2023 Movie Diary, Part 12

34. MISSILE X: THE NEUTRON BOMB INCIDENT (1978)

Peter Graves stars as a sexy international man of mystery out to save the world. I’ll just stop there. That should be more than enough.
Verdict: Rifftrax made it bearable. Great fun, even.
See it here: Rifftrax version – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBz5b0tANzc

35. GAMMERA THE INVINCIBLE (1966)

An arctic expedition gone wrong. A enigmatic Eskimo carving. Clueless scientists. Panicky military personnel. A child with a turtle fetish. A guy dressed in a rubber turtle outfit stomping models of cities and power plants. This is indeed a film that has something for everyone.
Verdict: Terrific in all of the ways these kaiju movies are terrific.
See it here: The Rifftrax version is pretty hilarious, but honestly I would have enjoyed it without the riffing.

36. THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN (1960)

Lots to love here, and just enough wrong with it to leave you vaguely disappointed.  The annoying “young kid” character is unbearable. Leaving him and his stupid romantic subplot on the cutting room floor would solve most of the movie’s problems. But then you’ve only got the Magnificent Six, and that doesn’t quite have the same ring to it. Oh well.
Verdict: Good but not great. I don’t care what its reputation is.