TrueJoshNight
Truly Dreadful Film
CommentsXp
Best movie ever!
Voxitype
Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.
Mandeep Tyson
The acting in this movie is really good.
re-animatresse
a feature-length, stop-motion animated Halloween musical from Rankin/Bass, the studio which produced most of the animated Christmas classics (Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, etc.), as well as The Hobbit (1977) the film features Boris Karloff as the voice of Baron Boris von Frankenstein and Allen Swift as virtually every other character. some character designs and voices are better than others, my favourites being Dracula, Mummy and Jekyll & Hyde. the set pieces are creative and detailed i don't particularly care for the song-and-dance numbers, although the tap-dancing Dracula is amusing, but the jazzy, brass-driven score by Maury Laws in itself makes this a film worth watching. the story is interesting but ends rather abruptly, and the final product could probably have been cut down to about an hour without sacrificing anything crucial imagine Bobby Pickett's Halloween novelty Monster Mash album transmuted into cinema, and you'll have a pretty decent idea of what to expect
luiz-antonio29
The simplicity of the "Mad Monster Party?" was exactly what enchanted people and made it success. Thinking that a comedy movie with toys from 1967 can still make people awake and intrigued with the story in 94 minutes is something really, really honorable.The film is about a party that Doctor Frankenstein organizes to decide what (famous) monster will be your successor and in this party a lot of famous characters from books and movies that are famous until today (like the own Frankenstein, Dracula, Invisible Man and others) met and begin a dispute to win the succession of Doctor Frankenstein.Songs are really present in "Mad Monster Party" and take part of the magic from the movie because they have good lyrics, good interpreters and happen at the right time. Other positive point is the end, that surprises everyone.Maybe the children of today aren't ready to watch a movie fully made with toys, but if the film had been make with computer effects it wouldn't be as funny as it is. Of course.PS.: The tribute to The Beatles in a song is perfect. Actually, the best scene of the movie.
Sebastian1966
As a huge monster fan growing up (my first magazine subscription was Forry Ackerman's Famous Monsters of Filmland), this movie was as Halloween as candy corn and sweaty plastic masks with cheap rubber bands; and I loved it! The plot involves a retiring Dr. Frankenstein (voiced by Boris Karloff; really!) having a monster bash on his island retreat to announce both his retirement and his last, great discovery (the ability to "destroy matter"...which looks like an A-bomb to us, but just go with it). His nerdy nephew Felix stands to inherit everything, and some of the monster "guests" want to muscle in on the action. Along the way, Felix falls for his uncle's Ann Margaret-ish lab assistant, Francesca. That's the story. Watching it as an adult, it's flaws are far more acute. Phyllis Diller as the "Bride of Frankenstein" has horrible dialog and is too obnoxious to bear, even for a kiddie film. The pacing is very uneven and too much time is wasted on set pieces that do nothing to advance the story. I think most kids today (esp. those who love the brilliant Nightmare Before Christmas; a film that was largely inspired by Mad Monster Party) won't have the patience for this. But....for me, a forty-something raised on this film, it was a VITAL part of Halloween memories; right up there with Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin! And I ate this film up; from the skeletal, Beatles-like band singing "Do the Mummy" to the Peter Lorre-inspired manservant. And the sheer joy of having living, "toy versions" of all the Universal classic monsters in one film (Frankenstein, the Mummy, Dracula, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, and even King Kong; though Kong is called "It" for legal reasons). These kinds of references will no doubt be lost on kids who've never heard of the Black Lagoon, Phyllis Diller or Peter Lorre, turning this into movie equivalent of the toy on the shelf that kids have outgrown and don't play with anymore. It's rather sad, because the character designs, the terrific color and lighting used, and the fond memories this film inspires really make it a keeper; if only for overly-sentimental forty-somethings who STILL think Halloween is the single greatest day of the year. Don't buy this one for the kids; if you grew up with it, buy it for yourself, look past its sometimes glaring flaws and prepare to immerse yourself in unabashed nostalgia. Trick or Treat!
JoeKarlosi
I used to really like this kiddie monster mash when I was a kid, as it was always shown on TV around Halloween. These days it doesn't seem quite as wondrous to me but it's still some fun. It's an animated comedy from Rankin & Bass (the "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" people) which utilizes puppets, as Baron Von Frankenstein (voiced by Boris Karloff) unites all his famous monster friends together for a reunion -- The Monster and His Mate, Dracula, the Werewolf, The Invisible Man, The Mummy, Jekyll & Hyde, The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Creature. This would have been better if it wasn't so long (95 minutes) but it's a treat getting to see Karloff involved at the height of Monstermania, and for me it's Phyllis Diller as (the voice of) the monster's mate who steals the show. She tells many cheesy bad jokes but always ends them with her trademark "ah-ha haa!" Some good songs here too (especially "It's the Mummy", as sung by a rock band consisting of guitar-playing skeletons with Beatle-like wigs). **1/2 out of ****