Tonight I watched a real gem of low budget 1950s science fiction called "The Mole People" (1956), which was one of the five films included in my newly acquired "Ultimate Sci-Fi Collection Vol. 1" dvd set. The movie stars John Agar as an archaeologist working with his team on an ancient Mesopotamian dig. An Arab boy brings them a relic he found high on a mountaintop, a golden incense burner. Agar wants to move the dig to the mountain, but the local guides tell him no. "It is the home of Ishtar", their God, and if Agar climbs the mountain he will be punished with death.
Now, John Agar was a staple in 50s sci-fi movies, and if you've ever seen him you know that arrogance was his stock in trade. He was also famous for his marriage to Shirley Temple when she was only 17, and he even managed to say crude things about her later on after their divorce. So when John Agar is your star, you know you are in for an annoying treat, and you wouldn't be watching a movie like "The Mole People" in the first place unless you were accustomed to his "performances". I mean, God help you if "The Mole People" is your introduction to classic sci-fi and also to John Agar. Hopefully you've built up some experience beforehand, haha.
In truth, it's not that bad a movie. In fact, it could be considered a "bad-good" classic. The story is "epic". The scientists do make an expedition to the mountaintop, where they discover an ancient Sumerian temple. Then suddenly, one member of the team takes a wrong step and the ground caves in beneath his feet. He falls into a seemingly bottomless hole in the earth. Agar, who is not only a know-it-all but also a hero type, makes the decision for the rest of the team to descend into the hole to locate the missing man. You get the feeling that he is doing it for self-serving reasons and you may be right.
The fallen scientist is found dead (of course), so Agar is now free to lead the remainder of his team farther into the bowels of the Earth. Soon, they encounter The Mole People, who overpower them and drag them down even further, through mole holes that open into a cavernous underground city.
This is where the movie gets campy, and you will have to refer to the posts I made tonight on my FB page, for footage to reference it by. As often happens in "so bad they're good" 50s science fiction flicks, there is an adversarial leader of an undiscovered or alien society who happens to be a fop. Think of the "Ruler" character in "Plan 9 From Outer Space" and you'll have the idea. If you watch the trailer I posted for "The Mole People", you'll get a glimpse of a similar character played by Alan Napier, who went on to play Alfred the Butler on the "Batman" tv series.
Napier is the High Priest of this underground society who have descended from the Sumerians. They are a fussy bunch who take out their paranoia on the lowly Mole People, whom they enslave and beat down with whips. John Agar isn't gonna stand for this abuse, and he discovers that both the Mole People and the folks of the Underground Society are extremely sensitive to the flashlight he brought down. In fact, it is deadly to them. Now he has power over Alan Napier and the King of The Society.
But only until his flashlight batteries run out.
This is another one of those nights where you are gonna have to do some work of your own to complete the movie review, because I am tired and because the movie was "The Mole People".
Now, don't get the idea that I didn't like it - quite the contrary. It never lagged, it ran a compact 77 minutes, and the script was good and featured location changes, mountain climbing scenes, avalanches, and some pretty decent underground sets, including a fantastic matte painting backdrop to the gigantic underground city. Plotwise, it's got all the ingredients you expect in "B" grade science fiction, and it's technically well made, photographed in dark black and white.
It's just that when the campiness starts, it gets very campy, so as long as you can handle that aspect, you will probably enjoy "The Mole People" as much as I did. And you also have John Agar to counteract all of this by giving the most overbearing performance of his career, so you really can't lose.
I needed some classic Sci-Fi for Summer, and now it's off to a great start with "The Mole People", to which I give Two Very Big Thumbs Up.
In the genre of 1950s "B" or even "C" grade sci-fi, there are a huge difference between movies that outright suck and movies that are, say, eccentric and perhaps don't have the greatest acting or direction, but have quality production values and an interesting story to make up for it.
"The Mole People" is such a movie, recommended for 1950s Sci-Fi fanatics like myself. ///
That's all I know for tonight. See you in the morning with lots of love sent in between.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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