After the positive reception and popularity of my Amicus Productions and Stanley Kubrick poster galleries I’ve decided to make this a regular feature of The Celluloid Highway. So every Friday or Saturday I will offer up some visual stimulation for those who enjoy the odd break from reading reviews. This week I bring you the films of producer/director Roger Corman. Corman emerged at a time in the 1950’s when the vertically integrated foundations of Hollywood were beginning to crack and the major studios monopolisation and domination was beginning to fragment and weaken. A number of independent producers sprung up who were able to use their limited budgets and enthusiasm for genre product in order to capitalise on the rise of the affluent middle class teenage market. Corman’s difference was his innate ability to shoot his films with astonishing speed, as one film rapidly followed another onto the drive-ins screens. In the 50’s Corman produced westerns, science-fiction, historical adventures, and contemporary tales of rock n roll juvenilia. In the 1960’s he shifted his attentions to the horror film and under the auspices of American International Pictures directed a number of films based on the stories of Edgar Allan Poe, often featuring Vincent Price in the lead. During the late 1960’s and into the 1970’s Corman’s output as a director was greatly reduced as he concentrated on production and distribution. Although his work as a distributor is incredibly important, this gallery concentrates entirely on Corman’s work as a director. I hope you enjoy it, as much as I enjoyed putting it together.
Swamp Women aka Cruel Swamp (1953)
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Five Guns West (1955)
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Apache Woman (1955)
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Day the World Ended (1955)
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The Oklahoma Woman (1956)
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Gunslinger (1956)
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It Conquered the World (1956)
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Naked Paradise aka Thunder over Hawaii (1957)
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Carnival Rock (1957)
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Not of This Earth (1957)
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Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)
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The Undead (1957)
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Rock all Night (1957)
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Teenage Doll aka The Young Rebels (1957)
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The Bad One aka Sorority Girl (1957)
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Viking Women (1957)
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I Mobster (1958)
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War of the Satellites (1958)
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Machine Gun Kelly (1958)
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Teenage Caveman (1958)
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She Gods of Shark Reef (1958)
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A Bucket of Blood (1959)
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The Wasp Woman (1959)
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House of Usher (1960)
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Little Shop of Horrors (1960)
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The Last Woman on Earth (1960)
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Atlas (1961)
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Creature from the Haunted Sea (1961)
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The Pit and the Pendulum (1961)
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Premature Burial (1962)
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Tales of Terror (1962)
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Tower of London (1962)
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The Young Racers (1963)
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The Raven (1963)
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The Terror (1963)
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The Haunted Palace (1963)
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X: The Man with the X Ray Eyes (1963)
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The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
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The Secret Invasion (1964)
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The Tomb of Ligeia (1964)
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The Wild Angels (1966)
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The St. Valentine's Day Massacre (1967)
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The Trip (1967)
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Bloody Mama (1970)
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Gas! -Or- it Became Neccessary to Destroy the World In Order to Save it (1970)
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Von Richtofen and Brown aka The Red Baron (1971)
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Frankenstein Unbound (1990)
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Note: I was unable to find decent poster images for Ski Troop Attack (1960), The Intruder (1962) and Target: Harry (1969). Corman also contributed uncredited direction to The Beast with a Million Eyes (1955), The Long Ride Home (1967), The Wild Racers (1968), De Sade (1969), Deathsport (1978) and Battle Beyond the Stars (1980).
I'm ashamed to say I've not seen a single one of these - but they look amazing! I'm only familiar with Corman's work as producer, I guess it looks like I need to check out some of his directorial efforts.
ReplyDeleteThese are wonderful! Brought to us in Wide-Vision, Super Scope, and Cinema Scope!
ReplyDeleteYou should definitely check out Corman's Poe films with Vincent Price Liam...the best are proabably MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH & TOMB OF LIGEIA. I thought NOT OF THIS EARTH was quite impressive, I reviewed it recently. But some of these other films I'd approach with caution. Thanks for dropping by!
ReplyDeleteCheers Lazlo, I love those old widescreen ratios they brought out in the 1950's. I'm surprised Corman didnt do a film in 3D (at least I dont think he did) please correct me if I'm wrong.