The Alien Dead – 1980, US, 74m. Director: Fred Olen Ray.
The Great Alligator – 1979, Italy, 89m. Director: Sergio Marinto.
The Sinister Urge – 1960, US, 70m. Director: Edward D. Wood. Jr.
THE ALIEN DEAD (1980) The residents of Deep South swamp country are turned into cannibalistic ghouls after coming into contact with a crashed meteor. The first victims are a couple of twang-talkin’ gator poachers who are pulled into the water and resurface with their faces eaten off. A man chopping wood is ripped apart by a quartet of zombies; his wife later stumbles upon his top half being devoured by the cannibals. She’s bumped off in the movie’s most infamous scene, impaled with a three-pronged pitchfork—as four prongs come out her back. The redneck sheriff (Buster Crabbe) thinks it’s the work of a rogue gator, despite the fact there hasn’t been a gator sighting in weeks—because they’ve been eaten by the zombies! Former Flash Gordon Crabbe flubs his lines; bombshell Linda Lewis emerges from the swamp soaking wet and a few seconds later is bone-dry; several of the alien dead have mutated gray faces, yet their arms and hands retain a normal skin complexion; a victim laughs while being chomped on by a zombie. In other words, it’s a typical Fred Olen Ray production, which is atypical of most other filmmakers. Still, this is an enjoyable slack-jawed blunder that would pair nicely with the similar bargain basement production, Bloodeaters (1980). B–
THE GREAT ALLIGATOR (1979) Tourists at a South Asian resort are gobbled up by a large crocodile in this Italian potpourri of Jaws, Piranha, and many other eco-terrors of the late seventies. Fashion photographer Claudio Cassinelli seeks help from a jungle tribe that worships the massive reptile as a god after one of Cassinelli’s models is eaten by the beast. Mel Ferrer, who plays the Mayor Vaughn-like owner of the resort, dismisses the killer croc theory and ends up turning his customers into croc chow. James Bond beauty Barbara Bach spends most of the film wet and bra-less, making her the perfect sacrificial offering for the great crocodile, the creature effect for which looks like a static, plastic toy. The Great Alligator might not be as bad as the similar Crocodile (1979), but it’s also not nearly as much fun as the gorier Killer Crocodile (1989). C–
THE SINISTER URGE (1960) Before he moved into the world of softcore porn, Z-movie king Edward D. Wood, Jr. took one last stab at “legitimate” filmmaking with this highly moronic “thriller” about a deranged idiot (Dino Fantini in a ridiculous pompadour) whose lust for killing is triggered by smut films. The underground smut racket is run by a tough-talkin’ bombshell (Jean Fontaine) who’s more concerned with her business than the safety of her models, who are being bumped off in record numbers. Narratively feeble and atrociously acted, but not containing any of the campy charm of Wood’s earlier duds. This makes Reefer Madness look good by comparison. A real stinkaroo. F