Hand of Death

A lost "classic"? A "long-sought horror gem"? Nawww! This is just a crappy little monster movie shoved out to drive-ins by a confused 20th Century-Fox no longer run by Darryl Zanuck. Fox had the knack back then to put out some of the most miserable, boring little b-films in various genres. Somebody thought THIS was worth making. Then again, at only an hour in length it didn't cost much in film stock. The cast came cheap, too, as did the effects. Poor John Agar could only get star parts in horror films and must've figured it was worth taking any part as long as he was top-billed. Unfortunately for him, he spends the second half of the film encased in a bulging, grotesque Halloween costume and is never seen again (there's not even the cliché deathbed return-to-normal moment). In fact, his voice is gone as well, reduced to a series of muffled, unintelligible growls and cries (for all we know he's yelling "get this monster mask off of me, I can't breathe!" or "I'm calling my agent!") Is it no wonder he virtually drank himself out of the business? And then there's that atrocious score by Sonny Burke, an otherwise successful producer-arranger of contempo music (Sinatra, etc.) Burke wallpapers the first part of the film with shrill organ and theremin noise, then tiring of that, decides to add bongos and bassoon-like honking to the mix, for a combination you could describe as 'Horror-Jazz Fusion.' A lethal cocktail for the ears, unless one is in search of bad scoring just for the laughs.

Plotwise it's the story of scientist who unleashes a gas upon himself that makes his touch lethal and his mind insane, and the only response to that is for him to spend the rest of the film running madly around town avoiding medical assistance. Coincidentally, this film's effect upon the viewer is the same as its story: A lethal gas that makes you insane and want to run madly in the streets trying to avoid any further contact with it.

During the course of some covert nerve gas experiments, A noted scientist (John Agar, TARANTULA, 1955/THE MOLE PEOPLE, 1956) is inadvertently exposed to toxins which transform him into something resembling a flame-broiled Michelin Tire Man. He becomes grotesquely bloated, with skin bearing the distinct physiognomy of beef-jerky...worse yet, his touch brings certain instant death. Before long, he's running amok in the city streets, apparently being driven doolally by the film's bongo-centric beatnik jazz score. Throughout this distressing ordeal, Agar's love interest(Paula Raymond, THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS, 1953) wears a face of deep concern, but we know she's really hoping he'll die so she won't feel pressured to sleep with a pestilent man who looks like a campfire-toasted marshmallow.

Long represented by only a few tantalizing stills in FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND, this film was frustratingly unattainable for decades, and it's anyone's guess why 20th Century Fox kept it hidden away in their vaults. Fans of 50s/60s sci-fi may find an ambrosially campy charm to this ineffectual, yet reprievable little flick...HAND OF DEATH is not likely to amaze or impress, but it does generally entertain, and at fifty-odd minutes, it certainly doesn't overstay its welcome.

At the time of production, Agar's career had been in a nosedive since his divorce from Shirley Temple, and this would be his final lead role for a major studio. It was also the last major studio lead for Miss Raymond, who was in a serious car accident shortly after filming wrapped. Having had her nose completely severed from her face, her injuries required numerous cosmetic surgeries.

Clocking in at a paltry 58 minutes, Hand of Death will leave you reaching for the sunscreen. And in a hurry. For if John Agar gets a grip on you--you're a roasted duck. I could not believe this was filmed in Cinemascope! And on-location in Malibu and Santa Monica, California, too. Mister Agar becomes exposed to some type of experimental nerve gas he's concocting out in the desert for the military. He quickly dispatches his lab mate to the fire pit in the sky. Only then does he realize something is amiss. So he gives his mentor a ring and hightails it over to the gentleman's (he's confined to a wheelchair, never a good sign) suburban abode. He resides there with his daughter, the picture's love interest. The rest of the film breaks down as some kind of shopping stroll toward insanity. He becomes increasingly agitated, disfigured and insane. He slaughters his mentor and goes looking for the girl. On the way to the beach, and his certain downfall, he sends some more people to the above mentioned fire pit in the sky. The poor victims--taxi driver and gas jockey--are working stiffs. He also encounters a small boy romping along some jagged rocks and a seawall. He survives. The ending recalls an earlier film about a fellow with a flat head and protruding iron bolts. I enjoyed this loopy movie. I must be losing my bolts, too. I saw this on AMC when the sun was rising and my mind was clear. Honest.

One of the most inexplicably hard-to-see Horror titles of the 60's has resurfaced -- well, sort of. Because of a combination of vague legal rights issues, big studio neglect and the dissolution of its original production company, HAND OF DEATH has all but disappeared from sight. Recently, its star, John Agar and a group of his devoted fans got a rare opportunity to watch a videotape of the film. Hopefully, 20th Century Fox (now that they have found a print) will resolve all those pesky legal details and reissue the film on DVD, tape and TV. The film itself has some definite merit. The acting, , writing, direction and basic storyline are totally pro all the way. Technically, HAND benefits from fine cinematography by Crosby (TABU, several Roger Corman features) -- although the Cinemascope film is hampered by a pan-and-scan transfer on tape. The real standout is a jazz cum horror genre score by Sonny Burke (ooh, a CD would be nice, hint hint). On one level, HAND is a typical: Mad scientist INVENTS serum, mad scientist TAKES serum, Mad Scientist BECOMES Monster kind of movie. But, a subplot (underdeveloped mainly because the film runs a too trim 60 whole minutes) about the military creating the serum for nerve gas war is intriguing and the above mentioned tech credits are handled by seasoned vets. I hope all IMDB fans will get the rare chance I did of seeing HAND OF DEATH soon. And, thank you, John Agar for letting me see your movie!

Reading through some of the IMDb reviews, I was truly bewildered by the responses. It was like bullies beating up on the weakling in school...not because he necessarily needed to be beat up, but just because the bullies could. Well, I'm the principal here to tell those folks to lighten up and leave the poor kid alone! My goodness, this movie had a budget of $1.95, yet everyone is expecting "Lawrence of Arabia"? Come on.

John Agar is a government scientist out in the California desert who thinks he is a few steps away from creating a revolutionary nerve gas agent that will eliminate all wars. His mentor, the mentor's secretary, his scientist buddy, and even his own college intern think it's too dangerous and want him to stop, but John has noble and lofty goals and pushes on. Well, John has an accident, spills one of the liquefied variations on his hands, and slowly turns into a hideous, mutated creature whose touch can kill...and kill he does.

Maybe I was just in the mood for a fun little film like this, but I must say the acting didn't bother me, nor did the production values, the music, the directing, or the monster make-up. Yes, the screenplay is dopey, has holes in the logic, and a rather abrupt and unsatisfying ending, but this is a Z-grade film aimed at kids at a drive-in theater looking for a fun time, not stuffy film critics or pretentious film snobs.

Set your expectations at a reasonable level, have fun, and enjoy a great little throw-back to a bygone age of sci-fi/horror.