Woodyanders Review of Queen of Outer Space

Queen of Outer Space (1958)

A delectably tacky 50's sci-fi kitsch hoot

[8/10 · 11 July 2007]

Four men on a space ship -- ramrod Captain Neal Paterson (stolid Eric Fleming), smooth ladies man Lt. Larry Turner (smarmy Patrick Waltz), jolly Professor Konrad (a delightfully lively Paul Birch) and antsy comic relief Lt. Mike Cruze (annoying Dave Willock) -- land on the planet Venus and discover that men have been outlawed and women reign supreme. The wicked and hideously disfigured Queen Yllana (juicily played to the hissable hilt by Laurie Mitchell) plans on blowing up the Earth with her Beta Disintegrator. Meanwhile sympathetic scientist Talleah (a perfectly vampy Zsa Zsa Gabor, whose heavy accent acts as a key source of often sidesplitting unintentional humor) and her fetching female cohorts want the guys to themselves. Boy, does this legendary lemon possess all the right wrong stuff to qualify as a total sidesplitting camp classic: ham-fisted (non)direction by Edward Bernds, a poky pace, a cheerfully dopey, talky script by Charles Beaumont, paltry (markedly less than) special effects, a ridiculously serious tone, lush, bright, vibrant widescreen color cinematography by William P. Whitley, hot babes in skimpy outfits, laughably bad dialogue ("Hey, you kids play rough!"), groan-inducing sexist humor, a generic spooky'n'shivery score by Marlin Skiles, largely lousy acting, a surprise appearance by a hilariously hokey rubbery giant spider, and a rousing fiery conclusion. Better still, there's a clunky sincerity evident throughout that's both amusing and endearing in equal measure. A real gut-busting howler.