“For a few coins I will hypnotize you and I will read your future in your sleepy eyes.” Sleepy eyes? Might there be a translation problem? Join your faithful Grue Crew – Doc Rotten, Chad Hunt, Bill Mulligan, and Jeff Mohr – as they fight off the alien invasion with Count Waldemar Daninsky and the boys in Assignment Terror (1970).
Decades of Horror 1970s
Episode 143 – Assignment Terror (1970)
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An alien scientist and his team are sent to earth from their dying planet to exterminate the human population by unleashing monsters like vampires, werewolves, and mummies in order to inherit the earth.
IMDb
- Directors: Tulio Demicheli, Hugo Fregonese (uncredited), Antonio Isasi-Isasmendi (finished)(uncredited), Eberhard Meichsnerm (uncredited)
- Writer: Paul Naschy (story and screenplay)
- Cast
- Michael Rennie as Dr. Odo Warnoff
- Karin Dor as Maleva
- Craig Hill as Inspector Tobermann
- Patty Shepard as Ilsa Sternberg (as Patty Sheppard)
- Gela Geisler as Ilona (as Ella Gessler)
- Ángel del Pozo as Dr. Kerian (as Angel del Pozo)
- Paul Naschy as Count Waldemar Daninsky (as Paul Naschi)
- Manuel de Blas as Count Janos of Mialhoff
- Ferdinando Murolo as The Monster of Farancksalan
- Gene Reyes as Tao-Tet (The Mummy)
- Peter Damon as Judge Sternberg, Ilsa’s father
- Robert Hall as Commissioner Gluck
- Diana Sorel as Librarian
- Luciano Tacconi
- Paul Cross as Dr. Don Uno
Doc selected this return to the world of Paul Naschy’s Count Waldemar Daninsky. Bill describes Assignment Terror as a movie with a strong opening, a strong ending, and a long lag in the middle, although he does appreciate the film’s version of a mummy. Chad has a tough time making any sense out of the film and agrees with Bill that the mummy is great, adding that its versions of Frankenstein’s monster and Dracula are horrible. Assignment Terror can’t decide if it wants to be an alien invasion movie or a monster movie according to Jeff, who found it to be a quirky, crappy movie with interesting tidbits. Doc went for the movie with the poster that had the monsters on it and did not like the experience. Although he liked the monsters, he found the middle of Assignment Terror to be slow, boring, and dull.
Assignment Terror is available to stream from multiple sources but the 70s Grue-Crew is unanimous in their recommendation to make the effort to seek out the best quality source. The film is also available on physical media as a Scorpion Releasing Blu-ray from Ronin Flix.
Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror 1970s is part of the Decades of Horror two-week rotation with The Classic Era and the 1980s. In two weeks, the next episode in their very flexible schedule will be When a Stranger Calls (1979), chosen by Jeff. Be sure to join us for that one.
We want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: leave us a message or leave a comment on the site or email the Decades of Horror 1970s podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com.
Jeff has written for Horrornews.net and SQ Horror Magazine. He currently writes for Gruesome Magazine and is a co-host of the Decades of Horror podcasts - The Classic Era, 1970s, and 1980s - and the Gruesome Magazine Podcast.
