The Trollenberg Terror

Poster tagline: THE NIGHTMARE TERROR OF THE SLITHERING EYE THAT UNLEASHED AGONIZING HORROR ON A SCREAMING WORLD! A cinematic summary of a popular TV series at the time, at first terribly chatty, but the last 15 minutes are literally an action-packed feast, with alien giant eyes frolicking on the roof of an observatory and fighter jets bombarding them from the air. The production design is modest but cute. They alternate only three interiors, basically: a mountain cabin, the interior of a hotel and an observatory. The outdoor shots are very sparse and even sometimes simulated by painted backdrops of mountain settings with and models of houses on the slopes. The alien eyes are fine, they catch people (puppets in real life) with their tentacles, but it must be said that the effects – the interaction of the puppets with the living environment – are not the film’s strongest point. The animated attacking corpses, four murders and the figure of a psychic enliven the rudimentary plot with a bit of mystery and horror. Add to that dialogues like: “You idiot! We nearly had him. Why did you let him go?” - “Didn't you see?” - “What are you talking about?” - “His head! It was torn off!” Yes, it is naive and silly, but in such a cute inoffensive way. (26/12/2012)