Mad Monster Party? (1967)

Director:

Jules Bass

Writers:

Len Korobkin (writer)
Harvey Kurtzman (writer)

Genre:

Animation | Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Horror | Musical

Tagline:

It's the Silliest Party of the Year... and you're all invited!

Plot:

When Dr Frankenstein decides to retire from the monster-making business, he calls an international roster...

Plot Keywords:

Werewolf | Dracula | Monster | Sneezing | Killer Plant

Cast

Boris Karloff	...	Baron Boris von Frankenstein (voice)
Allen Swift	...	Felix Flankin / Yetch / Dracula / Invisible Man / Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde / Additional Voices (voice)
Gale Garnett	...	Francesca (voice)
Phyllis Diller	...	The Monster's Mate (voice)
Ethel Ennis	...	Title Song Singer (voice)

Also Known As:

Mad Monster Party (USA) (alternative spelling)
Mad Monsters Party?

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:G | Singapore:PG | UK:U | USA:Unrated

Company:

Embassy Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

The dialog at the very end of this movie is a take-off on the final scene of Some Like It Hot (1959).

Quotes:

[first lines]
Baron von Frankenstein: Ah... a lifetime of experimentation capped in one small vial. Now to the final step: The infusion of energy.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Cleavagefield (2009) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Never Was A Love Like Ours

Very Strange, Very Amusing

I stumbled across this movie tonight on AMC, and was surprised that I hadnt seen it as a kid in the 70's, since many other Rankin/Bass 60min holiday films were shown every year.

This is a full length movie, and while it is great for the kids there are plenty of jokes and elements for the adults. I mean, for one thing, the voluptuous love interest Fransesca is wearing a see-through dress, complete with visible panties, and even cleavage. Also, some of the plot is quite dark, including a great party scene in which the monsters all get drunk an beat each other up.

If you're a fan of the clay puppet works of Rankin, like Rudolph and the bizarre Christmas special "Year Without a Santa Clause," you'll like this animation style. In fact, if you are as nuts as I am you will notice some doll costumes used in this that were used earlier in Rudoplh the Red Nosed Reindeer (in particular, the little red hats used for the footmen for the Lion king of the Ilse of Misfit Toys is used on some nefarious henchmen of Dr Frankenstein)

This movie is full of strange site gags and bizarre musical numbers. I would suggest watching this with a cocktail or five, because it gets rather surreal very fast. And the ending is not what you might expect in a movie supposedly made for kids.

Worth it at least for the Phyllis Diller alone.