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Attack of the Puppet People [Blu-ray]
(Bert I. Gordon, 1958)
Review by Gary Tooze
Production: Theatrical: American International Pictures (AIP) Video: Shout! Factory
Disc: Region: 'A' (as verified by the Oppo Blu-ray player) Runtime: 1:19:00.861 Disc Size: 23,962,155,734 bytes Feature Size: 22,338,048,000 bytes Video Bitrate: 31.99 Mbps Chapters: 12 Case: Standard Blu-ray case Release date: November 14th, 2017
Video: Aspect ratio: 1.85:1 Resolution: 1080p / 23.976 fps Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio English 1841 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1841 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) Commentary: DTS-HD Master Audio English 1684 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1684 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Subtitles: English, none
Extras: • NEW Audio Commentary With Author And Film Historian Tom Weaver• Theatrical Trailer • Image Gallery (Posters, title cards glossies)
Bitrate:
Description: "She’s a living doll!", changes from a
flattering expression to a terrifying reality when a
certifiably deranged maniac creates a shocking device that
shrinks people to foot-high figurines!
The Film: Attack of the Puppet People is one of the few "mad scientist" opuses of the 1950s to be motivated by loneliness rather than megalomania. John Hoyt plays Franz, a seedy European doll-maker who harbors a crush on his secretary Sally (June Kenney). When Sally makes plans to marry Franz' top employee Bob (John Agar), strange things begin to happen. Before long, both Bob and Sally have been shrunken to doll-size by Franz, who keeps a retinue of living "puppet people" to avoid being left alone. Eventually, the little ones rebel against their addlepated but basically harmless keeper, though there's never any "attack" per se. Most of the acting is amateurish, with the exception of the always reliable John Hoyt; the special effects are somewhat better, but still nothing to write home about. Excerpt from B+N located HERE
Among science fiction film aficionados the films of Bert I. Gordon are often treated with derision or as a major guilty pleasure when compared to his more renowned contemporaries such as producer George Pal (The Time Machine, 1960) or director Jack Arnold (The Incredible Shrinking Man, 1957). Yet, despite the often erratic quality of his fantasy features, Gordon is a true auteur who often serves as the producer, director, screenwriter, and special effects technician on most of his features. That can sometimes be a liability in his case but it is also why movies such as The Amazing Colossal Man (1957) and Village of the Giants (1965) have such a wacky, endearing appeal. In Gordon's world, size really does matter and the majority of his sci-fi movies are obsessed with proportion and rear-screen projection. Easily the nuttiest of his early concoctions is Attack of the Puppet People (1958) which attempts to blend two genres science fiction and the youth exploitation film, though the film's protagonists are well past their teenage years. Excerpt from TCM located HERE
Image : NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc. Attack of the Puppet People on Blu-ray from Shout! Factory is advertised as a "NEW 2K Scan Of The Interpositive". It's single-layered but has a high bitrate. The image quality isn't particularly dynamic and looks soft - possibly digitized and a bit waxy. It's in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio and looks consistent with a few speckles but not much grain texture. The cinematography framing is sometime awkward. The presentation is still watchable and, surely, a notch above SD. Fans of the genre probably won't be overly displeased with the image quality.
CLICK EACH BLU-RAY CAPTURE TO SEE ALL IMAGES IN FULL 1920X1080 RESOLUTION
Audio :A standard lossless DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel stereo track at 1841 kbps (24-bit) supports the modest effects and score by Albert Glasser (Abilene Town, The Spider, I Shot Jesse James, Behind Locked Doors) including You're My Living Doll sung by Marlene Willis. Pretty basic and not much depth required. There are optional English subtitles on the region 'A' Blu-ray disc.
Extras : Shout! Factory include a new audio commentary with film historian Tom Weaver (author of Universal Terrors 1951-1955: Eight Classic Horror and Science Fiction Films) and it's extremely detailed and fun often reflecting on the original script differences. He exports tid-bits like the secretary in the first scene being Jean Moorehead - Playmate of the Month for October 1955. I thought it was excellent detailing other Bert I. Gordon films and the performers. There is also a trailer and image gallery (posters, title cards, glossies).
BOTTOM LINE: Gary Tooze November 20th, 2017
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About the Reviewer: Hello, fellow Beavers! I have been interested in film since I viewed a Chaplin festival on PBS when I was around 9 years old. I credit DVD with expanding my horizons to fill an almost ravenous desire to seek out new film experiences. I currently own approximately 9500 DVDs and have reviewed over 5000 myself. I appreciate my discussion Listserv for furthering my film education and inspiring me to continue running DVDBeaver. Plus a healthy thanks to those who donate and use our Amazon links.
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