JFD73: Invasion USA, Humanoids from the Deep, Monsters

Explosions, mutants, aliens... it's all here on the latest episode of Junk Food Dinner.

Up first, we stop a Soviet take over of the United States with the internet's favorite action star Chuck Norris when we take a look at the 1985 Cannon action flick Invasion U.S.A directed by Joseph Zito.

Then, mutated fish monsters emerge from the water to wreak havoc on a sleepy fishing village and mate with bikini clad teens in the Roger Corman produced creature feature Humanoids from the Deep (AKA Monster) from 1980 starring Doug McClure, Ann Turkel and Vic Morrow and directed by Barbara Peeters.

And finally, two Americans must traverse a section of Mexico infested by extra terrestrials in the low-budget road movie Monsters from 2010 written and directed by talented newcomer Gareth Edwards and starring real life love birds Whitney Able and Scott McNairy.

All this plus witty banter between friends, listener feedback, Nerd News, DVD & Blu-ray releases, and so much more!

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Comments

  1. Even though I have pretty decent little obsession and collection of rubber-suit bog/lake/swamp/sea gillmen/fishman monster movies (Bog Monster Movies as I call them for some reason), I’ve never seen either version of HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP. I’ve been saving the original for a special occasion, as I gathered it was going to be pretty entertaining and I’m glad to hear that it is. I love these things for some reason and I try to track down any new bog/lake/swamp/sea fishman monster movie that I discover. Here’s a small list if anyone cares, although I’m trying to stick here to just rubber-suited, gilled, bug-eyed fishmen and not bog bodies or swamp sasquatch-esq or other loch ness or killer fish type rural aquatic monsters. Anybody got any others?

    Bog (1978/83)
    Zaat (The Blood Waters Of Dr. Z, Attack Of The Swamp Creature) (1975)
    The Swamp Of The Lost Monster (1957)
    Destination Inner Space (1966)
    Demon Of Paradise (1987)
    Octaman (1971)
    Rana: The Legend Of Shadow Lake (aka Croaked: Frog Monster From Hell) (1975)
    Terror Beneath The Sea (Kaitei Daisensô ) (1966)
    Frog-g-g! (2004)
    They Bite (1996)
    The Batwoman (La Mujer Murciélago) (1968)
    The Monster Of Piedras Blancas (1959)
    The Island Of The Fishmen (aka Screamers) (1979)
    The Queen Of The Fishmen (1995 TV)
    Humanoids From Atlantis (1992)
    Curse Of The Swamp Creature (1966 TV)
    Creature Of Destruction (1967 TV)
    Slithis (1978)
    It’s Alive (1969 TV)
    Horror Of Party Beach (1964)
    Curse Of The Swamp Creature (1994) (V)
    Curse Of The Swamp Creature 2 (1997) (V)
    Humanoids From The Deep (1980 & 1996 Versions)
    Invaders From The Deep (1981) (?)
    Terror In The Swamp (Nutriaman) (1985) (?)

    Also, Doug McClure is awesome. He starred in an amazing quartet of British produced fantasy adventure matinee films in the 70’s directed by Kevin Conner that are among my absolute favorite things. AT THE EARTH’S CORE, WARLORDS OF ATLANTIS, THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT are all three stone-cold classics in my book and would make an amazing themed show.

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  2. MONSTERS was a disappointment for me, especially after reading all of the glowing reviews for it when it came out. It's not the format of the film, as I love restless road movies, especially ones set in dingy rural foreign locales with rustic indigenous scenery, and I can dig the new ground-level style realistic monster movie genre, but the two characters just fell flat for me. Plus, I’ve never really liked the whole mumblecore thing and this was like a bad mumblecore version of an indie third-world CLOVERFIELD. Yes, there was natural chemistry between the two actors because of their real-life relationship, but none of it was in their one-dimensional on-screen characters’ actions or dialogue. They seemed to have just improvised a bunch of mumblecore-esq two-piece scenes in random exteriors, none of which gave me any insight or interest as to why those two people would fall in love after only a couple of days (and I’m even naturally a romantic at heart!). I mean, aside from one forced line about the moral and ethical dilemma of photojournalists, the guy was a bland idiot who goes and drunkenly sleeps with the first prostitute he can find when the girl won’t have sex with him after a few drinks and like one-day of hanging out. This was 1 of the total 2-3 days of knowing each other. There’s absolutely no reason onscreen as to why this girl would have anything further to do with this guy, let alone fall in love with him by the end of what is practically the next day, except that it is already predestined in the fact that they are all making a movie about these two characters that fall in love! If this had been a studio produced movie with a 20+ million budget there would be absolutely nothing further to talk about. I really don’t think Gareth Edwards should be given the new GODZILLA film just on the basis of MONSTERS. Besides, ground-level CGI giant-monster movies have already been covered many times over recently, give us back our cloud-level wide shots of rubber-suits and miniature model cityscapes for awhile.

    MONSTERS failed me, but TROLLHUNTER on the other hand was everything I dared hoped for and more! I’m really glad you guys might be doing it on the show. Plus, I do love compound two-word movie titles that are pushed together with multiple caps. It’s just something I like.

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  3. And I too use to non-intentionally watch the MISSING IN ACTION films a lot, but on TBS instead of at grandpa’s house. Although, my grandpa did have a recorded copy of FIREWALKER that I vividly remember watching with him one night. The main Norris movies I have always meant to go-back and check out are HELLBOUND, SILENT RAGE and INVASION U.S.A.

    And speaking of ridiculously crazy nuts awesome forgotten action star vehicles, I just watched DOUBLE TAKE (1997) the other night and had an absolute blast. Van Damme, Dennis Rodman and Mickey Rourke directed by Tsui Hark and photographed by Peter Pau! You guys have to visit this one at some point. In the mid-to-late 90’s, I was super into Golden Harvest-esq Hong Kong action movies of the 80’s/90’s (which is an area that demands more JFD coverage), so anyways I used to see a lot of the Van Damme stuff that came out in that period because all of the top HK action directors (John Woo, Tsui Hark, Ringo Lam) were making their first English-language American films with Van Damme. They are all crazy, sloppy, wildly ridiculous action movies that have that wonderful Hong Kong shoot-from-the-hip no-script filmmaking feel of wild kinetic stylish energy, bizarre and abrupt plot and tone changes, silly nonsensical humor, and overall headlong gonzo whirlwind fun. Also, you can never go wrong with any anamorphic Tsui Hark movie. You guys could do a whole a whole theme show just on his stuff (ZU WARRIORS FROM MAGIC MOUNTAIN is a classic). I try to see anything he has done. I recently saw his BLACK MASK 2: CITY OF MASKS, which is just totally nuts.

    Also, I actually saw all three SIDEKICKS, LADYBUGS and TOP DOG in the theaters….and loved every minute of it. At least I think I saw TOP DOG in the theater, unless that was just some beautiful nightmare that I am remembering. And, you should probably excise those bulky SEAQUEST DSV episodes in favor of THE NEVERENDING STORY II: THE NEXT CHAPTER for the third spot in your Jonathan Brandis tribute show; which I eagerly await. Actually, his death still kind of bums me out. I mean, he grew up concurrently on-screen as somebody you could relate too, an awkward dorky ordinary kid who got picked on and bullied, but what did he grow up to in real life; suicide. I can feel reality sandblasting away the last vestiges of my childhood innocence. It’s a damn shame and a cruel irony, I mean Chuck Norris didn’t teach him (and us) to climb that rope so he could later hang himself with it. I just can’t watch that rope scene in SIDEKICKS anymore; not even in HD when the Blu-Ray comes out. But seriously, R.I.P. J.B., I hope you’re climbing that rope to heaven; me and Norris will be right behind you (Norris probably sooner), just remember to press the rope between your feet to hold your weight as you move on up to that higher place. Although, I really don’t know about these godless JFD fuckers; I think they need a Total “Spiritual” Gym workout, because no doubt one day it will surely be...time to die.

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