Queen of Outer Space (1958)

Directed by Edward Bernds. Starring Eric Fleming, Paul Birch, Patrick Waltz, Dave Willock, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Laurie Mitchell, Lisa Davis, Barbara Darrow, Marilyn Buferd.

Four male astronauts take a rocketship into space, end up stranded on Venus, a planet inhabited solely by young, leggy women in skimpy outfits. But before the boys can cuddle up with all the eager cuties, they first have to take care of that despotic queen of theirs (Mitchell), who is always seen wearing a mask, which must mean she is hideously scarred underneath and, therefore, must be eliminated. No value as either science fiction or social fiction, with the expected cheap, blocky sets and third-rate “special” effects. Laughable, and also incredibly sexist, but at least some of it appears to be tongue-in-cheek. Might be worth it for Zsa Zsa’s absurd performance (and accent), a brief group battle executed with all the vigor of a pillow fight, and the grody sight of Waltz sucking face with a blonde bimbo before boarding the rocket back on Earth…but probably not. From a story by Ben Hecht (!); shot in CinemaScope.

16/100