There once was a man named Vic Savage. You're probably thinking "So?" Well, he knew an
Exploitation Filmmaker named Allan Silliphant (who would later direct
The Stewardesses, the most profitable 3D movie with respect to budget of all time) that was related to Stirling "
In the Heat of the Night" Silliphant. Vic bought a story from Allan, pretended he bought a story from Stirling, and pulled together some investors - supposedly by promising cameo roles. He took the money, made... a "movie," and disappeared with most of the investors' money.
This "movie" would later be remembered as being particularly bad even for
Mystery Science Theater 3000.
Stirling Silliphant was also vaguely involved in the creation of another
MST3K classic,
"Manos" The Hands of Fate.
The story is about an UFO that releases a giant caterpillar-like monster who begins eating random people. It turns out that
the monsters (there's a second one inside the ship) are actually robots sent to analyze human beings for aliens. Although the monsters are destroyed by the end, the spaceship still beams its collected data into space...
This film provides examples of:
- Cameo: most memorably obese investor #5 as Jimmy's grandpa.
- Clothing Damage: A blink-and-you-miss-it moment. When the monster attacks the dance party, a woman tries to escape, only for a guy to come after her and pull her away tearing her dress top off. Apparently, the picture was too grainy to cut or alter, but the fact that Tom spots it means that they DID know it was there.
- Dull Surprise
- Infant Immortality: Averted with Bobby. Played straight with the actual baby.
- Kill 'Em All: This film has very few survivors.
- Fauxlosophic Narration
- Fanservice: The various shots of wiggling female legs disappearing down the monster's gullet. May also count as Fetish Fuel for some.
- Fan Disservice: And for others, it's ruined by the fact that, well, they're getting eaten (and it doesn't apply to the male victims).
- Monster Misogyny: One of the most blatant examples.
- Pregnancy Tropes: all averted. There's just suddenly a baby.
Crow (as mom): Oh, did I suddenly have a baby while I was waving goodbye?
- Shaggy Dog Story
- Science Is Bad: Dr Bradford is clearly wrong for taking any kind of non-military action. Not that the military are any better.
- The Narrator: Who seems to only talk when the characters should be. With good reason - the crew dropped the sound equipment in a lake, so they didn't have much choice.
- Too Dumb to Live
Mike: Did anyone in the '50s ever think of running?
The MST3K treatment provides examples of:
- Author Appeal: Mike and the bots surmise, from the decided fixation on women's legs as the monster devours them, that the director has a thing for vore.
- Credits Gag: The crappy stock music from the movie plays over the end credits, and it continues to run through to the end well after the credits themselves have ended.
- Does Not Like Men: The coffeehouse poet persona Gypsy takes on during the pretentiousness experiment overflows with hilariously misandristic jabs.
- Foot Focus: Dr. Forrester rests a bare foot right up in the camera while doing laundry, flossing his toes with one of his socks.
- Hidden Depths: Turns out Mike is really into stereo systems. The bots are... not so impressed with his setup.
- Leave the Camera Running: Mike listening to the film's stock music on his stereo system.
- Paper People: Forrester renders Frank cardboard-thin by running him through a laundry wringer.
- Satire: Mike and the bots spend an entire segment sending up Love American Style.
"My God! What is it?!"
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