Summer at the Drive-In: The Screaming Skull
Release date: August 25, 1958

Cast:
John Hudson as Eric Whitlock
Peggy Weber as Jenni Whitlock
Russ Conway as Reverend Edward Snow
Tony Johnson as Mrs. Snow
Alex Nicholas Mickey

Based on a short story by Francis Marion Crawford
Screenplay by John Kneubuhl
Directed by Alex Nichol

Plot:
When Eric and Jenni get married and move into his estate, she begins to see a strange skull that may or may not be there. Eric’s first wife died there under mysterious circumstances. Is history about to repeat itself?

Drive-In Experience:
The Screaming Skull played on the opening night of the Sheridan Drive-In in Bridgeport, Illinois on Nov. 7, 1959. It was part of a double feature with Terror from the Year 5,000 in front of a capacity crowd of 1,500 cars. The drive-in closed in 1986 and was demolished shortly after closing. The area has been greatly redeveloped and is now a shopping district. One of the businesses is Haunted Trails, a miniature golf, speedway and arcade.

My Thoughts:
I’ve seen The Screaming Skull once many years ago and it didn’t leave much of an impression on me. Once again, this is one of those second viewings that is pretty much like watching it for the first time. My copy was a little murky as it was a very early DVD release paired up with the Paul Naschy film The Werewolf vs. the Vampire Woman. I’ve since upgraded that film and had considered doing the same for this one. However, after this rewatch, I think those funds will be reallocated to another purchase for the library as I doubt I’ll be rewatching this one anytime soon.

It’s not a horrible movie and, in fact, has some redeeming qualities. It’s essentially a ghost story about a husband who (spoiler alert) killed his first wife and is now planning to do the same to his second wife who just happens to have lots of money (there is the motivation). The red herring in the form of the groundskeeper who can’t speak is a little too obvious. He’s still griefstricken over the death of the first wife and, unsurprisingly, turns out to not really be convincing at all. The plot is fairly transparent but the journey getting to the end isn’t bad. It’s just not that great either.

It’s a fairly pedestrian presentation that, I suppose, might be enhanced by a better copy. That might help some of the murky scenes that left Karla complaining about how nobody ever turns on the lights in the house. The ghostly reveal at the end is okay but, again, it seemed to be lost in the graininess of the print. But, the overall story didn’t engage me that much to convince me to give this film another shot through an upgrade.

There are worse ways to spend a Saturday night and your mileage may vary. That said, I don’t think I can give The Screaming Skull a high recommendation. Proceed with caution, lower your expectations and you might find something to enjoy here. I struggled with that.    

Karla’s Review:
I had so many questions while watching this movie. First, why is the house always so dark? Do they not have electricity? Turn on the lights! Oh wait, it’s the end of the movie and now it looks like somebody turned them on. Next, why did Mickey understand as much as he did? I guess it’s because he’s always lurking around the corner but it’s never really explained.

It was pretty easy to guess who is behind it all based on the ending and the ghostly revenge that occurs. It was such a quick wrap-up though that you are left assuming what’s happening because, again, things are fully explained. This movie wasn’t awful and I’m glad we had some redeeming characters (the preacher and his wife) who could come in and help at the end. However, I doubt I’ll watch this one again.

Did you Know?
Cast members were only paid $1,000 each with a promise of a share of the profits. However, no profits were shared with the cast.

Availability:
The Screaming Skull was released on Blu-ray by Shout Factory but is now out-of-print, so shop around for the best deal!

Believe it or not, summer nears its end and it’s our final trip to the drive-in for the Classic Horrors Club Podcast in 2026! Our headliner in episode 118 is The Devil’s Bride (1968) aka The Devil Rides Out. But we didn’t pair it with the logical choice from the three movies playing at the Sheridan Drive-In (Brides of Dracula). Instead, we took the road less traveled with Pretty Poison (1968).

We get Christopher Lee in one and Anthony Perkins in the other! Better yet, we get Chris Franklin from the Fire & Water Podcast Network and the upcoming seasonal event, “The House of Franklin-Stein,” as our special guest. Grab a juicy cheeseburger from the concession stand and take a seat. Five minutes ’til showtime…

Welcome to all the new members of our Facebook group page and thanks to Chris Schalk for his feedback!

Tell us what you think… about the movies, about the podcast and about classic horror! Email or send a recording to classichorrors.club@gmail.com or join our Facebook group page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/classichorrors.club/!

We’d also appreciate if you’d give us an honest rating on Apple Podcasts or SoundCloud. Thank you!

You can find Jeff at:

Classic Horrors Club
Codex Omniversa

Come back in September as fall is in the air and we begin an extended look into the folk horror genre with Blood on Satan’s Claw (1971)!

Summer at the Drive-In: Frankenstein Vs. Baragon aka Frankenstein Conquers the World
Release date: August 8, 1965 in Japan/May 26, 1966

Cast:
Nick Adams as Dr. James Bowen
Tadao Takashima as Dr. Ken’ichiro Kawaji
Kumi Mizuno as Dr. Sueko Togami
Yoshio Tsuchiya as Mr. Kawai
Yoshifumi Tajima as Murata
Sumio Nakao/Koji Furuhata as Frankenstein
Haruo Nakajima as Baragon

Written by Takeshi Kimura & Reuben Bercovitch
Directed by Ishiro Honda
Music composed by Akira Ifukube

Plot:
When a human heart is taken from the lab of Dr. Frankenstein in Europe during the final days of World War II, it ends up in Hiroshima, Japan just before the atomic bomb. After being exposed to radiation, the heart grows in size and mutates into a giant-size monster. Meanwhile, a giant creature known as Baragon surfaces and the two are headed towards a climatic collision!

Drive-In Experience:
Frankenstein Conquers the World played at the Denton Road Drive-In in Dallas, Texas on Saturday, July 26, 1969 as part of a double feature with Destroy All Monsters. The Denton Road Drive-In opened on June 23, 1950 with Bugs Bunny and Tom and Jerry cartoons and a feature presentation of Montana starring Errol Flynn and Alexis Smith. It had a capacity of 850 cars until it closed in December 1974 and eventually demolished in 1978. It was replaced by a gas station before that was torn down for a strip shopping center.

My Thoughts:
I’ve only seen this film once and it was far too many years ago, so this really felt like a first-time viewing. The Tokyo Shock DVD had three versions to choose from and I opted for the international version with octopus ending (more on that later).

I think this Frankenstein tale is one of the more unique and non-traditional takes on the Mary Shelley classic. Aside from the immortality aspects, this monster is essentially grown from the original heart of the Frankenstein monster and, due to radiation exposure, grows to enormous size, which certainly comes in handy when a true kaiju creature known as Baragon resurfaces to cause havoc.

I can’t help but feel sorry for how he’s mistreated and misunderstood. That is only part of most Frankenstein tales but is even more sad in this version. Especially when he saves everyone from Baragon as a wildfire rages behind him in the film’s climax.

I found the main storyline of the trio of scientists wanting to help the monster interesting because they seem to fluctuate from scientific curiosity to real compassion. Ultimately, they see him for the misunderstood hero that he really is but it’s far too late at that point.

After the battle with Baragon, this is where the film varies depending on which version you watch. In the American version, he simply falls into the bowels of the Earth in a rather sad and agonizing end. However, in the international version, we get yet one more battle as an octopus pops up out of nowhere to ultimately drag the monster into the ocean. Again, it’s a horrifying end but it seemed a little less gruesome as the fiery end. In fact, I think there is clearly a measure of hope that he could have survived and resurfaced somewhere else. That said, the octopus ending definitely seems tacked on and out of place.

It always seems like Nick Adams starred in more Toho films than he actually did. This was the first of three films, followed by Invasion of the Astro-Monster in 1965 and The Killing Bottle in 1967. Sadly, Nick died in 1968 at the age of 36 due to a drug overdose. I’d like to think Nick would have embraced the fandom the Toho films continue to have now and, perhaps, even starred in more kaiju films well into the 1970s and beyond. Here, he is in fine form but hearing his voice dubbed in the original Japanese version is a little oft-putting.

Despite a few slow spots, some spotty special effects and a leap (or three) of logic, I really enjoyed Frankenstein vs. Baragon. I personally recommend watching the international version as the octopus fight is cool to watch, even if it doesn’t make much sense. Hopefully, this film will get a long overdue HD enhancement and is given the proper Criterion treatment.

Did you Know?
The Frankenstein monster in this film is not a kaiju but a kaijin – a human-like or supernatural being.

Availability:
Frankenstein vs. Baragon was released on DVD through Tokyo Shock in 2007 and on Blu-ray in Japan in 2017. The Criterion Collection has had the streaming rights since 2022 but have not released it on home media yet.

Our Puppet Master journey is nearing the end but we’ve got two more official movies to go! Next up, we take a side journey with the first of two spin-off films!

In episode 424 of the Diecast Movie Podcast, host Steve Turek and I take a look at the next film in the series, Blade: The Iron Cross (2020).

You can listen to the podcast through Apple, Spotify or wherever fine podcasts can be downloaded!

As always, tell ’em Monster Movie Kid sent ya!

Blade: The Iron Cross is currently available on Blu-ray from Full Moon Features!

Summer at the Drive-In: Mark of the Witch
Release date: October 21, 1970

Cast:
Robert Elston as Mac Stuart
Anitra Walsh as Jill
Darryl Wells as Adam
Jack Gardner as Harry
Barbara Brownell as Sharon
Marie Santell as The Witch

Written by Mary Davis & Martha Peters
Directed by Tom Moore

Plot:
When a witch is hanged, she vows to return and does so 300 years later to seek revenge on the descendent of the man who was responsible for her death.

Drive-In Experience:
Mark of the Witch played at the Kenwood Drive-In in Louisville, Kentucky in the summer of 1978 as part of a triple feature with Alice, Sweet Alice and Fright. The theater opened in 1949 and closed in January 2009. A planned sale and expansion to three screens never transpired and it was eventually demolished in 2015. However, the screen was sold to a drive-in theater in Georgetown, Indiana in 2013 to be put into storage and saved for potential future use.

My Thoughts:
Zzzzzzzzz…This was a first time viewing for me and I do believe it will be my last. There’s nothing worse for a movie than to be boring and Mark of the Witch is just that. The plot is your basic “witch who places a curse and comes back hundreds of years later to terrorize a descendent” flick that we’ve seen before and done a whole lot better. It’s odd for this to be placed in a triple feature with Alice, Sweet Alice (1976), a film I didn’t really care for but definitely liked better than this one, and Fright (1971), which is quite a bit better. None of these films are really similar to each other other than being horror.

Mark of the Witch had a very low budget and a cast of unknowns. That said, the production isn’t the worst I’ve seen but the script needed a lot of work as the story lacks excitement and tension with only a little bit of horror. Be prepared, you’ll see and hear a lot of talking. Supposedly, the film was shot in the Dallas, Texas area in 1969, so this is considered a regional horror film. I suspect those involved in the production may look back on this with nostalgia (as I have for the film The Beast from the Beginning of Time for being filmed in Wichita, KS). However, I really can’t recommend this one unless you are wanting to catch up on some sleep. You’ve been warned!

Did you Know?
Director Tom Walsh is also known for Return to Boggy Creek (1977) and as a producer of such films as Horror High (1973), The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1977) and The Norseman (1981).

Availability:
Mark of the Witch was available on Blu-ray from Code Red. It’s now out-of-print, so shop around for the best price.