BA_Harrison Low-budget sci-fi/horror The Hideous Sun Demon stars Robert Clarke as atomic scientist Dr. Gilbert McKenna, who is accidentally exposed to radiation from a new isotope, the result being devolution to a reptilian state whenever he is in direct sunlight.Boy, this is one hell of a cheap B-movie. 'How cheap?' I hear you ask. Well, in one scene, a little girl asks her mother if she can pour a glass of milk, and proceeds to spill it all over the floor (nothing to do with the plot… she's just crap at pouring milk). The film is so cheap that they didn't bother with a second take.It's so cheap that they can't even afford that 'dissolve transformation' effect seen in so many other low-budget monster movies: one second McKenna is a man, the next he has slipped on his badly made rubber mask and scaly gloves to become the Hideous Sun Demon. Raarrrggh!It's so cheap that its star Robert Clarke pulls double duty as co-director, even though he's clearly not qualified to do so (barring a spoof of this film in 1983, this would be his only directorial effort).Of course, cheap often means cheerful, but that's not really the case here, much of the film proving tedious in the extreme (the monster only appears in a couple of scenes). Oh well, at least we're introduced to the charms of Nan Peterson, who plays bar-room singer Trudy, owner of a most impressive set of curves. Her presence makes things a little easier to endure.3.5 out of 10, rounded up to 4 for the squashed rat and the throttled dog.

ofpsmith This is one of the funniest Rifftrax movies I've seen, but the movie itself is somewhat bizarre (though I suppose that this is to be expected). A scientist named Dr. Gilbert McKenna (Robert Clarke) is exposed to nuclear radiation at his laboratory. For undisclosed reasons this turns him into a monster when he is left out in the sun too long. Interestingly this only affects half his body as he also runs around in totally soaked khaki pants. And no, it's never explained why his pants are soaked either. McKenna spends most of the movie alone in his secluded house on the California coast, driving to bars, and rampaging. It's your typical poorly made, low budget, campy horror film from the 50's. Other interesting things about the film include the music which also appears in Night of the Living Dead. Since that film was made 9 years later I'm going to guess that it's probably stock. Other than that there's not much else to write. Except, of course, that the Rifftrax is hilarious.

thejcowboy22 Our movie starts with an radiation accident in a laboratory. A body is taken into an ambulance. This is the tragic story of our over exposed Scientist Dr. Gilbert McKenna played by Robert Clarke. I remember the soft spoken actor from his frequent appearances on Dragnet and Adam 12. Robert was also married to one of the King Sisters, Maxine. Known in the 60's for their specials, the King Family alone with the extended bunch, entertained us with holiday songs on ABC. Enough with the TV connections which will show relevance later in the review. Dr. McKenna was exposed to radiation but initially is recovering at an Los Angeles hospital in a wheelchair getting some sun in a solarium. The woman next to him sees the transformation and screams but the scaly rep tiled man runs off. Thank goodness, I wasn't ready for a bloody slashing sequence so early in the movie. McKenna changes back to his normal self as Doctors scratch their heads and are stumped and amazed with this deadly exposure. McKenna young and viral wants to get out of his cramped surroundings to feel somewhat normal despite his problem with the sun light. Runs into town evening hours of course and gets involved with a wild woman. This movie reminds me of the cartoon the Hulk as our good nature Gilbert McKenna puts himself in compromising positions as the Sun begins to rise. Mckenna decided that his situation is rendered hopeless and takes to the nightlife and drinking. Jealous boyfriends beware of the daylight hours as their no match for our Demon. During this entire movie Clarke dilemma makes you empathize with his misfortune. One touching moment in the picture stands out as our sad scientist who is in hiding in backyard shed meets a little girl Suzy played by Alexandra Conkling who in reality Robert Clark's niece. Suzy offers our on the lamb Scientist some cookies to eat. Suzy tries to sneak out some snacks but is caught by her Mom played by Donna Conkling, Clarke's sister-in-Law another King family member. Can Alvino Rey be far behind? I just couldn't help feeling the pain and anguish suffered by our leading man or reptile. Clarke wrote, directed and produced this movie. Tragically it didn't cut it at the box office either. Maybe if the Demon sang a few King family numbers it could gain some more interest. Happy Holidays!!

Michael_Elliott The Hideous Sun Demon (1958) ** (out of 4) Dr. Gilbert McKenna (Robert Clarke) is working on an experiment when something goes wrong and he's exposed to radiation. At first it appears that he's going to make it through okay but once he's put into the sunlight he turns into the title creature, a hideously deformed creature (looking like a lizard) and soon she's out on a killing spree.THE HIDEOUS SUN DEMON marked the only time character actor Clarke stepped into the director's chair. The film has the reputation of being one of the worst horror movies of the decade but I think those who say that are being way too tough on the film. Just looking at the picture you can tell that they were working on very little money. Yes, the story too isn't all that original or inspiring. There's also some questionable performances scattered throughout the picture. Even with the countless flaws here, I've always found the film at least watchable thanks in large part to the terrific looking monster.I really thought the look of the monster was excellent and this alone kept the film from reaches the levels of the worst of the decade. I guess it's best to say the creature looks like some sort of lizard but I liked the design of the make-up (or mask) and I especially liked the way the mouth was designed. Towards the end of the film the character has its shirt ripped off, which gives us even more views of the work and to me it's quite impressive. Another good thing is the music score and the recycled music that would turn up in other films including the same year's PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE.The film really isn't all that original with the screenplay pretty much being a copy of Universal's THE WOLF MAN with the exception here being it's the sun instead of the moon that turns the lead character. For the most part Clarke remains watchable in the film and his direction isn't too bad either. Of all the supporting players it's probably Nan Peterson that gets the most attention but not for her performance. No, her rack is pretty much on full display throughout the picture so I'm sure teenage boys seeing this at the drive-in back in the day were very happy.