A scientist named Paul Armstrong (Larry Blamire, who also wrote
and directed) takes his ditzy wife Betty (Fay Masterson) on a working vacation
into the woods to find a meteor that crashed to Earth. Paul suspects that the
meteor is filled with atmosphereum, a magical substance that could benefit all
of mankind. Meanwhile, Dr. Rodger Fleming (Brian Howe), an evil scientist, is
also prowling the woods, searching for the Lost Skeleton Of Cadavra. When he
finds it, he tries to bring it back to life so he can rule the world, but his
efforts fail. The skeleton informs Rodger that it can only be truly revived
with--you guessed it--atmosphereum. Overhearing the Armstrongs in their meteor
quest, and realizing that they're after the same thing, Fleming follows them around.
And while this is happening, Kro-bar (Andrew Parks) and Lattis (Susan McConnell),
two aliens from the planet Marva, crash-land in the woods. The aliens' deadly
mutant--which they keep as a pet--has escaped and is now roaming the countryside;
killing anybody it comes in contact with. While on a hunting trip, looking for
the mutant, Lattis spies on the Armstrongs during their meteor hunt. It turns
out that Kro-bar and Lattis could also use some atmosphereum to fix their
spaceship with. And so that evening, the Armstrongs play host to Kro-bar and
Lattis, in disguise as earthlings, and Dr. Fleming, who has created a date for
himself out of four woodland creatures using the aliens' transformo-ray gun (in
addition to spying on the Armstrongs, the doc was also eavesdropping on the
aliens, as well). The resulting "date" for Fleming is a feral young woman in a
tight-fitting black outfit named Animala (Jennifer Blaire), who is yet another
weird addition to a film that is already loaded with some pretty loopy people.
If you've never seen Robot Monster, or any of the Ed Wood films, then The Lost
Skeleton Of Cadavra, which pays homage to those cheesy SF/horror flicks of the
1950s and 1960s, may have you scratching your head in puzzlement. But if you're
the type of movie buff who has actually gotten some sort of enjoyment out of
Plan Nine From Outer Space, or Attack Of The Crab Monsters, then this is the
movie for you. Presented in black and white, with deliberately bad special
effects, Cadavra perfectly captures the primal, tacky feeling of those long ago
"classics". The cast plays their parts with just the right amount of wooden-ness
in their performances, and while the script is filled with intentionally stilted
dialogue, it does manage to be genuinely funny. Included with the movie are a
10-minute feature, as well as bloopers (which are in full color), and a Q&A
sequence that took place after the film's premiere in January 2002. There are also
commentaries with the cast and crew. Writer/director Blamire
obviously loves the subject matter that he's spoofing (he even shot "Skeleton" in Bronson Canyon,
the prime location for many of the cheap B-movies that served as his inspiration), and the fun that the cast
and crew had in making the film (shown in the bloopers) is infectious in the
film itself. So if you're a fan of this type of film--or even if you're a fan of
Mystery Science Theater 3000--you may want to give The Lost Skeleton Of Cadavra
a shot. To quote the Skeleton himself: I sleep now! --SF