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We
open above the Isle of Evil somewhere in
the Caribbean Sea. Zooming in we POV our
way to a spooky old castle. We keep going,
into the lab of Baron Frankenstein (voiced
by Boris Karloff) as the mad doctor
puts the finishing touches on his latest
creation: a beaker full of strange liquid.
He puts an electrical charge into it,
causing it to glow. Then the Baron puts it
to the test: He puts a small amount on his
pet raven and releases it out the window.
The
bird flutters to a nearby tree, and when
it lands, the chemical detonates --
complete with a large mushroom cloud. (Quote
the Raven, nevermore. Har-har.) With
his experiment a complete success, the
Baron has now mastered both the power of
creation (his monster) and
the power of complete destruction (his
new explosive).
Drunk
with success, the Baron wants to announce
the discovery to his monster brethren. So
he sends out a batch of invitations, via
bat couriers, to a party that the Baron
muses they’ll never forget. His Monster
-- affectionately
dubbed Fang,
lying on it's slab, getting a recharge,
groans in agreement.
When
the James Bondian theme song cranks up,
we’re introduced to his associates: From
his sandy tomb comes the Mummy; in Paris,
the bats find the Hunchback ringing his
bells; in Transylvania, Dracula sharpens
his teeth with a nail file in preparation;
they find the Invisible Man in an
abandoned house (with
a bunch of empty liquor bottles lying
around, which makes me wonder if this was
an inside joke. The first of many probable
inside jokes yet to come); out in
the country, the Werewolf bays at the moon
in excitement; in
the foggy streets of London, Dr Jekyll
gets his invitation, drinks his potion and
transforms into Mr. Hyde; and the last bat
drops an invitation into a murky lagoon,
sinking to the bottom, where the Creature
awaits. All the monsters are ecstatic and
head for the Isle of Evil.
Meanwhile,
Felix Flankin (voiced by Allan
Swift -- he
also did the voices for all the monsters),
a bumbling pharmacist assistant, gets
in trouble with his boss again. Allergic
to everything Felix has a habit of
accidentally destroying the store during
his sneezing fits. Coming off as a
hypochondriac, he has his own special
concoction for his allergy attacks. After
each attack, Felix quickly overmedicates
himself (so no wonder he’s more
than a little jittery.) Felix
receives the Baron’s message as well; an
invitation to "a gathering of
notables" on the Island of Evil. (It’s
also pretty obvious that Felix isn’t the
brightest bulb in the world.) He
mistakes it for a pharmacist’s
convention at a Caribbean resort. (See
what I mean?) His boss gladly gives
the walking disaster a week off.
Back
in Frankenstein’s Castle, the
Monster’s Mate (voiced by Phyllis
Diller) catches Fang lustfully
watching the Baron’s shapely secretary,
Francesca. She warns that if he lets his
eyes wander again, she’ll keep them in a
jar for a week -- like she did the last
time. Yet she loves the big brute, so much
so, that she sings him a song. (This
is a Rankin/Bass animated film, so musical
numbers, no matter how out of place they
may seem, are expected.) Francesca
(voiced by Gale Garret)
reports that all the monsters have
RSVP’d except for IT. (What’s
an IT?) The Baron says he didn’t
invite him because IT was such a royal
pain in the ass at the last convention, he
was left off the guest list. (Stay
tuned to find out who IT really is.) She
also received word that Felix is coming.
The Baron is very happy to hear this, but
Francesca is confused and wants to know
what kind of monster Felix is. He admits
that Felix is a mere human and he
disguised the real nature of the gathering
so Felix wouldn’t be frightened off.
It
seems Felix is the Baron’s only living
relative. The son of his sister -- the
white sheep of the family -- who
ran off to the United States with a
traveling salesman. The Baron plans to
announce his retirement, name his nephew
as his successor and turn all his secrets
over to Felix, making him the new leader
of the monsters. Francesca
is livid. Feeling she is the rightful heir
to the Baron’s legacy, not some human,
she starts to plot to bump Felix off. But
to do this she’ll need help.
We
move to some unknown port as the S.S.
Herring is about to set sail. The captain (Yukon
Cornellius) is upset because they
only have one passenger; a Dr. Jekyll. His
first mate (Herbie The Dentist)
is confused because he thought it was a
Mr. Hyde. (Ba-dump-bump-ching!)
The
captain is also angry because the rest of
the crew has jumped ship, so the cargo (including
the Mummy’s sarcophagus) hasn’t
even been loaded yet. The Hunchback shows
up and they shanghai him into the crew. He
loads all the cargo with one hand,
astounding the two sailors. While
the sailors watch the Hunchback work, a
bat flutters into view and changes into
Count Dracula. He asks what passage to the
Isle of Evil would cost. Trying to fleece
the well-dressed Count, the captain
inflates the price. But the vampire is a
tightwad and decides to fly over on his
own. He changes back into a bat and
flutters away. Shocked and terrified by
what they've just witnessed, when Felix
comes along and asks if they’re going to
the Isle of Evil, they mistake him for
another monster and let him on board for
free -- if he promises not kill them. As the
boat sets sail, the Werewolf barely makes
it on board before they shove off.
Below
deck, Felix barely survives a few
encounters with the assembled monsters. (It
is his own ineptitude that saves him.)
He thinks Dr. Jekyll is just seasick after
turning into Mr. Hyde. Losing his glasses
he mistakes the Werewolf for a lady in a
fur coat. Unable to find his glasses he
bumps into the Invisible Man and
apologizes for not seeing him. Later that
night, while Felix sleeps, the captain
refuses to stop at the haunted isle. So
all the monsters bail off and start
swimming, flying and paddling toward the
island.
Back
at the castle, the Baron inspects his
zombie house staff and gives them
instructions. If Francesca is the
Baron’s greatest creation, then Yetch is
the worst. (A
zombified Peter Lorre with a penchant for
losing his head, literally.) Yetch
has a thing for a Francesca, but it
isn’t mutual. He waxes for her
poetically, but she just punches him in
the head. Yetch
takes a few zombies to the castle’s
airplane hangar. Several zombies man some
cool looking ultra-lite aero-planes and
start patrolling the island just in case
IT shows up. (Our
first clue to IT’s real identity.)
In
the main hall, the Baron plays a large
pipe organ. Fang and his bride, decked out
in tuxedo and evening gown respectively,
enter and await the arrival of the other
guests. Each
monster is allowed to make a singular
grand entrance down the large staircase
into the great hall. After they’ve all
arrived, they toast to the gathering.
Dracula states "that the convention
will be a howling success" and the
Werewolf bays in agreement. While the
monsters drink cocktails, Yetch retreats
into the kitchen to check on Chef
Machiavellian’s preparations. We then
get an extended (and
unfortunately not very funny) scene
where the chef makes lame jokes about
what’s on the menu. It picks up a little
when the main course tries to eat Yetch.
The
monsters gather around the dining table
and await the Baron’s big announcement.
The Baron starts his speech, while
Francesca conspires to get Dracula’s
help in eliminating Felix. The Monster’s
Mate realizes she's up to something and
tells Fang that they’ll have to keep an
eye on her. The
Baron shows the other monsters his new
invention and they’re very impressed. He
then announces his retirement and that he
will name his successor tomorrow night.
(All the monsters secretly wish that
they, personally, will be the new chairman
of the monster board.) With
that said, the Baron excuses himself for
the evening and turns the entertainment
over to Little Tibia and the Fibulas (a
skeleton rock and roll band with Beatle
haircuts.) The band cranks up the
hard driving song "Do
the Mummy." The
Monster’s Mate grabs the Mummy and they
start cutting a rug and the others quickly
join them.
While
the other monsters boogey down, Francesca
grabs Dracula to talk in private. She
tells him about Flankin -- and if he helps
to get rid of him, she’ll share the
Baron’s secrets. After a great song from
Francesca, they catch the Monster’s Mate
eavesdropping on them, and she heard
everything. Dracula almost puts the bite
on her but Fang intercedes. While
he holds the Count, the Monster’s Mate
and Francesca tear each other’s clothes
off -- down to their underwear, and have a
bitch-slapping catfight. The fight spills
over into the main hall, and soon, all the
monsters are involved. The fracas
degenerates quickly into a pie fight, and
before you know it, we’re neck-deep in a
drunken monster brawl and free for all.
That
night, after things settle down, we take a
slow tour of the castle and view the
aftermath of the carnage. We see the
monsters trying to cure their hangovers or
just sleep it off. (I
find this extremely funny.)
The
next morning, Felix borrows a lifeboat and
paddles ashore where the Baron and
Francesca wait for him. While the Baron
takes him on a tour of the castle,
Francesca secretly meets with Dracula.
She’ll be taking Felix on a picnic later
that afternoon, so they map out three
spots for an ambush. But once again,
Felix’s unwitting ineptitude saves him
from attacks by the Mummy, the Werewolf
and Dracula.
That
evening, the Baron shows Felix his
laboratory and reveals Felix’s
birthright as the last of the
Frankensteins. Felix is overwhelmed, and
in a true Rankin and Bass moment, he’s
overrun with cute little monsters that
accompany an inspirational song crooned
deftly by the Baron. The
song ends but Felix still isn’t sure if
he can handle the responsibility. Wanting
to think it over, he asks if there is
anywhere he can go fishing because he does
his best thinking while fishing. The Baron
sends him to the moat.
Meanwhile,
in Dracula’s room, Francesca and the
Count are arguing over the bungled
assassination attempts. Fang and the
Monster’s Mate barge in are shocked to
see Francesca there. Smelling a double
cross, Francesca is backed into a corner,
but escapes through a trap door that
dumps her into the Baron’s lab. Angry at
Dracula's betrayal, Francesca swears
vengeance on everyone. She begins by
writing an invitation to the mysterious
IT, then releases the bat courier and
starts ransacking the lab, looking for the
Baron’s explosive formula.
The
three monster conspirators decide that
they must eliminate Francesca before she
can tell the Baron of their treachery.
They follow her down the trapdoor, spill
into the lab and attack her. Francesca
manages to escape by jumping out the
window and lands in the moat. The
crocodiles close in but Felix pulls her to
safety. Francesca
is hysterical, so Felix slaps her to bring
her out of it. She is dumbstruck and
immediately swoons for him. (Does
anyone else find this disturbing?) They
embrace and kiss. We then cut to waves
crashing, lighting flashes and a palm tree
falls over (which caused soda to
come out of my nose. All we’re missing
here is a rocket launch or train going
into a tunnel -- if you know what I mean.)
Dracula
is ready to clear out, but the Monster’s
Mate talks him into staying. They will
rally the other monsters against the Baron
for appointing a mere human as their
leader, and take over. On
the beach, Francesca tells Felix he's in
danger and why. Felix tells her not to
worry because he plans to turn the
Baron’s offer down. But she says it’s
too late and they won’t listen. On top
of that, she’s done something really bad
and they have to get away immediately. Francesca
has a boat hidden on the other side of the
island and they can use that to escape.
An
impromptu monster caucus votes unanimously
to overthrow the Baron and eliminate
Francesca and Felix. They break up the
meeting and head into the jungle to find
them. The
Werewolf and Yetch catch up to them first
and steal Francesca away from Felix. The
other monsters surround Felix and close in
for the kill. He picks that time to have
another allergy attack and pulls out his
vial of medicine. (A
vial that looks very familiar.)
The monsters mistake it for the Baron’s
explosive and back off. Felix
pushes the bluff and demands to be taken
to Francesca. The monsters flee in terror,
but not because of Felix’s threat, IT
has finally arrived and surfaced right
behind him. Felix turns and comes face to
face with a fifty-foot ape. (So
IT was King Kong the whole time.)
Felix faints dead away.
IT
destroys the castle and turns Francesca
into Fay Wray. The Baron finds Felix,
orders him into the boat and promises that
he’ll save Francesca and take care of
the ape.
Commandeering a plane, the Baron pilots it
toward the big ape that has taken root on
the tallest peak of the island. IT has
Francesca in one hand and all the other
monsters in the other. The Baron buzzes
the creature relentlessly. The ape puts
Francesca down so he can swat at the plane,
and she flees and meets up with Felix. IT
grabs a hold of the Baron’s plane and
crushes it. The Baron watches as the two
young lovers get a safe distance away,
then pulls out his explosive, chastises
his fellow monsters for their pettiness
and drops the vial. It falls to the ground
and detonates on impact.
From
the boat, Fancesca and Felix watch as the
island is totally obliterated in the
explosion. The smoke clears and the two
head towards civilization.
The
End
Well,
not quite. Stick around for one more shock
ending.
I
remember when I was younger coming home
from church one Sunday and catching about
the last two minutes of this film on the
local TV station. All I saw was Kong on
the peak, and the Baron blowing everybody
up, but I knew I had missed something
great. I never even knew what it was
called.
Over
the following years I never even really
thought about it all that much until about
ten years ago, when my good buddy Naked
Bill and I would get together, watch bad
films and drink a ton of beer. On one
particular night, Bill said he had a
surprise and found something I'd really
like. He was right. And I finally got to
see all of Mad
Monster Party?.
After
the phenomenal success of the animated TV
special Rudolph
The Red-Nosed Reindeer,
Joseph E. Levine contacted its creators --
Arthur Rankin and Jules Bass -- and asked
if they would want to make a feature film
using their "Animagic"
technique. It was a no-brainer.
Picking
the subject matter was just as easy,
because the country was in the grips of a
resurgent monster-mania. Local production
assistants were dressing up as ghouls and
hosting creature features. There were
monster toys, puzzles and Aurora model
kits.
(I’ve got
a Frankenstein’s Fliver around here
somewhere.)
The
Addams Family
and The
Munsters
were on the tube, and The
Creeplies
moved in next door to The
Flintstones,
and the drive-ins were full of creatures
trying to conquer the world.
Rankin
and Bass had the right idea turning to
writer Harvey Kurtzman for script ideas,
and artist Jack Davis for character
designs. The two had made a name for
themselves with the macabre EC Horror Comics.
Dr. Wertham and his no-fun crusade had
recently torpedoed those pulps, so
Kurtzman turned his creative juices on his
new venture with William Gaines: Mad
Magazine.
The monsters are brilliantly realized and
look like they crawled right off of
Davis’s drawing board. He took the
horror icons and gave them a hip '60s
twist that is truly hilarious. My favorite
has to be the Invisible Man. Nothing but a
pot bellied smoking jacket, sunglasses and
a fez floating around talking like Sydney
Greenstreet. (That
had me laughing to no end.)
It’s
rumored the Forrest J. Ackerman had a hand
in the script but it isn’t documented
anywhere. I don’t know for sure, but
there are plenty of scenes where the
monsters talk in "Ackermanese"
so it's probably true. The story is filled
with bad monster jokes, and even worse
monster puns, but it pushed all the right
nostalgia buttons for me so this is
forgivable. The
proceedings come to a screeching halt a
few times for the musical numbers, but a
couple do stand out: Ethel Ennis doing the
title song like a diva belting out a James
Bond theme sets a high standard that,
unfortunately, can’t be topped. Gale
Garret’s sultry rendition of "Our
Time to Shine" stands out (and
is it me or does she really sound like
Kathleen Turner?) while the others
are just mediocre at best. (The
songs for Rudolph are important and help
move the story along, while here they seem
shoehorned in.)
What
I really like about Mad
Monster Party?
is, once again, the attention to detail
the creators have and their love for the
subject matter. They’re not making fun
of the subject matter, but having fun with
the subject matter. (Does
that make sense?) Whether
it’s a gag like a band-aid on the front
of the Mummy, Dracula using a nail file to
sharpen his fangs, or a skeletal rock
group called Little Tibia and the Fibulas,
they all had me ginning from ear to ear, Brief
moments like the Baron feeding his pets
also bring smiles. He puts a fly into a
jar with a toad but it's the toad that
gets eaten. He comes upon his doghouse and
puts out scraps, but Spot turns out to be
the Blob -- who oozes out and starts
eating. He then dips his hands into a
bucket labeled: Human-fresh and feeds the
scraps to his giant Venus Fly-Trap.
Word
also must be mentioned for the wonderful
sets the 8-inch animated marionettes
frolic around in. I caught my eyes
wandering away from the action to study
what they stuck in the corners and it’s
truly amazing.
Mad
Monster Party?
is a visual delight. It’s a big can of
corn, but if you can get past the songs,
and ignore Felix as much as possible (he
can be grating at times), I have a
feeling you will enjoy it as much as I
did. And it's too bad that this forgotten
gem isn't standard Halloween viewing like
it's animated Christmas counterparts.
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