Monster of Terror (1965)

A young man visits his fiancée's estate to discover that her wheelchair-bound scientist father has discovered a meteorite that emits mutating radiation rays that have turned the plants in ... See full summary »

Director:

Daniel Haller

Writers:

Jerry Sohl (screenplay), H.P. Lovecraft (from "The Colour Out of Space")

Stars:

Boris Karloff, Nick Adams, Freda Jackson

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Boris Karloff	...	Nahum Witley
Nick Adams	...	Stephen Reinhart
Freda Jackson	...	Letitia Witley
Suzan Farmer	...	Susan Witley
Terence de Marney	...	Merwyn
Patrick Magee	...	Dr. Henderson
Paul Farrell	...	Jason
Leslie Dwyer	...	Potter
Harold Goodwin	...	Taxi Driver (UK version)
Sydney Bromley	...	Pierce
Billy Milton	...	Henry
Sheila Raynor	...	Miss Bailey (UK version)

Storyline

A young man visits his fiancée's estate to discover that her wheelchair-bound scientist father has discovered a meteorite that emits mutating radiation rays that have turned the plants in his greenhouse to giants. When his own wife falls victim to this mysterious power, the old man takes it upon himself to destroy the glowing object with disastrous results.

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Plot Keywords:

psychotronic film | greenhouse | wheelchair | wasteland | taxi | 

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Taglines:

Science Fiction challenges the Forces of Darkness to scare YOU screamless! (all USA combo double-feature ads)

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Genres:

Mystery | Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 October 1965 (USA)

Also Known As:

Colour Out of Space

Filming Locations:

Baynards Railway Station, Baynards Park, Waverley, Surrey, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alta Vista Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min 75 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Pathécolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The central premise is reminiscent of that of a film that Karlofff made three decades earlier. In The Invisible Ray (Universal 1936) Karloff plays a scientist who is experimenting with a radioactive meteor which causes him to glow dangerously and ultimately burn to ashes.

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Goofs

When the stranger arrives, looking to get to "the Witley Estate", can't get a taxi, hire a car or even a bicycle, several times he asks directions which he never gets, told the only way he'll ever get there is to walk, he wanders off with no directions and yet in the absence of any signposts arrives at a locked front gate which has NO name (no "Witley Manor") but only "Keep Out" signs which he proceeds to get around and into the grounds.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Taxi Driver: Morning!
Stephen Reinhart: Morning. Taxi?

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Connections

Version of The Curse (1987)

User Reviews

The (misleading) title is better than the movie

If there is one thing I don't like in horror films (well, it's more than one, but never mind) it's those long, dialogue-free scenes of people-investigating-strange-noises-in-dark-rooms. "Die, Monster, Die!" has more than its share of such scenes, and this results in a draggy pace: the movie runs only 80 minutes but seems much longer than that. However, there are some good things to be said about it: the prologue is funny ("He wants to go to the Witley house. Ha ha ha ha!"), the mansion where most of the action takes place is a marvelously old-fashioned and atmospheric set, and the special effects are pretty good - perhaps even ahead of their time. Of course, Boris Karloff fans will want to see him in any film, and despite his health problems at the time he was still an inimitable actor, but in this film he wasn't given enough juicy dialogue to chew on. For me, the standout in the cast is the sweet Suzan Farmer as Karloff's daughter. (**)