Rankin Bass’s ‘MAD MONSTER PARTY?’ (1967) – Retro Review

In the 80s and 90s, and even into the early 2000s, Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin Jr. were the go-to guys for Christmas specials such as Rudolph and Frosty. However, Rankin Bass had a hidden trick up their sleeve. It often goes unnoticed because it flies under the radar. However, Rankin Bass made a Halloween special called Mad Monster Party?, an essential for any horror collector. Everyone should have at least one copy, so this movie saves itself from being pushed off a cliff into the world of forgotten moments in time.

Synopsis

Baron Boris von Frankestein (Boris Karloff, Frankenstein, 1931) is having a celebration on the Isle of Evil and invites all monsters from all over to meet his nephew Felix Flankin (Allen Swift, Sesame Street) who is half human. He doesn’t dare tell his guests that Felix is only half monster. As the monsters from all over the land begin to arrive Drac Wolfie and more friends begin to arrive.

There is one guest that Baron is hoping doesn’t arrive, as he refined the trick to keeping the secret from all of them.The evening turns disastrous, and the monsters all get a restless night of sleep while trying to bunk with another monster. Throughout the celebration, the monsters start to turn against the Baron by planning to get the secret and kill Felix. However, the monsters have Francseca entrance Felix with her love potion, and commits an atrocity. One by one they all fail in hilarous ways. Will the monsters get to know what the secret is? Lets hope not.

There is so much I can say about Mad Monster Party?, but it would take way too long to tell the stories. I bury myself in nostalgia because pop culture raised me. What got to me, though, were the Universal Monsters. They didn’t scare me in the way other movies did. I was too young to watch those scary movies, but my parents let me watch them anyway. There was always a comedy nudge in those classic films. You had an understanding of things like Frankenstein’s monster. You felt for the character; they had another nudge in societal expectations at the time, in a land far away from reality.

One of my Mom and I’s past memories, pretty much our only one, was sitting in the living room before bed watching Halloween or Night of the Demons. We were the kind of people who could watch horror movies year-round instead of a list for “spooky season.” On our regular playlist was this hidden gem we found at a flea market and paid a dollar. It is still the best dollar I have ever spent as a kid. We sat down that night, and I sat in awe over this beautiful creation. It had everything I loved but on a more childlike level. For me, what was the funniest part of Mad Monster Party? It has to be when Dracula chases Felix with comedic failure.

In The End

Mad Monster Party? is a movie families should watch together. I am not saying it would bring world peace, but you never know. The world is scary for a child; we all know it. So, you are breaking them in with movies such as Halloweentown and Hocus Pocus. It will alter their view of an interest of yours. Maybe it would build kids up to scarier situations like a haunted house in October. These are the moments I cherish in my Mom and I’s relationship. I still cherish the movie completely; there are many more memories here, like when I met my first love, and we bonded in immaturity; these were some of the best days of my life, not even some, but most.

Mad Monster Party? is available to rent or own on most streaming platforms, including YouTube. So far, there are no free streaming options.