The 5,000 Contract Hotties of Dr. T
There are always a bunch of great images over at If Charlie Parker Was a Gunslinger..., but this publicity still from the classic Dr. Seuss film, The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T, jumped out at me today. It's always been one of my favorite movies. As a child, I watched it over and over on my parent's black and white teevee, never realizing that it was actually filmed in Technicolor. I finally got the chance to see it on the big screen in a revival movie house a couple of years ago in all of its multi-hued glory, and all I can say is that it's a revelation.
Did I mention how much I want one of those hand beanies?
[Link: Official trailer]
[Link: Elevator Dungeon Song]
[Link: Dungeon of Scratchy Violins]
[Link: Doe-Me-Doe Duds]
Comments
Wow, I never saw that still before!
It would have been a very different movie, if those gals had been included...
Love the big grin on that kid.
"Ten little dancing maidens and they're mine, all mine" Indeed.
Posted by: M.Ace | August 13, 2007 2:05 PM
WTF? Never heard about this one before ... hove to find on da intranets. BT anyone?
Posted by: orangeguru | August 13, 2007 4:36 PM
Ha! I'm glad to see one of my favorite films ever getting the love it deserves.
Along with Dr. Seuss, Salvadore Dali had a hand in the (amazing) production design.
Right, I'm off for a glass of pickle juice, from my own pickle vinyards.
-Mr Future
Posted by: Mr Future | August 13, 2007 5:15 PM
Never heard about this one before
In Germany it was called Das Land der Gummihandhüte und Affehosen.
Posted by: MrBaliHai | August 13, 2007 5:20 PM
I remembered that movie while watching the first Spy Kids with my son. Spy Kids had to have used it as an inspiration.
I later Tivo'd it for us.
Still as freaky as I remembered it. Nightmare freaky. The low budget sets aided the weird nightmare quality.
Posted by: anon | August 13, 2007 5:22 PM
Where else, but in a Dr. Seuss movie could you here Hans Conreid sing out, Those undulating undies with the Marabou trim?
And then there is that acid trip in Trombone hell. I love that movie.
Posted by: Redbackfur | August 13, 2007 5:24 PM
I'm off for a glass of pickle juice
Mmm, I could go for a glass of 1998 Vlasic Dill Valley Sauvignon right about now.
Posted by: MrBaliHai | August 13, 2007 5:29 PM
The first half of the movie is kind of slow and bland. The kid lead singing about his plight isn't my idea of fun.
But when things get going, they get thoroughly, terribly weird. It's like some kind of hallucinatory fever dream far beyond the curative abilities of St. Joseph's aspirin for children.
Posted by: Stefan Jones | August 13, 2007 5:44 PM
I saw this on TV as a kid in the '60s. It warped my brain. Dr. Terwilliker rocks!
Posted by: Mr Plow 42 | August 13, 2007 7:34 PM
I wonder how many kids secretly wanted to be Dr. T rather than Bart?
Posted by: MrBaliHai | August 13, 2007 7:40 PM
My hopes for the movie were too high, but there are some lovely visuals. The elevator sequence is probably my favorite (and seems to point forward to Forbidden Zone). I like the Hot Librarian suit his mom wears. Woo. If they'd really played something good on the piano at the end, it would have been a lot better. My sympathy is with the one kid who was crying at the end -- he was all up for a Monster Concert!
Posted by: Kip W | August 13, 2007 9:33 PM
I own this on video. I thought everyone had heard of it.
Posted by: soft_guy | August 14, 2007 9:58 AM
I grew up watching this on VHS and a couple years ago I was absolutely thrilled to find it on DVD on Amazon.
Posted by: Jessie K | August 14, 2007 2:52 PM
When we were kids in the 1980s my grandmother would rent this film from the library in 16mm film and we watched it over and over at their house. It came in two film cans. We loved it! Operating the old projector was fun, too. Thanks for reminding people about it. It is really fun and interesting film.
Posted by: Zorach | August 14, 2007 4:28 PM
I actually saw this film almost 40 years ago. I was about 9 years old, and for some reason it was shown at my synagogue's movie night. (Gratuitous additional info: that's where I also saw "No Time for Sergeants") So, I saw it in all its Technicolor splendor on a [fairly] big screen. It BLEW MY MIND.
I didn't see it again until about 3 years ago, when I bought it on DVD. Just as good as ever!
Posted by: Karen | August 14, 2007 7:07 PM
I saw it in all its Technicolor splendor on a [fairly] big screen. It BLEW MY MIND.
Exactly. The small screen really doesn't do this film justice at all. Totally different experience seeing it in a theater.
Posted by: MrBaliHai | August 14, 2007 9:40 PM
"It might even be ATOMIC!"
Posted by: Doug | August 16, 2007 5:45 PM
dude - this is my #1 all time favorite movie - thanks, now i don't feel like the lone ranger anymore... :)
Posted by: kryptic k | August 31, 2007 4:07 AM