Mystery Science Theater 3000: THE SHE-CREATURE

July 20, 2017 1:20 AM - Season 8, Episode 8

"HYPNOTIZED! Reincarnated as a Monster from Hell!" "IT CAN AND DID HAPPEN! Based on authentic FACTS you've been reading about!" Facts eh? In this movie, an evil hypnotist tells a lady to SLEEP!, causing her to summon an ancient lobster woman from the sea, who goes on a rampage. Because all prospective licensed hypnotists learn about calling crustacean people on the first day of class. This is exactly why you shouldn't get your news of current events from movie posters. It's the last episode on Observer world and the last we see of the other Observers (well they do turn up again once later). YouTube (1h31m) Premiered April 5, 1997.

Episode 808 THE SHE-CREATURE

Satellite News - Mighty Jack's MST3K Review - War of the Colossal Fan Guide - TVTropes

808's Amazing Colossal Episode Guide entry was written by Mike Nelson. His very-Mikely reflections were:

Unfortunately, many of my memories of past movies are swamped by ill feelings toward its actors. Did funny or interesting things happen during the filming of Episode 808- The She Creature? I couldn't tell you -- I was busy hating Lance Fuller. Any on-set shenanigans? Don't know -- I was calling a contract hit on Dr. Carlo Lombardi.
I do remember feeling unmitigated joy at finishing my final shot as the Observer. No more clown white, an evil invention. It takes roughly 1,300 scrubbings with Lava soap to get the crap out of your skin. By the time you're done, your skin isn't so much red as it is gone. You can see the musculature that covers your face. You must go into hiding for weeks until new flesh begins to grow and fill in. There are many good reasons not to become a clown (i.e., they're evil, wholly unfunny creatures in league with the Man-goat), and clown white is at the top of the list.

Movie
Rotten Tomatoes (Critics N/A, Viewers 12%) - Wikipedia - TVTropes
IMDB (1956, 3.2 stars)
"A mysterious hypnotist reverts his beautiful assistant back into the form of a prehistoric sea monster that she was in a past life."
Directed by Edward L. Cahn. Written by Lou Rusoff from an idea by Jerry Zigmond. Starring Chester Morris, Tom Conway and Cathy Downs.

Notes:
I love the Tickle-Me Carlo Lombardi sketch. "And he's sticky so he's even more fun!"

posted by JHarris (5 comments total)

Like Devil Doll, this is another movie featuring unpleasant characters doing unpleasant things. I think the only riff I remember from this episode off the top of my head is "You're talking to me!"
posted by wittgenstein at 8:17 AM on July 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR MST CLUB

Since we've finished Season 11, we're going back to our old schedule and video-watching solution, cytube. So, this week's show is at 9 PM Eastern time, 6 PM Pacific, at https://cytu.be/r/Metafilter_MST3KClub. We'll try to have some things for you to watch (and take suggestions from viewers) before the show, too.
posted by JHarris at 11:44 AM on July 20, 2017

You show people movies like this you gotta expect them to blow up your planet with nanites.
posted by ckape at 9:25 AM on July 21, 2017 [2 favorites]

We didn't have a huge YouTube Potluck this time (partly because, I think, I've been working on a book instead of aimless YouTube watching), but we did have a few things:
Family Guy: Tribute to Adam West, yeah I know it's FG but the occasion merits it I think.
Raiders of the Lost Darth: Basically Indiana Jones scenes with Star Wars elements in. Don't take it too seriously.
Rich & Morty Exquisite Corpse, lotsa random
Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling, a preview of an upcoming feature film reboot of the loved 90's Nickelodeon show
Archer meets Kingsman, a promo for an upcoming spy comedy movie with Archer in it

And, a leftover from previous potlucks, Frank's Chair

~ ~ ~ and, the moment you've been dreading ~ ~ ~

Feature film "Starcrash II", really a different movie that I believe is called "Escape From Galaxy 3," retitled to ride on the questionable coattails of Starcrash. Dear god, this movie. Yes there's our heroes, half-pastied space princess Goldstar (guess where she gets her name!), her pseudo-Akton protector, who are running from an evil space overlord and spend most of the movie stranded on a planet that's supposed to be Earth but only if they landed in the nation of Pornovania.

But that villain... the space overlord, the only black guy in the movie, is this bulky sort in a pink-and-baby blue flannel number who hams it up hilariously. valkane dubbed him Darth Shaft, and in the process won the riffing for the evening I think.

Anyway back to Pornovania, it turns out that space people know nothing about sex and love, but because of that they are immortal (??). They are introduced to it by the natives, who are alternately trying to kill them and trying to fuck them, and they switch between the two at the drop of a hat let me tell you.

And oh please let me spoil how the movie ends... basically, the princess kissed the evil space lord guy, but the moment she does, her comrade's eyes flash, and the evil guy is left a pile of smoking ashes? Why the F didn't he do that before? Graaaaannah!

It's extremely bad and cheesy and you're constantly thinking it's going to become a softcore flick at any moment but no though it has several exposed breasts. It's entirely insane, in that special way where the movie itself is insane, more insane than the characters, the rules of logic do not apply, people change their opinions for no reason, causality has broken down and events just sort of unfold on the screen. Highly recommended.
posted by JHarris at 10:35 AM on July 22, 2017

At least Starcrash II pretended to be the sequel of the movie they shamelessly lifted all of their effects shots from. That's almost like continuity.
posted by ckape at 6:05 PM on July 22, 2017 [1 favorite]