favorite movie #74 - halloween edition: mad monster party?

Favorite movies that have had an impact on me - #70 - Mad Monster Party? (1967) - From the folks that brought us Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer and other stop-motion classics comes this fun, silly movie hat references most of the classic universal horror monsters and more. Boris Karloff voices Baron Boris von Frankenstein, Phyllis Diller has a blast as the mate of the Monster. Frankenstein's nephew Felix (voiced by Allen Swift, who voices most of the other characters, some with impersonations of Jimmy Stewart, Peter Lorre. Sydney Greenstreet, and Charles Laughton) is set to inherit the family business. Felix also quickly falls for his uncle's voluptuous assistant, Francesca, who resembles the actress Stella Stevens and is voted by Gale Garnett. Bonus — it's the kid's favorite Halloween movie.

r.i.p. ray harryhausen

Like many, I grew up with the amazing stop-motion animation of the incredibly talented Ray Harryhausen. My first exposure to his work was in Jason and the Argonauts, and I still enjoy watching it. The climactic fight between Jason and his men and the armed skeletons is a cinematic classic, but I also loved Harryhausen's Talos, the gigantic man of bronze.

I also loved Clash of the Titans, with a gorgeous young Harry Hamlin as the intrepid Perseus, who is tested by A-list actors playing the Greek Gods - Laurence Olivier, Maggie Smith, Claire Bloom, and Ursula Andress, Hamlin's lady love at the time.

A few years ago I found a DVD with some of Harryhausen's early work, stop-motion animated nursery rhymes and fairy tales, like Rapunzel, Mother Goose, etc., that my daughter loves. She also loves Jason and the Argonauts. We're carrying on the Harryhausen appreciation to the next generation. Thanks, Mr. Harryhusen, for a lot of fun at the movies.

holiday movies — rudolph the red-nosed reindeer

We are still in holiday movie mode, and no holiday movie viewing would be complete without pulling out the classic stop-motion animated Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer. This is a fond childhood memory for me, so it's a treat to share it with my kid. We had the soundtrack album when I was  growing up, too. The kid loves Rudolph, of course, and especially his glamorous lady friend Clarice. I have always had a soft spot for the Abominable Snow Monster and all the denizens of The Island of Misfit Toys, but everyone has their favorite, like dentist elf Hermey or the irascible Yukon Cornelius.

Original animation model for Rudolph, from TV Party! which also has some excellent background information on the making of the television special

I've always had an affection for stop-motion animation. I guess because I've always loved dolls. Rudolph is probably the most famous of the Rankin/Bass holiday specials, but they have also made some other great animated films, including Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town, Jack Frost, The Year Without a Santa Claus, with the incomparable Heat Miser and Snow Miser, and the delightful feature film Mad Monster Party. What probably puts Rudolph ahead of the rest is the music — not just the title song, but many of the others sung by Burl Ives, which have become holiday staples, like "Silver And Gold" and "A Holly Jolly Christmas." The longest-running television Christmas special, Rudolph's nose continues to shine brightly.

coraline

My love for our local library is helping me indulge in a Halloween Gaiman-athon. After American Gods I felt like I needed a change of pace before I tried Anansi Boys, so I decided to read Coraline. It was a quick read, and a tad disturbing.  No surprise there.

"How do I know you'll keep your word?" asked Coraline.
"I swear it," said the other mother. "I swear it on my own mother's grave."
"Does she have a grave?" asked Coraline.
"Oh yes," said the other mother. "I put her in there myself. And when I found her trying to crawl out, I put her back."

I had seen the movie first, which was just O.K., and was happy to discover how much I liked the book. Part fairy tale, part pure horror, part girl's adventure story, Coraline deftly sketches tween angst. Coraline is caught not only between the real world and the alternate reality on the other side of the drawing room door, but between wanting to  be independent and a child's need for mommy and daddy. Aided by a black cat who can slip through both worlds, she uses her considerable smarts and sheer guts to not only get what she wants, but to help others.

"I don't want whatever I want. Nobody does. Not really. What kind of fun would it be if I just got everything I ever wanted just like that, and it didn't mean anything. What then?"

I recently saw the movie again on cable and was perplexed by some of the additions (neighborhood kid friend) and subtractions—the book had such a great visual of the other mother's hair, blowing in an invisible wind, but the stop-motion style of the animation omitted this visual metaphor. But where the movie was really confusing was how it was marketed towards kiddies. Coraline is a creepy story. My six year old is too young for it—just a few moments flipping past it on television and she shouted out, "Too scary!" Animation is marketed towards a young audience. But those button eyes ... But movies are different from books and Gaiman seems fine with how the film turned out.


Coraline is the perfect Halloween read, as long as you're not afraid to encounter the beldam and would like to take a walk between worlds with a smart girl and a nameless cat.

"What's your name," Coraline asked the cat. "Look, I'm Coraline. Okay?"
"Cats don't have names," it said.
"No?" said Coraline.
"No," said the cat. "Now you people have names. That's because you don't know who you are. We know who we are, so we don't need names."

Related articles

• Gaiman's The Sandman planned as TV series (cbc.ca)
• Neil Gaiman Gets Animated On Arthur (wired.com)