Tonight's Movie: Shack Out on 101 (1955) - A Kino Lorber Blu-ray Review

The Dark Side of Cinema sets are coming out at a great clip from Kino Lorber!

I have films from multiple Dark Side of Cinema sets in line to review. First up is SHACK OUT ON 101 (1955) from the Kino Lorber Dark Side of Cinema XXI collection.

I first saw SHACK OUT ON 101 in 2013 when it was released on DVD by the late, lamented Olive Films.

I absolutely adored this crazy movie when I first saw it and felt the same way over a decade later. An IMDb review has it right, saying it "feels like it was shot on break from a really fun beach party."

SHACK OUT ON 101 was directed by Edward Dein, from a story and script he cowrote with his wife Mildred Dein.

For the most part it's a one-set wonder which takes place in the title "shack," a little diner on the Pacific Coast. A handful of beach exteriors were shot at Malibu.

The diner's denizens include genial owner George (Keenan Wynn); comely waitress "Kotty" (Terry Moore), who's studying for the civil service exam; the aptly named cook "Slob" (Lee Marvin), who hates pretty much everyone; and George's war buddy Eddie (Whit Bissell), a traveling salesman who's a frequent customer.

Also on hand is the mild-mannered Sam Bastion (Frank Lovejoy), a university professor who's Kotty's boyfriend -- their scenes generate some real heat -- but we soon realize he's much more than he initially seems to be. So, for that matter, are a pair of mysterious poultry truck drivers (Jess Barker and Donald Murphy).

There's no end to the strange goings-on at the diner, which also involve Commies, microfilm, seashells, and a harpoon, but it's best to leave it to viewers to discover this joyously weird 80-minute bundle of fun for the first time.

For anyone wanting to dig deeper, my 2013 review goes into additional detail.

The other films in the Dark Side XXI collection are CLOAK AND DAGGER (1946) with Gary Cooper and Lilli Palmer and SHORT CUT TO HELL (1957), directed by James Cagney.

Kino Lorber's Blu-ray print for SHACK OUT ON 101 is from an HD master from a 4K scan. There's nothing particularly distinctive about Floyd Crosby's black and white cinematography, but it's a fine-looking disc with excellent sound.

Disc extras consist of a commentary track by Jason A. Ney plus three trailers for other films available from Kino Lorber.

SHACK OUT ON 101 is highly recommended. It may not be great "art" but it is great, great fun.

Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.

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