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Forbidden World , a review by Dragonfire

Forbidden World



On the planet Xarbia, an experimental life-form known as "Subject 20" has been created by an elite group of scientists in hopes of preventing a major galactic food crisis. However, instead of prolonging life, Subject 20 is destroying it, and the man-eating organism poses a double threat because it constantly changes its genetic structure. Bounty hunter Mike Colby is called in to investigate but soon suspects that the scientists are keeping something from him, and he discovers why ... Subject 20 is half-human!

My Thoughts

I'm still not sure if I ever saw any of Corman's movies before.  I know I've seem some lower budget movies with similar plots before, but I just can't remember for sure, even after watching this one.  A few scenes do look somewhat familiar.  After Jimmy started posting about Corman's movies being released this year, I read a little more about some of them.  The more I read, the more interested I got.  So I decided to pick up Forbidden World when I found it on sale at Amazon.

The plot is very thin, but it manges to be entertaining.  The script was written really fast, which is probably part of why the plot isn't stronger.  The movie was also filmed fairly quickly and sets used for Galaxy of Terror were reused for this one.  The first several minutes are a bit confusing with all the images shown.  After that part, things aren't as confusing and it is easy to follow what is going on.  The movie is just focused on the attempts to deal with Subject 20.  I'm thinking a few things that happen are intended to add complications, but they really don't.  Things happen at a fairly fast pace without making things feel rushed.

It is fairly clear that the movie was made with a limited budget.  The sets are fairly simple, with many of them having styrofoam food containers on the walls.  It is an odd look that somehow manages to look sort of futuristic.  The monster changes appearance throughout the movie and the effects for it are done well considering the budget.  I think some of the effects are created with makeup and puppets may have been used as well.  Those things do look good, especially the look of characters after being attacked by the monster.  Some of that is a bit gross looking, but it isn't that extreme.  There are some action scenes, though they mostly involve the monster attacking people.  This isn't an action packed movie, but the action that is in it does help to keep things interesting.  Things do get a bit gory in some parts.  There is a sex scene as well as a scene with two women showering together.  Those scenes don't add anything to what is going on, though some viewers will probably enjoy them.

The characters aren't that developed, but that didn't really bother me.  The women don't seem to be that bright, and they do a few stupid things.  The cast is fine, though the acting isn't exactly that great.

This movie does have issues with the plot, but that doesn't stop it from being a really entertaining movie.  It is cheesy at times, which works for what is going on.  The movie won't appeal to everyone, but I like it.  I'm glad I decided to get it.  It is just a fun, cheesy movie.



I did get a review posted on Epinions.

Forbidden World

(From Forbidden World on September 4th, 2010)

The War Wagon, a review by GSyren

Title	The War Wagon (5-050582-943320)
Director	Burt Kennedy
Actors	John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Howard Keel, Robert Walker,  Jr., Keenan Wynn
Produced	1967 in United States
Runtime	100 minutes
Audio	English DTS-HD Master Audio Mono, French DTS Mono, Italian DTS Mono, German DTS Mono, Spanish DTS Mono
Subtitles	English, French Italian, German, Spanish, Japanese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hungarian, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portugese, Russian, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Chinese
Overview	Two cinematic legends, John Wayne and Kirk Douglas, team up to seize a small fortune in gold in this action-packed western classic. Wayne plays Taw Jackson, a range-hardened rancher who's hell-bent on capturing the infamous War Wagon, an ironclad stagecoach protected by a small army of men and owned by a thieving cattle baron who robbed Taw of his gold and good name years before. To get even, Jackson recruits Lomax (Douglas), a brash gunslinger, and a raucous crew of misfits and readies them to pull off one of the most impossible heists of all time.
My thoughts	I must admit that The War Wagon surprised me a bit, because I had a mental picture of it being an older black-and-white movie. I don't know why. I may have seen a b&w photo from it a long time ago, or perhaps a clip or a trailer on b&w TV back in the late sixties. Anyway, seeing that it was in widescreen and color was a pleasant surprise. John Wayne and Kirk Douglas has great chemistry in this film. Howard Keel as an indian? Awkward casting is you ask me. Bruce Cabot makes a good villain, and Keenan Wynn is believable as a greedy old codger. Bruce Dern has a small role, too. Director Burt Kennedy was good at making these kind of westerns that don't take themselves too seriously. And he does a good job here, too. There are some really well done matte paintings by Albert Whitlock, but if you watch closely when the bridge is blown up the registration is not perfect and it becomes evident that the bottom part with the chasm is a matte painting. A fun western, and it looks and sounds really good on this region free UK release. Highly recommended.
My rating

(From Reviews and ramblings by Gunnar on January 19th, 2014)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

Ultraman: The Complete Series (1966/Japan) IMDb | Wikipedia Mill Creek Entertainment (United States) Length: 960 min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, Japanese: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles: English

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Plot:
When the world is threatened by alien invaders and giant prehistoric monsters, there is only one agency equipped to handle the situation, The Science Patrol, and ultra-sophisticated police force equipped with high-tech weaponry and spacecrafts. Led by Captain Muramatsu, the team defends the planet from the unknown. When all their weaponry can't stop their foes, one of their members, Hayata, transforms into the giant superhero from Nebula M7B...Ultraman!




Ultraman
Season 1.01 Ultra Operation #1

An unintentially funny series. The toy like model shots are a riot. And how it is supposed to be in an old Japanese series, we have a guy in a Godzilla like monster suit. Ultraman also transforms into monster size, and we can see two men in a rubber suit wrestling
Also the title song for some reason is just fun listening to.
This is a Mill Creek Entertainment release. I bought this 39 episode series for just under $10. It contains both an English dub and the original Japanese audio track with English subtitles.

Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on November 13th, 2012)