Once again, Film Masters has given fans a great little package in their latest Blu-Ray release. Being a huge fan of the sci-fi/horror films of the ’50s, I never get tired of watching films of that era. Here we have two great ones, both directed by Bernard L. Kowalski. One of my favorite things about these early films is that everyone is playing it completely straight. No winking at the camera and never giving it less than 100%. Sure, a lot of them were struggling actors that were trying to get their foot in the door, but they still gave their best and sometimes giving us some very memorable characters. It really shows in the final product, no matter how silly that product might be. As a fan of these movies, I give them a lot of respect and gratitude for doing just that.

The main feature is Night of the Blood Beast (1958) which is about a single piloted rocket ship on a test run that comes crashing back to earth after it runs into trouble. Something else though came back with the rocket. When a local rescue team finds the crash site, they find the pilot dead, but can’t figure out why his “corpse” still looks fresh, with no decomposition setting in. The small group of scientists take him back to the nearest station to wait for help. But for some strange reason, they have lost contact with anyone outside their isolated location.

While they try to get hold of anybody from the outside world, they are still puzzled to why the pilot doesn’t show any signs of being dead . . . until he wakes up! Meanwhile, something else is lurking about the station, causing damage to the vehicles and even killing one of the scientists. When we see this mysterious creature, it looks like it’s made of part mud, part carpet but with big eyes and even bigger claws. While a monster from space isn’t a new idea or storyline, but we do get something a little different.

With a budget of about $68k and shot in about a week, director Kowalski delivered here just what he was supposed to. This was his second feature, the first being Hot Car Girl earlier that year for Roger Corman, where he apparently proved his worth to the Corman brothers because he worked for Gene Corman on Blood Beast. Kowalski mainly worked in television throughout his career but did dabble in the horror genre ever now and then, like the cult favorite snake film Sssssss (1973).

Michael Emmet, who plays the pilot that may or may not be dead, does a great job here playing a different kind of character. After obviously being infected or influenced by whatever creature he brought back, he shows that maybe humans are slightly judgmental when it comes to looking at the possibility of alien life and what their reasoning is. Sure, he’s wrong in the end (spoilers!) but it was nice to see that viewpoint expressed. And a special kudos to Ross Sturlin who is the poor bastard inside the monster costume! Not only was he the same one in pretty much the same outfit for Teenage Cave Man shot earlier that year by Roger Corman, but he also was in the monster costume in the next film we’ll discuss. Filming out in Bronson Canyon in the summertime has to be hot enough as it but inside that rubber suit? Oof!

But I can’t forget to mention actor Ed Nelson, whose work he did with Corman is some of my favorite stuff he did. He may not agree, but when you see his name come up in the credits, you know he was going to give a great performance, no matter what kind of picture it was. And this is no different.

The next feature, which I actually enjoy even more, is Kowalski’s follow up feature, Attack of the Giant Leeches (1959). Once again, like Blood Beast, this was shot in about a week for about $70k. But the most important part is that with a title like that, any monster fan, especially younger ones, are going to jump at the chance to see it. And once again, the title isn’t just a false promise to lure ticket buyers into the theater, this film pays off.

Now modern “critics” will degrade this film, putting it on the lists of the terrible ones that aren’t worth your time. But any serious horror fan knows that while they may not be made for a lot of money, they can still be effective. And a film with giant leeches dragging bodies underwater to a cave, where they use them as food supply whenever they’re hungry, sure is effective. I feel the sounds the creatures make here is one of the things that make it so creepy.

The story is about a small town located by the swamps, where people are starting to disappear. A local shop owner, played wonderfully by cult actor Bruno VeSota, is having trouble with his young and beautiful wife, who is more than a handful. She is played by Yvette Vickers, another cult star who really should have made more of an impact in films. She is always giving eyes to any other man around, driving her husband nuts. But when she wanders off with Cal, the local hunk, played by Michael Emmet in a very different role than our first film, the jealous husband catches them meeting by the swamp. With the threat of his shotgun, he tells them to get into the water. As they are begging and pleading for their lives, there is something else in the water that gets to them before he can tell them to get out. He is then blamed for their disappearance and arrested.

Meanwhile, local game warden / hero of the picture, played by Ken Clark, is trying to discover just what is going on with all these missing locals. When he realizes that there aren’t even gators around in the swamp, he starts to suspect that there is something else down there.

The costumes for the titular terrors were made by Ross Sturlin and Ed Nelson, by “stretching pieces of old raincoats over chicken wire skeletons”, and using a glue of some sort, in a place with no ventilation. According to Strulin, “Nelson and I were probably high as a kite from the strong odor of the glue!” What people will do to be in pictures! Thankfully for Nelson, he got another acting gig, so he didn’t have to play one of the creatures. Instead, Guy Buccola and Sturlin were the ones. But I will argue to my dying day that those costumes are amazing looking, highly effective for the kind of movie they were making, and especially for that kind of budget.

And like all Film Masters releases, this double feature set is packed with extras. For Blood Beast, you get the TV format (1:37:1) if you want, as well as the 8mm silent digest version as well. These are interesting little added tidbits that you might only visit once or twice, but it’s nice to have them permanently archived.

There is also an audio commentary by Tom Weaver and the “Weaver Players” for both films, where as usual, you’ll hear plenty of information about the film and those involved. Also in this release are the Mystery Science Theater 3000 episodes for both films on the discs too. But one of my favorites of the extras is the featurette Made from TV: Bernard Kowalski as a Director, from Ballyhoo Motion Pictures, with film historian C. Courtney Joyner and audio from Andrew Fenady Jr. Joyner has been on several of these Film Masters releases and I’ve always been really impressed with the information given, always giving myself so much more knowledge about these subjects that he covers.

There’s also a still slideshow of both films, a full-color booklet with original essays by Tom Weaver, re-cut trailers, and a film restoration comparison for Night of the Blood Beast. This really shows the work that goes into, even for little “cheap” films like this. Yet another reason I’m really thankful for Film Masters for taking the time and effort, and love, into some titles that most would turn their nose up at.