{"id":26712,"date":"2023-07-25T02:13:53","date_gmt":"2023-07-25T09:13:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=26712"},"modified":"2023-07-25T02:13:53","modified_gmt":"2023-07-25T09:13:53","slug":"blasts-from-the-past-blu-ray-review-robot-monster-1953-aka-robot-monster-3d","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=26712","title":{"rendered":"Blasts from the Past! Blu-ray Review: ROBOT MONSTER (1953) aka ROBOT MONSTER 3D"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This Blu-ray from BayView Entertainment is currently available\nand features 2D and 3D presentations of the movie. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Believe it or not, 3D films have existed since the 1920s. However, it wasn\u2019t until the 1950s that the format really took off. In fact, this era is considered the Golden Age of 3D movies and included some excellent titles like Creature from the Black Lagoon<\/em> (1954), House of Wax<\/em> (1953) and Alfred Hitchcock\u2019s Dial M for Murder<\/em> (1953). There were also some independent oddities, like the notorious Robot Monster<\/em> (1953), which became a cult classic for all the wrong reasons. In celebration of its 70th<\/sup> anniversary, BayView Entertainment is releasing an incredible new Blu-ray with a restored image and 3D-playing capabilities that have long been unavailable to fans.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The movie features a bizarre storyline about an alien\ninvader known as Ro-Man who wipes out all of humanity, with the exception of a\nprofessor and seven other individuals who are immune to its death ray. Ro-Man\ndecides to take a hands-on approach to murdering the last holdouts. Unfortunately,\na plucky child turns out to be quite a problem for the villain (at least until a\nsurprising turn of events during the climax). Additionally, the creature isn\u2019t\nhelped by the fact that he appears to be in love with the professor\u2019s daughter.\nThe dialogue is wooden and the movie struggles to make any logical sense, but the\nfilm\u2019s most notable feature is the Ro-Man itself. The cash-strapped production\nforced the use of a man in a gorilla suit and a giant helmet (that looks like\nsomething from a diver\u2019s suit) with antennae.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The movie is every bit as bonkers as you might imagine,\nwhich is what makes it so entertaining. From the bizarre behavior of the\nhumans, to the equally odd reasoning of Ro-Man, to the bargain basement effects\n(one piece of Ro-Man\u2019s equipment is a bubble-machine that frequently sends\nbubbles floating across the screen), the film\u2019s antagonist is hilarious to behold\nand movie offers unintentional laughs throughout. Yet, as mentioned, it is a\nfun bad movie, moving at a quick pace and delivering laughs consistently. That,\nand it\u2019s extremely low-budget, actually made the independent flick profitable\nduring its original release. As a result, this reviewer remembers it fondly\nfrom his childhood staying up late and watching monster movies on TV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Prints of the film have always looked abysmal, with scratches\nand other issues. And while the movie was shot in 3D and initially projected using\na polarized, dual-strip process involving two prints, these copies disappeared,\nmaking this version of the movie impossible to find for decades. In the 1990s,\na proper version was finally discovered, but required an incredible amount of\nrestoration work. Recently, that work has been completed and the finished\nproduct is now available on Blu-ray. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The results are nothing less than astounding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The disc presents a 2D version, an anaglyph dual-strip 3D edition\n(with red and cyan glasses \u2013 one set is included in the package), and an upgraded\nBD3D version compatible with new televisions that have this capability. This\nreviewer watched the anaglyph 3D edition with glasses and, as surprised as I am\nto admit it, the movie is beautifully shot with incredible 3D images, even when\nviewed with the old-fashioned glasses. There had always been rumors that the\nphotography was better than it had been given credit for and this claim is\nproved conclusively. Everything is crystal clear and the shots really do pop out\nof the screen. Ro-Man and the human survivors almost seem to jump out of the\ntelevision (and the bubbles also create an interesting visual effect) and the\n3D works better than in many major studio pictures of the period. Of course,\nthe story and still as preposterous as ever, but the visuals accompanying it\nare dazzling. It makes an enjoyably silly movie all the more entertaining to\nwatch. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The picture alone would be more than enough to justify its\npurchase, but there are hours of extras features that are equally fun. This\nincludes a recently discovered 3D intro to the movie (that is now included in\nthe presentation) involving comedian \u201cSlick Slaven\u201d doing a routine in front of\na hastily thrown up blanket. As you might expect, you can watch an intriguing 2D\nfeaturette about discovering the movie print in a vault, as well as this forgotten\nintro and the performer who appeared in it. Apparently, he was thrilled by its discovery\nand managed to appear at a few screenings of the film before his passing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2D extras also include Joe Dante from Trailers from Hell<\/em> discussing the movie while the trailer plays. He notes that part of the weirdness is that, despite the dark story, the film was actually made for kids. Dante thinks that while the director\u2019s career struggled as a result of the picture\u2019s notorious reputation, no one else would done any better with the material. There\u2019s a great bit explaining the picture\u2019s double-film process used during shots of the Earth\u2019s destruction. Viewers who blinked and closed an eye would see different images of destruction. It actually works in this release and creates an interesting effect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Additionally, the Blu-ray includes a film historian commentary\nthat provides plenty of interesting information about the production. You\u2019ll\nalso get a video for a song inspired by the picture and its restoration, as\nwell as lengthy memorabilia gallery and trailers for other 3D pictures from the\nera. Curiously enough, there is also a Bela Lugosi network television\nappearance included that does have a connection to the rise of 3D cinema and\nthe feature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My personal favorite extras are the 3D ones, including a 3D\ninterview with the youngest star of the picture recounting his experiences on\nthe shoot. But the highlight is a curated vintage slide presentation from Stereoscopic\nAnthropologist Hilary Hess, who presents three-dimensional photographs from the\nera. Some of the images are incredible, almost putting you in the shot and\nmaking you feel like you have traveled back in time. The disc also comes with a\npair of 3D shorts, images from a 3D comic book using the blinking effect and\nmuch more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Admittedly, many of these features are all included together\nas a single file, but chapter stops will help the viewer find a favorite bonus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I expected a good transfer of the movie, but this 3D Blu-ray\ncompletely wowed me. The film presented looks astounding and some of the bonuses\nare just as incredible. Robot Monster<\/em> was always an enjoyably cheesy\nB-movie, but this release really shows some of the technical skill that went\ninto it. The footage was almost lost forever and it\u2019s a miracle that it was recovered\nand is now being shared with the world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is an outstanding release and those involves should not\nonly be applauded, but also supported in their future endeavors. If you get the\nchance, be sure to pick up the Robot Monster 3D<\/em> Blu-ray!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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