Family Friendly Movies

The Mad Ghoul

by user
May 28, 2017July 19, 2024

The Mad Ghoul (1943) starring Turhan Bey, Evelyn Ankers, David Bruce, George Zucco

The Mad Ghoul, frankly, is an above-average monster movie, starring some of the recognizable actors from the genre in the 1940’s. In short, Dr. Alfred Morris (George Zucco) is a college professor and researcher, who has uncovered and recreated a poisonous gas first used by ancient Mayans, used to create “death in life” – robbing the victims of their own will, similar to the classic zombie movies of the 1930’s and 1940’s. He hires a medical student named Ted Allison (David Bruce), since he needs his surgical skills for the grisly “cure” to the poison — a fresh heart is a crucial ingredient. The original experiment on a monkey seems successful — at first.

by user
May 27, 2017November 3, 2021

Village of the Damned (1960) starring George Sanders, Barbara Shelley, Michael Gwynn

Synopsis of Village of the Damned

Village of the DamnedAt a quiet little village in England, something odd has happened — everyone in the village has fallen asleep. Everyone who enters, or flies over, also falls asleep. And afterward, every woman in the village of child-bearing age finds herself pregnant. All of the children born are blond, with strange eyes, who mature extremely rapidly. And they seem … unworldly.

Review of Village of the Damned

The Village of the Damned is a great many things – science fiction, cold war paranoia, a story of longing for family. But at its heart, it’s about people – like all great stories. And every time I watch it, my heart breaks for George Sanders.

by user
May 27, 2017March 20, 2024

The Thing that Couldn’t Die (1958), starring Andra Martin, Carolyn Kearney, William Reynolds, Robin Hughes, Jeffrey Stone

In short, The Thing That Couldn’t Die is a good example of a truly cheesy monster movie. My children and I enjoyed watching it last week on Svengoolie — primarily making fun of it as it was playing. The acting was wooden, the makeup was mediocre, and it was so totally cheesy that it was completely enjoyable — but probably not in the way that the filmmakers intended.

by user
May 27, 2017February 14, 2024

Revolt of the Zombies (1936)

First, Revolt of the Zombies isn’t a “zombie” movie in the current sense. There are no shambling undead. There are, however, mentally enslaved people enthralled by the villain of the movie — who is not whom you think

by user
May 27, 2017February 24, 2024

Godzilla vs the Smog Monster (aka. Godzilla vs Hedorah)

I have fond memories of watching Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster from when I was a teenager–and, oddly enough, it’s still enjoyable in the same vein as it was then–an odd combination of cheesy movie and environmental doomsday. It’s an odd movie and a cult classic.

by user
May 27, 2017November 25, 2024

movie review of Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.

Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. is a sequel to Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla. One year later, Mechagodzilla is being repaired after the damage inflicted it by Godzilla. Losing consistency from the previous film, a different crew is manning the Mechagodzilla. That’s a robotic Godzilla, built over the skeleton of the original Godzilla, that died at the end of the original Godzilla movie in 1954. The central character in this film is Yoshito Chûjô. He’s the son of Dr. Shin’ichi Chûjô, the star of the original Mothra movie. Yoshito is the chief technician on the “Mecha G” project. He’s trying to get Mechagodzilla repaired in the event of Godzilla’s eventual next rampage. However, Mothra has something to say …

by user
May 27, 2017February 21, 2024

Murders in the Rue Morgue (1971) starring Jason Robards, Herbert Lom

My mother taught me that if I didn’t have anything nice to say, I shouldn’t say anything nice at all … so this review will be mercifully short. Yes, the film is that bad. What’s wrong with it?

by user
May 27, 2017May 13, 2022

The Return of Doctor X (1939) starring Humphrey Bogart

The Return of Doctor X begins as a more mundane mystery, as a reporter publishes an account of the death of actress Angela Merrova–who shows up alive and threatens to sue the paper, leading to the reporter’s firing. Unable to believe that the dead woman is alive, he investigates and finds a connection between the returned actress and a Dr. Francis Flegg — an expert of rare blood types, and the friend behind the revival of both the actress and the murderous Dr. X.

by user
May 27, 2017August 10, 2024

William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 — 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff, was an English actor.

He was widely known for his roles in horror films, particularly for his portrayal of Frankenstein’s monster in Frankenstein (1931), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), and Son of Frankenstein (1939), which resulted in his immense popularity. His best-known non-horror role is as the Grinch, as well as the narrator, in the animated television special of Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966). He also had a memorable role in the original Scarface (1932). For his contribution to film and television, Boris Karloff was awarded two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

by user
May 27, 2017February 15, 2023

Bride of Frankenstein (1935) starring Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive
reviewed by: The masked reviewer

Bride of Frankenstein begins with Mary Shelley informing her friends that she has written a sequel to her masterpiece. She begins this story at the end of Frankenstein with Dr. Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) recovering from his injuries, and the mill fire still crackling. A curious villager and his worried wife are watching the fire when a familiar hand strangles the man and throws the wife down to her death.Minnie (Una O’Connor) starts screaming when she spots the monster walking away from the ruins. The monster runs away before the mobs can begin their monster hunt again. Henry refuses to accept the monster as his creation and decides to quiet the evil experiment business to follow in the family business.