John Brinkley Movies

A fine example -- perhaps the best available -- of "B"-movie overlord Roger Corman's "Weekend Wonders" from the producer/director's early career (see also the original Little Shop of Horrors), this horror-comedy was also the first of beloved actor Dick Miller's dozen-odd portrayals of the character Walter Paisley. A geeky waiter and busboy at a happening Beatnik café, Walter is intensely jealous of the swinging social lives of the artistic types who hang there. A bizarre twist of fate changes everything; when Paisley accidentally kills his landlady's cat, his frantic attempts to hide the body lead him to encase it in a layer of clay, creating a morbid sculpture -- which is eventually discovered and hailed as an artistic triumph by the unwitting Bohemian art crowd. (When asked what he's named the piece, the befuddled Walter stammers, "Uhh... Dead Cat?") Beset by numerous requests for similar "truthful" works, the moronic Paisley is forced to find inspiration -- a matter which is readily solved when a nosy undercover cop tries to slap a heroin-possession charge on him and finds himself on the business end of a cast-iron skillet. Before long, the creative urge prods Walter to narrow the competition by whacking his peers with various blunt or sharp implements, and the demand for more sculptures just keeps growing. Miller's tour-de-force performance, writer Charles B. Griffith's hilarious "Daddy-O" dialogue, and Corman's emphasis on the story's more lurid aspects raise this bargain-basement production (ultra-cheap even by Corman's standards) to classic status. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

In this wartime adventure, four courageous Seabees infiltrate a Japanese-controlled island to find a place to build an air-strip. A beautiful jungle lass helps them navigate the dense forest and blow up an enemy transmitter. The flight back to their boat is not without casualties. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this violent drama, a young juvenile delinquent gets into more trouble when he gets involved with a gang that steals auto parts and resells them on the black market to pay for their beer parties. It looks as if he might actually turn his life around after he meets a good-hearted woman, when he decides to run a final game of chicken against a juvenile delinquent girl who gets killed in the ensuing crash. The terrified boy then takes his girlfriend and splits. He is later shot-down by the police. Later the authorities learn that the boy was set upon his crooked path by policemen who beat him when he was younger. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Wanting to cash in on the launching of Russia's Sputnik satellite, director Roger Corman hastily made this Earthlings vs evil aliens space opera. The trouble begins when an extraterrestrial warns humans that any attempt to send a man into orbit will result in the destruction of the planet. Despite his threats, the stubborn U.N. agrees that Mankind must not be stopped and so call in a prominent astro-scientist to begin preparations for the first manned space flight. Unfortunately, he is killed in an accident. Eventually another scientist is given the task. Just before the launch, the supposedly dead scientist (actually his alien-reanimated corpse) shows up with dire warnings. Even though it is suspected that the recently returned researcher is a zombie, he is allowed on the first flight. Once in the air, he tries all he can to sabotage the mission. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The Teenage Doll in this Roger Corman-directed "J. D." opus is a little number named Barbara (June Kenney). Basically a good girl, she falls into bad company when she impulsively decides to rebel against her parents. It isn't long before Barbara accidentally kills her tough-babe romantic rival (Barboura Morris), whereupon she is pursued all over town by femme gang leader Hel (Fay Spain) and her henchgirls (Barbara Wilson, Ziva Rodann). Barbara runs to her punk boy friend Eddie (John Brinkley) for protection, setting the stage for a climactic rumble. And remembers, kids: This could happen to you, so keep your record clean and stay home nights! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide