{"id":2173,"date":"2012-03-29T22:50:13","date_gmt":"2012-03-30T04:50:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bmovienation.com\/?p=2173"},"modified":"2012-03-29T22:50:14","modified_gmt":"2012-03-30T04:50:14","slug":"rifftrax","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.bmovienation.com\/?p=2173","title":{"rendered":"RiffTrax"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nIt\u2019s surprising that a movie set on a scenic island populated almost entirely by attractive young women wearing only leopard-print bikinis could be this bad. It has so much going for it.<\/p>\n

But in this case, the movie is \u201cFrankenstein Island,\u201d which while made in 1981, would have seemed cheap, tacky and hopelessly outdated in 1951.<\/p>\n

Just imagine how it seems 30 years later.<\/p>\n

Actually, you don\u2019t have to imagine. \u201cFrankenstein Island\u201d is back, this time as the latest video-on-demand offering from Rifftrax, the post-\u201cMystery Science Theater 3000\u201d movie-riffing project of MST3K alums Michael J. Nelson, Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett, who were the show\u2019s movie-mocking leads during its Sci-Fi Channel years.<\/p>\n

Originally conceived to riff on recent Hollywood films, Rifftrax has devoted a bit more attention in the past year to vintage B-movies that would have been perfect targets for MST3K. Recent Rifftrax titles include 1978\u2019s \u201cBuffalo Rider\u201d (think \u201cGrizzly Adams\u201d without a plot) and \u201cAbraxas, Guardian of the Universe\u201d (1990), starring former pro wrestler and future conspiracy theorist Jesse \u201cThe Body\u201d Ventura as a bounty hunter from outer space.<\/p>\n

The most unintentionally hilarious of the bunch is \u201cFrankenstein Island,\u201d but that just means Mike, Kevin and Bill have even more material to work with.<\/p>\n

The writer\/director responsible for \u201cFrankenstein Island\u201d is Jerry Warren, whose 1966 movie \u201cThe Wild World of Batwoman\u201d is one of the strangest films ever to get the MST3K treatment. In fact, \u201cFrankenstein Island\u201d is full of past MST3K offenders.<\/p>\n

Katherine Victor (\u201cThe Wild World of Batwoman\u201d) plays Sheila Frankenstein, who is carrying on her grandfather\u2019s work, whatever that was, because in this movie it\u2019s something way less straightforward that reanimating corpses. She\u2019s joined by veteran character actor Cameron Mitchell (\u201cSpace Mutiny\u201d), who seems to have been paid for one day of work and spent all of it in a cage.<\/p>\n

Also on hand is Steve Brodie, who appeared in \u201cThe Wild World of Batwoman\u201d and \u201cThe Giant Spider Invasion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tain Bodkin, who had a small part as an apocalyptic preacher in \u201cThe Giant Spider Invasion,\u201d shows up, too. In his first scene, he does an impression of a fire-and-brimstone preacher for no apparent reason other than to remind us of his earlier role.<\/p>\n

What viewers in 1981 made of that is a mystery.<\/p>\n

Finally there\u2019s horror icon John Carradine, who at this point in his career was crippled with arthritis and taking small roles in terrible movies. He portrays the disembodied spirit of Dr. Frankenstein, a part that probably took half a day to shoot and didn\u2019t require him to be on set with the other actors.<\/p>\n

The plot goes something like this.<\/p>\n

A hot-air balloon crashes on a remote island, stranding four men and their dog. But they\u2019re not alone. There\u2019s a tribe of women in leopard-print bikinis who spend all of their free time dancing and carrying logs. The rest of their time they spend trying to avoid capture by a few slovenly thugs who kidnap them for Sheila Frankenstein\u2019s experiments, which have something to do with reviving her 200-year-old husband Dr. Van Helsing. (Try not to think about that.)<\/p>\n

Or maybe Sheila is trying to turn people into werewolves. I\u2019m really not sure.<\/p>\n

Anyway, the props literally look like dollar-store Halloween accessories, which they literally are, and Carradine seems confused whenever he appears, which is exactly how this movie left me.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a deliriously bad film, and Mike and the guys are in top form making fun of it.<\/p>\n

You can download \u201cFrankenstein Island\u201d for $9.99 at Rifftrax.com.<\/p>\n

from Culture Shock, At The Times Daily