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Anyone Else A Fan Of This Island Earth Before this?

posted 10 years ago by verbusen
9 replies | jump to latest

I am a big fan of MST3K, I watched it pretty regularly when it was on the air over the years but really watched it regularly the last 5 years online. I think the only episode I have not finished is Hamlet which I'm really not into. Even watched the KTMA episodes. I watched this film version when it was still pretty new in the 90's and was bummed out that they picked a film I actually liked a lot. Anyone else think like this? I just saw it on the cable listings and am now re-watching it for the first time in at least a decade, thats how unimpressed I was the first time I watched this. Plus they cut the hell out the original! I looked the original up on IMdb and it's a mid 5 rating, I guarantee you it would have been a 7 had it never been riffed and prejudiced people. I think a lot of people just know this version and gave it a bad rating, it's a pretty strong 50's sci fi flick all around. There really are only a handful of sci fi films from that decade that are better. Maybe it's better NOT to have watched a film before it gets riffed, you have no sentimentalities to it. This film was played a LOT in late night and weekend TV in the 70's and I must have watched it a dozen times as a teen. Although I watched all the Gamera and Godzilla films as a teen also and loved the riffed versions of those! I just think they picked too good (and serious) a film to get riffed for such a big event for the franchise. Looks like in reading the boards that this episode has grown in fondness so I'll just shut up and re-watch it, lol. I don't remember it being loved so much back in the 90's though.

[–] stazza 10 years ago

Yes. This Island Earth fan. Was shocked they used it as a schlock film to pick on, but it worked for me because the comments were funny anyway. Still love This Island Earth, yet enjoyed the MST3K abuse as well.

Sure, TIE is dated like all old classic sci-fi, but I put it in the same catagory as TIME MACHINE, WAR OF WORLDS, etc, just good old classics lacking modern (boring!) computer graphics, relying on real stuff to make the film work.

[–] wallacesawyer 9 years ago

Yes. This Island Earth fan. Was shocked they used it as a schlock film to pick on, but it worked for me because the comments were funny anyway. Still love This Island Earth, yet enjoyed the MST3K abuse as well.

I think movies that are somewhat enjoyable in their own right make for better riffing. SPACE MUTINY, PRINCE OF SPACE and REVENGE OF THE CREATURE are a few examples.

And like with Rifftrax some of my favorites are RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK and CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER. Both great films, but hilarious riffs.

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[–] D_Ray_Morton 9 years ago

Yes love this movie without the riff but also love it with the riff ---

[–] Kuato_and_George 9 years ago

I've never seen it, but I heard there was a little backlash from fans of it whe this movie came out.

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[–] wallacesawyer 9 years ago

I've never seen it, but I heard there was a little backlash from fans of it whe this movie came out.

Not just for the riffing, but also because the film was heavily cut.

I guess to some THIS ISLAND EARTH is considered a classic '50s sci-fi film, but personally I don't think it's really that great. I'd sooner watch THE WAR OF THE WORLDS (1953) or CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON (1954). But I don't think any movie is "above" riffing, just so long as it's funny.

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[–] Kuato_and_George 9 years ago

Aren't they all?

I have heard that some think it's a classic. That makes me laugh.

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[–] iainhammer 9 years ago

This Island Earth *is* a classic, although the budget dried up 2/3rds of the way through filming, which is why the desperate rescue mission to Metaluna goes, well, nowhere.

MSTK3 lost the charm and wit of its early Minneapolis /Comedy Central days once Joel Hodgson left the show, and his brilliant, slightly camp ad-libbing with its sly double-entendres, was replaced with heavily scripted material, while Mike Nelson was a somewhat leaden presenter, lacking Hodgson's lightness of touch.

And This Island Earth, plus Danger: Diabolik, for example, are not in any sense "cheesy movies", and the indiscriminate bunching together of inept, zero-budget movies with classics of genre filmmaking eventually became tiresome.

[–] wallacesawyer 9 years ago

MSTK3 lost the charm and wit of its early Minneapolis /Comedy Central days once Joel Hodgson left the show, and his brilliant, slightly camp ad-libbing with its sly double-entendres,

MST3K was a scripted show since the official First Season in late 1989. The KTMA Season before that, nicknamed "Season 0" was ad-libbed. And because they were ad-lipped is the reason Best Brains will not allow any DVD releases of those episodes. Personally I'd love to see some of those films re-riffed through Rifftrax.

while Mike Nelson was a somewhat leaden presenter, lacking Hodgson's lightness of touch.

Mike Nelson was a terrific host, the head writer, and while I have nothing against Joel, in my opinion Mike was funnier. But maybe that just had more to do with the films they obtained later on. BLOODLUST, LASERBLAST, REVENGE OF THE CREATURE and SPACE MUTINY all made for some of my most favorite episodes.

And This Island Earth, plus Danger: Diabolik, for example, are not in any sense "cheesy movies", and the indiscriminate bunching together of inept, zero-budget movies with classics of genre filmmaking eventually became tiresome.

Like I said before, no film is above riffing, though some are funnier than others. And while MST3K: THE MOVIE wasn't as the cast and crew originally intended it, their official riff of an abridged THIS ISLAND EARTH is terrific.

http://www.freewebs.com/demonictoys/

[–] shoobe01-1 7 years ago

Yeah, seen it before... yawn. Sorta awful film. Too ambitious by far.