The Monolith Monsters (1957)

Starring Grant Williams, Lola Albright, Les Tremayne, Trevor Bardette, Phil Harvey
Directed by John Sherwood
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A geologist in a small western town discovers a lethal menace in the remains of a meteor that when combined with water turn into deadly towers of rock.

The "monsters" of the film, tall towers of dark gleaming rock that rise and fall in advancing towards the town, are very unique and make this sci-fi effort from Universal stand out among the alien and giant bug pictures delivered by Universal and rival studios during the 1950s.  Director Jack Arnold, known for helming Creature From The Black Lagoon and The Incredible Shrinking Man, is credited with contributing towards the story, and the screenplay is well-structured, balancing the investigation of the rocks with the drama of their dangerous effects on people.   Williams and Albright make a cute couple, and Tremayne and Bardette add professional performances that ground the film.  The special effects, which look very convincing, are cleverly showcased in well-edited sequences that build suspense accompanied by menacing music from Universal's uncredited staff of composers, which per music historian David Schecter, included Irving Gertz, Henry Mancini, and Herman Stein.  With so many winning elements assembled together, this makes for fun and entertaining viewing, and a definite departure from the usual.

The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)

Starring Grant Williams, Randy Stuart, April Kent, Paul Langton, Raymond Bailey
Directed by Jack Arnold
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A man finds himself shrinking smaller and smaller after being exposed to a radioactive mist, and his anger and desperation put a strain on his marriage while he waits for scientists to find a cure.

Screenwriter Richard Matheson adapts his own novel, and in the hands of director Jack Arnold and a talented crew, they deliver an intelligent sci-fi drama with some very memorable visual effects.  Some of the shots integrating a tiny Williams into a giant world show their age, but once the story shrinks him down under a foot tall, the combination of rear projection and oversized props is executed very impressively as the film builds to a final climax.  This is probably Williams' best role and he does his part to sell the audience on the fantasy the film presents as if it were a real-life drama.  However I've always been a little disappointed in the film's metaphysical ending which doesn't seem to reward the audience for their investment in these characters.  I understand the reasoning behind it, and wouldn't necessarily have preferred a happy ending, but it just strikes me as a bit insufficient.

The Leech Woman (1960)

Starring Coleen Gray, Grant Williams, Phillip Terry, Gloria Talbott, John Van Dreelen
Directed by Edward Dein
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A cruel endocrinologist who has driven his aging wife to alcoholism brings her along when he learns of a drug that reverses aging in the African jungle, but she will soon turn the tables on him.

With a plotline remarkably similar to The Wasp Woman, Roger Corman's sci-fi shocker that also involved a woman who recaptures her beauty at a terrible price, this isn't a particularly good picture, but it is a fun one, with Gray revenging herself upon Terry, and stalking men in order to maintain her youthful beauty.  The makeup on Gray for both her aged and youthful selves is well-done and convincing, so that when her transformation does take place, it's striking and memorable, although masked by clouds of white smoke.  While Gray's not bad, Estelle Hemsley, as the ancient woman who reveals her secrets to Terry's sleazeball doctor, probably gives the best performance in the movie, projecting dignity and grace, something not present in any of the other characters.  Notable as the film that brought Universal-International's science fiction movies of the 1950s to an end, it doesn't compare to their earlier triumphs, but I still enjoy it.

Doomsday Machine (1972)

Starring Bobby Van, Ruta Lee, Mala Powers, James Craig, Grant Williams
Directed by Harry Hope & Lee Sholem
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

After U.S. authorities discover China is in possession of a doomsday weapon, they add women to the crew of a space flight to Venus, so that the human race won't die with the planet Earth.

This film offers a very good sci-fi premise, and it's unfortunate the movie's limited budget and production values can't do it justice.  The special effects are barely serviceable, and although the screenplay and the actors held my interest, this story would have likely been better off in more capable hands.  The movie's not without some fun, as when Williams' character transforms into a loony villain, and it's interesting to see future TV stars Mike Farrell and Casey Kasem pop up in small supporting roles.  However, any positives are completely overwhelmed by a horrible ending, which according to IMDB was filmed years after the rest of the film in order to finish it after production was stalled, but they can't have spent much money.