Showing posts with label science fiction films. Show all posts
Showing posts with label science fiction films. Show all posts

Friday, 22 May 2026

Sci-Fi Film Fiesta: The Swingin’ 60s Volume 7 - “They’re Damned, Man….DAMNED!” (Free Ebook)






Sci-Fi Film Fiesta:
The Swingin’ 60s
Volume 7 -
“They’re Damned, Man….
DAMNED!”


What happens when the future arrives wearing the face of a child? When humanity itself becomes infected, corrupted, replaced…or simply rendered obsolete?

Prepare yourself for a chilling journey into the darker corners of 1960s science fiction cinema with Sci-Fi Film Fiesta: The Swingin’ 60s – Volume 7: “They’re Damned, Man….DAMNED!”*— a brand-new FREE eBook exploring four unforgettable films in which mankind confronts terrifying forces beyond its understanding… and often beyond its control.

This latest volume in the Sci-Fi Film Fiesta series ventures into a decade where Cold War paranoia, fears of nuclear annihilation, social unrest and anxieties about the future all found expression through eerie children, doomed survivors, apocalyptic landscapes and sinister scientific conspiracies.

Inside this volume you’ll encounter:

Village of the Damned (1962) – The unnerving British classic in which the glowing-eyed children of Midwich quietly and coldly threaten the survival of humanity itself. The film explore fears surrounding evolution, intelligence and loss of human control.

These Are the Damned (1962)– Joseph Losey’s haunting and deeply unusual science fiction drama blending juvenile delinquents, government secrecy and radioactive doom into one unforgettable nightmare. What is presented is a bleak British New Wave atmosphere together with nuclear-age anxiety.

Children of the Damned (1964) – This chilling follow-up that expands the terrifying concept of superhuman children into an international crisis with apocalyptic implications.

Last Man on Earth (1964)– Vincent Price delivers one of his finest performances in this bleak and atmospheric adaptation of Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend, a landmark work that helped shape the modern zombie and post-apocalyptic genres presenting the scenario of full-scale human extinction and existential despair.

As with previous volumes in the series, this eBook combines entertaining commentary, film history, behind-the-scenes insights and cultural context with an affectionate appreciation for the strange, imaginative and often unsettling worlds created by 1960s science fiction cinema.


Expect eerie atmospheres.
Expect Cold War dread.
Expect doomed humanity and moral ambiguity.
Expect endings that refuse to offer easy comfort.

Whether you’re a longtime devotee of classic sci-fi, a lover of vintage horror, or simply curious about the darker side of the Swingin’ Sixties, “They’re Damned, Man….DAMNED!” offers a fascinating cinematic excursion into a decade where the monsters were not always aliens from outer space… but sometimes humanity’s own children, governments, or even humanity itself.

Best of all — the eBook is completely FREE to download.

So dim the lights, listen for the Geiger counter clicks, keep an eye on any disturbingly intelligent children close by… and prepare for another wild ride through the unforgettable worlds of classic 1960s science fiction cinema.


Sci-Fi Film Fiesta:
The Swingin’ 60s –
Volume 7:
“They’re Damned, Man….


GOOGLE PLAY BOOKS

Thursday, 5 June 2025

The Creation of the Humanoids (1962)



A deceptively intelligent early sci-fi film that relies quite heavily on dialogue that contain ideas of even more relevance today as we hurtle toward a future in which we will have to come terms with our relationship with our “smarter” technology.


Directed by Wesley Barry
Written by Jay Simms
Produced by Wesley Barry, Edward J. Kay
Cinematography: Hal Mohr
Edited by Ace Herman
Music by Edward J. Kay
Distributed by Emerson Film Enterprises
Running time: 84 minutes



Cast

Don Megowan as Capt. Kenneth Cragis
Erica Elliot as Maxine Megan
Don Doolittle as Dr. Raven
George Milan as Acto, a clicker
Dudley Manlove as Lagan, a clicker
Frances McCann as Esme Cragis Milos
David Cross as Pax, a clicker
Malcolm Smith as Court
Richard Vath as Mark, a clicker
Reid Hammond as Hart, Chairman of Surveillance Committee
Pat Bradley as Dr. Moffitt
William Hunter as Ward, Surveillance Committee Member
Gil Frye as Orus, a clicker
Alton Tabor as Kelly's Duplicate
Paul Sheriff as Policeman


Trailer


The setting: 23rd century post nuclear war holocaust society.
The surviving population suffers from a decreasing birth rate.
The human race is headed for extinction.
People have become dependent on humanoid robots (‘Clickers’) for assistance.
The ‘Order of Flesh and Blood’ fear that the robots will take over and supplant human beings.
The Order tasks itself with preventing the robots from becoming too human and with ensuring that human beings remain dominant.
A scientist experiments with creating human replicas that have genuine emotions and memories.
Two central characters, Kenneth Cragis and Maxine Megan form a close relationship and make a discovery that will call into question all that they thought they knew about the basis of their society and themselves.

And now prepare yourself for “The Creation of the Humanoids” and to have your ideas challenged on what it means to be human along with the possible future direction of our human civilization……..

Read on for more....... 

Monday, 19 February 2024

Planet of the Vampires (1965) (Terrore nello spazio)


A stylish, innovative, well-paced and entertaining mid-1960s sci-fi film with strong tone and atmosphere along with earnest performances.



Directed by Mario Bava
Screenplay by Alberto Bevilacqua, Callisto Cosulich, Mario Bava, Antonio Román, Rafael J. Salvia
English version: Ib Melchior, Louis M. Heyward
Based on "One Night of 21 Hours" by Renato Pestriniero
Produced by,Fulvio Lucisano
Cinematography: Antonio Rinaldi
Edited by Antonio Gimeno, Romana Fortini
Music by Gino Marinuzzi Jr.
Production companies: Italian International Film, Castilla Cooperativa Cinematográfica, American International Pictures
Distributed by Società Italiana di Distribuzione (SIDIS) (Italy), C.B. Films (Spain)
Running time: 88 minutes
Budget: $200,000
Box office: £90 million (Italy), 38.2 million ESP (Spain), $251,000 (United States)


Cast

Barry Sullivan as Captain Mark Markary
Norma Bengell as Sanya
Ángel Aranda as Wess Wescant
Evi Marandi as Tiona
Franco Andrei as Bert
Federico Boido as Harry Gash
Stelio Candelli as Brad )
Alberto Cevenini as Toby Markary
Mario Morales as Eldon
Ivan Rassimov as Carter
Massimo Righi as Captain Sallis
Fernando Villeña as Dr. Karan



A strange transmission of a distress signal is received.

The spaceships Argos and Galliot travel to the mysterious planet Aura to investigate.

Automatic controls malfunction and the Galliot crashes on the surface of Aura.

Upon landing, crew-members in Argos briefly lose control and attack each other.

Why?

Casualties are soon found but the Argos’ Captain and his surviving crew discover that the dead do not stay dead.

How can this be?

Did they respond to a distress signal or have they fallen into a trap?

If the latter, then who set the trap and for what purpose?


Trailer

Read on for more....

Saturday, 21 October 2023

Runaway (1984)


A lesser-known 1980s sci-fi gem that deserves far greater recognition


Directed by Michael Crichton
Written by Michael Crichton
Produced by Michael I. Rachmil, Lisa Faversham, Kurt Villadsen
Cinematography: John A. Alonzo
Edited by Glenn Farr, James Coblentz
Music by Jerry Goldsmith
Production company: Delphi III Productions
Distributed by Tri-Star Pictures
Release date: December 14, 1984
Running time: 99 minutes
Budget: $8 million
Box office: $6,770,587 (USA)


Cast

Tom Selleck as Sergeant Jack R. Ramsay
Cynthia Rhodes as Officer Karen Thompson
Gene Simmons as Dr. Charles Luther
Kirstie Alley as Jackie Rogers
Stan Shaw as Sergeant Marvin James
G.W. Bailey as Chief of Police
Joey Cramer as Bobby Ramsay
Chris Mulkey as David Johnson
Sullivan Walker as K.C.
Anne-Marie Martin as Hooker At Bar
Michael Paul Chan as Wilson, Vectrocon Security Guard
Babz Chula as Construction Foreperson
Marilyn Schreffler as Voice of Lois
Elizabeth Norment as Miss Shields
Carol Teesdale as Sally
Paul Batten as Harry
Betty Phillips as Linda
Stephen Thorne as Tommy
Stephen E. Miller as Rudy
Cec Verrell as Hooker
Amber Borycki as Baby (uncredited)



Sometime in a future which we have almost caught up with, robots perform domestic house-hold, agricultural, construction and many other services. The police have a specialized department tasked with investigating and resolving cases involving malfunctioning robots that pose a danger to humans. Such robots are known as "Runaways"

Trailer

Read on for more......

Tuesday, 25 July 2023

Night of the Big Heat (1968)

ISLAND OF THE BURNING DAMNED
ISLAND OF THE BURNING DOOMED

A low budget but eerie, tense, gripping and effective sci-fi / horror film that let its characters tell the story


Directed by Terence Fisher
Written by Jane Baker, Pip Baker, Ronald Liles
Based on “Night of the Big Heat” 1959 novel by John Lymington
Produced by Tom Blakeley, Ronald Liles
Cinematography: Reginald H. Wyer
Edited by Rod Nelson-Keys
Music by Malcolm Lockyer
Production company: Planet Film Productions
Distributed by Planet Film Distributors
Running time: 94 minutes


Cast

Christopher Lee as Professor Godfrey Hanson
Patrick Allen as Jeff Callum
Peter Cushing as Dr. Vernon Stone
Sarah Lawson as Frankie Callum
Jane Merrow as Angela Roberts
William Lucas as Ken Stanley
Percy Herbert as Gerald Foster
Kenneth Cope as Tinker Mason
Thomas Heathcote as Bob Hayward
Anna Turner as Stella Hayward
Jack Bligh as Ben Siddle
Sydney Bromley as Old Tramp



Trailer


In the middle of winter the island of Fara off the English coast is experiencing an oppressive, stifling and inexplicable heat wave, as if this little isolated heavily cloud-shrouded speck of terrestrial real estate was being deliberately subjected to the burning focused beam of a celestial magnifying glass.

Jeff and Frankie Callum run an inn called, The Swan. Jeff is a professional novelist who has supposedly hired a secretary, Angela Roberts who is in fact a younger woman with whom he had an affair. Angela has come to the island with the intention of re-kindling the affair, perhaps ending Jeff’s marriage with his wife and having him all to herself.

Also from the mainland is a strange and mysterious scientist, Godfrey Hanson who has rented a room at The Swan. This intense-looking, stern-faced individual with an abrupt, pompous and rude manner spends his time setting up motion-sensitive cameras and taking soil samples. For what purpose? Who knows?

As the temperature rises along with the mounting tension pervading the little island community, let’s see how the mystery unfolds…..


Read on for more.....

Friday, 3 March 2023

Sci-Fi Film Fiesta - Volume 11: 'A Tribute To.....' Final Volume in the eBook series


This 11th volume “A Tribute To….” of the Sci-Fi Film Fiesta series is dedicated to the actors, directors, producers, special effects artists, writers and other involved in the pioneering work of science fiction movie making.

Part 1: A Tribute To…. focuses on some of the prominent directors, producers, actors and special effects people involved in science fiction films of the 1950s. Brief biographical information is provided on each one, along with their contribution to the pioneering work of sci-fi film-making in the 1950s.

Part 2: A Tribute To Classic Sci-Fi Ladies provides a brief introduction to each of the female co-stars and supporting actors in the films featured in the Sci-Fi Film Fiesta eBook series.

Part 3: A Tribute To Science Fiction Authors references some of the works of fiction that inspired and were adapted into various classic 1950s sci-fi films.


CONTENTS

Introduction

***Part 1: A Tribute To….

Ray Harryhausen
George Pal
Roger Corman
Richard Carlson
Jack Arnold
Richard Denning
Faith Domergue
Hugh Marlowe
Whit Bissell
Morris Ankrum
Ishirō Honda
Russell Johnson
John Zaremba
Peter Graves
Beverly Garland
Paul Birch
Peggie Castle
Paul Blaisdell
Val Guest
Willis O'Brien
John Agar
Bert I. Gordon
Eugène Lourié
Warren Stevens
Yumi Shirakawa
Robert Wise

***Part 2: A Tribute to…..Classic Sci-Fi Ladies

***Part 3: A Tribute To…..Science Fiction Authors
(& The Inspiration They Provided)

John W. Campbell Jnr
Paul W. Fairman
W. J. Stuart
Harry Bates
Raymond F. Jones
Philip Wylie and Edwin Balmer
John Wyndham
Jack Finney
William F. Temple
H.G. Wells
John Mantley
Curt Siodmak

I hope you'll enjoy this final volume of the Sci-Fi Film Fiesta eBook series along with the other volumes. My original intention in writing about classic science fiction films of the 1950s was to present it in the form of a book but I instead chose to do so via this blog. Having completed featuring sci-fi films of the 1950s and moving on to films of the 1960s through to the 1980s, I decided to go back to my original idea. With the amount of information such a book would encompass, I then decided to present it in a freely available eBook format consisting of 11 manageable volumes devoted to various general themes for easy reference.


The Complete Sci-Fi Film Fiesta series:

Volume 1: “Here Be Monsters”
Volume 2: “Into Space”
Volume 3: “Other Worlds”
Volume 4: “Journeys Within”
Volume 5: “Alien Contact”
Volume 6: “Alien Invasion”
Volume 7: “The End Is Nigh!”
Volume 8: “Big Bugs & Crazy Critters”
Volume 9: “Accidents & Experiments”
Volume 10: “Supersized & Miniaturized”
Volume 11: “A Tribute To….”


Also available at....



FREE EBOOKS.NET

Wednesday, 9 November 2022

JOURNEYS WITHIN - NEW EBOOK!!

 


Sci-Fi Film Fiesta
Volume 4: 
"Journeys Within"



Here is Volume 4 of the SCI-FI FILM FIESTA free eBook series. This brief volume, "JOURNEYS WITHIN" features classic science fiction films from the 1950s depicting strange and exotic worlds that await discovery deep within the bowels of the earth and deep down in the fathomless depths of our oceans. Let’s now turn our gaze from the heavens and peer into worlds within a world that may exist under our very noses…...


EPUB DOWNLOAD


KINDLE DOWNLOAD


MOBI DOWNLOAD


PDF DOWNLOAD (with images)


TXT DOWNLOAD

Also available at;


Google Play Books


Other eBooks in the Sci-Fi Film Fiesta series so far:


Keep an eye out for the up-coming Volume 5, Alien Contact.

Friday, 28 October 2022

OTHER WORLDS - NEW EBOOK!


Sci-Fi Film Fiesta
VOLUME 3:
“OTHER WORLDS”

By Chris Christopoulos


This volume of the “Sci-Fi Film Fiesta” series: VOLUME 3: "OTHER WORLDS" features
 these classic sci-fi gems from the 1950s; 
  • Destination Moon
  • Rocketship X-M
  • Flight to Mars
  • Cat Women of the Moon
  • Forbidden Planet
  • The Angry Red Planet
Each film presents an imaginative scenario involving humanity’s exploration of alien worlds.

Volume 3 "Other Worlds" is the third eBook in the Sci-Fi Film Fiesta series and is free for you to download.

**********


EPUB DOWNLOAD LINK

PDF DOWNLOAD LINK
(with images)


KINDLE (azw3) DOWNLOAD LINK


MOBI DOWNLOAD LINK


TXT DOWNLOAD LINK

Also available from;


Google Play Books


Keep an eye out for Volume 4, "Journeys Within."

Monday, 17 October 2022

INTO SPACE - NEW EBOOK



Sci-Fi Film Fiesta
Volume 2:
"INTO SPACE"

In this post I’d like to offer the reader another FREE volume from the “Sci-Fi Film Fiesta” eBook series. This second volume is titled, “INTO SPACE” and contains some individual classic films from the golden age of science fiction of the 1950s. These films feature imaginative presentations of humanity’s tentative and often dangerous steps into the great unknown realm of outer space. Let’s hope we never forget that space is in fact an extremely dangerous, unforgiving and potentially lethal place for human beings to be working and living in. If we become complacent and lose respect for the environment of space for which we are unsuited, it can and will kill us.



Also available from;

Free-eBooks.net

Google Play (Books)


Keep an eye open for Volume 3: “Other Worlds”




©Chris Christopoulos 2022

Saturday, 8 October 2022

HERE BE MONSTERS - NEW EBOOK


Sci-Fi Film Fiesta
VOLUME 1:
“HERE BE MONSTERS”


By Chris Christopoulos 2022

The Sci-Fi Film Fiesta blog is being turned into an eBook series featuring science fiction film classics from the 1950s. 

The series will consist of several volumes each featuring particular films consisting of a different theme, genre or aspect of that decade's science fiction film offerings.

 Here, we'll begin with Volume 1, "Here Be Monsters"- Movies featuring classic monsters including of course, monsters of our own making.

This volume is part of a series intended (as in the case of this blog) as a salute to the pioneering work of science fiction film makers from the ‘golden age’ of science fiction films of the 1950s. 

The films in this volume feature monsters that stand as metaphors for the fears of the time when people had genuine concerns about atomic power and the atom bomb’s potential for the first time in human history to bring about the end of human civilization. For instance, in the case of Godzilla (1954) the film is an allegory for the destruction and devastation unleashed on Japan by the atomic bomb, with the 400-foot-tall mutant dinosaur Gojira, serving as the visual metaphor. Such monsters represent forces of nature awakened by human science that once brought into being cannot be controlled.


EPUB BOOK LINK DOWNLOAD


PDF DOWNLOAD LINK (With Images)

(Blank pages might appear on initial PDF preview. Be sure to download PDF from Google Drive to read using your PDF reader. All pages should then appear)

TXT DOWNLOAD LINK



Also available from:


Google Books



Chris Christopoulos 2022

Sunday, 24 July 2022

Capricorn One (1977)



A great sci-fi political thriller reflecting the increasingly prevalent cynicism of the 1970s through to the present day

Directed by Peter Hyams
Written by Peter Hyams
Produced by Paul N. Lazarus III
Cinematography: Bill Butler
Edited by James Mitchell
Music by Jerry Goldsmith
Production company: ITC Entertainment
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Running time: 124 minutes
Budget: $5 million (approx.)
Box office: $12 million (US and Canada rental)



Cast


Elliott Gould as Robert Caulfield
James Brolin as Charles Brubaker
Brenda Vaccaro as Kay Brubaker
Sam Waterston as Peter Willis
O. J. Simpson as John Walker
Hal Holbrook as Dr. James Kelloway
Karen Black as Judy Drinkwater
Telly Savalas as Albain
David Huddleston as Hollis Peaker
David Doyle as Walter Loughlin
Lee Bryant as Sharon Willis
Denise Nicholas as Betty Walker
Robert Walden as Elliot Whitter
Alan Fudge as Capsule Communicator



Trailer

Capricorn One,” NASA's first manned mission to Mars.

Seconds before the launch, the crew is pulled from the capsule!

The rocket leaves earth unmanned!

The life support system is faulty!

NASA fears the publicity of a scratched mission!

An unthinkable plot is hatched!

An investigative reporter puts pieces together of an unthinkable mystery involving..

Humanity’s greatest achievement
OR
Its greatest....

Hoax?


Read on for more.....

Monday, 6 June 2022

12 to the Moon (1960)


A somewhat laughably entertaining sci-fi film with ordinary special effects, acting and direction while a variety of plot devices at least keeps the action going.


Directed by David Bradley
Written by Fred Gebhardt, DeWitt Boden
Produced by Fred Gebhardt
Cinematography: John Alton
Edited by Edward Mann
Music by Michael Andersen
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Running time: 74 minutes
Budget: $150,000



Cast


Ken Clark as Capt. John Anderson
Michi Kobi as Dr. Hideko Murata
Tom Conway as Dr. Feodor Orloff
Anthony Dexter as Dr. Luis Vargas
John Wengraf as Dr. Erich Heinrich
Robert Montgomery Jr. as Dr. Rod Murdock
Phillip Baird as Dr. William Rochester
Richard Weber as Dr. David Ruskin
Muzaffer Tema as Dr. Selim Hamid (as Tema Bey)
Roger Til as Dr. Etienne Martel
Cory Devlin as Dr. Asmara Markonen
Anna-Lisa as Dr. Sigrid Bomark
Francis X. Bushman as Secretary General of the International Space Order




Trailer


(Spoilers follow below.....)




“Hello the world”

12 To The Moon opens with shots of the launch of a rocket and rocket plane missiles from different cities around the world. Suddenly a gavel bangs down before we cut to the title and credits.

Any self-respecting science fiction movie from that era and beyond would as expected begin with a serious and authoritative-sounding narration either admonishing humankind for its careless disregard of itself and its planet or extolling the virtues of human technological progress and the necessity of exploring the unknown. In the film, the Secretary General of the International Space Order delivers the latter type of narration as he begins to explain that a program to launch a rocket to the moon is presently underway:

“I am speaking for the International Space Order in the first worldwide radio and telecast in history. At this moment over two billion people in every part of the world are focusing their attention on this program. Every nation of the earth in a magnificent effort is contributing of its people and resources in an attempt to reach the moon and proclaim it international territory. The rocket ship Lunar Eagle Number One represents the culminating achievement of the world's leading scientists. The men and women who will fly her have been hand-picked from the world's leading specialists.”

Read on for more......

Wednesday, 28 April 2021

Francois Truffaut’s, Fahrenheit 451 (1966) - Part 2

 


Commentary


(Some spoilers below...)


Background & Production

Truffaut’s film is based on Ray Bradbury's famous novel, Fahrenheit 451. It was Truffaut's first color film and his only non French-language film. At the 1966 Venice Film Festival, Fahrenheit 451 was nominated for the Golden Lion.


In a detailed diary Truffaut kept during the production, he referred to Fahrenheit 451 as being his "saddest and most difficult" film-making experience, mainly because of intense conflicts between Werner and himself, about which much has been made by others. For instance, Oskar Werner supposedly cut his hair for the final scene to create a continuity error, being motivated by his hatred for the director. For the last two weeks, both men reportedly didn't speak to one another. Still, what work place doesn’t have conflict and difficult interpersonal relationships? Not all films that have cast and crew holding hands and singing Kumbaya turn out to be masterpieces. It’s the end result that counts and in the case of Truffaut’s film, it’s a pretty good result.


Julie Christie was originally cast as just Linda Montag, with the part of Clarisse being offered to Jean Seberg and Jane Fonda, with even Tippi Hedren being considered. Truffaut ultimately decided that Christie be cast in both roles as two sides of the same coin so to speak. Julie Christie agreed to star in this film for $200,000, while her asking price at the time was $400,000.

The film was shot at Pinewood Studios in England. The monorail exterior scene was taken at the French SAFEGE test track in Châteauneuf-sur-Loire near Orléans, France. It was dismantled shortly after filming. The film featured the Alton housing estate in Roehampton, south London, and Edgcumbe Park in Crowthorne, Berkshire. The final "Book People" book reciting scene was filmed at Black Park near Pinewood. It was hoped the weather would improve for the final days of shooting. Instead, it had begun snowing during the night. The presence of snow in the final shots was unexpected and unplanned but proved to be effective.

The production work was done in French, as Truffaut spoke virtually no English but co-wrote the screenplay with Jean-Louis Richard.

The movie's opening credits are spoken rather than displayed in type, which suggests what life would be like in a society in which the printed word is banned.



Truffaut’s “Fahrenheit 451” doesn’t offer us a sleek whiz-bang typical sci-fi 'futuristic' view of the future. Unlike Bradbury’s book, there is no deadly mechanical hound. Bradbury wasn’t focused on anticipating the possible great technological advancements of the future. Instead of such details, he would focus on presenting “what if?” scenarios and considering implications and consequences for humanity. What we do have though in the film version are commuters traveling via monorail and living rooms with wall screens uncannily resembling our own 21st century HDTV sets. The houses are uniform ‘60s style modernist functional but soulless structures that seem to contain retro gadgets like the wall phones. Even the red fire engines look like dinky Tonka toys rather than massive high-tech futuristic beasts. Such elements seem to suggest to the viewer that we are dealing with a world that is not too far removed from our own experience.


Read on for more....