed by Fernando Méndez (Black Pit of Dr. M), and starring Ariadne Welter (The Panther Women, Untouched), Abel Salazar (The Curse of the Crying Woman), and, in a star-making turn, Germán Robles (The Brainiac).

In The Vampire (El Vampiro, 1957), the beautiful, bereaved Marta (Welter) travels with Enrique (Salazar) to her ancestral home. There, the mysterious neighbour Duval (Robles) offers to buy her decrepit hacienda. However, Duval is really Count Karol de Lavud, a vampire whose aim is to drain Marta of her blood in order to revive his entombed brother.

In the sequel, The Vampire’s Coffin (El ataúd del vampire, 1958), grave robbers bring Lavud’s corpse to Enrique’s city hospital, where Marta now works as a nurse. Duly re-animated, Lavud sets about his bloody plan to make Marta his bride.

Pre-dating Hammer’s Dracula by a year, The Vampire’s uniquely Mexican take on vampire mythology was the first to give its antagonist elongated fangs, and its success kick-started Mexico’s horror boom. Restored from the original negatives, these films finally receive their world Blu-ray premieres in this individually numbered Limited Edition two-disc set, complete with new and archival extra features, and a fully-illustrated 80-page book.

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION 2x BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES

• 4K restoration from original camera negatives of The Vampire by Labo

• High Definition remaster from 2K scans of The Vampire’s Coffin by Alameda Films

• Original Spanish mono soundtracks

• Alternative English soundtracks on both films

• Audio commentary with el vampiro himself, Germán Robles (2007)

• Interview with Claudia and Rosa Salazar Arenas (2024): chef Claudia Salazar Arenas and screenwriter and actor Rosa Salazar Arenas remember their father, the legendary actor and producer Abel Salazar

• Interview with Abraham Castillo Flores (2024): the film programmer, curator and Mexican horror cinema expert delves into the life and career of the mesmerizing actor Carmen Montejo and her co-stars Ariadne Welter and Alicia Montoya

• Interview with Juan Ramón Obón (2024): the writer shares memories of his esteemed father, the prolific screenwriter Ramón Obón

• Interview with Roberto Coria (2024): the horror cinema and literature specialist examines the life and career of actor Germán Robles and the representation of the vampire myth in Mexican cinema

• Interview with Elisa Lozano (2024): the film historian and curator discusses the works and impact of the revered production designer Gunther Gerzso

• Original theatrical trailers

• Image galleries: promotional and publicity materials, and The Vampire's Coffin French photo-novel

• New and improved English translation subtitles

• New English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• Limited edition exclusive 80-page book with new essays by Jesús Palacios and David Wilt, archival essays by Eduardo de la Vega Alfaro and Carmen A Serrano, cast interviews, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits

• World premieres on Blu-ray

• Limited edition set of 8,000 units for the UK and US

ROCK MEN AND A GIANT SPIDER ON THE MOON!

We all know that 50's sci-fi movies don't have to be good to be fun. Case in point: Astor Pictures' 1958 MISSILE TO THE MOON didn't win any Academy Awards, but it sure is an entertaining romp. A re-working of CAT WOMEN OF THE MOON which was released five years earlier in 1953, it's another one of those astronauts travel to a planet and meet up with babes and BEM's movies.

Interestingly, the movie starts out with a discussion between Dirk, a scientist (Michael Whalen), who has built a rocket ship on his own dime and an Air Force colonel (Henry Hunter) who claims that a private space mission is not allowed (echoes of "We're the government and we're here to help"!). Dirk sends him packing and plans for an immediate take-off. Then the cops show up and want to search the grounds and the missile because there are two escaped cons (Gary Clarke as Lon and Tommy Cook as Gary) in the area. The search comes up empty as Lon and Gary have hidden themselves inside the ship. When Dirk enters the ship, he discovers the cons and, ahem, cons them into helping him launch! Meanwhile, the main character, Steve (Richard Travis), who has assisted Dirk and his love interest, June (Cathy Downs), end up inside the craft because they have noticed something is amiss and enter to investigate.

Well, the ship takes off and Dirk dies from a knock on the head from some dislodged equipment (it turns out later that he is actually from the moon [!] and was on his way back from earth, which explains the building of the spaceship). Despite the problematic elements of science, the surviving party lands on Luna and suit up to explore. Not long after, they are menaced by giant rock men! They escape into a cave and find signs of life -- which ends up being a group of women (a cast of international beauty contest winners!) lead by "The Lido" (K.T. Stevens). Drama ensues as the oxygen inside the cave is running out. June is tied up by a jealous denizen and left as a snack for a giant spider until she's saved. The group manages to escape, but not before they are once more attacked by the rock men. Gary the Con brings up the rear with two bags full of diamonds that he has purloined from the cave. While trying to avoid the rock men, he makes the fatal mistake of backing out into the direct sunlight where he is summarily fried to a crisp. The rest of the crew board the ship and take off back to earth while the cave-dwelling women are left to their doom.

A posed publicity photo from MISSILE TO THE MOON.

Not yet a full-fledged Monster Kid, I watched this on TV and was terrified of the giant spider, but even more so by the rock men (who resembled a black and white Gumby without eyes), mainly because they were just plain weird.

The director of this drive-in sci-fi favorite was Richard E. Cunha, who also helmed the low-budget GIANT FROM THE UNKNOWN (1958), SHE DEMONS (1958) and FRANKENSTEIN'S DAUGHTER (1958). The cast did a fair job of keeping the film from being too ridiculous. Richard Travis appeared in the cult film, MESA OF LOST WOMEN (1953). Cathy Downs starred in a number of other monster movies, including THE AMAZING COLOSSAL MAN (1957), THE SHE CREATURE (1956) and along side Michael Whelan in PHANTOM OF 10,000 LEAGUES (1955). Gary Clarke was Michael Landon's teenage werewolf replacement in the fabulous, HOW TO MAKE A MONSTER (1958) and appeared in 45 episodes of the popular western TV series, THE VIRGINIAN. Makeup was by Harry Thomas, who also worked on PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE (1957), THE UNEARTHLY (1957), THE LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (1960) and HOUSE ON BARE MOUNTAIN (1962).

The budget was so low ($65,000) for MISSILE that director Cunha explained: "The money was so meager on that film it was just impossible to create the proper atmosphere for a spaceship, although I think, on the money we did have, the interior of the spaceship worked well. It included many pieces of grip equipment, as I recall, and we used a big dimmer bank for some of the controls on the missile. We just scraped together whatever we could make do, and that's all there was. There was X number of dollars, and you don't run over on these."

Regarding the wire-controlled giant spider used in the film, Cunha said: "That spider was in Universal's prop shop, and it was in terrible disrepair. We just managed to put it together the best we could. As I recall, we paid practically nothing for it, and they were kind enough to let us use it." Some sources say that it was the same prop that was used in TARANTULA (1955).

The rock men were left to the imagination of special effects man Harold Banks, who ended up making them from sponge rubber with plaster slathered on. Stunt "monsters" were stationed inside these stone "Gumbys" on location at Red Rock Canyon, NV (other sources cite Vasquez Rocks in CA) during the hottest part of the summer. Cunha said: "It took a while for the plaster to dry with them in there! They'd be yelling, 'Get us out of here, get us out of here!' That was very, very difficult for them to do that sort of thing, but they were all good guys. We laughed over a beer about it later." Fortunately, the shot took only one day.

In 2007, the film was released in color -- but no thanks, I prefer my 50's sci-fi movies in good ol' black and white!

The giant spider!

The rock men!

Gary the Con gets fried in the sun!

The title card.

The cast of the Moon Women.

MISSILE TO THE MOON Trailer:

MISSILE TO THE MOON full movie: