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Jason and Shawn review: Attack of the Moon Zombies and Destination: Outer Space

Attack of the Moon Zombies

Jason: This has all the elements of bad 1950s sci-fi drive-in fodder. In fact, one of the characters actually describes the situation as such. The sets are made of cardboard, the costumes are cheap, and the monsters aren't the best quality. In fact. writer/director Christopher R. Mihm captures the look, sound effects and style of the era perfectly. And the acting and dialogue is spot on. Too bad the film clocks in at 90 minutes -- about 10 to 20 minutes longer than most movies of the age did. Had it been tighter, then this Basement Dweller would have had a better time. This is a Bad movie, but that's the point.

Shawn: Capt. Freely . . . Ace Freely! Ha ha! Good casting and this looks like the 50s style. I really like this one. This is what I was hoping Mihm's films would be like. I really think he nailed the feel of these movies. It's the complete opposite of Destination: Outer Space. I'll give this one a Bad, as that is probably the best I would give a 50s black and white sci-fi movie based on watching it in the times we live in. If I saw this in the 50s, I would give it a Good, but we have to adjust for inflation.

Destination: Outer Space

Jason: Not as "good" as Moon Zombies, but a movie that grows on you. Yes, this is supposed to be a loving tribute to 1950s B-grade sci-fi movies, but the first 20 or so minutes feel like it's a tribute to the awful ones. Slow. Bad dialogue. Cheap sound and special effects. You name it. Christopher R. Mihm knows his sci-fi. There's references to Star Wars, Star Trek, and Battlestar: Galactica among others and they are well done. As a satire of movies of the era, I'll give Mihm an A for effort. But it's too long and I doubt very much I will watch it again. Another Bad for me.

Shawn: This movie looks and feels so familiar. Yeah, we in The Basement tried to make an epic spaceship movie once. I think we did almost as well as Mihm did here. In all the departments. I fell asleep while watching this and really had a hard time paying ANY attention. It's simplistic, not well acted, and didn't quite have that feel that Attack of the Moon Zombies did. This is a fail and an Ugly for me. But it may have been an important stepping stone for Mihm, as it came before Moon Zombies.

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