Engendro satánico

My review was written in September 1987 after watching the movie on Camp video cassette.

"Evil Spawn", previously titled "Alive by Night" and "Deadly Sting", is a tolerable, poverty row variation on Roger Corman's 1959 Susan Cabot-starrer "The Wasp Woman". Topliner Bobbie Bresee provides enough flesh and ham acting to please camp followers (pic appropriately is released by Camp Video, from Fred Olen Ray's new AIP production banner.

In a script far too overloaded with in-jokes on the world of low-budget filmmaking, Bresee toplines as Lynn Roman, a fading superstar actress who jumps at the chance to look younger via a formula given her by unscrupulous scientist Evelyn Avery (played by Donna Shock, a pseudonym for Dawn Wildsmith). Side effects turn her, werewolf-style, into an insect-like monster.

Though some of the monsters on view are rubbery, pic's gore is impressive and combines with enough nudity to keep the hardcore horror fans alert, however, pic's jokes are unfunny and storyline is a drag. Besides Bresee, a cult figure from "Mausoleum", Wildsmith, from "Surf Nazis Must Die", is an elegant villainess. John Carradine appears in one scene of "generic footage", a lengthy dialog opposite Wildsmith in which both thesps speak entirely in euphemisms, suitable for splicing into any thriller film.

Bobbie Breese plays fading movie queen Lynn Roman who is unhappy because younger actresses receive all interesting film roles.The assistant of deceased Dr.Zeitman offers her the potion which should stop the process of aging.It works perfectly until Ruth turns into hideous bug creature with an urge to kill..."Evil Spawn" is a cheesy creature feature flick with plenty of rubbery gore and gratuitous nudity.The main performance of Bobbie Bresse is actually quite decent and it's nice to see cameos of John Carradine and Forrest Ackerman.I haven't seen re-edited version of "Evil Spawn" called "The Alien Within".6 rubber creatures of 10.The scene of nude swimming in the pool is truly priceless.

A scientist is locked in the laboratory by his assistant Evelyn Avery (Dawn Wildsmith) and a mutating creature attacks him. He turns into a monster and then he attacks a young man outside the building, but is killed by his girlfriend that crashes her car on him. Meanwhile, the aging actress Lynn Roman (Bobbie Bresee), who is a former famous star, is fighting for a lead role in a movie directed by Mark Randall (Mark Anthony). However, Mark wants a younger actress between twenty and twenty-five years old for the role. Out of the blue, Evelyn meets Lynn and tells that her secretary Elaine (Pamela Gilbert) allowed her to meet Lynn to show an injection with a serum developed by Dr. Emil Zeitman (John Carradine) that would make her younger again. Lynn uses the experiment and turns into a monster, becoming a threat to her friends.

"Evil Spawn" is a 1987 B-movie that recalls a sci-fi from the 50's with gore and boobs. Sort of an encounter of "The Wasp Woman" with Playboy and blood. The screenplay is confused and the only thing really not good is the cameo of John Carradine that neither deserves his name in the credit not this film in his filmography. Pamela Gilbert in the swimming-pool is maybe one of the best parts of this forgettable film, released only on VHS in Brazil. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): 'Evil Spawn - A Semente do Mal" ("Evil Spawn - The Seed of Evil")

EVIL SPAWN (1987) *1/2 (Out of 4*'s) Director: Kenneth J. Hall. Bobbie Bresee, Drew Godderis, John Terrence, Donna Shock, John Carradine.

An underground woman scientist offers a has-been actress a drug that promises to restore her youth. After second guessing the idea and finally taking it, she gets sick and turns into a beast at night and begins killing whoever is nearby!

Shamelessly makes you feel sorry for the lead character. The acting is shy and somewhat overdone. The neat special effects look much better on the back of the video box than they do during the movie.

Not oscar material, but all movies like these are great for parties!

The original EVIL SPAWN was completed and released in the halcyon days of video, when just about anything that was made could find its way onto product hungry rental shelves and turn a profit for all involved. It is an okay low budget horror item. The revised and revamped ALIEN WITHIN inserts new footage with venerable genre stalwarts Richard Harrison and Gordon Mitchell, and twists the storyline in a different direction. The revised ALIEN WITHIN will be of interest to fans of these veteran actors and Fred Olen Ray. I believe Ray was involved with the original film, and ended up with the rights after some litigation, and elected to make the revisions with new footage. ALIEN WITHIN showed on TV and came out on video from a small outfit, MNTX, which also released Brett McCormick's MACON COUNTY WAR (with Dan Haggerty). I prefer the new version, but that's just my opinion.