Movie: An atomic scientist is invited to collaborate on a mysterious project that has interplanetary consequences.
First shown: 4/19/96
Intro: Dr. F. explains the premise
Opening: Mike’s begins his day, but what’s that rhythmic pounding?
Host segment 1: After the film breaks, Crow and Tom goad Mike into piloting the SOL–with disastrous results!
Host segment 2: Mike and Crow check out the interociter in Tom’s room, but the Metalunan they contact is no help
End: Dr. F. is sure Mike’s will has been broken, but on the SOL its party time — with a “THIS ISLAND EARTH” theme. Dr. F.’s attempt to poop the party backfires. Aaaahhhh!
Stinger: No stinger, but Mike, Crow and Tom return to riff their own credits!
(258 votes, average: 4.36 out of 5)
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• There is SO much to talk about when it comes to this all-too-brief attempt at mainstreaming an almost unmainstreamable product. I’ll try to hit as many of the high notes as possible.
• For a lot of background on the movie, read our FAQ (which needs a little updating, see below).
• There were a number of releases of the film, first on VHS, later on DVD, also on Laserdisk and Blu-ray. The DVD went out of print for a while (which was around the last time we updated the FAQ) and then came out in a bare-bones, movie-only edition. After that went out of print in 2013, Shout Factory finally got the rights and put together a features-laden DVD release, including the deleted scenes. And take note of the background music on the menu: it’s the almost-never-used Dave Alvin and the Blasters (actually on his Facebook page, he says it was he and a group called “The Guilty Men”) rendition of the theme song, which had been, in Alvin’s words, “in rights limbo” for more than a decade.
• In many ways, all their years of hard work were leading up to this and the movie is at the heart of so much that happened at (and to) Best Brains. One giant example: Joel has revealed that it was Jim’s insistence on directing this movie that was the proverbial “straw that broke the camel’s back” and led him to depart the series. How might the world, the show and Best Brains have been different if they never thought to try to make a movie? We’ll never know. The movie also caused them to put the regular series on the back burner, and that may have helped give Comedy Central the impression that BBI had no interest in continuing the show. I could probably come up with a dozen more examples, and who knows what sort of backstage stuff went on that we don’t know about?
• The movie proves one thing without a doubt: It IS possible to have closed captioning for MST3K. I forget now if the DVDs have captioning, but the VHS versions did — the dialog from the movie ran at the top of the screen and the riffs ran at the bottom. It worked reasonably well, and I really wish EVERY episode was closed captioned. I’m a bit of a militant on this issue, but I do think it can be done and I wish it would be done.
• I visited the set while they were filming (it was the day they shot Trace doing the opening bit) and everybody seemed pretty upbeat. Kevin was even speculating on the prospect of doing one of these a year for the foreseeable future (Joel told me something very similar more recently).
• Trace worked like a real trooper that day. They must have done 20 takes. Oh, and anybody who says making a movie is exciting has never actually been on the set when a movie was being made. It’s a little like a baseball game: lots of standing around and waiting, punctuated by a few seconds of excitement.
• Take a look here if you want to read many of the reviews at the time, or at least excerpts.
• Many of the harshest reviews came from people who felt “This Island Earth” is “too good” to have been the subject of riffing. And as I read these reviews, I noticed something really strange: among the people who made this charge, the words “The Day the Earth Stood Still” were often part of the review. It really was a remarkable thing. “This Island Earth” is NOT “The Day the Earth Stood Still” but the mere PROXIMITY of “This Island Earth” to “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” in the minds of these critics, was enough to disqualify it for mockery.
• I told Kevin, during a break on the set, about the people who were saying TIE was “too good to riff.” His response was very simple: He threw his head back and laughed uproariously. Then he began to tick off the fundamental flaws in the movie. First of all, he said, Cal, our hero, goes on a mind-bending journey across the universe — and yet he returns utterly unchanged in any way. Secondly, Cal is supposed to be the hero, but his most heroic act is to yell, “Run, Ruth, run!” at one point. Third, it’s fairly clear that both Rex Reason and Jeff Morrow thought THEY were the hero of the movie, and that jumbles everything up. Fourth, the chemistry between Faith Domergue and Rex Reason was tepid at best, and on and on. He hadn’t even gotten to all the criticisms before he was called back to the set.
• On the other hand, it’s hard to fairly judge TIE based on the chopped-to-shreds version we get in MST3K:TM (as noted in the FAQ, the entire running time of MST3K:TM is less than the original running time of TIE). But I have seen the full thing (indeed I watched the full thing riffed by Mike, Kevin and Trace at the first convention in 1994) and I am here to tell you that it is NOT a good movie. Visually arresting, okay, I’ll grant you that. But a deeply flawed flick.
• In the opening, just watch the real estate Trace covers as he goes through his explanation of the premise. Now imagine doing that about 20 times under hot lights.
• After the little Dr. F intro, we go into an elaborate “2001” parody during the credits. If you’re watching it carefully, they give away the joke (i.e. that at first Mike looks as if he is jogging in a giant circular spaceship as in “2001,” but then we realize he is actually on a giant hamster wheel) pretty early, but I also suspect that a lot of casual viewers may well have been finding their seats etc., and might have only gotten the joke as the credits end.
• Note that a copy of the old Satellite News newsletter is the “wire service reports” Gypsy gives to Mike.
• Also during the early moments of this scene look past Servo and Mike to the wall behind them. The set is decorated with many pink flamingos. These were a gift from some fans (me among them) presented to the cast and crew at the end of the first convention.
• One of the things that the publicity people for the movie pushed was that we would get our first glimpse of other parts of the SOL. But, in the end, we didn’t really get to see anything very memorable. I suspect they were thinking about the scenes that were eventually cut.
• As we get ready for movie sign, they make explicit the threat Dr. F has always sort of implied in the past. He pulls a lever and apparently cuts the oxygen in the SOL. Mike, of course, has the most reason to cooperate, but Crow and Tom comply as well, not wanting to be the cause of Mike’s demise.
• Look for Frank on one of the doors during the door sequence.
• The movie contains many riffs that loyal fans have heard before, sometimes on several occasions. Among them: “It’s a long par five to the nation’s capital,” “Football practice!” “Put your shoes on, we’re at grandma’s,” “I have tubes in my ears!” “I kind of live out of my [insert vehicle type]” and [you] “wake and bake every day.”
• One of the problems I do have with the movie is that, early on, when they should be establishing a riffing rhythm, there is an upsettingly long stretch of no riffs. It happens during the scene in which Cal holds an impromptu press conference as he prepares to climb into his jet. A long painful minute goes by with only a few paltry riffs, and it’s really the wrong place for a dead zone.
• Then current riffs: “John Sununu goes for a haircut,” “Look out President Clinton!”, a reference to pilots drinking rum and cokes and “The Kingdome!”
• In the live riffing, the “secret eggo project” scene went on much longer and established the “Cal always breaks things” running gag. The shortened version doesn’t really establish it, with the result that when Servo says “Cal, I don’t think there’s anything left to break!” we really don’t understand what he’s talking about.
• Take note of a few familiar faces: The “sort this, deliver that” delivery man is none other than Coleman Francis!! And, later, the Metalunan pilot who punches up the “Normal View” is none other than Richard Deacon, Mel Cooley from “The Dick Van Dyke Show.”
• Another little in-joke for fans, you can hear a light musical riff on the “Manos” theme as Mike activates the manipulator arm, which is labeled “Manos.”
• It always cracks me up the way Crow nuzzles Mike while doing his George Takei impression.
• Servo mentions hamdingers under his breath as he looks for his interociter.
• One of the most surprising, and head-scratching moments of the movie came with the appearance of actor John Brady as a Metalunan taking a shower. Brady had never been involved with MST3K (in fact this was his first movie role) and many fans were baffled by the appearance of this complete stranger.
• Just a shout-out to Jef or whoever built that replica of the catalog in the movie. Looks perfect.
• The movie contains three “shits” in the dialog, expressly added so that would avoid the dreaded “G” rating. I’m sure this made sense at the time. but, in hindsight, doesn’t seem to have helped.
• Obscure riff (there were a few!): They enter a room on the ship that looks to have wooden tile floors. Crow, in his best Henry Fonda, says “Hey the floors look great!” Fonda was a longtime pitchman for GAF flooring.
• As they riff the closing credits, most of the names they pick out are folks who have been longtime BBI staffers.
• Cast and crew wrap-up: We’re going to do this one a little differently because basically the usual Universal crew worked on this thing, and many of them also worked, within a few years on “Revenge of the Creature,” “The Leech Woman,” “The Mole People,” “The Deadly Mantis” and “The Thing that Couldn’t Die.”
Those also working on “Revenge of the Creature ” were producer William Alland, the director of the Metaluna scenes Jack Arnold, assistant director Fred Frank, special effects guy/costumer/makeup guy Bud Westmore, costumers Jack Kevan, Millicent Patrick, Robert Beau Hickman, Chris Mueller and John Kraus, hairdresser Joan St. Oegger, art director Alexander Golitzen, set dressers Russell A. Gausman, sound person Leslie I. Carey and score composers Herman Stein and Henry Mancini. In front of the camera: Robert B. Williams.
Those also working on “The Leech Woman” were special effects guy/costumer/makeup guy Bud Westmore, art director Alexander Golitzen set dressers Russell A. Gausman, sound person Leslie I. Carey, musical director Joseph Gershenson (who served as producer).
Those also working on “The Mole People” were producer William Alland, editor Virgil Vogel, special effects guy Clifford Stine, special effects guy/costumer/makeup guy Bud Westmore, hairdresser Joan St. Oegger, art director Alexander Golitzen, set dresser Russell A. Gausman, sound person Leslie I. Carey, musical director Joseph Gershenson, score composers Herman Stein, Hans Salter and Henry Mancini. In front of the camera: Mark Hamilton, Regis Parton and Ed Parker.
Those also working on “The Deadly Mantis” were producer William Alland, special effects guy Clifford Stine, special effects guy/costumer/makeup guy Bud Westmore, art director Alexander Golitzen, special effects guy Fred Knoth, set dresser Russell A. Gausman, sound person Leslie I. Carey, musical director Joseph Gershenson and score composer Henry Mancini.
Those also working on “The Thing That Couldn’t Die” were cinematographer Clifford Stine, special effects guy/costumer/makeup guy Bud Westmore, set dresser Russell A. Gausman and Julia Heron, sound person Leslie I. Carey, musical director Joseph Gershenson and score composer Henry Mancini.
In addition, producer William Alland also worked on “The Space Children.” Special effects guy Clifford Stine also worked on “The Creeping Terror.” Makeup guy Bud Westmore also worked on “San Francisco International. Hairdresser Joan St. Oegger also worked on “The Amazing Colossal Man.” Art director Alexander Golitzen also worked on “Kitten With A Whip,” as did musical director Joseph Gershenson. Set dresser Russell A. Gausman also worked on “The Brute Man,” as did score composer Hans J. Salter.
In front of the camera: Lance Fuller also appeared in “The She Creature.” Coleman Francis, well, you know. Ed Parker was also in “Bride of the Monster” and “Undersea Kingdom.” Russell Johnson was also in “The Space Children.”
• CreditsWatch: Regular crew members who also worked on the movie were Jeff Stonehouse, Bradley J. Keely, Michael Kienitz, Andrea Jackson DuCane, Jef Maynard, Wendell Jon Andersson, Patrick Brantseg, Crist Ballas, Tim Johnson, Barb Tebben and Julie Walker.
• Fave riff: “Hey, keep it on the road! We’re in the tubes back here!” Honorable mention: “Recognize me now, Ruth?”
Next week, we’ll start season seven.
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Patrick (#42): It was indeed the Varsity, and subsequently it was briefly run at the theater I worked at, Merle Hay Cinema at the Merle Hay Mall. We did not have Comedy Central at that time, I think you’re right. My first exposure was through a high school friend who had incomplete tapes of Giant Gila Monster, Monster A Go Go and Jungle Goddess. I was later able to pick up through my other job at Suncoast the first 3 Rhino episodes Cave Dwellers, Mitchell and Amazing Colossal Man.
saw the movie in a crowded theater in Dallas. loved it. to quote joel from ‘manhunt in space’ “yeah, there are things about it that i’d change if i could.” but i still enjoy it. fave riff…close up of cal fighting his jet’s stick when tom remarks “should we be watching this?’
• The movie contains two three “****s” in the dialog, expressly added so that would avoid the dreaded “G” rating. This is another one of those decisions that, in hindsight, seems pointless.
I agree. I always thought the PG-13 rating was totally out of proportion in regards to what PG-13 was back than and certainly what it is today. The easiest way to get a PG-13 rating right off the bat is to say the F word in a non-sexual way. Anymore than 1 usage is an automatic R in a lot of cases (with the most common exception being Oceans 11).
This movie even with the sh**s is still a very pure, “PG” rated movie. I loved watching it when I was 12 and I would have no problem showing it to my kids at an early age.
I first saw this when I was in college, probably not too long after SciFi stopped showing the reruns all together. I was not aware there was a movie, so you can imagine my surprise. And while yes, there definitely could have been more riffs, I still love it like a loving thing.
I actually really like the intro segment, if simply because it gave us my favorite Dr. Forrester moment: “I’M A NAUGHTY BOY! NAUGHTY NAUGHTY naughty naughty…” I also love Tom’s ultra-sarcastic “NO” when they finally notice that Brak and co. have some slightly funny foreheads. And of course, all the credit riffing, especially the running gag about the Amazing Rando.
Anybody know how often This Island Earth got mentioned on the show? I can only recall one instance in Diabolik (since it was the final episode).
It showed at a mall here in Kansas City and I waited a good two weeks to go and see it. It was annoying to me at the time as I wanted to see it with as little people as possible with my friend but it ended up being totally packed. It’s great looking back on it but at the time I remember it seemed very long and I missed so many jokes because of the audience laughing at EVERY single line. There were lots of kids and I during riffs that a little kid would never get (or not even a riff at all) they would laugh out loud. It was really odd. I guess there weren’t any other kids movies out at the time. Everything out of Crow’s mouth especially was hilarious to kids.
Also, a funny memory I have is in line for tickets, there was a young black family picking out what to see. The little kid, no more than 5 or 6 years old, said he wanted to see “Mystery Science Theater”. The dad, with a disappointed look on his face said “But we watch that at home”, yet knew there was no point in arguing cause the kid is NOT gonna see anything else. Just shows how much money the movie could have conceivably made had it been opened wide in theaters.
#55, there are two other references that I can think of off-hand.
#805 – The Thing that Couldn’t Die: Uses a lot of the music from TIE and Mike mentions that very late into the movie.
#808 – The She Creature: Stars Lance Fuller (Brak) and one of the riffs is, “Did I get the role in This Island Earth?”
805 is a great episode. 808 is painful.
The movie is good, but if it were a TV episode, it would be strictly middle of the road. Not bad, not great, and certainly not a classic, but good.
On to Season 7. :cool:
#45 RevRaven –
WHERE DID YOU GET THAT????? I want it so very badly. :)
I’m always on the lookout for a copy for sale or for a torrent of it, anything at all. Any chance you might be convinced to rip & upload those special features somewhere? :mrgreen:
In my opinion there were two things wrong with THE MOVIE. One, no TV’s Frank. Why not? Two, too many scenes were cut then lost.
What was going on at BB back then? Why didn’t Joel just tell Jim to back off about directing the film? Was Jim the real cause of all the dissent that finally broke up the team? I wish someone would do a “tell-all” instead of being so mid-western polite about it.
Just a quick aside:
Although not the same joke it was to the same painting: The notorious “Why I have a painting of a burger on the wall” painting. I believe the original joke was “An original Ray Kroc” and I believe it’s in “The Amazing Transparent Man.” I do have to go back and check.
TO: Sampo (Reply 29)
Thanks for the reply. It’s supremely annoying that Universal, which made no real profit from the initial release, seems determined to keep itself (and others) making no real profit from home video. Are they that vindictive towards BBI, or are they just shortsighted?
When you factor in MST3K-TM, TIE, behind-the-scenes footage, the theme by Dave Alvin, the trailers & commercials, footage from the ConventioCon I live show, Russell Johnson & Rex Reason’s Con appearance, new interviews, and the ep with “Incredible Melting Man” (spoofing the making of MST3K-TM), you’ve got a three-disc special edition right there. And I’d buy it pretty darn quick.
Oh, and I agree that Rex Reason has one impressive voice.
For those who saw MST3KtM in theaters, it sounds like a great way to see it, or anything you enjoy. Seeing it with a crowd of fellow fans must have been a treat, and would make it very memorable. (Though I’m not sure I would have enjoyed Bobo “BuckDat” Briggs’s experience [#56], with too much noise and enthusiasm!”
I always enjoyed the movie. Had it on VHS, have it on DVD, still watch from time to time. I don’t disagree with most of the criticisms about the riffs not being as strong as they could be, or that it’s like a middle-of-the-road ep, but I’m still fond of it. I love the whole “Mike broke the Hubble!” segment, my husband still wanders through the house singing, “Normal view!” from time to time, and I loved the whole dinner scene with Cal, Ruth and those big-headed fellas.
Favorite riff: >bambambam< “Are you boys cooking in there?” “Noo.” “Are you building an interocitor?” “NOOO!”
Oh, and I agree with Patrick (#42) about the host segments in Incredible Melting Man: extremely funny, very pointed, and made a funny episode even funnier.
Amazingly, I never put together that Mike is in a Hamster wheel at the start of the film. And then he drinks from a big Hamster bottle! How did I miss that?! I always thought it was weird what he was drinking from, but I never put the pieces together. I just thought the wheel thing was a clever way to exercise in space (which it would be, be honest).
I watched the Rogue DVD with subtitles, and I noticed that a lot of the riffs are misattributed, which is kind of embarassing.
Also: another TIE reference in “Thing That Couldn’t Die” and at least one other episode. During the opening credits to “Thing” you can hear the music used in TIE, and Mike says, in a deep voice, “Plug it in, Joe.”
In another episode, they remark during the credits for Music Supervision, “let’s get a needle drop on the This Island Earth music.”
This is about my favorite movie…ever. It’s the first MST 3K thing I ever saw when my dad made me watch. I thought it would be so stupid, but it totally wasn’t.
Am I the only who noticed the puppeteer’s hand in the shot under Crow when they’re browsing through Tom’s bedroom?
Am I the only one who owned this on laserdisc? Still have it in fact. Like most long time fans, it was great to see a movie version but disappointing that Joel and Frank couldn’t have been there. It’s like an alternate reality version of the show…in fact, that’s the way the whole Sci-Fi era comes off in my view. From this point on, the show just didn’t feel the same to me. :???:
I especially love not only the use of the “Manos” theme music, but also the fact that the “manipulator arms” look like the hand on Torgo’s staff! Brilliant.
I really enjoy this movie … just caught it on one of the HBO channels recently (thanks for the heads up, Satellite News!) and it had me cracking up, even if I can recite all the riffs at this point!
“Dr. Mitchum …” “We’re not hiring” :)
Some many great riffs.
“So this is Squrriel Pudding.”
” Puppet Wranglers? There weren’t any puppets in this film.”
“The Amazing Rando.”
” Why I have a burger on the wall.”
“If I have pants on?”
“So professor you made this whole thing out of Coconuts?”
“da da da da It’s the Brak show. That me I am Brak! And I have alot of cool guest.”
“So Brak, Is that Polish? Oh I guess it’s not.”
“Um…Pudding?”
“Our Licorcie Ice cream cones melted.”
“*crunch* 485 Sir.”
“Joe, I’m in one of these boxes find me.”
“At goof clown face.”
” I don’t like you.”
“Oh so we get the Sci-Fi Channel. Oh please oh please.”
“Oh crimmity, there’s soccer teams every where.”
“Is this paper? I got a bet with Joe.”
* guy walking by as the guys make racer car sounds*
>68
Trace’s rapidly fluttering hand has been noticed by many fans in that scene.
It was most evident in the first DVD release. The second release I believe was cropped more to the theatrical aspect ratio and you don’t see near as much puppeteering as before during that bit.
1 star from me. Sorry — wasn’t good enough, although, I loved Dr. Forrester’s solo acting, and a good amount of riffing on the movie … but … this was a 70 minute long movie ?!?!?!?!??!?! Even an average episode is 90 minutes long … What gives ?!?
When I first became hardcore into MST, a friend of mine wrote a review of The Movie for the fansite we stalk around so as to bolster the newly-created MST3K section. You can read it here if you so desire. I bought TM a few days later, keeping what he talked about in the review in mind, which I think helped a great deal.
I really love The Movie. It’s a bit of a different flavor, but at its heart, it’s still the same cowtown puppet show as it ever was. My tech theatre geek drools over the enhanced set design, which I simply adore. I’ve also inducted no less than ten people (between the ages of 14-17) into the show with this. Instead of saying hello in the hallway, we instead make the “VrrrrrRRRRRNnnnn” riff ala the scientist attempting to inconspicuously walk by in the background. Also, you haven’t lived until you’ve chorused “Normal VIEEEW!” in a lunchroom
At a little movie night I held a few weeks ago, we watched The Movie and then The Final Sacrifice. The kids seemed to transition quite well, if just a bit confused. The theme song really helps.
I actually saw this in a real movie theater. Me and five other people. It was way too short. Not given proper marketing. Frank’s absence is painfully evident. That being said I do enjoy the film. I think the riffs were funny. As to TIE being too good to riff all I have to say is – no it’s not. The film’s only monster is a nut sack headed insect wearing slacks! Fav riff – Norml view, norml view, norml view! [no I did not forget the “a”s…google it]
MST3K: The Movie kind of has me in the crossroads. It was good, but it felt gutted and rushed like someone else already stated. Also, it would have been cool if Joel agreed to be in it (Yes, he was offered, but didn’t partake because of his feud with Mallon) and if Frank was in it as well. I like Mike too and I’m not getting into a Joel vs. Mike pissing match, but it would have been neat to maybe see kind of an “origins” movie. Maybe seeing The Mads shoot Joel into space, seeing him create the bots and then engage in his first experiment. That may seem like it would have been too long of a movie, but if it was done properly who knows…??
I forgot to mention a favorite moment of mine in the movie that some people might not have noticed. After Tom plugs up the hole in the SoL at the beginning, he mentions how much he enjoys the feeling. A little later Mike replaces Tom with Crow’s helmet and Tom quietly goes “Awwww” (in disappointment) as he gets removed.
• Firstly, much thanks to Sampo for updating the season six episode guide so promptly (and for doing such a great job on this site in general). I am watching the entire series in order (for the second time!) and just finished season five. After each episode, I read reviews from other sites (Mighty Jack, MST3K Review, etc.) then come here to Satellite News to read all the user comments for each show. As a relative newbie (I started watching in 2002) it helps me put it all in perspective.
• The Movie: glad to see my feelings echoed here. Underwhelming. I was already a fan of the show by the time I saw this on cable a few years ago and while gorgeous to look at, it feels watered down. Despite this, I ended up buying the German 2 disc import because it has bonus features and TIE unriffed, but none of the extras have English subtitles! No deleted scenes, either. Scheisse!
I call dibbs on Ruth!
“He came out of the East to do battle with the Amazing Rando!”
I’m a fan of the movie, but I hate the cuts they made to TIE (haven’t seen it as far as I can remember), so it just jumps around too much.
re: #33, In one of the recent mind-numbingly long podcasts Kevin got interviewed for, he mentioned that he was the one who always got the dirty words for PG-13 movies, which I guess makes him a fellow cursologist ;)
And as for myself, I didn’t get to see the movie in a theater (I’m not even sure it was in a theater anywhere near where I lived), and the first I got to see of it was on a cable movie channel on my birthday (I was flipping channels while waiting for a wrestling PPV problem to get sorted out and watched about 5 minutes of it, specifically the bit with the cat). A few years later, we’d regularly get these huge VHS catalogs, and in one of them was The Movie… for $99! This more or less dashed my hopes for ever seeing it for a while, until the lucky day when I found it in a Hastings video rental section.
I like it very much.
And thanks for posting all the season 6 comments. I only started posting then and I can look back and cringe now at my ignorance.
Cool to see comments from Patrick and Fake Moustache about seeing it in Des Moines. I saw it once at the Varsity and twice at Billy Joe’s Pitcher Show (where it replaced Rocky Horror as the midnight movie for a few weeks).
I also saw it at the tiniest theater I’ve ever been to in Champagne, Ill.
Did it really show at Merle Hay Mall Cinema? That’s my favorite theater in town. I’d be bummed if I had missed it there.
The first time I got to see this movie was at the Con and the joy of seeing with with all those other MSTies covered any shortcomings the movie had. Wish we could have just one more…
To be honest, I do love the film. Lots of great lines and sometimes it’s nice to have something between a short and a whole ep to watch. That said, I believe whenever BB edited a movie they were to riff, they hold some responsibility for making the film worse than it was. TIE was chopped to bits and though the film isn’t great, I’m sure the unedited version is at least a little more coherent. Same goes for mentioning the sudden disappearance of John Saxon in Mitchell (which they edited out for violence I believe).
I’ve often wondered how possible it is for Shout! to release JUST the bonus features we’ve been begging for as an accompinament to the film. Theme song, deleted scenes and maybe an interview or two. It’d make great filler, IMO, for a set that’s one ep away from completion. It’d also be a great idea to sell the live show reading through RiffTrax. Drag out the original, unsanitized version, record it with the three from the film and hit each of us up for $5. Even cooler would be having those not involved with the movie (Josh, Frank and Bill) to submit second riff.
I can dream can’t I?
I lived in Hawaii when the movie was released and was disappointed that it didn’t make it to any of the theaters there. I saw it later as a rental and enjoyed it, but I must agree with others that it is underwhelming. I found the host segments rather too focused on the new visuals and less on the normally-cutting humor. However the interociter segment felt reasonably well-scripted to me (and had great props). Again, it communicated pretty clearly that most of the script decisions were made to “mainstream” the concept. This was a considerable challenge considering the complex background of the show, so I am able to cut the Brains a lot of slack. What is less forgiveable is the truncated running time; it sounds as if the Brains had little to do with that.
please don’t leave me with THE GERMANS!!
Having long ago gotten over the shock of seeing how both Ruth and Exetor had not aged well by the time they appeared in CT’s “Legacy of Blood”, I’m now shocked all over again to find out that, despite the number of times I’ve watched MST3K:TM, I never even noticed that Brak was played by Lance Fuller! I guess it was perfect casting…giving the part of a bland, unemotional alien to the most bland, unemotional actor in show business.
I was also surprised to find out that the “sort this” delivery guy was played by Coleman Francis. What an embarrassment of riches!
I didn’t get a chance to catch this in the theater, and saw it for the first time on HBO last year.
I like MST3KTM very much, mainly because I like this type of movie the best for riffing (sci-fi, aliens, etc). The leading man’s acting is so stiff that it provides a fertile bed for comments.
“We did it, and you know it.”
#85
“please don’t leave me with THE GERMANS!!”
============================
You should be all right. (Just don’t mention the war).
About the editing of TIE. Perhaps it could be released like one of the dvds, with a symbol (I think Crow) that pops up that you click to see a deleted scene.
Realizing that the delivery man is Francis, and that TIE was released five years before Beast of Yucca Flats, the “I’ll make them pay!” riff changes from simply a funny line to a downright menacing threat…
I’m one of the movie’s fans.
No, it’s not as good as the best episodes, but the riffs are excellent (even if dumbed down). I think the shorter running time does make it much more accessible to non-fans, although, as someone who’s already a fan, I’m not crazy about it. Mostly, I just love the fact that a movie was made, since it’s always been easier to find than actual episodes of the show. I know I’ve rented it from at least two different rental stores.
I actually got to see it the movie in a theater in LA last year. I went with two non-fans, and we all had a blast. So, thank you Best Brains, for taking your genius, dumbing it down, and going through hell so that I have an easier time enjoying your humor in new ways.
In its day this was considered a classic, and to many it still is, but to me it is a glorified B flick along the lines of The Mole People
I think the sets, the scifi aspect were colorful and the Metaluna Mutant is a classic creature..
I know the late great Forry Ackerman liked it and Im not going to argue with him
I feel people in this generation who watch this generation’s films will not like TIE, unless you have a passion for classic films
I like TIE and I also like THAI too :)
Markedman247 (#61), I’m glad I’m not crazy in thinking the burger painting was used in another MSTied movie. It’s also in The Leech Woman. It’s hanging in the living room of the leech woman’s house. I’m going to look for it in the Amazing Transparent Man, too.
Does anybody out there know what in the name of god that painting was? It did appear in several films, but was it just some piece of nothing the art dept. at Universal came up with? Or a “real” piece of art? Either way, why make it look like a burger schematic? A couple of faves that I don’t think have been mentioned….”the light from these credits originated well over 5 million years ago” (or something like that). “I have no control” – I keep eating and eating. “I’m too low” – I got the blues so bad. And, I have to say one more time…the Amazing RANDO!!!!
I spoke with Jef Maynard extensively before and during the production of MST3K:TM, so I’ll add a couple of notes about the props:
The “mutant” costume was an original from TIE. It was in pretty bad shape when Jef received it from Universal and he had to almost completely restore it. He was quite proud of his work.
The interociter manual was not an original from TIE and was made by Jef. In fact, several manuals were made. Three were sold during BBI’s eBay prop auction in 2000.
The interociter also was not an original and was built by Jef. After the movie was completed, the prop remained on display in the lobby of BBI until the studio was shut down. I have no idea where it is today.
The face with the spitcurl during the door sequence was Jef’s idea. He felt that a tribute to Frank needed to be somewhere in the movie.
One other note: Sampo mentioned the cover of the theme song by Dave Alvin and Blasters. You can hear a small portion of it in the MST3K Screen Saver which we have posted here:
https://www.mst3kinfo.com/freebees/index.html
‘You’re holding a mutant turd!’
A couple things…
– I saw this opening weekend at the Camera One in San Jose, CA. It was the last showing on Saturday night and the whole place was packed. There was a slightly odd moment when several people went up to the Theater Manager who was working at the concession stand about if it was possible to get a piece of the film if it happened to break during the showing that we were all at.
– The entire audience laughed through the whole thing from start to finish. As the saying goes, it was a very “hot crowd” for the film and it went over well. The cleaning crew didn’t look very happy when everyone in the theater stayed in their seats during the ending credits. The crew just stood there in one of the doorways to the theater with their brooms and garbage cans waiting for everyone to leave.
– Personally, I’m a big fan of the movie. I do agree that it doesn’t have the kind of content of a normal episode but I also understand the reasons that they did it that way. There is no point in putting in wall-to-wall jokes when you’ll wind up with the audience laughing over the next two lines and no one will hear them.
– As I left the theater, there was a group of people outside trying to entice the audience to not leave. It was the local RHPS cast and they gave out flyers to just about everyone that walked out the theater doors.
@ #11 (jjb3k): In referring to the “Leona Helmsley!” riff, I think the orignal reference was to midwestern funk musician Bootsy Collins and not Boo Radley…
Someone can correct me if I’m wrong (wouldn’t be the first time)
After becoming not just aware of but interested in Mystery Science Theater 3000 through MSTings, the movie was my first chance to actually *see* it, north of the border as I am, and so I suppose I’ve always been more favourably disposed to it than others… As well, though, after having heard “the show is better than the movie and the Joel episodes are better than the Mike episodes,” I might have been expecting a little more from renting “The Amazing Colossal Man” a while later than I seemed to actually get, and that’s also influenced my impressions. (As a happy ending, though, I found “Pod People” and “Cave Dwellers” funnier, and on getting back to “The Amazing Colossal Man” years later my impressions of it had also improved.)
Servo would repeat the “John Sununu goes for a haircut” in a later episode, where the movie recycled the same plane take-off scene from TIE and even had the “Burger on the Wall” painting in one scene. It was a black-and-white film, but I can’t recollect the title.