Aimed squarely at teenagers, the film helped set the formula we're still using today in teen-oriented horror flicks. The kids are sort of outsiders. The guy isn't all bad, and the girl is definitely a very nice girl. The cops won't believe a word of any of it from these crazy kids. And kids hang out acting goofy until its time for them to save the day.
The FX are really pretty awesome for their day (not War of the Worlds awesome, but really good), and there were a few shots I didn't quite figure out.
The weirdest part of the movie is the jaunty song written for the movie, no doubt to appeal to kids and get them singing at their hootenannies. Absolutely amazing, this is the beginning of The Blob:
Nothing sets the mood for horror like danceable late-50's coffee-house-inspired pop tunes. Especially when they are penned by Burt Bacharach (Jesus, that factoid really pulls this together).
Sure, you can question the logic of the movie and why Steve McQueen doesn't just explain the chain of events to get the cops off his back (or why the cops think he would come to the police station to bring them back to a crime scene as a prank)... but, heck, I like that monster.
The Blob is one big reddish-purple mass of "oh, holy crap" that's about as good a depiction of what aliens really will be like when they arrive as we're going to see at the cinema. As much as I wish they'd all be Twi-lek entertainers or Orion dancing girls, its just as likely some hunk of space protoplasm will show up and have us all dead within a week. Them's the breaks.
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| Our villain |
We're trying to do a few more Halloween movies in the run up to the big day, so we''ll keep you guys posted as to our progress.
People really need to hang in there with the theme song until the vocals kick in (which don't start until abou the last third or quarter of the tune). That song is still haunting me today...
ReplyDeleteMe, too. I interrupted a meeting at work to ask people if they'd ever heard this song. Its been in my head all day.
ReplyDeleteBeware of The Blob, it creeps
ReplyDeleteAnd leaps and glides and slides
Across the floor
Right through the door
And all around the wall
A splotch, a blotch
Be careful of The Blob
Yes, I like the fact that we are warned not to run away from the blob or to try to kill it, but just to be careful of it. As though it were something you might accidentally step in.
ReplyDelete