By Maria Lewis
From the people who brought you classics such as The Last Unicorn, The Hobbit and Frosty The Snowman comes arguably the greatest animated horror film of all time: Mad Monster Party?. And yes, the phrase ‘greatest animated horror film of all time’ is honestly one we don’t get to use often enough. It has everything a horror fan could want: the Invisible Man, Frankenstein, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Dracula, Yetch, Frankenstein’s Creature, The Mummy and a skeleton version of The Beatles (don’t question it). There’s a sassy, smart heroine in Francesca, stop-motion animation that still holds up despite the film being made in the ’60s and one classic banger – “The Monster Mash”. With Mad Monster Party? turning 50 this year, it’s about time we celebrated one of the genre’s most unique and treasured entries.
After becoming one of the most popular and mainstream genres when motion pictures were first invented, horror movies – specifically monster movies – had experienced a downturn through the late forties and fifties. But by the sixties, they were having a resurgence. Mad Monster Party? was not only designed to cash in on this fact, it was supposed to pay tribute to all the classic monster movies that had come before it. Campy, crazy and kooky, it followed the neurotic Felix Flankin who gets invited to the Isle Of Evil by his uncle, a beloved maker of monsters who has finally discovered the secret to total destruction. Said uncle – Baron Boris von Frankenstein – is voiced by horror legend himself, Boris Karloff. All manner of foul monsters are summoned to the Isle Of Evil along with Felix, making the film somewhat of a horror-school reunion for iconic baddies. The kicker is, perhaps weirdly, the fact that it’s an animated film from the once famous animation house Rankin and Bass. They made their name through Christmas specials like The Year Without A Santa Claus and Rudolph’s Shiny New Year with a style so iconic it became associated with Christmas for generations of families (the “bye Buddy” North Pole scene with the narwhal in Elf is paying tribute to it).
With Jules Bass directing stop-motion animation lovingly handcrafted in Japan, and Rankin Jr. on the screenplay, the pair united to produce what remains one the most vibrant love letters to the horror genre. It even featured a musical number with the Halloween classic ‘Monster Mash’. Some 30 years later in 1997, the song was covered by The Misfits and saw Baron Boris von Frankenstein featured on the single’s cover. It was supposed to be somewhat of a promotion for the release of Mad Monster Party? on home entertainment, but those plans were scrapped due to issues locating a quality print. So, consider this a signal boost for Mad Monster Party? if you must. The film came out in 1967 and in each of the five decades that have passed, it has faded a little bit more in the public’s collective consciousness. That in and of itself is a God damn shame, as not only do we need to be doing the monster mash it needs to be a great big smash … again.
Maria Lewis is a journalist and author previously seen on SBS Viceland’s The Feed. She’s the presenter and producer of the Eff Yeah Film & Feminism podcast. Her debut novel Who’s Afraid? was released in 2016 with the sequel – Who’s Afraid Too? – out now. You can find her on Twitter @MovieMazz
