Cult Camp Classics, Vol. 2: Women in Peril (The Big Cube / Caged / Trog) New DVD Set

Cult Camp Classics, Vol. 2: Women in Peril (The Big Cube / Caged / Trog) New DVD Set

What a collection! I would probably not buy any one of these DVDs separately, but as a set at about $9 each on Amazon, who could resist?!? You get Joan Crawford's final film, "Trog" (1970), Lana Turner's psychedelic camp classic "The Big Cube" (1969), and the best of the bunch, "Caged" (1950).

"Trog" is probably the worst of the bunch, but still lots of fun. What a great movie to watch like Mystery Science Theater and have your guests make commentary! The movie starts out in a cheap set representing a cave; 3 young students go exploring and find Trog, the missing link, who was once frozen but is now reanimated. This is why he has been able to survive so long. Somehow, these boys are able to swim practically naked in frigid waters (the realistic ice crystals in the cave tell us it's cold!) to get to Trog without so much as a shiver or any sign of hypothermia. You must leave all reason behind if you decide to watch this film. After Trog attackes the boys, 2 escape are under the care of noted anthropologist, Dr. Brockton (Joan Crawford). She decides to study Trog and try to "train" him to be more human and makes startling progress, however, she is thwarted by (you guessed it) the evil religious bigot Sam Murdock (Michael Gough). Naturally science and religion don't mix in this movie and a final showdown is inevitable. The costuming of Trog is probably the most laughable element here; it looks like a bad costume at a Halloween fraternity party. Although the film is high in the corn factor, you have to hand it to Joan Crawford. Not once do you ever get the impression that she is being lazy about her role. She is the one solid thing about this film, which makes it even sadder since this was her last movie. What a sad swansong...but she was a true professional to the end. A theatrical trailer is included here.

"The Big Cube" stars screen glamour queen Lana Turner. Although not her last film, she was past her days as a box office star and had already begun accepting a few low-quality roles. This one is slightly-less laughable than "Trog." Lana plays Adriana Roman, an actress who has retired to marry wealthy Charles Winthrop (Dan O'Herlihy). Charles also has beautiful daughter, Lisa (Karin Mossberg), who inexplicably speaks with a Swedish accent. Lisa has unknowingly fallen in with a bad crowd that party and use LSD; the ringleader, Johnny (George Chakiris), sees Lisa as his new bankroll and begins to romance her. When Adriana & Charles have an accident at sea, the widowed Adriana is left as the one who must decide whether Lisa gets her inheritance or not. Since Lisa has chosen to be with a druggie, Adriana turns her down. Johnny attempts to gaslight Adriana with LSD. You'll have to watch to find out the chilling conclusion! Again, so much is laughable here like Trog, but Lana is a trooper and does the best that she can with this campy story and poor script. It is amazing what a great cast this movie has, too; Oscar winner Chakiris ("West Side Story"), Oscar nominated Turner, Richard Egan, and Dan O'Herlihy (who had played Turner's love interest in "Imitation of Life"). Apparently the majority of the budget went to the stars salaries and not the script. And let's not forget Pamela Rodgers as Bibi, the bimbo fun-loving friend of Lisa. Pamela went on to bigger fame in the hit TV series "Laugh-In." The psychedelic effects are fab, too, and there's plenty of drugs, sex (well, as much as is allowed in 1968), and rock and roll music (or something like it) to make this one the hit of a trashy movie party! A theatrical trailer is also included.

"Caged" almost doesn't fit here; although some parts are a little dated and campy, the majority of this film is quite serious with a number of standout performances. Eleanor Parker is Marie Allen, a 19 year old who was somewhat innocently involved in her husband's botched armed robbery attempt (he is killed). Marie is sentenced to prison and mixed in with a lot of hardened criminals, an evil corrupt matron (Hope Emerson), and a few loonies to boot. It also turns out that Marie is pregnant; what a place to have a baby! Ruth Benton (Agnes Moorehead) runs the facility, and understands that mixing first-time offenders with hardened criminals is a bad formula; however, all of her attempts to improve the system fall on the deaf ears of the Board of Directors who only look at dollars and cents and have no desire to fix the system. Eleanor Parker gives a standout performance as Marie; watching her go from a scared naive girl to a hardened prisoner is amazing...at first it's difficult to believe that Parker could have been cast as the evil Baroness in "The Sound of Music," but watching her performance and transformation, it is not difficult to understand what a talented actress she was. Both Parker and Emerson were nominated for Oscars for this film (as was the script). Moorehead, Ellen Corby, Jane Darwell, and Betty Garden also give standout performances. Don't look for a happy ending; this film doesn't have one. It is meant to be a condemnation of the prison system at the time and this film does not go easy on its topic. As with the other 2, there is a theatrical trailer included.

Overall, this is a great set at a great price. "Caged" is definitely the best of the three, and it's too bad there aren't more extras with it, as it truly is an enjoyable (if somewhat depressing) movie. The picture quality on all three is very good; "Caged" is in black and white, but the other two are in color. Warners has definitely used good sources for all three films.