Master of the World, or 6,000 Feet in the Air

Vincent Price as Robur.

Jules Verne was a hot property in the late 1950s and 1960s, with movie theaters filled with big-budget adaptations of Around the World in 80 Days (1956), Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959), and Mysterious Island (1961). So, it was inevitable that American International Pictures (AIP) would mount its own Verne extravaganza in 1961 starring Vincent Price. As AIP movies go, Master of the World was a classier effort than usual with a literate script by Richard Matheson and decent special effects.

Set in 1868, it opens with the "eruption" of The Great Eyrie mountain in a small Pennsylvania town. John Strock, an agent for the Department of Interior, enlists the aid of two balloonists to investigate the mysterious incident (townsfolk also reported hearing the "voice of God"). As their balloon nears the mountain's crater, it is seemingly shot down from the sky and crashes. 

Strock (Charles Bronson) and the others awaken aboard a flying fortress called The Albatross. The ship's commander is a pacifist called Robur (Vincent Price), who is willing to employ violence to bring peace to the world. He makes his intentions clear when--after warning a battleship to disarm--he destroys the ship and its crew. Can Strock stop Robur before others die in his path of destruction?

The flying fortress Albatross.

Although based on two Verne novels, Robur the Conqueror and its sequel Master of the World, Matheson's screenplay bears more than a passing resemblance to Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954). Both Robur and Captain Nemo want to end war, both live in fantastic vessels, and are threatened by survivors that they take aboard (portrayed by Bronson and Kirk Douglas, respectively). Whereas 20,000 Leagues employed a sea lion for comic relief, Master of the World uses a French chef!

Also, while Disney's film was a technological marvel for its time, Master of the World has to make do with a modest budget. The special effects range from serviceable (e.g, the Albatross) to woeful (e.g., the flat painting of The Great Erie). Obvious stock footage, mostly from The Four Feathers (1939), is used extensively.

Charles Bronson as the hero.

Vincent Price carries the film with his authoritative presence, whether playing the proud host to his guests or threatening war to end war. Bronson looks bored as the hero, but frankly it's not a well-written part. The rest of the cast includes Henry Hull as a balloonist (and arms manufacturer), Mary Webster as his adult daughter, and David Frankham as her hot-headed fiancé.

AIP considered making a Master of the World sequel at one point. Pre-production artwork exists for a movie titled Stratofin, which would have given Robur a new fantastical ship called The Terror. Alas, the idea was abandoned and we're left with this one and only outing with The Albatross.

Master of the World played frequently on local channels when I was a kid in the late 1960s and early 1970s. I hadn't seen for many years, though, until it popped up recently on a cable channel called ScreenPix.

Cloris Leachman Channels Garfield; Peter Graves Arm Wrestles Clint Walker

This post of part of the Cafe's Movie of the Week Blogathon. Please check out the other awesome reviews by visiting the blogathon schedule.

The hotel at the Portals of Eden.

Haunts of the Very Rich (1972). The opening scene introduces seven people who are en route to a paradise resort known as the Portals of Eden. The guests consists of: a bitter businessman (Ed Asner); a philanderer (Lloyd Bridges); a timid woman (Cloris Leachman); newlyweds (Donna Mills and Tony Bill); a priest who has lost his faith (Robert Reed); and a housewife recovering from a nervous breakdown (Anne Francis). When these seven people reach their destination, they are greeted by their host Mr. Seacrist (dressed in a white suit like Mr. Roarke). For a moment, I wondered if I was watching an early pilot of Fantasy Island.

Moses Gunn as the mysterious host.

However, things turn peculiar when the guests learn that there are no other vacationers and the staff understands but doesn't speak English. Mr. Seacrist (Moses Gunn) explains away these oddities--they are the first guests of a new season and a non-English speaking staff "works better that way." Still, when a tropical storm cuts off all communication with civilization, the Portals of Eden becomes downright ominous.

If you're familiar with Leslie Howard and John Garfield movies, then you've probably recognized this plot by now. Still, Haunts of the Very Rich keeps its big revelation in check for most of its 73-minute running time. It falters, though, near the end with a rambling speech by the otherwise fine Robert Reed and an esoteric jaunt through the woods by Bridges and Leachman.

Cloris Leachman and Lloyd Bridges.

As made-for-TV movies go, it's a strong cast with Bridges and Leachman the standouts as an unlikely duo who find love in the oddest of places. Leachman's character is the first to realize what has happened and the actress excels at slowly, hesitantly coming to grips with the reality of the situation.

Haunts of the Very Rich doesn't rank in the upper echelon of the ABC Movies of the Week, but it's worthy of 73 minutes of your time and you can watch it for free on YouTube.

Peter Graves as a former hunter.

Scream of the Wolf (1974). It's never good to get out of your car on an isolated road on a foggy night, so it's no surprise when something brutally kills a Los Angeles businessman. The sheriff of a nearby seaside community enlists the aid of writer John Wetherby (Peter Graves), a former big game hunter. They find wolf-like tracks around the corpse, but here's what's weird: the tracks change from a four-legged to a two-legged creature and then disappear!

When there's a second killing within a two-mile radius, John goes to see his old friend--and hunter extraordinaire--Byron Douglas (Clint Walker). Byron is an eccentric who specializes in making dramatic statements like: "Once an animal starts killing humans, it never stops" and "A good hunter is never sure of anything except that his prey will do the unexpected." Byron shows open disdain for John, whom he thinks has become weak ("You're only alive when you're in mortal danger").

Clint Walker arm wrestles Peter Graves.

The film's highlight is when Byron agrees to help hunt the animal if John, who once lasted seven minutes in an arm wrestling contest, can last just one minute this time. Peter Graves and Clint Walker in an arm wrestling contest? It just doesn't get much better than that, people!

Scream of the Wolf has an impressive pedigree with a script by Richard Matheson and Dan Curtis in the director's chair. The two were responsible for such enjoyable made-for-TV horror films such as The Night Strangler (1973) and the classic Trilogy of Terror (1975). Alas, Scream of the Wolf is not one of their better efforts.

Clint's impressive sideburns.

Yet, it does provide Clint Walker with one of his best roles. The success of his Cheyenne TV series typecast Walker as an understanding hero for most of his career (a notable exception was his convict in The Dirty Dozen). Scream of the Wolf provides him with a bizarre character and Walker has a grand time threatening wussies, spouting philosophy, and, of course, arm wrestling.

Plus, Clint sports some of the coolest triangular sideburns this side of Pythagoras. You can check them out because Scream of the Wolf is also available on YouTube.

ABC Movie of the Week: Tribes, Duel, and The Cat Creature

Tribes

Jan-Michael Vincent and Darren McGavin.

This incisive 1970 film about a tough Marine drill sergeant and a hippy recruit remains one of the best-remembered telecasts on the ABC Movie of the Week. Darren McGavin, in his finest pre-Christmas Story performance, stars as Gunnery Sergeant Drake, who informs his raw recruits: "I will be your father, your mother, your legal guardian, and your sister for the entire period you are here." His biggest challenge is Adrian (Jan-Michael Vincent), a high school drop-out who was drafted. To his surprise, Drake learns that Adrian is in the best physical condition and scored the highest on the aptitude tests of anyone in his platoon. While always respectful, Adrian remains a free spirit and--to Drake's dismay--even teaches meditation to his fellow recruits. Still, Drake sees potential in Adrian while the young Marine begins to struggle with his own identity. Made during the Vietnam War, Tribes straddles the fence politically by portraying both Drake and Adrian in a positive light. Indeed, the film's only misstep is the inclusion of another drill instructor (Earl Holliman), who takes an instant dislike to Adrian and becomes obsessed with "breaking" the young man. Holliman's character provides Tribes with a villain--when the movie doesn't need one. Tracy Keenan Wynn (Ed's grandson) and Marvin Schwartz won an Emmy for their original screenplay. A big ratings hit, Tribes was later released overseas as The Soldier Who Declared Peace.

Duel 

Dennis Weaver (with truck behind him).

This effective, if slightly overrated, 1971 made-for-TV thriller launched Steven Spielberg's career as a feature film director. The bare-bones plot concerns a businessman (Dennis Weaver) who encounters a crazy trucker while driving across the California desert. The trucker reacts angrily when Weaver passes him on the highway. One little retaliation leads to another, escalating to a deadly game of cat-and-mouse. By showing only glimpses of the big rig's driver, Spielberg turns the truck into the villain. In fact, much has been written about the similarities between the truck in Duel and the Great White shark in Jaws. Screenwriter Richard Matheson, who adapted his own short story, has said his inspiration was a real-life incident of "road rage." Weaver is adequate in the lead role; he's pretty much the only human character with any significant screen time. The story is by nature episodic, but the short running time helps hold viewer interest. Ironically, when the film earned critical raves, Universal had Speilberg shoot additional footage so a bloated 90-minute edition could be released overseas. Speilberg's follow-up was another telefilm, a haunted house tale called Something Evil (1972) with Sandy Dennis and Darren McGavin. It's not very good, though still interesting to compare to the later Poltergeist. After directing Savage, a TV pilot with Martin Landau, Spielberg moved to the big screen with Sugarland Express.

The Cat Creature

A shadowy feline presence.

When a thief removes an emerald amulet from an ancient mummy, he unknowingly releases a blood-seeking creature from 450 BC. A follower of Bast, the Egyptian goddess of cats, the creature drains humans of their blood as it seeks the amulet that will ensure immortality. This 1973 telefilm serves as an affectionate homage to the atmospheric Val Lewton thrillers of the 1940s. Director Curtis Harrington opts for subtle shadows instead of outright frights (though the close-ups of the creature's hypnotic cat eyes are rather disconcerting). The proceedings get a boost from the presence of classic-era performers who specialized in mysteries and thrillers: Gale Sondergaard (The Spider Woman); Keye Luke (The Charlie Chan films); John Carradine (House of Dracula); and Kent Smith (The Cat People). Heck, even Peter Lorre, Jr. has a small part. Of the contemporary cast, a brown-haired Meredith Baxter fares best as a young woman hired to replace one of the victims in Sondergaard's creepy store, The Sorcerer's Shop. Prolific author Robert Bloch, perhaps best known for writing the novel Psycho, penned the screenplay. Director Harrington made several interesting films, such as the offbeat Night Tide and What's the Matter With Helen?, but never achieved mainstream success on the screen. The Cat Creature is a modest, but enjoyable, horror film that earns kudos for taking a different approach. Perhaps I was a little sleepy when I watched, but I didn't figure the obvious twist until the final half-hour.

31 Days of Halloween: College Politics Take a Unexpected Turn in Burn, Witch, Burn

The film's alternate title is NIGHT OF THE EAGLE.

Richard Matheson and Charles Beaumont were frequent contributors to The Twilight Zone, being responsible for some of that series’ most memorable episodes. So, it should come as no surprise that their adaptation of Fritz Leiber’s novel Conjure Wife is a thoughtful, genuinely spooky excursion into the world of contemporary witchcraft.

Janet Blair as Tansy.

Peter Wyngarde plays Norman Taylor, an up-and-coming professor at Hempnell Medical College in a small English town. In fact, Norman appears to be the favorite to take over as chair of one of the most important academic departments. His male colleagues don’t seem to mind—they like Norman, some even admire him—but the wives of his peers are not pleased at all. They resent Norman and his attractive, intelligent wife Tansy, whom they dub “the newcomers.” Tansy (Janet Blair) is acutely aware of this resentment, noting that she doesn’t enjoy the weekly bridge night with “petty scholars and jealous bickering wives.”

But that’s the least of Tansy’s problems. You see, she dabbles in witchcraft—just a little here and there to protect Norman and bring him luck. Unfortunately, she has become aware of “other forces”—powerful, evil ones—intent on bringing harm to her husband. As for Norman, he is oblivious to all of this, having started his last lecture by scrawling on the blackboard: “I do not believe.”

For most of its running time, Burn, Witch, Burn (known as Night of the Eagle in Britain) places the viewer in the shoes of Norman: We start out as non-believers, but gradually encounter inexplicable events that compel us to re-evaluate whether or not we do believe. The only flaw in this otherwise intelligent exercise in suggestive horror is a climax that shows too much (and not in a convincing way as in Curse of the Demon).

Janet Blair, as the sympathetic heroine, anchors the film. She’s a marvel in my favorite scene, which takes place after the bridge party. As Norman plays frivolously with a deck of cards, Tansy senses the presence of evil in the room. She begins to search the den, slowly at first and then more frantically, explaining (badly) that she’s looking for a lost grocery list. When she finds a hidden evil charm, her subtle look of horror is perfectly realized.

The wonderful Kathleen Byron.

The rest of cast lends exceptional support, especially Margaret Johnson as a professor who is married to one of Norman’s colleagues. I only wish that Kathleen Byron, so brilliant as Sister Ruth in Black Narcissus, had more to do.

The academic setting, with the campus’s cold stone statues, contributes nicely to the atmosphere. One suspects, too, that Matheson and Beaumont were injecting some dark humor into the proceedings by suggesting that successful academic careers are a result of witchcraft.

Other versions of Conjure Wife pale beside this one. Lon Chaney, Jr. starred in Weird Woman (1944), an okay entry in the Inner Sanctum film series. Witches Brew (1980) was played for laughs, with Teri Garr as the bewitching spouse.

(Note: The U.S. version includes a prologue against a black screen in which Orson Welles discusses the history of witchcraft and casts a spell to protect the audience during its viewing of the film.)

31 Days of Halloween: Vincent Price Confronts a World of Vampires in The Last Man on Earth

As far as he knows, Robert Morgan (Vincent Price) is the only remaining human in a world destroyed by a plague of vampirism. Each night, a horde of the bloodsucking creatures gathers around his fortified house and cry out in hunger for the man inside. Morgan waits through the night and, when dawn comes, his daily routine begins.

He shops for canned goods at the empty grocery store. He selects a new car to replace the one damaged by the vampires. He broadcasts a plea for other human voices on a short-wave radio. He piles dead bodies into his station wagon and transports them to an open fire pit. Then, with his “chores” done, Morgan continues his systematic search of the city-- finding weakened vampires lurking in dark rooms and driving homemade stakes through their hearts.

This first adaptation of Richard Matheson’s terrifying 1954 novel I Am Legend was made in Italy on a shoestring budget. Price is the only English-language actor in the cast. But, despite its financial limitations, it remains an impressive work filled with compelling images. The scenes of the vampires pounding nightly on Morgan’s door foreshadow similar images in the better-known Night of the Living Dead (1968). There are also some genuinely frightening sequences, such as the one where Morgan falls asleep in a church, only to awake at sunset and struggle to reach the safety of his fortress home.

Some critics have carped that Price gives a hammy performance, but I don’t find that to be the case at all. In contrast, he comes across effectively as both driven and lonely. My favorite part of the film is the portrayal of Morgan’s daily routine, which Price describes in voiceover.

Allegedly, Matheson was not pleased with this adaptation of his novel, even though he had a hand in the script (he had his screenplay credit changed to Logan Swanson). I think it’s easily the best version of his book, although two remakes were produced. In The Omega Man, Charlton Heston portrayed the last man on Earth, but he fights mutants created by biological warfare. After several failed attempts to produce a big-budget version in the 1990s (Arnold Schwarzenegger was attached at one time), Will Smith headlined 2007’s I Am Legend. It does retain some elements from the original, though the creatures are not technically vampires. For all its pricey special effects and action sequences, I don’t think it’s nearly as chilling as The Last Man on Earth.