The Adventure of the Sinister Scenario: Ellery Queen (1976)

 

So it is time for our annual Vincent Price film or TV episode.

I love Vincent Price and I can’t resist anything he is in. I was trying to decide on a film or TV episode, but this Ellery Queen episode intrigued me as I needed to fill a Friday TV show spot, because this episode looked fun, and I couldn’t resist adding another Sleuth to my “mysterious” year.

Mystery, you say?

So I have never read an Ellery Queen mystery or watched this TV show-but I do know who Ellery Queen is. In the Leverage episode “10 Little Grifters” Nate dresses up as him and the first time I saw that episode I had to look up who Ellery Queen is. Ellery Queen is actually similar to Diagnosis Murder, but backwards. Inspector Richard Queen is a renowned detective and his son a famous crime writer, who helps his father solve the really tough cases. (Like how Steve Sloan is a detective and his doctor father, Dr. Mark Sloan, solves all his tough cases).

So I found this episode on youtube and it was a lot of fun watching it as it had the original commercials that it aired with. So enough about that, let’s get started.

It has an old CREST commercial, I can’t believe these girls are fighting over which toothpaste to use. I wouldn’t care what my friends would want. I don’t think I even know what brand they use.

The episode starts off with them filming a scene from an Ellery Queen murder mystery- like how most end, when the director yells cut. The director is played by Vincent Price, I’d know his voice anywhere. I’d listen to him read a phonebook.

The Vincent Price, director Michael Raynor, isn’t happy and I don’t blame him. The guy playing Ellery Queen stinks, like he’s the literal worst. Meanwhile Ellery Queen and his dad are watching and are not impressed. They changed his story and dialogue. I feel you Ellery, Hollywood has ruined many things I love as well.

Vincent Price yells at everyone and is just at the end of his rope, and I hope he isn’t the one who is murdered. I’ll be disappointed if he’s in it for only a second.

Please, oh please! from Death Comes to Pemberley

OMGosh the guy playing Ellery Queen in the movie, Gilbert Mallory (Troy Donahue), is a serious jerk and diva. He’s going to die. I just know it! Too bad Michael Raynor can’t fire him as he owns part of the film and has a lot of power. It’d be great if he died.

Mallory meets the real Queen and is incredibly rude to him. What a jerk!

Mallory is cruel to the publicist and rewrote his script to steal lines from others-he’s totally going to be murdered.

So both the Queens are extremely disappointed in the experience. Inspector Queen expected glitz and glamour-but the studio is a really low budget one and doesn’t have the perks like the big studios. Ellery is upset that he didn’t get an updated script, all the changes are a surprise and an unwelcome one.

The publicist tries to console him and tells him he never gets the script changes either. How a guy can promote something without fully knowing what he is promoting is beyond me.

A lady interrupts them when she comes driving up to see Mallory-I’m assuming she’s the diva’s wife. She is and she is on set to keep her eyes on her husband, her husband who is involved with one of the actresses, Pamela, on set. Man, Mallory is digging his grave-someone is going to kill him, but who?

So the prop man unlocks the locker and grabs the prop gun, but leaves it open. Hmm…interesting,

Oh, I bet that this will be like that Psych episode Lights, Camera…Homicido where the man was murdered when the prop was switched out with a real knife. Mallory will probably be shot by the prop gun and really be shot as the gun will no longer be filled with blank but real bullets.

Pamela (the actress Mallory is sleeping with) shoots Mallory and closes her eyes when she does it. I don’t think she did that the first time. Almost as if…hmmm.

Hmm…is it her?

So she shoots him and all are happy with how Mallory died, as it finally looks real…but when he doesn’t get up, it turns out that he was…murdered. Shot by real bullets.

Ellery and Inspector are investigating which makes the local cops angry as they can’t stand these guys “butting in”. The Queens try to tell him about Mrs. Mallory-her threat of a final good-bye and that she didn’t leave when she said she did as her purse is still on set. There’s no way she would have left without it.

Hmm…

The head of the investigation, Captain Blake comes and it turns out that he and Inspector Queen are good friends who go way back. He makes the Lt. who was complaining earlier have them be a part. Haha!

They find Mrs. Mallory and she proclaims her innocence. She cries and says she loved her husband and would never kill him, and even if she wanted to she wouldn’t have had access to the prop box. She insists she only came back to talk to him as she no longer was upset. Hmmm…Her husband’s company had half the money in it-she probably could get access to the props. And did she really came back to talk to him? Or kill him?

Hmm…

Inspector Queen leaves to find the home of Dorothy Lamour and Ellery finds a note on his script telling him to talk to Al in special effects. He heads over there and it turns out Al has disappeared.

Ellery shows one of the other SFX guys his note and they find Al, who happens to be a fan and wants Ellery’s help. He insists that he put in six blanks this morning and never touched the gun again to reload it. He thinks someone got to the gun and put the real bullets in. He came in to work that morning and was loading the gun and received a phone call. With the phone being on the other end of the lot he ran over there, and it turned out that there was no one on the line. That’s the only time someone could have planted them.

His reason for hiding and not sharing this with the police? His sister was script girl on one of Mallory’s other pictures and he was afraid it would give him a motive, as Mallory dropped her and as she is “just a kid” it broke her heart. Ellery urges him to talk to the cops and they will treat him right.

In the next scene Al is in handcuffs. Yes, it turns out he had threatened Mallory, a fact he forgot to share with Ellery.

Lt. Smary Jerk Attitude gleefully tells Ellery what they discovered. He really hates Ellery.

The next commercials are pretty boring although one is for the Chicago Fire Festival. What is that?

Anyways, back to the show. The Queens are invited to a scrumptious brunch by Director Raynor. Inspector is mad as he wants to do some touristy things, but hey scrumptious brunch with Vincent Price, I mean Raynor, will have almost all your suspects and the gossip.

The big question in the air is whether or not the picture will go forward. And no one is quite sure. The Publicist for the film wants to get the stuntman Mike to be moved up to the lead, but Raynor isn’t interested in an “unknown”. This seems weird to be as you think the publicist would know better than to suggest that-their relationship seems weird.

The actor playing Inspector Queen in the movie goes to Raynor and tries to get him to reverse some of the changes Mallory made, but Raynor isn’t interested in dealing with it at the moment.

Hmmm…

Pamela isn’t too sad about the possibility of canceling the film as she will be able to get the part she really wanted in another film, a part that came her way after she signed the contracts for this film. Meanwhile, Mrs. Mallory is angry and starts pointing the finger at Raynor- telling Inspector Queen that her husband planned to fire him, but was killed first

Pamela also encourages them to look over Raynor’s gun collection as he’s a hunter and has a ton of guns that range from all types and decades. Ellery is super interested, but his father is done and ready to leave.

With that attitude I’m not surprised Ellery is the famous crimesolver in the family.

The actor playing the Inspector runs after the two and tells them something he just remembered. Originally Mallory had been wearing a real bulletproof vest but it was changed by Al, the prop man. If he had still had it on at the time then he would be alive today.

They go through the prop memos and find that Raynor was the one who asked for a bulletproof vest and that he wanted a simulated one instead. Raynor explains that Mallory hated the vest as he thought it made him look fat. Raynor tried to change his mind, but no dice, and he instead gave in. To some that may seem like a lame excuse, but the way this diva was, I believe it. The change was discussed off set with only Pamela being the one to hear if it.

Hmm…

Ellery is trying to figure it out who the killer is and starts reading over the scripts (the original and changed one)

The guy who plays Inspector Queen is always popping up and pointing fingers. I’m starting to wonder if it is going to be him as he always just “happens” to be there. He reveals that the end shooting scene changed from the original because the director requested it. It would save $200 to have Mallory be on the phone and shot by Pamela than to crash through a window by a stuntman.

But Ellery has discovered something very interesting, in the original writing, if real bullets were placed in the gun it would be harder to kill him on target, but in the new script-with the proximity, no way they could miss killing Mallory.

They ask Raynor about it who changed it and he answers he thought the clear shooting looked better and was cheaper, a win win. They are interrupted when Sonny Miller arrives on set to replace Mallory and everyone seems overjoyed to have him.

They begin shootong the car chase scene and switch Miller out for the stuntman Mike. I can’t help but feel something bad will happen.

Everything is going great until the car won’t stop and Mike goes crashing down the hillside.

We are back from commercials (a really weird Raisin Bran one) and it turns out the brakeline was cut-Mike is dead. So was the killer after Mallory, Sonny Miller, Mike the stuntman, or trying to stop the picture?

Hmm…

So the last one seems the most likely and the Queens start looking at Pamela since she is the only one who wanted to get out of the picture. She insists she has no reason for sabotage as RKO is waiting to do the picture until she is finished here. The Inspector insists that it isn’t a real alibi as she could have done the cutting of the brake line before she got word from RKO. Pamela insists there is no way as she doesn’t know anything about cars.

Ellery points out to his aggravated father that both murders were filmed, so they actually have an advantage as the review them for clues.

Ellery watches them and sees something? What? We can’t find out until he has rounded up the suspects.

Lt. Smarmy Jerk (I can’t remember his name and don’t really care to look it up) thinks Pamela did it as her face is cold blooded in the film of her shooting. Raynor defends her as being an actress and the Lt. says she’s not that good. LOL, I was thinking the same thing. Since he thinks she did it we all know that which means she didn’t.

Scene 231 is the clue. Ellery lists off the suspects:

• Pamela, the actress who wanted out of the picture
• The man playing Inspector Queen who’s lines were stolen by Mallory, maybe with Mallory (and Miller) gone the movie could be about him.
• Mrs. Mallory, her husband was cheating on her and she never liked this picture-wants to pull the plug
• Director Michael Raynor, he hated Mallory and wanted a different actor but Mallory had too much money involved-why he would try and stall the picture is uncertain, maybe it is a smokescreen to get them to look elsewhere
• The Publicist, Mallory was cruel to him and he promoted Mike the stuntman (which is a odd relationship) also trying to kill Mike as a smokescreen?
• Al the SFX guy-he hated Mallory but doesn’t have a reason for Mike.

Ellery gathers everyone up and here we go…

Elleey acts out the original scene from his script, Ellery going to the window and through it. A stunt is involved in the original scene so there would have been a stunt double-the stuntman would have been shot at. Mike was always supposed to be shot, the killer was always after the stuntman.

I KNOW WHO IT IS! You guys remember back at brunch the stuntman kept trying to get the publicist to get him get the part. Their interaction was weird as a good stuntman can have some power, but nothing like what Mike seemed to hold over the publicist. He must have something on him to make him do that. Earlier when Ellery complained about not being made aware of the changes to his story, the publicist complained that he isn’t told anything either. That means that he didn’t know about the scene being changed from the window and set up a murder using the original story.

Another mystery solved!

The last film the publicist worked on the actress had a nervous breakdown and was doing drugs to get through. Her drug dealer was jailed but the publicist needed to keep her going. She died from an overdose and Mike knew he supplied her with the pills and threatened him with the police if he didn’t do what he wanted.

Ellery and his dad exit set to do some conventional Hollywood plans.

That was interesting and enjoyable. Although it did make me think of Diagnosis Murder  (although I think that father and son pair had a better relationship.) I might check out some of the other episodes in the future.

For more Vincent Price, go to To All the Ghouls I’ve Loved Before: The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo (1985)

For more detectives, go to What are you? I’m Batman: Batman (1989)

For more mysteries, go to Why Miss Fisher the Movie Flopped for Me: Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears (2020)

For more that feature crime writers, go to The Perfect Murder: Dial “M” for Murder (1954)

For more TV episodes reviews, go to Who Kidnapped the Girls’ Soccer Stars?: North Mammon, Criminal Minds (2006)

Keep Moving Forward

One thing that is prevalent with the holiday hope, is the holiday blues. So often people get depressed and sad at this time. They feel alone, unsure of the future, brokenhearted, etc. Often when such feelings arise we look to the past, thinking if only we could have stayed on that course. If only we could have done something different. A thousand if onlys.

We want to return to a moment in our life where everything was good.

But we can’t go back. The past is solid, written in stone. Instead we must move forward, no matter how painful it is.

After all:

As hard as it may be, keep moving forward.

For more quotes, go to Growing Up is Hard to Do

On a happier note, I decided to end my post with the Christmas Carol, All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey. It was written by her for her Christmas album, as they say in Love Actually a must for any struggling artist, and was released in 1994. Since then it has been in countless movies and covered by many artists.

I just love the upbeat tone and to sing along when I hear it.

To start 25 Days of Christmas Carols from the beginning, go to Inner Beauty

For the previous post, go to Angels We Have Heard on High

Lookin’ Over a Four-Leaf Clover: 17 More Irish Heroes

So with Saint Patrick’s Day, we have once again seventeen Irish heros from all sorts of media. Enjoy!

17) Rory Dugan AKA Cu Chulainn from Gargoyles

In this Gargoyles episode the gargoyles had been to Avalon, and are trying to get home. Avalon never sends anyone where they want to go, but where they are needed. The crew find themselves in Ireland.

In Ireland, Rory Dugan is constantly being nagged by his father to get a better job, but he just enjoys being in the land, being a part of it. His best friend, Meghan is trying to get him to go to America, but Rory does not want to leave.

When the Gargoyles come into the land, the evil Banshee imprisons them as she is going to destroy all of Ireland. Bronx manages to slip away and he comes upon Rory. When the Banshee tries to bring destruction, Rory reawakens with Bronx’s help, into the ancient figure Cu Chulainn, to battle once more.

Why Cu Chulainn is Awesome:

At first glance he is just a sweet guy in love with his home country and trying to do what he wants, even though he is constantly pressured by his father. You wouldn’t have pegged him for some kind of warrior, that is until he transforms and becomes this awesome figure.

For more on Gargoyles, go to A FANtastic Voyage

16) Mickey McGinnes from Hell on Wheels

Hell on Wheels is an amazing show that I just absolutely love. Hell on Wheels takes place after the Civil War, in which railroad companies are trying to create raillines all over the United States. Thomas “Doc” Durant is the one who is in charge of the investors and building the railroad. Thor Gundreson is his security man, known as the Swede, even though he is Norwegian. They oversee a huge group of people: freed slaves, immigrants, and others leaving the South and North looking for jobs. Cullen Bohannon, an ex-confederate soldier, becomes foreman of the railroad,  but unbeknownst to anyone, Cullen has a secret vendetta, to kill the men who raped and murdered his wife and child.

Why Mickey McGinnes is Awesome:

Mickey McGinnes is the younger brother of Seán and one of the many immigrants coming over from Ireland to make their fortune in America. He and his brother don’t actually work the railroad, but have a picture show that they charge workers to see photos of Ireland, along with singing and playing Irish music. Now I’ve only seen season one, so this might change later, but Mickey is a sweet guy who is trying to achieve his and his brother’s dream; along with helping to take care of their improvised family back home in Ireland. His biggest flaw is that fails to think things through all the time, but is adorable and sweet enough to gain your forgiveness.

For more on Hell on Wheels, go to Fandom Love

15) Roux from Chocolat (2000)

A woman and her daughter move to a small French town to open a chocolate shop. With their unorthodox ways, they begin sweetening up the village. But not everything they do is accepted. As Lent approaches many find their chocolate being immoral; many are appalled at their encouragement of the gypsies; and few approve of their influence over a townswoman to leave her abusive husband. Now the two find themseves deciding whether to stay and fight, or run away and start anew.

Why Roux is Awesome:

Roux is barely in the film, but of what we do see we like. And I’m not just talking about the fact that he is played by Johnny Depp. Roux is an Irish gypsy that is trying to raises money by selling handcrafted bracelets. He also is an excellent handyman and a musician. He uses both talents to assist Vivienne, the chocolate shop owner, in repairs and entertainment. In addition to that, he has a great heart, caring for an orphan gypsy girl.

For more on Johnny Depp, go to Krueger Town

14) Sam McGuire from Lizzie McGuire

Lizzie McGuire was a show about a preteen girl; trying to become her own person. She often would spend the episode talking to her inner self (shown by cartoon). She had two quirky parents who actually parented (rare for TV); an annoying, younger brother, Matt; and two best friends, Gordo and Miranda. Lizzie was crazy about the hottest guy in school, Ethan, and was constantly bullied by the most popular girl in school, Kate. It was a hilarious and endearing show.

Why Mr. McGuire is Awesome:

Lizzie’s dad is very quirky, for instance he paints gnomes. He was a bit of a nerd growing up, and continued through the rest of his life. Often times he leaves the parenting up to his wife Jo, as he never punishes as much as Jo wants and agrees to things that could be possibly dangerous, (for instance some of Matt’s pranks). But, Sam is always there for his kids when they need him. He helps Lizzie out with her insecurities, is supportive of the activities they want to do; and above all makes sure he has time set aside for them.

For more Lizzie McGuire & Family, go to Night of the Day of the Dead: Lizzie McGuire (2001)

13) Seán McGinnes from Hell on Wheels

Hell on Wheels is an amazing show that I just absolutely love. Hell on Wheels takes place after the Civil War, in which railroad companies are trying to create raillines all over the United States. Thomas “Doc” Durant is the one who is in charge of the investors and building the railroad. Thor Gundreson is his security man, known as the Swede, even though he is Norwegian. They oversee a huge group of people: freed slaves, immigrants, and others leaving the South and North looking for jobs. Cullen Bohannon, an ex-confederate soldier, becomes foreman of the railroad,  but unbeknownst to anyone, Cullen has a secret vendetta, to kill the men who raped and murdered his wife and child.

Why Seán is Awesome:

Seán is the older brother of Mickey (#16) and is also one of the many immigrants coming from Ireland in hopes of a better future. Seán, being the eldest, is much more responsible, hard-working, and thinks about the future and what his actions may or may not bring about. As I mentioned above, Mickey is short-sided and lives in the now, Seán is the one thinking ahead, making sure they can provide for themselves, and send money back home to the family. Mickey’s impetuousness can get the two into trouble, whole Seán’s level-head gets them out. When the Swede wants money from them in order to “protect” their business, Seán does not want to pay. In fact, he becomes an instrumental figure in ousting the Swede from the company. Now as I have mentioned before, I have yet to watch the rest of the seasons, so his character might change, but for now he is one awesome man.

12) Lizzie McGuire from Lizzie McGuire

Lizzie McGuire was a show about a preteen girl; trying to become her own person. She often would spend the episode talking to her inner self (shown by cartoon). She had two quirky parents who actually parented (rare for TV); an annoying, younger brother; and two best friends. Lizzie was crazy about the hottest guy in school, Ethan, and was constantly bullied by the most popular girl in school, Kate. It was a hilarious and endearing show.

Why Lizzie McGuire is Awesome:

What other preteen girl growing up in the ’90s-2000s didn’t want to be Lizzie McGuire? Lizzie was awesome as she was just a regular girl, trying to live a normal life, but as we know life is never normal. She had amazing clothes and was always involved in cool things; such as going to a Scottish poetry night, in a mystery dinner party, meeting Aaron Carter, dating Frankie Muniz, having an amazing 1940s swing dance, a zombie Halloween, etc. Every preteen wanted to live her life and be just like Lizzie, a awesome girl with a heart of gold.

For more Lizzie McGuire, go to Disney Lesson

11)Det. Lt. Mark McPherson from Laura

I highly recommend reading my review of this film, or watching the movie yourself. It is really amazing, a great whodunit and film noir.

In this film noir, Det. Lt. Mark McPherson is investigating the death of the beautiful, intelligent, i.e the perfect woman; Laura. Even though Laura is someone that everyone would love, and no one would want dead, there are actually quite a few people on McPherson’s suspect list; including her cousin, fianceé, and best friend. As he continues to investigate he encounters an even bigger surprise.

Why McPherson is Awesome:

At first McPherson is cold, gruff, and concludes that there is nothing that special about Laura, every dame is the same. If you read between the lines you can see that McPherson had his heart broken, and since then has had a poor view on women and love. However, as he starts investigating into who Laura is and looking at all her things, he begins to fall in love with who she was, melting that icy exterior and showing his true caring heart. When Laura appears, he has to investigate her; never allowing personal feelings to come before the job, but at the same time is able to finally let down his walls and find true happiness.

For more on Laura, go to Murder is My Favorite Crime: Laura (1944)

10) Hannah McDermott from Picture Perfect by Janice Thompson

Hannah is Irish and proud of it. She lives on Galvston Island with her parents, and has a burgeoning photography buisness, Picture This! Hannah is constantly stuggling as she feels she is second best. Second to her sisters as they are all married with kids; second in photography to Drew Kincaid, etc. She keeps trying to get a leg up on her competition, but finds herself second, as always. She tries to get on board with Bella Neeley, Club Wed’s famous Wedding Planner, and finds herself in one crazy adventure involving Bella’s large family, a country music diva, a famous actor, and of course her competition: Drew Kincaid. As she goes along she finds her faith tested, along with discovering that her judgements of what she thinks of people, and how she feels people think if her may not be right at all.

Why Hannah is Awesome:

Hannah is a very real character that is trying to find her place and foothold in the world. She tries to control everything, but soon discovers that she must give it all up to God. She does befriend Bella in order for Bella to improve her business, but immediately apologizes to Bella and starts to be with her just for the friendship of Bella. When she discovers that she is wrong about Drew, she begins to trust him and treats him as nice as possible to make up for it.

For more on Janice Thompson, go to Pizza Power

9) Joe from Bend it Like Beckham

Jesminder “Jess” Kaur Bhamra is from an orthodox Sikh family living in London, England. Her parents are very traditional, and don’t approve of her love of  football/soccer. One day, Juliettte “Jules” Paxton, spots her playing with friends and invites her to join the girls’ football league. She does, but has to hide it from her family, along with dealing with the clash between her culture, race, and dreams. She becomes very close to the coach Joe, which causes issues as her now best friend Jules has a huge crush on him; along with the fact that he is not a good Indian boy. Everything comes to a head when the tournament falls on the same day as her sister’s wedding; forcing her to make a choice.

Why Joe is Awesome:

Joe is an amazing guy. He had to deal with racism all his life, as he is thoroughly Irish. His father wanted him to be the best soccer player ever, pushing him when he had an injury, and causing him to blow his knee. Brokenhearted as he could no longer play, he instead took over the job of coaching, starting a girl’s league. He is kind and sweet; yet still tough and great at working with the girls to achieve their maximum levels.

When Jess comes on the team he is a great support and encourager as he understands what it is like to be different. He really tries to get her to go for her dreams and not give up because of what her family thinks. He ends up falling for Jess, and even though she wants to keep it a secret because of her parents, he pushes it forward; wanting everything out in the open. The two becoming a couple when he is no longer her coach.

And the last reason why Joe is awesome? He’s played by Jonathan Rhys Meyers, one of the most attractive men ever to be here on the planet. He just has stunning eyes, smile…*swoon*

8) Drew Kincaid from Picture Perfect by Janice Thompson

Drew Kincaid is a good ole’ Irish boy. He served as a Marine and then moved home to Galvston Island to take care of his mother after his father died. He started a photography buisness and has been blessed by being named Bella Neeley’s #1 pick along with having photographed famous Brock Bensen, TV icon. He meets Hannah McDermott at an interview, and soon after finds himself running into her. He is very intrigued with Hannah and starts making excuses to see her more and more.

Why Drew is awesome:

Drew is a true romantic hero. He is always kind and sweet to Hannah, interceding when a guy tries to become too familiar with her. He never considers her as competition, but an equal and is always very honest and forthcoming with her. He is always willing to lend a hand, sympathetic ear, or an extra camera. When Hannah says they can’t date because their families have been feuding for decades (a story her father told her that proved false), he researches all her can to create a truce, as was done in the old country, and proposes in Gaelic. *Swoon*

7) Nate Ford from Leverage

In Leverage Nate Ford brings together different criminals; hacker Alec Hardisan, thief Parker, grifter Sophie Devereaux, , and hitter Eliot Spencer; in order to take down the corrupt. What starts out as a one time thing, becomes a company as they travel all over the U.S., Africa, etc; and commit various cons: being a chocolate taster, pretending to be a famous fashion designer, taking over a private school, taking over a cooking school, etc.; in order to help out the little guy getting shafted.

Why Nate is Awesome:

Nate had a con artist father, and devoted his adult life to investigating insurance claims, taking down those who tried to con the company. He saved the company millions, but when his son was sick, the company refused to pay out. He was always spurred on by his sense of justice, and this injustice of a big corporation that was supposed to help, became a catalyst to creating the Leverage team.

Of the group Nate is the mastermind, always planning, plotting, and figuring out a way to use people the best way to achieve his results. He cares about the crew, and gets to know them better than they know themselves, figuring out what strengths they have and what more they can do; pushing them to be better. In a lot of ways he fathers his team members, nurturing them and helping them stay on the straight and narrow path.

For more on Leverage, go to A Fantabulous Post

6)Thomas O’Malley from The Aristocats

When butler Edgar finds out that his rich, elderly, employer is leaving all her money to her cats, with Edgar second; he decides to get rid of them. He drugs the cat, Duchess, and her three kittens; Marie, Toulouse, and Berlioz; dumping them out in the country. These pampered pets awaken to a shock and have no idea how to get home. Luckily for them, they meet a tomcat, Thomas O’Malley, an amorous animal, who is at first only interested in Duchess, but decides to help the whole family. Their adventure involves train disasters, near drowning, some silly english geese, Thomas O’Malley’s crew, and one of the best songs Disney as ever written Everybody Wants to Be a Cat. 

Why Thomas O’Malley is awesome:

At first Thomas is a cad, there is no way around that. He is a wandering cat and going off with any pretty cat he can find. When he comes upon Duchess, she sees through his act and cuts him down to size with her impeccable grace. He agrees to get them a ride, throwing himself in front of a milk car, and believes that to be his good deed, unwittingly finding that false and him caught up with them again. He agrees to stay and help them find their way home; rescuing Marie twice, and giving up his pad for them to rest in. He loves Duchess, but would never dream of trying to pull her away from her home and misstress, and decides to leave. But when Edgar causes problems and Duchess needs him, he comes running back saving the family, with a little help from his friends. In the end he decides to give up his freedom and wandering ways, for a different life, one of stability, love, and family with Duchess. Besides those amazing qualities, Thomas puts the “cool” in “cool cat” and is one sweet rocker

 

5) Jimmy Quinn from The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell

The Sparrow is set in the future and is a retelling of the Jesuit missionaries to the “New World” aka America, this time going into outer space. Emilio, a Jesuit priest, is the only crew member to survive the expedition to the planet Rakhat and he is damaged physically and psychologically, unable to reveal what occurred. The rest of the story is told back and forth between the present time of Emilio’s arrival on Earth as his fellow Jesuits try to find out what happened and flashbacks to when the expedition first began. The expedition began when music from another planet is picked up by one of Earth’s satellite. Jimmy Quinn is the one who notices this and alerts his friends: Emilio the Jesuit priest; Ann and her husband who are both doctors; and Sofia, a linguist and programer. Emilio presents the possibility of creating a mission to another planet to teach and learn about them, see more of God’s creation, grow closer to Him, etc. It quickly snowballs and the group, plus a few more characters set off for the other planet. This trip turns out to much more than they expected as they discover that history not only repeats itself, but that this trip holds more than any had dreamed of.

Why Jimmy Quinn is Awesome:

Jimmy is a sweet gangly guy, who grew up in New York and studied science. He hoped to get a job, but like most graduates, finds very few places hiring. He ends up working at a station that pays pittance, but takes it all in stride, grateful and happy to have something. I think that really describes Jimmy’s personality the best; he is kind, sweet, happy, and always grateful for the little things. When his company brings in a programer, Sofia, who will analyze his job and try to create a computer system to replace him; he isn’t petty, rude, or, mean; but just takes in his usual stride. He falls for Sofia, but she doesn’t care the same for him; and he takes the rejection better than most. He is never rude, cruel, or harsh; but goes on treating her the same way as always. This causes Sofia to take another look his way, and he eventually wins her heart. Now his treatment of Sofia is one of the sweetest things about him as Sofia had a really hard life. Her family was murdered and she found herself all alone, having to resort to prostitution to get by. She is eventually bought by a man, who doesn’t touch her but educates her; keeping her in a sense a slave, mentally prostituting her out to improve systems, create programs, etc. She is able to buy her freedom and leave, joining the crew; but has a lot of issues in how to deal with people and her expectations of them hurting her. Jimmy is able to comfort her, not judge her; listen to her, and really care about taking care of her wants, needs, and desires; something she has not had since she has been a little girl. Jimmy is undeniably sweet, and readily earned his spot on this list.

4) Minnie Powell from The Shadow of a Gunman by Sean O’Casey

Shadow of the Gunman takes place in 1923 during the Irish War of Independence. Donal Devoren is a poet living in a tenement house in Ireland. Everyne suspects that he is a gunman for the IRA. Donal doesn’t proclaim he is, but he also doesn’t defute the rumors as it gives him notoriety in the building and the affection of Minnie Powell. Donal rents a home with Seumas Sheilds. Mr. Maguire, a salesman, friends with Seumas, asks Donal if he can store his case in the apartment while he is out of town. It turns out that Mr. Maguire is actually an IRA member, and has stored his case full of bombs. The IRA ambush the city, and the Auxiliary places a curfew. They later start raiding the tenements, when Seumas and Donal discover the case of bombs. Donal feels caught in his lie, and doesn’t know how to resolve it. Minnie takes it upon herself to get rid of the case, being killed in the process.

Why Minnie is awesome:

At first Minnie seems like some starstruck girl, but in reality she is a brave, young woman who deeply loves her country and cares for Donal. She believes in what the IRA wants to accomplish, and wants a free Ireland. When the raids start and she discovers that Donal has a case of bombs which will mean his imprisonment, and most likley death, Minnie steals the case and saves Donal’s life, killing herself in the process. She is a true patriot, along with being brave and kind-hearted, sacrificing herself for the love of another.

3) Samson “Sam” Flusky from Under Capricorn

I love this movie a lot, although I know I am in the minority. Now as I felt the urge to include Sam Flusky on my list, I knew that I would first have to review the film. I did for Horrorfest III, of which you can read the review if you wish (I recommend it!) For those who don’t wish to, I will give a brief synopsis.

This film takes place in early 19th Century Australia. Australia has formerly been a place where England sent their criminals, there they would serve out their sentence and live there, or return home to England. Now however, more and more “good” citizens have found themselves emigrating to Australia and civilizing the towns. The new Governor, Sir Richard arrives, bringing along his foppish, indolent, “rich boy” nephew, Charles Adare. Charles meets, Samson “Sam” Flusky, an ex-convict, former murderer, and prospering land owner. He intrigues him in a business deal and brings Charles to his house, in which he meets Sam’s wife, Lady Henrietta, who turns out to be an old family friend. Charles soon spends all his time at the house and finds something strange about Henrietta’s actions, as she is no longer the same woman he knew. As with all Alfred Hitchcock films, there is suspense, mystery, and an old secret’s truth is revealed.

Why Sam is Awesome:

Now if my little synopsis has encouraged you to watch the film, then stop reading. If you aren’t interested in watching the film, proceed.

Sam is amazing because of everything he has ever done for Henrietta. When we first watch the film we see a tough, gruff, man, but in reality there is so much more than his exterior. Everything Sam has done has been for the love of his wife. You see after watching the whole film, it is revealed that Sam is not a murder. He and Henrietta fell in love when they were back in Ireland. He was just a stable boy with nothing to offer her, while she was the lady of the house. She wanted to be with him, and they both knew her parents would not approve. They eloped and ran off to England, where Sam was determined to care for her. Unfortunately, Henrietta’s brother followed them, and tried to kill Sam. As the two struggled, he dropped his gun and Henrietta picked it up, shooting her brother before he could kill Sam. When the police came, Sam tells them he did it, as he did not want Henrietta killed or forced to serve prison time. Luckily, Sam is offered Australia instead of the noose, and chooses that. Henrietta follows him, and when Sam is out of prison, he is different, and also guilty, as he feels he ruined Henrietta’s life. He is then determined to become extremely prosperous, so that she may have the life she deserves. Unfortunately, he doesn’t know that Henrietta is full of guilt for killing her brother, Sam taking the blame, and for Sam having to serve a prison sentence when he was innocent. This causes her to go into a depression, and drink. Through it all Sam tries to love her and be there for her; bringing in her old friend Charles Adare, and firing the poisonous maid. But he still feels he is not enough, as he is from a lower class. When he accidentally shoots Charles Adare, he is headed for the noose. Henrietta admits she killed her brother, which if Sam corroberates will send her to prison and him free. Sam would rather die for Henrietta than allow her to have to serve prison time. Luckily, Charles recovers and confirms it was all an accident; allowing the now guilt free couple a second chance.

Isn’t Sam just the most amazing guy ever? And played by Joseph Cotten.

For more on Under Capricorn, go to The Past of a Man: Under Capricorn (1949).

2) Angel from Buffy the Vampire Slayer

In Buffy the Vampire Slayer,  Buffy is a teenage girl who has discovered she is now The Slayer, the one who is to hunt vampires, demons, and other monsters. She is teamed up with Willow, computer expert and witch; Xander, loyal but not always thinking things through; Cordelia, the prom queen; and Oz, computer expert, band member, and werewolf. Buffy is trained by her watcher, Giles, the school librarian. Along the way she meets the tall, handsome, brooding Angel; a vampire with a soul, who helps her destroy evil.

Why Angel is Awesome:

Angel was an normal Irish man living in the turn of the century Ireland, when he was attacked and turned into a vampire. Sorry Dracula, Edward, and all the like: Angel is the hottest vampire to walk the planet.

When he lost his soul during the vampire transformation, he was changed from a kind, caring,  sweet man into pure evil. A group of witches put a spell on him, transforming him back to being his kind, tender self. He is one of the most romantic figures as he is just so incredibly sweet and caring to Buffy. He always tries to help her and protect her, to the best of his abilities.

In one episode Buffy is injured by demon blood, and will die unless they can get it’s heart, the antidote. He immediately goes out to get it, running around in daylight, burning and practically killing himself, in order to save Buffy. So romantic!

The saddest episode was when Angel left, as he knew he could never be with Buffy. For one thing, he’s a vampire and she’s a human. And the other, when he becomes incredibly happy, he will lose his soul and become evil once again. It was heartbreaking to see him go, but at least he came to the prom with her, to make her happy one last time. I love him as he is just my type.

To find out who you should be with, go here.

For more on Angel, go to Simply Fantastic

1) Steve Rogers aka Captain America from Captain America comics and films

Steve Rogers, later to be Captain America, was born in New York to poor Irish immigrants. His parents both died of disease, leaving behind a sickly, scrawny son. He was a true patriot, disturbed by the Third Reich and Nazis, wanting to help fight in WWII. Unfortunately, he failed all the tests due to his many medical issues, but was put on the list of people possible to become a super soldier. He was given the serum and turned into a man with peak strength, agility, stamina, and intelligence. He later becomes the only one, as the scientist who created the serum was killed without writing down the steps & chemicals. He then becomes the Captain America, fighting the Red Skull and eventually leading the Avengers.

Why Steve Rogers is Awesome:

HE IS CAPTAIN AMERICA! That is all that really needs to be said. I just absolutely love Captain America and I think he is one of the best superheros ever. He is so earnest, sweet, utter perfection! I could go on and on, but I have before in my post Simply Fantastic. Read it for some hardcore fangirling!

For more on Captain America, go to Simply Fantastic or Fanning All Over the Place

So that ends another Saint Patrick’s day post.

I hope you all enjoy it and have a great day filled with green, soda bread, corn beef, and cabbage.

For more Saint Patrick’s Day posts, go to At the End of the Rainbow

For more on Disney, go to If the Shoe Fits: Why Cinderella is Actually Awesome

For more quizzes, go to Don’t You Forget About Me

A Fantabulous Post

Yep you got it! It’s another post full of all the things I fangirl over! Hope it sparks your interest into checking this stuff out! 🙂

Cinemasins

Cinemasins is a youtube video group in which they have a guy narrate everything that’s wrong in films. Except for the times he is making fun of your favorite films, they are absolutely hilarious. In the newer ones if you watch all the way to the very end, he puts in audio from other films that have similar scenes. I never miss a posting.

For more on Cinemasins, go to Let Them Fight: Godzilla (2014)

Clint Eastwood

I mean look at this man! Can you blame me for being crazy about him?

I am a huge Clint Eastwood fan. I fell in love with him when I was like seven and had to watch everything he was in (with parental supervision of course). And from then on I was obsessed.

Everyone told me it would never happen as I was far, far too young for him. I mean he was 62 when I was born. But I didn’t care.

Eventually I realized it wasn’t meant to be as he was married (although now divorced and single!) and the realistic chances of me meeting him are nil. But no matter what he will be my first crush and the first guy to ever have his picture on my wall. Yep, I had a huge poster of The Outlaw Josey Wales.

He’s my dream man.

And one totally awesome actor.

Yep I love Clint so much that I even spent $15 on a magazine because it was full of photos of him and all about his life. 🙂 I’m obsessed. Was and always will be. 😀

Now I won’t go on about my fav films, as that could go on forever! Even Amazon knows how much I love his work:

I will instead just mention my all-time favorite film of his: Bronco Billy.

This film was directed and starred Clint Eastwood. In this film Clint plays Bronco Billy, an ex-shoe salesman. Bronco Billy had always loved Westerns, Buffalo Bill, and other stories of the West. And he decided to start his own Wild West show, just like the ones Buffalo Bill and Pawnee Bill had. A heiress who married in order to inherit her father’s fortune, finds herself stranded by her husband, and joins up with the show until she can get home. This film is fun, adorable, American, dramatic, i.e. everything you could want in a film.

Anyways, the reason that I love this film is the message of it. Here we have a man who doesn’t feel the need to be confined by his time in life or what people think he can be. Nope, if he wants to do something he’s going to. Even though he might be 100 years too late to be a part of “the West”, it doesn’t matter to him. He is going to achieve his dreams, no matter what.

OMG I fangirled over this movie so hard. In fact I wanted to be in the show. I wanted to be Clint’s assistant and on the wheel that turns and he throughs knives at. I wanted to be in a Wild West Show. In fact, I used to wear Western types clothe and would only wear cowgirl boots.

Yep this is my film.

So while I wil most likely never marry the man or meet him, at least I did get something special from him that I’ll keep forever. I sent him a fan letter and a picture and asked him to autograph it and HE DID!!! YAY!!! I just Love that man!

For more on Clint Eastwood, go to Here I Go

How It Should Have Ended

How It Should Have Ended is another one of those really fun internet video series. They review different films giving them their own twist. These are absolutely hilarious and I never miss a post of these either.

For more on How It Should Have Ended, go to I’ll Be Back: The Terminator (1984)

Las Vegas

So I started watching this show on accident. I think it started the summer between 9th and 10th grade, but it might have been a year later. I’m not sure. Anyways, I was just flipping channels during summer break while I ate my lunch (really breakfast as I didn’t get up until noon) and stopped at this show. I watched an episode and was hooked, watching the 12-2pm block it had on TNT. I continued this every summer, and when I was in college if I and the TV was free at that time. I LOVED this show.

So the show is about a group of people running the fictional Montecito Hotel & Casino Resort in Las Vegas. They deal with the usual issues: staff problems, card counters, performers, chefs, etc; along with helping each other in personal problems. The one thing that made the show lovable, although completely unrealistic, is that all the people enjoyed helping others and would go the extra mile. Because it is Las Vegas, we also get amazing cameos: Wayne Newton, Jean-Claude Van Damm, Sylvester Stallone, etc.

So the crew:

First we have Ed Deline (James Caan). Ed used to be director of the CIA, but has moved on to being in charge of Security and Operations of the Montecito Casino. He later is promoted to President of Operations and is in charge of everything that goes on in the Casino. He is a major tough guy and not afraid to take anyone out. But on the flipside of that he is a loving father to his daughter Delinda as well as a surrogate father to Nessa and Danny. It’s James Caan just how you like him, barking orders and smashing heads.

 Then we have Danny McCoy (Josh Duhamel)

Isn’t this man a dream? Anyways, Danny was simply amazing and the type of guy you want. So Danny was born and raised in Las Vegas, but left to join the Marines. He returns and works for Ed in security, being promoted when Ed is promoted. Danny is sweet, adorable, protective, loving, etc. He does have issues in the relationship department though. He has been in love with his good childhood friend Mary, but she never wanted to have a serious relationship with him. He also dates Delinda, Nessa, and Sam throughout the series. Most of all Danny has a huge heart and is always willing to help others out, something that makes him almost fall for a scheme to take his father’s inheritance. But even though he is sweet, you don’t want to mess with him as he can just as easily take you out. After Ed leaves the Montecito, he is promoted to President of Operations. In the last two seasons, Delinda and him have a committed relationship and are having a child.

Mike Cannon (James Lesure) is an engineer from MIT. Why he works at a casino, I’m not sure. Anyways, he starts out as head valet, but moves on to security, eventually becoming the head when Danny is promoted to president of operations. He’s smart and silly, that perfect combination. When Piper Niekson (the concierge) tries to recruit a Cocktail Tom Cruise type bartender, Mike goes with her. The two get incredibly drunk, and married, of which they tell everyone they annulled, but didn’t really.

Samantha Jane “Sam” Marquez (Vanessa Marcil) is the host of the Casino and it is her job to bring in the whales, i.e. the big gamblers. She is poached from another hotel, but soon fits in with the Montecito family. She is cold and motivated by money, but she also has a soft side, being a “Big Sister”. It turns out she is married to billionaire Casey Manning, but ran away from him as she has issues with commitment. When he dies, she inherits almost everything. She later marries Casey’s brother.

Delinda Deline (Molly Sims) is a genius; although more interested in fashion, makeup, etc. She is not all fluff as she is fluent in French, a graduate of Cordon Bleu, and in charge of entertainment, plus the Food and Beverage Manager. She flits around from guy to guy as she likes to have a good time. In one season her old boyfriend Derek, a doctor, comes back and the two almost get married, but she realizes she is in love with Danny. The two move in together and she gets pregnant. In the last episode they are planning to get married.

Mary Connell (Nikki Cox) is the special events coordinator. She grew up next door to Danny and the two were childhood friends. Mary had a hard life as she was sexually abused by her father, Danny being the one who came to her rescue. He loved her and tried to marry her, but Mary still has a lot of issues regarding love to work out. At one point she meets a rich, nice lawyer and moves in with him, but for reasons unknown, and hinted at being very bad, she leaves him and returns to work at the Montecito. When her stepmother and stepsisters tried to press charges against her father, she helps testify. When he got off,Mary bought a gun, shot him, and took off.

Nessa Holt is from England and was raised by the Deline family. She was the pit boss and worked in the hotel until she discovered her father wasn’t dead, but working for the CIA. She leaves the Montecito to live with him in season 3.

Now their intro is amazing as it is Elvis’ A Little Less Conversation, one of my favorite songs.

But it also got me wondering. I’ve noticed that a lot of movies that take place in Las Vegas, instead of using Elvis’ song Las Vegas, they use A Little Less Conversation. Isn’t that weird? I mean Ocean’s Eleven, 21, and Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief did it.

It was a very fun show that I highly recommend!

Leverage

I started watching Leverage because my sister Jessica really liked it. We both became so into it that we watched it ever Wednesday, and even watched the first 15 mins of the show that came on afterwards in order to see the next week’s preview. When it was cancelled I was heartbroken as it was such a great show, it should have gone on for 10 more seasons.

So the story is Nate Ford, the mastermind, putting together this crew in order to help out an airplane designer who’s plans were stolen by his rival. When it turns out that guy lied to him and had them steal his rival’s plans, they team up to get his money and revenge. They end up liking it so much, that the team stays together and helps people out who have been treated wrongly.

First we have the Mastermind, Nate Ford.

He started out as an insurance claims investigator, being the one who tracked down the very people he now works with. He was an amazing investigator, and saved the company millions. That all changed when his son became sick and the company he worked for refused to pay for his treatments. After his son died, he turned to alcohol and lost his job and wife. He is extremely talented in creating these schemes, along with seeing each person’s skills.  Fans of Supernatural will spot the same actor who plays Crowley, in this as Sterling, Nate’s nemesis. He and Sophie start dating as the series goes on.

Then we have the Hitter, Eliot Spencer

Eliot is from a small town in the South and left to join the military when he was eighteen. After he got out he couldn’t find work besides a “retrievalist”, that is going in to get objects by taking others out. Besides being extremely strong, he’s quite the hunk (and my favorite character), and incredibly sweet with kids. Eliot is also an amazing singer, as we find out when the team goes in to take out an evil country music record company. He also is an amazing cook, the one thing that kept him from going over completely to the dark side.

The Hacker, Alec Hardisan

Alec was raised in a foster home and is a complete computer and science fiction geek. He does all the hacking, creating false internet information, and in charge of all the groups gadgets. He’s wise-cracking and hilarious. As the series progresses, he and Parker start dating; making one of the cutest TV relationships.

The grifter is Sophie Devereaux

Sophie is an art and antiquities thief, using her skills at acting and manipulation to the highest degree. Now Sophie really wants to be an actress, but while awesome on the job, is horrible when on stage as she is too over the top. At one point in the series she left because she was mad at Nate and sent her friend Tara to take her place, but Tara was horrible. Luckily, Sophie came back and as the series progressed she and Nate started dating.

And last but not least we have the Thief, Parker

Parker has a very sad childhood, moving from foster home to foster home, and encountering a lot of abuse. At 12 she was trained by Archie Leach to become the best thief, pickpocket, safecracker, etc. But due to this childhood she doesn’t know how to talk to people, and instead closes herself off.

And has no clue on how to talk to others. As the series goes on she starts thinking of the Leverage crew as her family, and they try to help her as well. She starts to have feelings for Hardison, but is unable to express them well, which causes a very slooow courtship, but it is the cutest thing!

I love this show and think that any one out there who is a fan of sticking it to the man or just desserts, will love it as well.

The Lizzie Bennet Diaries

I’m going to do a whole separate post on this as part of my Happy Birthday Pride & Prejudice, so I don’t want to spend too much time on it here. I wasn’t even going to include it, but felt bad about leaving it out of my fandom list. It is a modern retelling of Pride & Prejudice set as webisodes. I LOVED it so much and will continue writing on it later.

For more on The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, go to It is a Truth Universally Acknowledged

So I may be a nerd fanning out about this stuff, BUT…

So this will be my last post for a while on fandoms. I have to take a break as my Romance is in the Air: Part III, 14 Days of My Favorite Romantic Film Moments countdown for Valentine’s Day is coming up. As soon as I’m through with that I’ll bring back these fandom posts.

For the previous post, go to It’s Fantastico!

Stay tuned for part 9

For more on Psych, go to In Love With the ’80s (Pink Tux to the Prom)

I Want Friend Like Me: The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)

“You, make man… like me? No. Woman… friend for you.  Woman… Friend… Wife.”

So this is the sequel to Frankenstein  and I think a much better film.

Yes Mickey you were right

I know I say I don’t like sequels as much as the original, but there are always a few that I think are better.

So this movie almost wasn’t created as director James Whale originally did not want to do a sequel to Frankenstein. Universal considered producing a sequel without Whale’s involvement, but after 4 years of constant badgering, Whale agreed to do the film. And I’m so happy he did, or else we would be without this wonderful masterpiece.

To be honest, this isn’t a true “sequel.” It actually is the second half of the the book Frankenstein, instead of an individual and separate story.

The reason I like this better than the first one is that Frankenstein is creepier, as he is demanding and using his strength and stature to frighten others.

You also have a creepier Henry, as he is fighting with himself on whether or not to create more monsters. We see that he doesn’t wish to populate the world with these creatures-but at the same time he is lured by the thrill of creating more, and showing off his genius.

Henry Frankenstein: Crazy, am I? We’ll see whether I’m crazy or not.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

So the film starts off  a little different from the other one. Here we have Elsa Lanchester portraying Mary Shelley and telling the next chapter of the story at a party.

Let me tell you a story

The next chapter picks up exactly where the other film ended.

Grab your torches and sharpen your pitchforks!

The villagers had driven the monster to the windmill and believed they killed him. They take Henry back home where he is nursed to health by his fiancé Elizabeth.

However, we see that the creature has not been killed. He escaped the fire by getting into the water under the mill. He kills some people as he escapes into the wilderness.

Meanwhile, Henry’s old mentor,  Doctor Septimus Pretorius, comes to visit him. He brings along his creations to show Henry. Dr. Pretorius had created miniature people: a miniature queen, king, archbishop, devil, ballerina and mermaid. While Henry had vowed to never create another monster again, seeing these creatures spikes his interest.

Meanwhile, the monster has run off into the woods and has tried to find a place to belong. He attempts to befriend a shepherdess and a group of gypsies, but both reject him.

He finally runs into a hermit and has a tender scene with the two becoming “fast friends”.

I love this scene and sometimes say things like “Friend good, such and such bad”, etc in my daily life! 😀 It’s a pretty touching scene. After all:

But even this does not last forever as searchers looking for the monster, come upon the two and chase the creature away. He eventually comes upon Dr. Pretorius who promises him “friendship” and that he will create a mate for him.

“The Monster: You, make man… like me?
Dr. Pretorius: No. Woman… friend for you
The Monster: Woman… Friend… Wife…”

Dr. Pretorius approaches the newly married Frankensteins and tries to get Henry to help him create a mate for the monster. Henry, having once again realized the horror of his past creation, in no way will ever create another creature. That’s all fine and good, but Dr. Pretorius doesn’t agree. He wants a mate and is determined to force Henry to create one. He gets the creature to kidnap Elizabeth, her being the exact leverage to force Henry to create another monster.

The Monster: I *love* dead… hate living.

Henry seeing that he has no alternative, prepares to create a women from the dead. We see as Henry struggles with his morals, creating a better tension than in the first film. As I stated earlier, he doesn’t want to create another creature as he knows the horrors the other committed along with the fact that the two might mate and reproduce, populating the world with living dead.

But Henry is excited at the same time. Once again he can use his theories and science to create. He will be able to say he “created” life, not once but twice! This is hard for him to turn away from.

Of course nothing goes perfectly according to plan. Henry creates the woman, but can he control it?

Elsa Lanchaster is amazing! I love the way she turns about, almost birdlike. She actually based her performance on swans; saying that, “they’re really very nasty creatures”. She was only 5’4″ but for the role they placed her on stilts so she was  7′ tall. The bandages were placed so tightly on her that she was unable to move and had to be carried about the studio, much like Olivia Newton-John in Grease. Her hair and outfit are amazing, and now such a classic figure in horror film history, just like her predecessor the Monster. Her amazing ‘do was held in place by a wired horsehair cage.

They introduce her to her “mate”, but when has any woman liked it when people pick out their mates?

The monster is furious at this rejection and destroys the lab killing all who are in it. The only people who escape are Elizabeth and Henry. Frankenstein realized what they had and allowed them to leave unharmed.

“The Monster: [Speaking to Frankenstein and Elizabeth] Go you live… [turning to Dr.Pretorius] You stay we belong dead.”

It’s a great movie. I highly recommend it to anyone into the classic horror films.

That’s todays fearsome post! More to come! Only 7 days left ’till Halloween! Who’s excited?

Here’s poster I made for my cover page on facebook in honor of Halloween. Hope ya love it.

To start Horrorfest from the beginning, go to I Don’t Belong in the World

For the previous post, go to Someone Very Special

For more on the Bride of Frankenstein, go to A Monster Race

For more on Frankenstein, go to It’s Alive, It’s ALIVE!

For more classic horror films, go to I Bid You Welcome

For more monster movies, go to Grimwood Ghouls’ Gym Teacher

For more films based on books, go to Quite a Horror Story

For more sequels, go to Just Follow the Screams

For more on Frank Peretti, go to Part IX: Adventures in Movie Lines

For more of my fav quotes, go to I’m No Warrior, I’m an Assistant Pig-Keeper