BLOG # 6 ----------Supernatural Theater showcases THE HEAD with Horst Frank, and
TIME BOMB starring Curt Jurgens & Mylene Demongeot.
Up first, one of the weirdest films of all time!
TIME BOMB starring Curt Jurgens & Mylene Demongeot.
Up first, one of the weirdest films of all time!
Catchline ---THIS IS IRENE, WHO WEARS HER OWN FACE AND THE BODY OF A DEAD STRIP TEASER !!! THE BODY IS GONE, BUT THE HEAD LIVES ON !!!
Now there's truth in advertising!
Filmed in eerie & creepy Black & White.
THE HEAD
A HEAD FOR SATAN
Starring HORST FRANK
KARIN KERNKE, MICHEL SIMON, CHRISTIANE MAYBACH, & DIETER EPPLER.
Directed by Victor Trivas
Produced by Wolf C. Hartwig & Rapid Film ---- Germany 1959
Just had to write about it here. Get ready, this has one strange, hokey plot.
Professor Dr. Abel is soooo smart (How smart is he? ). He invents a machine to keep a dog's head alive without the body, using his new potion, Serum Z.
Well he's not that smart, cause he has a soon to be fatal heart condition. He should have lost a few pounds, work out at the gym, and stop smoking.......ah well I digress.
Professor Dr. Abel is soooo smart (How smart is he? ). He invents a machine to keep a dog's head alive without the body, using his new potion, Serum Z.
Well he's not that smart, cause he has a soon to be fatal heart condition. He should have lost a few pounds, work out at the gym, and stop smoking.......ah well I digress.
He finds one ultra weird, Dr. Ood. Yes, Dr. Ooooood. Played by ultra weird, great character actor, Horst Frank. A genius orphan named after the ocean liner that his family died on, the SS. Ood. Makes perfect sense. Dr. Ood knows how to work with separating heads (where did you advertise for this job Dr. Abel?) so when Abel has the final thrombow, Dr. Ood does a whack job, and hooks him up to that Serum Z stuff. Saving Abel from death,
but creating a living death.
but creating a living death.
See the creepy pictures, and more story below.
Dr. Ood is just "oodles" of fun!
Dr. Ood is just "oodles" of fun!
Creepy Dr. Ood above, and the soon to be bodyless Dr. Abel (Michel Simon) below.
Now back to the show-----Dr. Abel has some other weird assistants, one being his sweet and hunchbacked nurse, Irene Sanders. Very sweet, caring, and loyal, but a sadly deformed lady. One assistant thinks the operation was morally wrong. Moral free Dr. Ood kills him, and sticks him in the backyard. Like the cops would never, ever look there.
Then poor old Dr. Abel wakes up and realizes he's not ahead in this whole situation. A 24 hour, constant perpetual nightmare.
Could you imagine?
Now after all this heady stuff, the over stimulated Dr. Ood takes in the strip show to relax at the local sleaze stripper club called the Tam Tam. (What?) He actually knows the sexy stripper named Lily (Christiane Maybach), from the past. She was Stella back then and she
poisoned her soon to be ex-husband. Ex, the hard way.
poisoned her soon to be ex-husband. Ex, the hard way.
Ood did facial surgery on her to help her escape. He doesn't care that Lily/Stella has a drunk, artist boyfriend named Paul (character actor Dieter Eppler) that hangs around the strip joint.
Naaa. He just has the hots for her, and makes the play for her.
Blackmail helps his flirting technique.
Tam Tam strip club scene.
Shot cut from the US release. Remember it was 1963. But Europe didn't mind.
Italian poster below.
Catchline --- It just won't lay down and stay dead!
Dr. Ood gets all warmed up over the all new & improved Irene. He doesn't mind the big scar around her neck. He sure liked her figure when it was on Lily. Attack!!!! Major date rape.
Poor Irene escapes and is drawn to the strip club. Deja vue. She meets Paul & they go gaga over each other. Love blossoms. Awww. Paul finally wakes up to fact that this girl's body looks verrrry familiar, even down to her moles, freckles, and.............
Could you imagine?
Told you this is one weird flick!
All hell then breaks loose, and Ood is given the Nobel Peace Prize.
(No, I wanted to see if you're still awake). We then have the fierry finale of The Head!!!
Then she discovers the dead Lily's boxed up stuff, and then she realizes (!?!).
(Irene is played by Karin Kernke. She also co-starred in the Edgar Wallace krimi,
The Terrible People written about here at Supernatural Theater)
This film is pure, enjoyable psychotronic trash, with one of the weirdest plots conceived. This was inspiration for the American film, the Brain that Would Not Die. I love the total atmosphere with the set design & lighting. From the foggy, creepy mist, to the sleazy strip club, to the mysterious lab building. Even the entry door is strange.
The music is also murky, and eerie.
The music is also murky, and eerie.
The Head is certainly worth a viewing.
Easily available on cheap DVD, transferred from a 16mm film print.
Released in the US in 1963 by Trans Lux, double billed with Horror Hotel (blogged about here previously). Trans Lux's big TV release was Speed Racer (Go Speed Racer Go!!!).
German article above. Spainish poster lobby card, and German ad below.
Horst Frank was a internationally well known character actor with 163 credits to his name.
Known for playing villians in many Euro spy films, mysteries, & westerns.
Three notable films of his --- Cat o'Nine Tails, 13 Days to Die, and Vengeance of FuManchu.
(Cat & 13, I've written about here at Supernatural Theater)
Horst Frank was a internationally well known character actor with 163 credits to his name.
Known for playing villians in many Euro spy films, mysteries, & westerns.
Three notable films of his --- Cat o'Nine Tails, 13 Days to Die, and Vengeance of FuManchu.
(Cat & 13, I've written about here at Supernatural Theater)
Window card from France/Holland release.
Micel Simon got top billing over Horst Frank in that release.
Next up here at Supernatural Theater-------
Tick, Tick, Tick !!!! --- Will the ship be blown to smithereens???
TIME BOMB
THE WIND RISES
ONE MUST TRY TO LIVE
Starring CURT JURGENS, and MYLENE DEMONGEOT
Daniel Sorano, Andre Dalibert, Daniel Gobin, Jess Hahn
and Raymond Loyer, and with Alain Saury
Directed by Yves Ciampi
Photography -- Armand Thirard
France 1958. US release 1961.
This is not a Supernatural film by any stretch, but practically a LOST one.
Very rare and obscure in today's world.
In my various entries here, I have talked about collecting film prints as my hobby.
Actually, my film collecting hobby was a pleasant addiction.
Time Bomb was the first feature that I bought on 16mm film way back 46 years ago.
It is still very sentimental to me. I still have that film print today.
This title finally got a DVD release in the US using my 16mm print
to transfer from, just a few years ago.
I'm happy my print helped get it released on home video.
Otherwise this would be a real "lost" film in America.
In the US, tons of TV & release prints were dumped or destroyed back in the
sixties and seventies.
Film collectors like myself grabbed them up, but most film prints were destroyed for film scrap. The reclamation of minerals in the film stock.
Many old films were also destroyed when storage warehouses were emptied out.
Curt (Curd) Jurgens plays Eric Muller, a retired merchant marine captain, that falls for the young and beautiful Catherine Mougin (Mylene Demongeot). She and her lazy, party hearty brother Michel (Alain Saury) will lose their dead father's cargo ship business if something doesn't change and change fast.
Zero work, and being 100% spoiled will do them in.
They try to talk Eric into being Captain on their oldest ship, the Volturnia, replace a cargo with sawdust, set off a time bomb, sink it, and the 3 will split the insurance money.
Then Eric (at 43) & Catherine (21) can live and love in pure bliss. Ok, sure.
But you can't blame Eric.
C'mon, he's been out to sea a long time, and just look at Catherine. She is hot!!!
Can 'ya blame his middle age hormones from flying??
Eric accepts their crooked offer.
Then Eric (at 43) & Catherine (21) can live and love in pure bliss. Ok, sure.
But you can't blame Eric.
C'mon, he's been out to sea a long time, and just look at Catherine. She is hot!!!
Can 'ya blame his middle age hormones from flying??
Eric accepts their crooked offer.
He has a bomb made by his old WWII buddy, takes charge on board of this broken down tub, and goes out to sea from Germany to France. Now the bomb's timer is ticking away!!!
After an explosion blows a hole in the ship.......... Oooops. No spoilers here.
*****
Now available on DVD, transferred from a rare 16mm print from my collection.
The Captain and his old WWII bomb making friend.
The Captain and his old WWII bomb making friend.
Lazy, spoiled brother & sister = Time Bomb!
Catherine wanted the Captain to stay for the night after her 21st. birthday party.
Obviously he stayed. --- Would you blow up a ship for her????
My answer----- BOOOOOM!!!
My answer----- BOOOOOM!!!
If he hits 3 times at the shooting gallery, they will win from the bomb plot, be rich & together.
The 3 hits metaphor shows up at the finale, with a good ending.
Catherine's bum of a brother Michel, is about to sink his new Mercedes for the insurance.
She stops the car, gets the real message, and realizes she really does love the Captain.
Original French poster art. Great poster!
Mylene Demongeot as the beautiful Catherine.
Poster from the release in Spain.
The Captain calculates for the bomb to explode near an area where old WWII mines were.
The insurance company would have to pay up.
They would assume that the ship strayed into mine filled waters, and hit one.
The Captain calculates for the bomb to explode near an area where old WWII mines were.
The insurance company would have to pay up.
They would assume that the ship strayed into mine filled waters, and hit one.
Merchant Captain Muller meets part of his new crew.
Will they make it, with the ticking Time Bomb aboard??
The timer is all ready to set off the explosives to blow a hole in the outer hull.
The Captain wants to push the speed of the old ship so he can get to the bomb's detonation area
as soon as possible. It's hard on the steam engine's crew, and on the old engines too.
They make it to the zone early, just what Muller wanted.
So Muller thanks his crew for their hard work with a bottle of cognac.
Originally Captain Muller wanted to stay distant & cold with the crew members.
He was only in it for the money. But later, he still proves himself as a devoted Captain.
His cunning and quick thinking are a big part of the finale.
The First Officer Laurant (Raymond Loyer) finds the hidden worthless cargo of sawdust while inspecting the cargo holds for shifting crates. He then suspects the Captain is crooked.
A large explosion suddenly rocks the ship, and seawater floods the steam engine area.
The engines fail, allowing the ship to drift out of the shipping lane into a
large mine field leftover from the war.
Men are trapped and burned.
But what caused the explosion?
Failure of the steam engines? Striking a mine? Or the bomb going off?
Muller has big decisions to make -- fast.
The WWII bomb maker Mathias (Daniel Sorano), an old war buddy of the Captain, set the bomb down deep in the ship's inner hull.
Will they make it, with the ticking Time Bomb aboard??
The timer is all ready to set off the explosives to blow a hole in the outer hull.
The Captain wants to push the speed of the old ship so he can get to the bomb's detonation area
as soon as possible. It's hard on the steam engine's crew, and on the old engines too.
They make it to the zone early, just what Muller wanted.
So Muller thanks his crew for their hard work with a bottle of cognac.
Originally Captain Muller wanted to stay distant & cold with the crew members.
He was only in it for the money. But later, he still proves himself as a devoted Captain.
His cunning and quick thinking are a big part of the finale.
The First Officer Laurant (Raymond Loyer) finds the hidden worthless cargo of sawdust while inspecting the cargo holds for shifting crates. He then suspects the Captain is crooked.
A large explosion suddenly rocks the ship, and seawater floods the steam engine area.
The engines fail, allowing the ship to drift out of the shipping lane into a
large mine field leftover from the war.
Men are trapped and burned.
But what caused the explosion?
Failure of the steam engines? Striking a mine? Or the bomb going off?
Muller has big decisions to make -- fast.
Will it be a happy ending for Catherine?
MY RATING ---- B+
Solid acting, great shipboard, and location filming make this a very watchable film.
Viewing it today, makes this 1958 film seem like a period piece. But it still works.
Mylene Demongeot and Curd Jurgens are great to watch.
This film is an oldie.....but goodie.
Original window card poster from France & Holland.
If you just couldn't place Curt Jurgens, his biggest role was in one of the biggest Bonds,
If you just couldn't place Curt Jurgens, his biggest role was in one of the biggest Bonds,
THE SPY WHO LOVED ME in 1977, where he played 007's enemy, Stromberg.
The film's catchline --- It's the biggest. It's the best. It's Bond and beyond!
The film's catchline --- It's the biggest. It's the best. It's Bond and beyond!
Various Now & Then photos of the ever beautiful Mylene Demongeot.
Yes, I'm a big fan. Mylene, if you ever read this, please email me.
Yes, I'm a big fan. Mylene, if you ever read this, please email me.
Not all sex symbols lose their beauty & talent!! Mylene Demongeot is in her 70's now.
She still looks great, and still busy performing. Plus she released her memoirs.
72 films in her career.
Besides Time Bomb, Mylene co-starred in OSS-117 Mission For A Killer filmed in Brazil.
You can't beat both views in Rio from that restaurant table.
Mylene and the panoramic Sugar Loaf mountain view.
Mylene in print ads for Lux Soap in France.
Italian & French posters above.
Italian Insert, & the US release one-sheet poster from 1961. 27x41".
German ad, & Spanish poster below.
German ad, & Spanish poster below.
Advertising copy from the film's Pressbook.
Allied Artists US release 16x36" insert poster, and French publicity.
I end this blog entry with a beautiful studio portrait of Mylene Demongeot.
_______________________________
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YOU CAN READ MY OTHER BLOG ENTRIES IN THE ARCHIVE (to the right).
EDDIE CONSTANTINE FILMS FEATURED IN BLOG #19.
BLOG ENTRY #20 ---- HORROR CASTLE and CASTLE OF BLOOD.
SEE YOU NEXT TIME !!!