Mad Monster Party?

source: Mad Monster Party?

Mad Monster Party?

A favorite of mine when I was a kid, I just purchased and watched this classic with my kids. I was surprised how much I forgot. . .and remembered! There were a couple of songs ("Stay One Step Ahead" for one) that I began singing along with when the music started. My kids and I laughed and laughed at the corny jokes, the really, really, bad special effects, and the "ancient" quality of claymation. It was a kick and it'll be cool to pull this out and watch it whenever instead of waiting for it to appear on TV, which it rarely did when I was a kid. By the way,the DVD comes with a cool little booklet that gives a lot of great background, but there are few extras on the DVD itself.

I saw this movie when it first came out and totally loved it..Especially Phyllis Dillers character. I saw it several times and then I mentioned it to my sister (7 yrs older) and she told me it had not been on in years. FINALLY about 5 years ago I found it. I bought 2 copies 1 for me to watch and one for my future grandchildren. I love it and watch it every year since I got it. It's great fun and I still enjoy it immensely and I am 45 years old. I guess I am a big kid at heart every year I watch all the specials, Charlie brown, Rudolph, year without a Santa Claus etc. They make me remember when times were easy and holidays were more about being together and having fun.

I enjoyed this movie mainly because I'm a fan of the classic Universal movie monsters and Rankin-Bass' Christmas specials. I liked some of the humor that was clearly aimed at adults and even enjoyed the musical numbers. Although, some of the gags went on too long and seemed a bit pointless (like the scene where the Igor-type character went in the kitchen to ask about the food). And the ending was surprisingly dark and strange for a movie targeted at kids and didn't really make sense for the purpose of the story. It's fun and I think kids will especially enjoy it, but if you're lookin' for better kid-friendly Halloween features, I'd suggest Nightmare Before Christmas or the Hotel Transylvania movies.

Every year, Mad Monster Party? would show up on TV around Halloween. Every year I watched it, until suddenly it disappeared from the small screen. (This was about the same time that infomercials came into vogue.) It was ten or more long years before I saw it again one night on TNT, and it had lost none of it's magnificence. And now it's shown up again, this time on AMC...and the AMC print is miles better than the washed out one that TNT showed. It's unbelievably bright, displaying a full palette of colours where once all was green and purple. You owe it to yourself---and your children!---to catch Mad Monster Party? at the next possible occasion. It's a Rankin-Bass production, so you know it's quality!

What a shame that Rankin/Bass, the people who produced some of the most beloved Christmas specials ever ("Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," etc.) only did two theatrical films, this and "The Daydreamer" a year earlier. "Mad Monster Party" is, like those specials, fun for all ages. Boris Karloff brings his inimitable prescense to the voice of Baron Frankenstein. With this film and Bogdonovich's "Targets" the next year, this old master of the horror film couldn't have asked for a better send-off. And then there's Phyllis Diller, bringing her particular brand of wackiness (And a surprisingly good singing voice!) to the role of "The Monster's Mate." The clay animation throughout is up to Rankin/Bass's usual excellent standard and the result is enjoyable, campy fun, at Halloween or anytime.

Let me start by saying that I am a HUGE Boris Karloff and a cartoonist and animator as well'When I saw.the names of Harvey Kurtzman AS ND Jack Davis I knew I'm was in for a treat and was not disappointed. . You see, Harvey Kurtzman is co-creator of Mad in its comic book days and Jack Davis was one of their best artists. So when you look at the exceptional character design, you are looking at their work It is just as much fun as reading a Mad Magazine with its off-the-wall humor. Great fun and even my teenage son liked it which is AMAZING! My only complaint was the bizarre casting of Phylis Diller' Fun for kids, classic horror fans and Boris Karloff.

Baron von Frankenstein summons all the classic movie monsters like Dracula, the Mummy, the Wolfman, etc. to his castle to announce his retirement. When the monsters find out he plans to name his nerdy nephew his successor, they aren't pleased. I love Rankin/Bass and I love classic horror movies, especially the Universal monster movies. So this is right up my alley. As with the classic Rankin/Bass TV specials, the stop-motion animation is the primary selling point. If the animation does nothing for you, then you're in for a tough slog here. Boris Karloff and Phyllis Diller are the two most well-known actors providing voices to this. Others are impressions of the likes of Peter Lorre and Jimmy Stewart. The character Francesca is probably the sexiest thing Rankin/Bass did. Her catfight scene is awesome. The songs are terrific. So much fun. This really is a must for fans of Universal monster movies and Rankin/Bass.

This will always be such a fun Halloween, or strangely enough, Christmas movie. Many of us have been lucky to see the claymation wonders by Rankin/Bass. This feature length spoof/salute to classic monster movies has the same charm Rankin/Bass gave to their classic Christmas shows- RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER, and THE CHRISTMAS THAT ALMOST WASN'T. Boris Karloff and Phyllis Diller provide the voices for this fun little comedy about monsters gathering for a big party. The Mummy (complete with "British Invasion" style band) The Gill-Man, King Kong, Dracula, etc. all come to the festivities. It's alot of fun.