Jean Moorhead Movies
- 1959
In this run-of-the-mill western, one of the few films directed by producer Wallace MacDonald, a rancher has been falsely accused of murdering his wife and escapes from prison to seek revenge. Robert Knapp is the rancher Gil Reardon who knows that the saloon owner Ben (Walter Coy) and his cohorts are responsible for his wife's violent death. After he escapes from a New Mexico jail, Gil is helped by a Native American woman (Jana Davi) to cross the desert and arrive back home in Laredo, though that does not happen without incident. All that remains is the final showdown. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Knapp, Jana Davi, (more)
- 1959
Seasoned serial director Spencer Gordon Bennett helmed this story of a one-eyed, octopoidal space alien, wreaking havoc upon atomic subs at the North Pole. The monster is determined to take over the world, though it seems ill equipped for that purpose. Heroes Arthur Franz, Dick Foran, and Brett Halsey head underwater to neutralize the alien's submerged flying saucer. The cast is peopled with such veterans as Tom Conway, Bob Steele, Victor Varconi, Selmer Jackson, and Jack Mulhall. Movie buffs may wish to take note of the exterior scenes in Atomic Submarine; several of them are played out in front of the easily recognizable studios of Allied Artists, formerly Monogram and later the home of LA's PBS channel 28. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arthur Franz, Dick Foran, (more)
Attack of the Puppet People is one of the few "mad scientist" opuses of the 1950s to be motivated by loneliness rather than megalomania. John Hoyt plays Franz, a seedy European doll-maker who harbors a crush on his secretary Sally (June Kenney). When Sally makes plans to marry Franz' top employee Bob (John Agar), strange things begin to happen. Before long, both Bob and Sally have been shrunken to doll-size by Franz, who keeps a retinue of living "puppet people" to avoid being left alone. Eventually, the little ones rebel against their addlepated but basically harmless keeper, though there's never any "attack" per se. Most of the acting is amateurish, with the exception of the always reliable John Hoyt; the special effects are somewhat better, but still nothing to write home about. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Agar
- 1957
The title tells practically all in the American-International exploitationer Motorcycle Gang. The film's main conflict arises from the rivalry between "good" cyclist Randy (Steve Tyrrell) and his "bad" counterpart Nick (John Ashley). Recently released from a jail term, Nick forces Randy (who received probation for the hit-and-run accident which landed Nick in the slammer) into a clandestine race. Despite the fact that he's a "clean" cycle-hog who likes to keep on the right side of the law, Randy agrees to the race, with near-disastrous results. One of the featured cycle punks is played by Carl Switzer, who despite his raffish appearance still closely resembles the "Alfalfa" character he'd essayed in the Our Gang comedies. Motorcycle Gang was released on a double bill with Sorority Girl. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anne Neyland, Steve Terrell, (more)
- 1957
A "Shock Theater" perennial since it was first released to television in the early 1960s (stretch-framed to pad out its running time), The Amazing Colossal Man is firmly in the "So Bad It's Good" category. While overseeing the atomic tests in the Nevada desert, Army colonel Glenn Langan is exposed to extensive amounts of radiation. As a result, Langan grows, and grows, and grows, at the rate of ten feet per day. This sudden height gain adversely affects the poor man's mind, and soon he's as mad as a hatter. Looking for all the world like Mr. Clean in a diaper, the Colossal Man goes on a murderous rampage, laying waste to several Las Vegas landmarks before he is killed by army bullets while standing atop the Boulder Dam. The special effects are adequate, but the dialogue is ridiculous-in fact, if we didn't know better, we'd say that the film was intended to be funny. Our favorite bit: the huge hypodermic needle. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Langan, Cathy Downs, (more)
Parental neglect is firmly to blame in this low-budget potboiler scripted by the immortal Edward D. Wood Jr. Paula Parkins (Jean Moorhead) is a spoiled rich girl who turns to kicks when her parents become too engrossed in their careers and charity work. She leads a gang of similar-minded young ladies who rob gas stations and attack teenage couples parked in lovers' lanes (even sexually assaulting a hapless young romeo). Paula's father is the editor of the local newspaper and has inside information on the police's plans to catch the mysterious gang, so they stay one step ahead of the law thanks to dad's unknowing complicity. After a necking party with some gangsters, the girls pull a job for a local female crime boss who wants them to break into the high school and wreck a few classrooms. The reason why is never adequately explained (to the girls or to the viewer), but they take to the task with relish until the police arrive and all hell breaks loose. Tragedy ensues in the form of gunshot fatalities, car crashes, and death by childbirth behind bars. ~ Fred Beldin, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Moorhead, Barbara Weeks, (more)
The life story of West Point athletic director Marty Maher was the inspiration for John Ford's The Long Gray Line. Told in flashback, the film recalls the first days at the Point for Irish immigrant Maher (Tyrone Power), a pugnacious boy who can't seem to fit in with the institution's regimen of unquestioning discipline. Athletic director Ward Bond takes a liking to Maher and arranges for the young man to become his assistant; Bond also plays Cupid between Maher and Irish maidservant Mary O'Donnell (Maureen O'Hara). When Mary's baby is stillborn, the Mahers begin to regard the West Point cadets as their surrogate children: this eventually leads to the film's most touching scene, in which Mary bids farewell to her son-substitute as he marches off to World War II. Following Mary's death, Marty stays on at the Point, until the place seems somehow incomplete without his presence. On the occasion of his forced retirement, Maher gently pleads with one of his former students--President Dwight D. Eisenhower--to permit him to remain at his post (Ike is played by Harry Carey Jr. in his early scenes, and by the voice of Paul Frees in the wraparound White House scenes). Based on Marty Maher's autobiography, The Long Gray Line seems at first glance too leisurely for its own good, but this appealing film gradually grows on its audience--just like Marty Maher himself. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tyrone Power, Maureen O'Hara, (more)
- 1954
Like so many other films that were once considered "lewd" and "scandalous", The French Line seems as harmless as Pollyanna when seen today. Essentially a remake of The Richest Girl in the World, the film stars Jane Russell as Mary Carson, an incredibly wealthy Texas oil heiress. Lucky in investments but unlucky in love, poor Mary can never keep a fiance: either they're fortune-hunters or they don't want to marry anyone so rich and powerful. Thus, while on an ocean voyage to France, Mary poses as the model of dress designer Annie Farrell (Mary McCarthy), hoping to attract a man who is interested in her for herself, and not her millions. That man turns out to be dashing stage star Pierre (Gilbert Roland), but there's many comic complications and misunderstandings before the happy ending. What shocked the censors in 1954 was Jane Russell's sizzling musical number "Lookin' for Trouble", in which she performed an uninhibited bump-and-grind while wearing nothing more than a seven-ounce glorified bikini. While Ms. Russell herself was offended by her skimpy costume, she saw nothing wrong with the dance itself, pointing out that she intended it as a parody of a "burleycue" number. The professional blue-noses disagreed, however: the film was condemned by the Catholic Legion of Decency and denied a Production Code Seal. Eventually, producer Howard Hughes got the Seal--along with a million dollars' worth of free publicity, which is what he intended all along. Filmed in 3D, The French Line is the film that was ballyhooed with the classically tasteless ad campaign "J.R. in 3D--It'll knock both your eyes out!" ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Russell, Gilbert Roland, (more)
