Overview: Executive producer Roger Corman unleashes hideous aqua beasts and horrors from outer space in two of his most memorable thrillers. A mutant stalks the Earth when the body of a dead astronaut is used as an alien incubator in Night of the Blood Beast (1959).

Equally revolting is Attack of the Giant Leeches (1958), which stars B-movie siren Yvette Vickers (Attack of the 50-Foot Woman) in a watery scare fest about massive, bloodsucking monsters.

The two features were directed by Bernard Kowalski who went on to be Emmy-nominated for his television work, but they are truly representative of Corman’s world: cheap, tasteless, and extraordinarily fun!

Blu-ray Verdict: Up first is Night Of The Blood Beast (1958), and brings us the tale of Astronaut Major John Corcoran (a solid performance by Michael Emmet, it has to be said) dies while returning to earth from his space mission. His body is recovered by the military. However, Corcoran comes back to life and terrorizes the military base. It turns out to be a bizarre plan from aliens to invade our planet.

Director Bernard L. Kowalski, working from a compact script by Mark Varno, relates the entertainingly pulpy story at a steady pace, develops a reasonable amount of tension, and effectively creates and sustains a grimly serious tone. Moreover, this film is acted with admirable sincerity by the competent cast, with especially sturdy work by Ed Nelson as the stalwart Dave Randall, John Baer as the no-nonsense Steve Dunlap, Angela Greene as the distraught Dr. Julie Benson, Georgianna Carter as the fetching Donna Bixby, and Tyler McVey as the puzzled Dr. Alex Wyman.

The primitive (not so, at times though, which is rather nice to now view) special effects possess a certain crude charm (the extraterrestrial monster resembles a mottled humanoid parrot!). In addition, there’s a sprinkling of mild gore, the terse 62 minute running time ensures that this picture never gets dull or overstays its welcome, and the premise of Corcoran having alien parasites growing inside his body neatly prefigures Alien.

John M. Nickolaus Jr.’s stark black and white cinematography does the trick while Alexander Laszlo’s robust score hits the rousing shivery spot. An immensely fun B-movie quickie, and now re-released via the brilliant Film Masters company, this film is just one part of a fantastic flashback double bill here!

Along next is Attack of the Giant Leeches (1959), where in a Florida swamp, people are starting to go missing. Among the local townspeople struggling to solve the mystery are game warden Steve Benton (Ken Clark), his lovely girlfriend Nan Greyson (Jan Shepard), and her doctor father (Tyler McVey).

Meanwhile, there’s a subplot about harried storekeeper Dave Walker (Bruno VeSota), who has a trampy, unfaithful wife (luscious Playboy Playmate Yvette Vickers). Dave terrorizes her and her lover (Michael Emmet), and manages to glimpse the monsters responsible for the disappearances.

Attack of the Giant Leeches comes complete with an ever-so-slight cautionary bent (the giant leeches COULD be the result of mutations in the Cape Canaveral area), and possesses the typical efficiency one would see in B pictures of the era. By that, this viewer means that it tells its story (concocted by actor / screenwriter Leo Gordon) in a no-frills, cut-to-the-chase way, thanks to director Bernard L. Kowalski. (His other credits include creature features like Night of the Blood Beast and Sssssss).

This viewer enjoyed the way that Gordon dropped those white-trash elements into his tried-and-true monster movie formula. Helping to give Attack of the Giant Leeches some stature is the presence of Vickers (also in the classic Attack of the 50 Foot Woman), who is tantalizingly sexy in various scenes, and the fact that the Giant Leeches (who are covered with the kind of suckers one usually sees on an octopus) figure in some moments that are pretty creepy and nasty for a 1959 feature, attaching themselves to their victims and sucking out the blood!

Atmospheric photography of the L.A. County Arboretum & Botanic Garden locations is effective, as is the ooga-booga horror movie music by Alexander Laszlo. Overall, most all the performances are fine, with Clark making for a studly hero, and Gene Roth scoring some laughs as the kind of cranky, incredulous lawman you’d expect to find in a tale of this sort.

In closing, and as both these are results are solid filmmaking and thus are fabulously entertaining, this brilliant double bill flashback Blu-ray set is well worth you buying it today and settling in with them both, one dark, wet, possibly thunder-clapping Halloween night!

Special Features:
Full commentary tracks by Tom Weaver and The Weaver Players for both films
Full color inserted booklet with original essay by Tom Weaver
Recut trailers using archival film elements
Comparison videos showing the impact of restoration
8mm version of Night of the Blood Beast
All new documentary by Ballyhoo Motion Pictures