The Blob

This was a fun one that took me back. The blob with Steve McQueen. No, I am an older guy, but this movie was already old when I was a kid lol. I grew up with this movie as standard horror movie fare in our household. 

I think my mom was more excited to watch this than movie I was. That movie and she loved Psyco or any Alfred movie. I miss my mom, she’s been gone almost three years now. I think she would have enjoyed seeing how much fun I am having writing about the Blob today 😉

This shiny classic is loaded with all the old-fashioned horror tropes is awesome! Where do I start, hmmmmm, I know!

First of all, The Blob is basically a giant killer amoeba. Well, it was not giant at the beginning of the movie but it certainly grew quickly as it fed on the slow-moving people from the ’50s. There were a lot of monsters from that time period that started small but got bigger and bigger as they consumed man flesh.

The blob came from outer space, in a meteorite. Yup, another trope. But I love this one. I was just watching the war of the worlds last weekend and that started with a meteorite also.

On another note, did you notice the similarities of the blob to the short story that Stephen King wrote, and he started in, from the movie Creepshow in the ’80s? If you remember, the character Jordy Verrill was excited about cashing in when a meteorite landed in his yard. That was until he got covered in ‘Meteor Shit’. That skit in Creepshow was called ‘Weeds’. One of my favorite shorts by the King.

Movies like this often have me wondering how the heck would these people of the ’50s ever have survived in any kind of extreme monster or alien invasion back in then? They all can’t run to save their lives. They trip and fall every 3 feet. Too many people wearing heels. 

What’s up with people going up to and actually touching a meteorite when it hits the earth? Nobody seems to be concerned with radiation. Luckily Dr. Clayton Forrester in War of the Worlds just happened to have a spare Geiger counter in the back seat of his car when he randomly drove by the meteorite. Thank goodness! But nobody else seems worried about exposure to toxins, biohazards, radiation, or ‘meteor shit’. 

After watching this movie again last week, I have to reaffirm the fact that I love The Blob. Not for its high-end special effects or its superb plot. No, I love the Blob for a couple of reasons. First, it is old school, meaning it is just plain old 50’s scary movie fun! Also, anything with Steve McQueen is pretty cool. But most importantly, my mom loved it and this assignment brought back some awesome memories of homemade Jiffy Pop and Creature Feature on a Saturday afternoon, family-style!

Did I mention that this is a ‘Blob Blog’ post? Say that 10 times fast 😉

Also, for those that love poking fun at old movie tropes, here you go: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/TheBlob1958