Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stop

Rating:
Summary: Steckler's Tour de Force
Review: I had the good fortune of meeting Ray Dennis Steckler in 2001. He is a great guy and we talked about movies all afternoon, and in particular this one. I told him how much I would like to see "The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living And Became Mixed Up Zombies" ("Creatures") come out on DVD, but at the time it was price prohibitive. Well, it's finally here and it is a thing of wonder to behold. With original color photography by future Hollywood legends Joseph Mascelli, Laszlo Kovacs and Vilmos Zsigmond, the movie looks great overall.

The story concerns Jerry (Steckler), a troubled youth who gets involved with evil gypsies and crime, ultimately becoming one of the mixed up zombies himself. The plot is complex and involves a carnival (now long gone; it was at Long Beach) with many musical numbers, spectacularly costumed dancers, murder, and general mayhem. The film has something for every audience; after all it was billed as "the first monster musical"!

In talking to Ray in 2001, I found out a lot about the movie which I was thrilled to learn, as I had admired the film as an archetypal B-movie legend for years. Fortunately, this DVD has a commentary track featuring Ray, explaining many of the same things he explained to me about "Creatures": it is interesting, and contains many surprises, which any fan of Steckler's will certainly appreciate.

This version also has an alternate commentary track by Joe Bob Briggs, which contains some other obscure information, and general hilarity, although I did find Joe Bob in error twice during the film. I like Joe Bob, and think his commentary is funny and informative, as is his separate introduction. Joe Bob is very knowledgeable, and genuinely loves these movies (and this one in particular, it seems) and if you happen to be the rare B-movie viewer that doesn't like the commentary it's always easy to turn off. Other bonus features on the DVD are interviews with Ray and Carolyn Brandt and the original trailer.

If you like great, classic B-movies, you owe it to yourself to buy this today! It is a real gem, and I'm glad that it's finally available to new generations of Steckler fans!


Rating:
Summary: FINALLY ITS HERE !
Review: Its finally coming out - I cant wait . I just watched BLOOD SHACK aka THE CHOOPER and its got interviews with RAY and CAROLYNN plus intros from JOE BOB BRIGGS . This DVD is going to be wonderful !

Rating:
Summary: Nice Job But Please Dump Joe Bob!
Review: Media Blasters has done a decent job on this release and the overall package is worth the price. I have to thank them for making the entertaining works of the unique Ray Dennis Steckler available to the public on DVD. The film looks as good as it possibly could and the interviews with Ray Steckler and Carolyn Brandt are welcome additions. What is not welcome is the inane, condecinding commentary of Joe Bob Briggs. I liked Joe Bob's Drive-In columns but all he does here is come off like a redneck version of Mystery Science Theater. Why in the world would Media Blasters think that anyone who bought this DVD would want to listen to a commentary track of someone putting the film down for 90 minutes is beyond me. Are they insulting their customers for buying their product? If Media Blasters paid Joe Bob one dollar to do this then that was one dollar too many! Why not use that space for a Carolyn Brandt commentary or someone else actually related to the film? Save you money Media Blasters, Joe Bob adds NOTHING to your product.

Rating:
Summary: INCREDIBLY STRANGE CULT CLASSIC.....
Review: The full title for this film is "The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Crazy Mixed Up Zombies". If that title doesn't grab your attention then maybe the film will. I hope this gets the best treatment possible from Media Blasters because it's a one-of-a-kind treat. Filmed on an impossibly low budget, it tells of a weird carnival where a fortune teller (Brett O'Hara) lures people to her tent, disfugures them with acid, then locks them up in cages for the freak show. When she pulls this stunt on a beatnik (Cash Flagg aka Ray Dennis Steckler) things go horribly wrong. "Creatures" has tacky showgirl musical numbers, the zombie-creatures themselves running amok, hypnotism, sort of a love story, fantastic color effects and photography (by unbilled Laszlo Kovacs and Vilmos Zsigmond) and an all-around cheezy aura that's impossible to resist. Steckler was a low-low budget filmmaker in the 60's and this is one of his greatest achievements. Watch for this one and enjoy.