Customer Reviews

Icons of Horror Collection: Sam Katzman (The Giant Claw / Creature with the Atom Brain / Zombies of Mora Tau / The Werewolf)

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Most Boomers already know why they love these particular flicks, so I'll get right to the important stuff: The Giant Claw, The Werewolf and Zombies of Mora Tau are all in the Anamorphic widescreen format (Creature with the Atom Brain is fullscreen). All the prints are sharp with crisp soundtracks. This is really a long way from all the poor bootlegs and cable copies that many Boomers were forced to live with for so many decades.

Although these films are important to many who grew up with them, either seeing them during their first runs in the movies or later on Chiller Theater, some newer viewers may not see them in the same light (many younger people won't bother watching them for the simple fact that they're not in color). But then again, these newer viewers will never know of that magical time when these flicks were lighting up the huge screens in Movie Palaces and Drive-In theaters throughout the country.

It will be the true enthusiasts of this genre who will see this set as a home run, especially at these prices. Kill the lights, then hold tightly onto your honey and enjoy!

I'm still in the second childhood phase and looking for all the old movies I watched as a child. This collection features some of the movies that I watched on those long ago Saturdays. While not great they are very fun and in some cases very funny.
1.The Giant Claw= The last word on monster fx's. You can see the strings and the "bird" looks laughable, but the movie is still great fun if you let it be.
2.The Werewolf= An "atomic" twist on the old werewolf legend and really pretty good
3.Zombies Of Mora Tua= Silly and very funny.
4.The Creature With The Atom Brain= Brain dead fun
Not for all taste but some fun for anyone who loves these old cheesy movies like I do.

My dad took me to the movies back in the 1950's when "The Werewolf" and"Creature with the Atom Brain " were in their first run theatrical release. After seeing "Creature" this 8yr old boy was afraid to go to bed.
It haunted me for a long, long time. When I saw it again as an adult those childhood chills came right back. Glad these classics are getting a top notch release replacing the terrible copies made from poor prints.

I am happy to review this box set of delicious Turkey for everyone who loves old B horror and sci-fi movies. These 4 films are making their debut on DVD and were never released on VHS for that matter. The Prints are very clean with excellent audio so this set is a dream come true for fans of the genre. The set includes

The Werewolf 4 stars
A very good werewolf film

The Giant Claw 4 stars
Hysterical giant bird from outer space!
This one is worth the price alone.

Creature with the Atom Brain 3 stars
Silly fun sci-fi revenge!

Zombies of Mora Tau 3 stars
More silly fun...a total crack up!

Extras include:
Very clean prints of the trailers for each film and extra trailers.
Midnight Blunders short (I never saw this before) Very Good! it reminded me of the 3 stooges.
Mr. Magoo cartoon Terror finds Magoo
Sinister series episode 2 of Mysterious Island

Considering the great transfers and extras/trailers, you can't go wrong for the price! This is the best turkey I've had in years!

Now it's time for some classic Turkey with Ed Wood!

Are you pondering the question: Who is Sam Katzman and why is he an icon of horror? Sam was a producer of B movies. He was the one who introduced Col. Tom to the idea of cranking out cheaper Elvis movies with "Kissin Cousins" and "Harum Scarum." He also made a few Ray Harryhausen films. He cranked out Rock Around the Clock and Twist Around the Clock. He coined the term "Beatnik." He produced over 200 movies during his lifetime. This collects 4 of his scary flicks

THE GIANT CLAW (1957),
THE WEREWOLF (1956),
ZOMBIES OF MORA TAU (1957)
and CREATURE WITH THE ATOM BRAIN (1955).

Seeing these four films again, which were TV staples when I was growing up, makes me realize just how much I miss the drive-in theatres that they were made for. They not only provided cheap entertainment and a place to be alone with your certain someone but they also gave filmmakers the opportunity to make a wide variety of movies with limited resources. Scorsese, Coppola, and Spielberg first cut their teeth on films like these as viewers and then later as burgeoning low budget filmmakers.

Today no one cranks out films with the speed and efficiency that producer Sam Katzman did in the 50s and early 60s and that's truly a shame. Between 1955 and 1961 Katzman's Clover Productions turned out an astonishing 36 films for Columbia Pictures many of them directed by the two men represented here Fred F. Sears and Edward L. Cahn. Look them up on imdb for a complete listing of their films many of which are drive-in classics but too numerous to go into here.

Sears has the distinction of having the best and worst films in this set with THE WEREWOLF a surprisingly moody and moving film and THE GIANT CLAW with the worst giant monster ever. The poor actors never saw the creature until after it was added in which is why they treat it so seriously whereas the bird itself seems a deliberate parody of bad special effects.

"Fast Eddie" Cahn as he was known in the trade shoots his two films CREATURE WITH THE ATOM BRAIN and ZOMBIES OF MORA TAU with as few edits as possible in order to economize and that makes them very interesting to watch if you're aware of this. CREATURE is the better film with a few genuine shocks and interesting technology while ZOMBIES seems a dry run for Cahn's cult classic INVISIBLE INVADERS a few years later.

To add to the fun Sony has thrown in trailers, a 1930s Columbia comedy short, and even a Mister Magoo cartoon. All the materials are beautifully transferred and you can't beat the price for what you get. Just like the drive-ins were in real life. Too bad they're a thing of the past but with this set you can certainly get a feel for what it was like. Pizza slices, cotton candy, and hot dogs are not included.

I am thrilled to have all these films on DVD at last, but the main reason I bought it was for THE WEREWOLF. Opinions on the other films may differ (I personally think ZOMBIES OF MORA TAU is vastly underrated and is a great early entry in the zombie genre--it may seem silly now but it sure didn't then!), but few would deny that THE WEREWOLF is a terrific film. I saw it when it first came out, double-billed with EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS. I was 10 at the time, and had already seen all sorts of horror films, but none of them scared me. My parents weren't sure I should see this film, but I insisted. They were right--this movie scared the hell out of me, as no film had before or has since. I had nightmares for weeks.

I watched the film many times during the next 10 years, first at matinees, then on the late show (it used to be a staple of late-night horror broadcasts). Then the film virtually disappeared, until recently when TCM showed it now and then. Although the movie doesn't have quite the same impact on me today as it did when I was 10, I still think it's damn scary. And now FINALLY it's available on DVD.

Although the transformation scenes and the werewolf's appearance are frightening enough, the great things about this film are the acting (Steven Ritch in the title role gives a wonderful performance), the plot and script, and the location photography. Also, it's one of the first films to combine horror with sci-fi. And it's played straight--there's none of the silliness and self-parody that mars more recent entries in the werewolf genre.

I urge everyone who loves werewolf movies to check this one out. And remember--in its day, this was one terrifying film!

So, just who the heck is Sam Katzman, anyway? Most boomers will remember these flicks from late-night "Creature Features" or Saturday afternoons with Sir Graves Ghastly, but never associated them together, much less with a specific producer. But Katzman was an old hand by the time these were made. He was the man who got Johnny Weismuller out of the leopard skin and into the safari gear as "Jungle Jim". He's generally credited for coining the term "beatnik". He did the "East Side Kids" movies, including two with Bela Lugosi. He was also the producer for two early Ray Harryhausen flicks, "It Came From Beneath the Sea" (with the lovable six-armed octopus) and "Earth vs the Flying Saucers". He even did a couple of Elvis pics: "Harum Scarum" and "Kissin' Cousins".

These four are from 1955-1957. "Creature with the Atom Brain" (1955) has an ex-Nazi (wow, were these guys into *every*thing!) creating atomic-powered zombies, complete with glowing serum in their veins. These middle-aged creeps stalk their victims to help a typical crime lord take over the city. They're hard to spot, except for the flip-top skulls. Story by Curt Siodmak, who sure came a long way downhill from his brilliant "I Walked with a Zombie".

The following year (and 10 movies later!), "The Werewolf" jumps out. No full moon needed here - he's a radioactive werewolf! (See a trend?) Poor guy gets in an auto wreck and some helpful docs fix him up with an experimental serum. You can guess the rest.....

"Zombies of Mora Tau" is certainly original - these zombies are amphibious! They're the remains of a ship's crew, guarding a treasure of diamonds in the underwater wreck. These dudes are the original "Terminators" - shooting, stabbing, or whapping them in the skull with a board: makes no difference, they keep a'comin'.

And maybe the most (in)famous of all: "The Giant Claw", whose monster was so over-the-top ludicrous that it couldn't be featured on the film's poster. A giant, anti-matter, butt-ugly space buzzard from another galaxy! Play the "Giant Claw" drinking game at your own risk: every time someone says "flying battleship", it's down the hatch. May be extremely hazardous to your physical AND mental health.

Most people of a "certain age" will remember one or more of these from their heyday on TV. In spite of three different directors and (at least) four writers, all have a goofiness factor that only Ed Wood comes close to. Earnest, fast-paced, and always entertaining, these are great reminders of the time when Hollywood was cranking out flicks at a frantic pace and wasn't totally dependant on mega-bucks blockbusters. The sets are usually claustrophobic, 75% of the film seems to take place at night or in pitch-black settings (except for "Claw"), and the "plots" are beyond unbelievable. In short - sit back and enjoy!

I absolutely love this set. Though I must admit the name Sam Katzman was largely unfamiliar to me, I had previously purchased Sony's "Icons of Horror--Boris Karloff" collection, and was thrilled with that. This set did not disappoint, as I had indeed seen all of these films many times on TV in my youth, and watching them again now has been like welcoming old friends into my home.

The most amazing thing about this set is the quality of the film transfers to DVD--pristine and magnificent, these movies have never looked so good! As an example, I was watching "The Werewolf" last night and just could not BELIEVE the picture quality--I was floored, it literally looks brand new! The prints of these movies shown on TV in the past have been downright murky--"Zombies of Mora Tau," in particular, always looked so foggy/hazy/grainy it was actually difficult to tell what was going on! No longer--these prints are clear as a bell--and it's like seeing them with a new set of eyes!

Sony, PLEASE keep up the good work, these "Icons of Horror" (and now "Icons of Adventure" -- equally awesome!) collections are really among the industry standards relating to transfer quality of older low-budget films which normally would have been overlooked--very impressive. I see that the next "Icons of Horror" will be released in October (2008), and will include Hammer films such as one of my all-time favorites, "The Gorgon." A wonderful way to celebrate Halloween this year!

Wow! This is a GREAT DVD! I've been a Sam Katzman fan since way back! The Giant Claw is classic everyone should own. When I was a little kid, these movies scared me to death. And my older brother didn't make it any better by scaring me even more. My brother recently came for a visit and he was surprised that I had this collection of horror movies. Sure they're funny to us now but as a kid . . . they were really scary. He did admit that the Zombies of Mora Tau scared him as a kid! Anyway it was fun to watch our old favorites together once again . . . as adults! If you love the classic horror flicks, this is one to own!