"Teenagers from Outer Space" released 1959

Teenagers from Outer Space (or perhaps Attack of the Giant Lobster Silhouette) was inflicted upon US theaters June 3, 1959.  It is considered to be one of the "Z-grade" sci-fi films from the 1950s. 

Written and directed by Tom Graeff, the story follows a young alien played by David Love as a part of a scouting invasion searching for food sources for their giant lobster overlords.  He falls in love with a teenage Earth girl and they work together to prevent his cohorts from carrying out their evil plans.

When Teenagers from Outer Space was released, it was met with negative, but not scathing, reviews.  The silhouette of the giant lobster was described as the least-convincing special effect of the 1950s, but other reviews said "flashes of astonishing sensitivity" "actually quite touching" "the show finds its own humble level of dramatic integrity". 

It was riffed by Joel and the bots on Mystery Science Theater 3000 in June 1992. 

"King Dinosaur" released 1955

Bert I. Gordon's directorial debut, King Dinosaur, was released upon American audiences June 17, 1955.  It was the first of his "low-budget special effects extravaganza" and was not received well.  Its a story of four astronauts sent to investigate a planet that has entered the solar system.  They discover a host of Earth-like creatures, many of them much larger than their terran counterparts.  Stock footage was included, but the quality it was as poor as Gordon's movie.  

Joel and the bots riffed King Dinosaur during the second season of Mystery Science Theater 3000.

I want to know is, if they escaped from the "King Dinosaur", why blow it up?  If you're already clear, and he isn't coming after you, get in your rocket and leave.

"The Beast Of Yucca Flats" released 1961

Although this movie screams Roger Corman or Bert I. Gordon, The Beast of Yucca Flats was brought to us by Coleman Francis, who wrote and directed.  But like Corman and Gordon, his movies ended up being riffed on Mystery Science Theater 3000. 

Released May 2, 1961, The Beast of Yucca Flats tells the story of a Russian scientist, played by Tor Johnson, who is transformed into a monster after being exposed to an atomic blast.  It could or could not be the inspiration for the Incredible Hulk.  

The movie opens with a nude woman (in some cases, the bare breasts have been censored) being strangled by what we are to believe is the Beast.  Yet, the movie follows the Beast's movements after his exposure, and the scene with the naked woman is never included or explained.

Another problem is Coleman Francis filmed the entire movie without sound, and added dialogue and narration in post-production, which becomes hilariously obvious in many places.

With a whopping 1.9 rating on imdb.com, it is considered one of the worst movies ever made.

"The Lost Continent" released 1951

The black and white, stop motion, science fiction, action movie The Lost Continent was released in theaters August 17, 1951.  It starred Cesar Romero as Major Joe Nolan in the lead role and Hugh Beaumont as Ward Cleaver Robert Philips, a minor role.  

When a nuclear missile goes missing, Nolan, his crew, and a team of scientists go in search of the wayward missile.  They track it down to a mysterious, uncharted island.  They have to climb to the top of a mountain to reach the rocket, and the rock-climbing sequence takes up much of the movie.  It became the source of critics' ire. The film could've been shortened considerably had this section been shorter and replaced with more action sequences.  As one critic mentioned, you can see all the action in the trailer.

The men find the rocket in the midst of a lush tropical forest inhabited by dinosaurs.  Many of the team become dinosaur food before they manage to retrieve the data from the rocket.  Then, they have to climb back down the mountain and escape before the entire island blows up from a dormant volcano which has begun to erupt.

Joel and the bots skewered this one on an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000.  I remember this being fun to watch, despite the lag in the middle.  I'm reminded of Congo with Laura Linney and Ernie Hudson, where they had to escape from an erupting volcano.  In both movies, they ran through an abandoned village and some had to crawl over a river of lava on a downed palm tree.

I think it's worth a watch.

"Santa Claus" released 1959

The Mexican fantasy film Santa Claus was released in the US November 24, 1959.  It features Pitch, a demon, sent to ruin Christmas by killing Santa Claus and making children do evil.  He manages to sabotage Santa's visit to Mexico City by trapping him in a tree with a vicious dog underneath.  However, Merlin the magician intervenes and defeat Pitch, allowing Santa to complete his task.  

The film has been deemed the worst and the best of the worst.  It did win the Golden Gate award for Best International Family Film at the San Francisco International Film Festival in 1959.

Santa Claus was featured in an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 Christmas Eve 1993, giving it a cult status.  

"The Creeping Terror" released 1964

The Creeping Terror, released November 20, 1964, has been dubbed the second worse movie ever, after Plan 9 from Outer Space.  But Plan 9 had a coherent plot, albeit a campy one.  Vic Savage directed, produced, and starred in the movie.  It follows an alien, resembling a shag carpet, that eats people, terrorizing a small rural town.  

According to wikipedia.com, the special effects creator was not paid for his work, so he stole the original costume for the alien monster the day before shooting started so Savage and his crew had to throw together a poor recreation of the costume.  

Savage experienced difficulty securing funding so even though filming started in 1962, it wasn't finished until 1963.  The movie is almost completely narrated, with very little dialogue.  There are several theories on why there was so little speaking.  

Savage was sued several times prior to the film's release and disappeared, never to be seen again.  It is rumored that he died of liver failure in 1975.  

William Thourlby, who played Dr. Bradford, was the face of the Marlboro Man advertising campaign in the 1950s. 

The Creeping Terror was featured in an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 in 1994. 

"Santo Vs The Vampire Women" released 1962

The only reason I know about this movie is because it was featured in a Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode, where it was riffed by Mike Nelson (who celebrates his birthday today!) and the bots. Santo vs. las Mujeres Vampiro (Santo. vs. the Vampire Women) was released in Mexican theaters October 11, 1962.

The main character Santo was the title of professional wrestler Rodolfo Guzman Huerta, born September 1917.  He appeared in numerous movies portraying El Santo (The Saint).

In this movie, Santo must battle a group of female vampires who have wakened from a 200-year sleep.  The queen vampire must find a successor and has her sights set on a professor's daughter.  The professor employs Santo to keep her safe.

"Avalanche" released 1978

Avalanche, starring Rock Hudson and Mia Farrow, was released in US theaters September 29, 1978.  The disaster flick, produced by Roger Corman, was not a box office success.  The special effects included Styrofoam to imitate snow and is apparently what made some movie-goers laugh.  

Avalanche is included in the list of 100 Most Enjoyably Bad Movies Ever Made.  It was riffed in an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000.  I enjoy watching it though.

"Laserblast" released 1978

The wonderfully bad movie Laserblast was inflicted...er, released into theaters March 1, 1978.  It was a science film, which the director Michael Rae hoped would cash in on the craze from Star Wars IV: A New Hope, released the year before.  Unfortunately, it has been ranked one of the worst of all time.  It featured a pretty good cast, including Ron Masak, Keenan Wynn, Roddy McDowall and Eddie Deezen. 

The lead actor Kim Milford was nominated for a Stinkers Bad Movie Award for Worst Actor. 

Mike and the bots riffed it in the 6th episode of the 8th season of Mystery Science Theater 3000. 

Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode "Bride of the Monster" airs 1993

Joel and the bots roasted Ed Wood's Bride of the Monster on the 23rd episode of the 5th season of Mystery Science Theater 3000.  First they had to suffer through a short film, Hired! where a guy tries to sell Chevrolets door-to-door.

They notice the front door of Bela Lugosi's house changing colors.  From the outside it's dark, but when it is opened, it turns white!

The obviously fake octopus attacks.  

Lobo got back!

"Invasion, USA" released 1952

Invasion, U.S.A, released December 10, 1952, is a kinda creepy movie, as people in a bar watching TV observe an invasion by the Soviet Union.  I was introduced to this movie via Mystery Science Theater 3000.  A lot of the movie is stock footage of airplanes, and the ending is an interesting twist, although a bit of a cop-out.

One scene has Phyllis Coates and Noel Neill working as airline ticket agents.  Both women played Lois Lane opposite George Reeve as Superman.  

The film is considered a success, bringing in a profit of over $1.2M.

The Amazing Colossal Man (1957) movie trailer

The Amazing Colossal Man, released in the US October 25, 1957, was produced and directed by Bert I.  Gordon. It was based on The Nth Man, a short science fiction novel by Homer Eon Flint, published in 1928.  

Glenn Langan survives a plutonium bomb explosion, only to begin growing in size.  Soon he reaches fifty feet and goes insane, attacking Las Vegas.

It spawned a sequel War of the Colossal Beast released in June 1958.  Both movies were skewered by Joel and the bots on Mystery Science Theater 3000.

"The Black Scorpion" released 1957

One of a number of big bug movies, The Black Scorpion, was released October 11, 1957.  A series of volcanic eruptions release giant scorpions from underground caverns and they threaten to demolish Mexico City.

The movie appears to have received some good reviews for its stop-motion animation effects.  It was featured in an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000.