Mysterious Island - 1961

Needed some background noise today, so I put on a monster movie. Saw Herbert Lom and Ray Harryhausen in the credits and was excited. This is based on a Jules Verne book.

Some Union soldiers are prisoners during the Civil War. They escape in a hot air balloon with a Confederate soldier, and a storm takes them away. When they finally come back down to earth, they're on an island, and they're not anywhere near America.

What follows is the inhabitants trying to figure a way off the island. They're joined by a couple of women, and they seem to have a guardian angel. Getting off the island is going to be quite a chore, since there are random huge animals on the island.

Fortunately, the older snooty woman is good with a needle and thread. She's able to take goat skins and turn them into a skimpy outfit for her niece! That raised some questions. The woman was so straight-laced, it's hard to imagine her creating that outfit on purpose. Another thing - why didn't anyone get a sunburn?! And where did they go to the bathroom in the balloon? (I mean, the answer seems obvious, but it's just not practical when you witness the balance, or lack thereof, these men possess)

Some of these people were dumber than a box of rocks. If you've seen multiple unnaturally large animals, maybe don't follow the strange honey waterfall into the large cave. Also, this movie had a distinct lack of Harryhausen. I'm ignoring the birds at the beginning, they were awful, and the few Harryhausen things I did witness were just not enough. I was a fan of the bird, though. He was pretty cute.

There's a crossover here with one of Verne's other works, and I'm not going to spoil it. It had to do with Herbert Lom, and I kept wondering why I hadn't seen him in the movie yet.

I mourned the way Harryhausen and Lom were utilized in this film. I understand this was written at a time when science hadn't advanced to the point it is today, but even if I put that aside, some of the "inventions" were questionable. Maybe they stuck to the book (I have doubts  - I'll reserve them), but I just wasn't a fan. I think I'm going to go watch Clash of the Titans (1981) and The Pink Panther movies (Peter Sellers and my man Herbert Lom). They always cheer me up!

The Victors - 1963

When I'm not sure what to watch, I like to get on Tubi and scroll through the Leaving Soon category. Today, I found this movie and was intrigued by the description.

A group of U.S. soldiers go through the war together. The movie isn't focused on the war itself. It's more individual experiences. Mostly with women in places that have been cleared of the enemy. People react differently to what's happened to them, and this movie highlights the human collateral damage to war.

I was interested in this movie, but it was hard to watch at times. Most specifically, the dog scene. If you're a dog lover, just trust me, it's too sad. The women had a hard time of it, and I saw some extreme examples of it in this movie.

The film is based on a novel by Alexander Baron called The Human Kind. He based the series of stories on his real-life experiences. I was interested in the premise of the film, but I'm not sure the film delivered. I might try and read the book in the future. I did want to mention that I saw a bunch of familiar faces. My favorite one I recognized was George Peppard from Breakfast at Tiffany's. He had such a nice smile. I need to see what else he was in...

Anywho, the movie was okay. I don't think I would recommend it. It was such a roller coaster. I really liked a couple of the stories, especially the one with the sergeant checking out the house. But then I had to sit through the one with the dog, and the poor man who just wanted to find love. He found a couple of users and a stab wound instead. Sadness. The movie is going in the midrange category.