FANTÒMAS CONTRE SCOTLAND YARD - Michel Magne - "Whose Zooming Who" (1967)

Tonight's Saturday Night Special is the third and final film in the 1960's trilogy of Fantômas Films following "Fantômas," and "Fantômas Unleashed!"

 This last time out, it's "Fantômas Vs. Scotland Yard," and just like in the first two movies, the music was created by Michel Magne, and here's a small sample of what you're in for!

 The basic concept is that Fantômas is going to put the big squeeze on a bunch of rich Scots! His clever idea this time is that he's going to charge them a large tax to guarantee that they are not killed! Pretty good deal you gotta admit! So a whole bunch of people are going to converge on this Scottish castle, the home of the Lord and Lady Lord Edward MacRashley to try and figure out what they can do about it!

 The diabolical masked man Fantômas has been pretty busy stirring up lots of trouble again!

 Of course Jean Marais and Mylène Demongeot have their ongoing roles as Fandor and Hélèn, and Jean also plays the character of Fantômas! Don't get the idea that it's like Superman and Clark Kent, in these Fantômas movies it's just one actor playing more than one character! Mylène Demongeot is just cute as a button in a Hayley Mills or Tuesday Weld, or a young Britney Spears kind of way!

If the castle weren't haunted, there would be even less story! Lady MacRashley holds a seance to prove the point!

Le Commissaire Juve storms off from the seance and first sees a ghost, and then....

.........he finds a body hanging in his room!

Since Le Commissaire Juve is the leading authority on how to let Fantômas get away, he has been brought in from France to help in the investigation, and provide all the comedy relief! As in the other two films, Louis de Funès reprises his role as Le Commissaire!

These two enterprising gangsters are going to a mobster meeting where they are planning to rub out Fantômas and take over his tax scam for themselves!

Imagine their surprise when one of those gangsters turns out to be Fantômas himself!

Actually, you don't have to imagine it at all, because this is exactly what they looked like when the truth became known!

Here's a good shot of a couple of the Fantômas masks!

Now  Fantômas changes himself into Lord MacRashley himself, so he can work this whole circus from the inside out!

Fantômas couldn't possibly pull off all these stunts by himself without the dedication of his disciples!

Fantômas has a rocket stashed in the castle so he can get away just in the nick of time!

It's not going to be so easy this time buddy! They call in the Air Force, and quickly dispose of the rocket, and it's the end of the Fantômas legacy forever!

Oh, No, not so fast!! WTF!? Fantômas didn't really need to escape again, there's not going to be another sequel! While everybody was focused on the rocket, Fantômas just rides a bicycle out the back door, and is picked up by what's left of his henchmen!

For some unknown reason, all these Fantômas movies are ridiculously difficult to find, but if you really like goofy Euro crime comedies, this trio is worth searching for, but Good luck, you're most likely going to need it!

THE SKELETON OF MRS. MORALES / Alfa Film S.A. - 1960

It's South Of The Border Friday at The Dungeon, this time we gots a weird black comedy about a sexually repressed taxidermist who finds solace in his job while his frigid and deformed wife psychologically tortures him because of his devotion to stuffed animals!! This is a very rare movie which the DVD currently sells for $80 on Amazon!

Here's a nice little sound clip from this wild flick for your approval, sooooo, you can push the big red 'GO' button over by our stuffed Blob, NOW, Rufus The Gnat!.. Here's a taste of... THE SKELETON OF MRS. MORALES!

The movie starts with nosey women keeping an eye on local taxidermist Dr. Morales because he's, you know, loco in the cabeza!

If that isn't bad enough, even the men want to know... What's up Doc?

The doctor's wife is a frail but demanding woman and likes to tongue lash her hubby for fun.

His answer is to have a big chug of straight vodka and spend time with his little buddies!

The wife goes out for awhile so the doctor tells the maid to cook him a thick steak with fries!

Whoopsie!...

Nice exchange of glances!

Couldn't resist showing these late fifties toys and kids attire! The battery powered airplane's propellers spun when turned on.

The doc's wife has mysteriously disappeared so city officials visit his workshop to question him. Gee, I wonder whose skeleton that is there?..

Anyway, they take the doctor in and lock him up in a cell in the courtroom!! (better hope he doesn't have to go number two) There, he listens to witnesses' testimony and sometimes he consults with the Skeleton of Mrs. Morales!

But, the doc's acquitted and it's a gay time for all! Bring on the booze!! (hic!)

It's a wild finish as a parade of ten caskets and followers makes its way down the lane to the cemetery with the camera turning upside down on the final casket! Now, that's art!! Looks like we'll return tomorrow for another Saturday Night Special!!

MYSTERIOUS ISLAND - Chapter One - "Lost In Space" (1951)

 As far as I can figure, there have been approximately nine different shows of different ilks titled "The Mysterious Island" either based on, or loosely based on Jules Verne's classic novel "L'Ile Mysterieuse!" The first one was a silent film made in 1929 starring Lionel Barrymore, and the latest one was made in 2012 and stars The Rock, Dwayne Johnson!

Tonight's feature was a 15 episode serial made in 1951, aka "Captain Harding's Fabulous Adventures!"

The short bombastic theme was written by the always entertaining Mischa Bakaleinikoff of "The Giant Claw," "20 Million Miles To Earth," etc. fame!

 I am just showing you the cast credits so you can fully appreciate the character's names! Rulu, Shard, Gideon, Nemo, Moley, and Neb, sounds like a Disney cartoon to me!

 The first chapter was titled of all things, "Lost In Space!" So here you go, 

 Richard (Rocky Jones, Space Ranger) Crane is Captain Cyrus Harding of the Union Army! Richard was a busy man, and even though he only lived to be 50, he somehow managed to rack up 133 acting credits to his name!

 The Confederate Army has one of them there fancy air balloons for spying on those Yankees!

 What a chore it would be to try and gather up all the binocular shots that have been used over the years in cinematic history!

 Captain Harding is taken prisoner, and since they didn't have any POW camps, he is taken to a fellow's house who lives behind the lines! Mr. Jackson doesn't really cotton to Yankees much, but since his dawg seems to like this stranger, he reckons it'll be all right!

 Pretty good accommodations! I guess it's just understood that they can't escape without getting killed when they cross the line, but the Captain has got a plan, and is just about to meet a guy who will be willing to join him!

 So the biggest hurricane on record is brewing, so what better time to steal the Confederate airship! They find themselves out over the ocean somewhere, and they are dropping fast! When there is nothing else to throw out, Captain Harding jumps hoping it will make it so the other guys can land safely!

 They didn't delve into it deep enough in the first episode, but I'm pretty sure this is Captain Nemo who has just saved Captain Harding from drowning! He walks towards a mountainside, and poof, just disappears!

 There are pirates off the coast of wherever the air balloon landed...........

 ............And out of nowhere, a spaceship comes whirling in and lands on the island!

 Now things are starting to get interesting, and the WTF!? factor goes way up!

 This is obviously not your run of the mill every day island native tribe, and their Mother's never taught them not to run with spears! Speaking of spears, what's with the groovy kink in the shaft? Is that just for looks or what?

 

The volcano on the island erupts, and it really captures the attention of the natives who immediately go into prayer mode! 

 The guys mange to make it to a big cave before it's too late, and that's just about enough action for one episode!

 "Mysterious Island" is another serial that I searched for years to find a copy. After I finally found one, then I found out it streams on Amazon Prime free for members! Episode number one was pretty cool! I'm kind of excited to see some more of them! At about 17 minutes each, there's not really enough time to fall asleep!