Michael O'Keefe Science Fiction from American International and directed/written by William Sachs. Astronaut Steve West (Alex Rebar) returns from a flight to Saturn and something happens to him after being over-exposed to radiation. West becomes gelatinous and is compelled to go on a killing spree in need of human flesh to survive. The astronaut keeps melting as scientist Ted Nelson (Burr DeBenning) tries to aid him, while General Perry (Myron Healey) is urgent in capturing him. While filming, producers wanted some comedic scenes cut and replaced with new horror scenes. Kudos to Rick Baker for the gory melting effect makeup. Even some of the stages of melting were left on the cutting room floor. Attitudes toward poor acting became problematic. Nonetheless, the movie was considered a success.Other players: Julie Dazen, Michael Aldredge, Ann Sweeney, Dorothy Love, Jonathan Demme, Lisle Wilson and Edwin Max.

mark.waltz There's nothing like seeing the sun from the rings of Saturn! That basically sums up the theme of this deliciously bad and funny science fiction/horror film that has to be seen to be believed. Basically a rip-off of the atom age science fiction movies of the 1950's and 60's, this is too funny to pass up, yet too gory for some audiences to watch without turning their face away. It is one of those "Come back from outer space and see what you turn into!" themed space films, and boy, what happens to the astronaut here isn't a fate you'd wish on your worst enemy, probably because you know he'd be trying to chow down on your face for dinner. Lots of dripping goo will give the "eew" factor to audiences not expecting it, but there are also plenty of seemingly intentional laughs here in spite of the carnage.Burr DeBenning is the handsome scientist, Dr. Nelson, whose old friend Steve has become a walking Frankenstein's monster, to quote one little girl who encounters him like the little girl did Karloff and Peter Boyle, and at least at the hands of Karloff didn't live to regret it. A fisherman encounters more than a bear and "heads up" (or off), the shot of the poor man's face floating down a river of no return onto an obvious man-made waterfall and plopping down as if it was an Alaskan salmon. That was the first of many laughs for me, and I settled back in preparation for a treat of horror comedy that both grossed me out and tickled my funny bone, although a few sequences were extremely disturbing.The funniest sequence comes with the car ride of Dr. Nelson's seemingly old crone of a mother-in-law (a hysterical Dorothy Love), kissing her boyfriend as he drives, then nagging him to stop to pick oranges, which actually turn out to be lemons. The tension increases as the monster oozes his way through the lemon grove, stalks Dr. Nelson's house, encounters a turkey leg eating general, and eventually ends up in some sort of power plant like James Cagney fighting to get to "the top of the world". Another hysterical sequence has a young couple coming home to find oozing blood on their open door, and the poor girl actually pushing a refrigerator in front of the door and chopping off a hand while going slowly insane over what she's encountered. For a local sheriff, his encounter with the gooey creature turns out to be totally electrifying!Containing some of the most ridiculous attempts at serious conversations I've seen in a film, one whole segment deals with Dr. Nelson's pregnant wife and him arguing over her forgetting to pick up crackers. It goes on and on, seemingly pointless, yet the same pointless attempt at serious conversation with mother-in-law Love just continues to get so hysterical, I longed for it to continue. She wants to stop to call to let her daughter know she's late, even though they are just a few minutes from there. Then, she wants to stop and get them chocolates or flowers, denying that she wants the chocolates for herself yet agreeing that flowers die too quickly. Hence the sudden decision to pick citrus fruit when you're already late, a segment that reminded me of Billie Burke's insistence on eating cake in somebody else's house while searching for her missing husband in "Topper Returns". This is fast and funny, yet there is a serious message attached to the plot line that keeps repeating through the monster's memory of being an astronaut and encountering rays from the sun as seen from many millions of miles away. What are we going to outer space for when we don't know what sort of horrors we might bring back, and while it isn't mentioned, destroying our own atmosphere at the same time? So when a bad movie still makes you think about the impact that human beings are having on the world that we're supposed to be content with and try to continue to nurture, there is some purpose to it. The ending is very downbeat and ironic, with a janitor finding the mess of the night before, and simply sweeping it all up and tossing it away as the shot of another spacecraft prepares to take off.

twelvepointnine Like so many of the films that received the MST3K treatment, THE INCREDIBLE MELTING MAN never got the appreciation it deserves. Released in 1977, it echoes the hostile welcome encountered by many returned Vietnam veterans, their physical and mental scars still a common sight on the streets of North America. This makes TIMM is a highly critical piece of 1970s horror, and US societal history: Steve West (Alex Rebar), an astronaut, wakes up in a military hospital after being exposed to inexplicable space radiation. He quickly learns that his body is deteriorating at a horrific pace and in anguish he flees the facility. A NASA man (Burr DeBenning) is determined to find West to give him the medical treatment he needs, but in a Frankenstein's creature twist of fate, Steve encounters nothing but fear and disgust (not in the least from himself) before he finds altruism, at which moment it is too late for all involved. The final scene brings the masterful, harrowing finale of Romero's NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968) to mind. There are several earlier films that, on superficial inspection, TIMM seems to borrow from, not in the least THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT from 1955 and THE AMAZING COLOSSAL BEAST (1957). But while these predecessors use the fear of the Other as an allegory for the Cold War –with clearly defined notions of Good and Evil– TIMM does not pick sides and stays much closer to home while giving the monster a face. Talking of which, through incredibly convincing makeup created by special effects master Rick Baker, Rebar manages to convey his despair wordlessly and gets under the viewer's skin in ways rarely seen in horror films.THE INCREDIBLE MELTING MAN is worth a (re-)watch the way it was intended, that is without the lazy vulgarity that MST3K seems to have a stake in. A 7.5/10.

Spikeopath The Incredible Melting Man is written and directed by William Sachs. It stars Alex Rebar, Burr DeBenning and Myron Healey. Music is by Arlon Ober and cinematography by Willy Curtis. Astronaut Steve West's body begins to melt after he was exposed to radiation during a space flight to Saturn.Escaping from the hospital, West trawls the land in search of human victims to eat in the desperate hope of staving off the melting of his body.It's as bad as you most likely have heard it is, and Rick Baker's makeup work is as good as you have heard it is! Intended as a horror parody but switched to being a "supposed" horror with some cuts and swipes requested by the studio, it's pretty evident upon viewing the film that was clearly the case. Tale doesn't add up to much more than the melting man of the title walking from one scene to another dripping in goo whilst meeting up with a host of bad actors. He's pursued by a pal who wants to help him, while it all builds to some fireworks at a power plant where the "big" battle unfolds.You can't really do much with the story, after just 8 minutes of film he starts melting and once his bodily parts start falling off you just know he is beyond help. The tragic creature vibe is strong enough to hold interest, if you can stop yourself from laughing at everything else that surrounds him (it) during its Quatermass Experiment journey. The power plant scenes are nicely photographed, the final demise of the creature is bleakly sad and Baker really comes through with the only bit of quality in the piece. It's messy in more ways than one! But fun to be had if in a very forgiving mood. 4/10