Sampling the Smorgasbord, no. 1: Teenagers from Space (1959)

And you people wonder why I love this stuff. From the previously mentioned collection:



In this sequence alone:

1. The possible coining of the phrase "Those crazy kids!"

2. The cheesiest "monster" I have ever seen (a silhouette of a lobster (!) -- did anyone find this scary in 1959?).

3. The most hilarious "monster" sound I have ever heard (it seems vaguely muppet-esque to me). Note to self: must sample.

4. An overly angry alien demeanor (more evidence of this can be found in part one). Why so angry, Mr. Alien? Especially given that you are superior and all?

I have no idea what any of this really has to do with the "teenagers" referred to in the title, unless perhaps the fact that the alien protagonist (Derek, the guy who kills the lobster-monster in the above clip) rebels against the norms of the extra-terrestrial society he comes from. But based on the title, I was expecting some kind of sci-fi Annette Funicello / Frankie Avalon flick.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the skeletons -- lots of skeletons. The aliens have a powerful ray gun that can convert flesh-and-blood beings into piles of bones instantaneously -- and so, as one of the original tag lines put it, this movie features "thrill-crazed space kids blasting the flesh off humans!"

In all, well worth the 20 cents.