Metal Fingers in My Body
Edinburgh Film Guild, the world’s oldest continually running film society, showed CREATION OF THE HUMANOIDS last week as part of its Apocalypse and Beyond season — I was delighted to catch a big-screen showing of this rare weirdie, which has just become the subject of this week’s Forgotten, over at The Auteurs’ Notebook. Sci-fi fans and admirers of the thespian skills of the great Dudley Manlove are advised to check it out. Thanks to the Guild and Nicola Hay for the heads-up.
October 15, 2009 at 10:09 am
My desire to see this film is now based solely on that picture. Sci Fi tubes ahoy!
October 15, 2009 at 10:45 am
What unifies the film’s aesthetic is that everybody stands stock-still like that regardless of whether they’re in a tube or not. Clever!
October 15, 2009 at 6:36 pm
“My circuits are not offended.”
October 15, 2009 at 6:53 pm
October 15, 2009 at 7:35 pm
Wow David!! I’d never even heard of the Film Guild till your post!!
Some of the films being shown are absolutely amazing!
Is the image quality generally good?
Not sure why the Viy is being shown for Halloween though, am I the only person who was really disappointed with the film? (Although sexually frustrated elderly witches are never a bad thing)
October 15, 2009 at 8:56 pm
They have a really good video projector. They used to show 35mm but you can’t get the prints anymore.
I like The Viy — all those monsters — but there are other films I’d choose personally. Indeed, I’ve chosen The Haunting this year for Film Club.
The Film Guild is a bargain if you join, it’s far better value to be a member than to go as a guest.
October 15, 2009 at 9:31 pm
I kinda miss the original ’60s version of this song by the Bonzos, but …
(And why does this particular video look to me like an epilogue to “Zardoz”?)
One of my many youthful follies: I saw “Creation” in the theater, twice. Gotta love that color work, though, and the odd atmosphere. This was at the same time, though, as I was watching dubbed versions of Antonio Margariti science-fiction pictures and maintaining my subscription to Famous Monsters of Filmland.
October 15, 2009 at 11:53 pm
Thanks for the wee advert and link for the Film Guild!
October 16, 2009 at 12:19 am
You’re welcome — glad to get the word out about the Guild.
Neil Innes in a sequel/rebuttal to Zardoz sounds like a wonderful idea — and it is!
I think Creation does stand up as an avant-garde work masquerading as a B-picture. Which ties it even closer to the work of Ed Wood, but Creation is more obviously “good”. Ed’s genius only really comes out in Glen or Glenda?
October 16, 2009 at 9:47 am
Fascinated to hear this was Andy Warhol’s favourite film – I’d alway heard it was THE OTHER SIDE OF MIDNIGHT, a trashy high-glass soap opera starring Marie-France Pisier and a young Susan Sarandon, based on a steamy Sidney Sheldon novel. Who knows? Maybe he got the two films mixed up? The acting in MIDNIGHT is certainly on an android level.
October 16, 2009 at 11:50 am
I expect it depended how medicated he was. I’ll allow him more than one favourite, it took me close to 40 years to find a fave of my own.
October 16, 2009 at 2:23 pm
Good point! I probably have around 100 ‘favourite films’ (at a conservative estimate) not to mention the ones I haven’t seen yet. And since when do we expect Warhol to be consistent?
Mind you, THE OTHER SIDE OF MIDNIGHT is a movie for which the term ‘trash masterpiece’ might have been invented. If you’ve never seen it, you must…and I guarantee you still won’t believe it!
October 16, 2009 at 3:33 pm
“The Other Side of Midnight” was Dorothy Dean’s favorite film. Being a Warhol High Priestess her opinions have often been confused with Andy’s.