Episode 60 - "The Colour Out of Space," Part 2

[Genus Unknown]

This, gentlemen, is my new favorite episode.

[Bulbatron]

Great episode.  Probably the most genuinely disturbing story I've ever read.

To add to your list of film adaptations is Colour From The Dark (directed by Ivan Zuccon).  This version changes the location and time period, but it's actually pretty good - for a Lovecraft adaptation.  This adaptation seems to imply that the colour has some kind of intelligence, and it seems to object to the crucifix hung on one of the walls of the farmhouse.

I'm pretty sure I've already mentioned this on here somewhere, but I remember when I first read this, I was living in somewhere that was even more out-of-the-way than where I am now.  It was dark and quiet outside, and by the time I had finished reading the story, I was a bit wary of turning out the lights prior to going to bed, in case the room was still lit - by a strange new colour from the grass and trees outside...

A powerful and disturbing short story.

[Bassik]

Great episode.  Probably the most genuinely disturbing story I've ever read.
  This adaptation seems to imply that the colour has some kind of intelligence, and it seems to object to the crucifix hung on one of the walls of the farmhouse.

Indeed a sign of intelligence 

And I understand exactly how you felt, buddy. I allways like to take a little walk while listening to the podcast, and decided it would be fun to listen to both episodes this time. So, I went out of town, past the fields, and it being winter, it was already dark. Normally this is not a problem affcorse, I haven't feared darkness since I was twelve, but it was different this time. Somehow, during the second episode, the bright starlight, chill wind and the story on the podcast made me really uncomfortable, and on my way home I crossed a dark graveyard I sometimes haunt during these walks for the added atmosphere, but this time I could not bring up the courage to do so. What an amazing story this is, and what an amazing episode for the podcraft.
Now let's make sure they get their money before noon, because my friends and I REALLY want to try the 3d gimmick.

[Genus Unknown]

I know what you mean. I was sitting out on the deck looking at the sky. The atmospheric conditions were such that you had three very distinct layers of clouds, giving a very good three-dimensional frame of reference for just how deep those skyey voids are. Gave me a nice little chill up the spine.

[MattRichardson]

Definitely one of Lovecraft's best stories. As to what the creature was doing on Earth, I think Paul hit the nail on the head. It seemed to me like some sort of reproductive process was going on. After all, one meteor comes to Earth, but at least two try to leave it.

[rhorsman]

Great episode. I'm going to have to give Yog Radio another go: I'm not terribly interested in the RPG stuff, but it sounds like they cover other Lovecraft/weird stuff too, which is intriguing.

Speaking of intriguing, the next episode's selections ("The Very Old Folk" and "The Thing in the Moonlight") are very novel, especially after a few months of Lovecraft's more well known "A material." Not a lot of meat in the pieces themselves, but both have interesting back stories (and I'm now trying to hunt down a copy of Frank Belknap Long's "Horror From the Hills" before the ep runs).

[Talleyrand]

Fantatastic job on this episode, it was up there with the best of them.

The creeping nature of the colour out of space reminds me of Slime Moulds that are truly weird lifeforms. These Slime Moulds form out of a collection of single cells of fungi like spores that act initially independently; then group together and start acting in a collective fashion as a giant amoeba like super cell, and spread across large areas eating up rotting debris etc.

These bizarre lifeforms frequently appear in iridescent colours , and can in fact move  (yes its a kinda of plant that moves) in search of food, and seemingly solving mazes if required.

They also can carrying with themselves some forms of algae that act symbiotically with the fungi cells.

Check out these links
http://vimeo.com/371660
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8ST4lqtUzQ&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIEggUBoivY&feature=related

[wereguppy]

I just discovered this teaser trailer via a post on unfilmable.com from back in July for a supposed "Colour Out of Space" adventure game by Final Boss Studio.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3tlEjySjRg&feature=player_embedded

I'm a big fan of adventure games (the Monkey Island series, Grim Fandango, Simon the Sorcerer, the abondoned Warcraft Adventures, Broken Sword, etc.) so this was a true tease for me. I recommend trawling backward through the site's blog archive starting with October 27th. There's a ton of character design, concept art, screen shots of in-game testing, etc.

For anyone not fluent in Spanish the following is a link to the Final Boss site via Google Translate.
http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?hl=en&sl=es&u=http://finalbossstudio.blogspot.com/search%3Fupdated-min%3D2010-01-01T00%253A00%253A00Z%26updated-max%3D2011-01-01T00%253A00%253A00Z%26max-results%3D28&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dlovecraft%2Bsite:finalbossstudio.blogspot.com%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26hs%3Djlp%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26prmd%3Divbl&rurl=translate.google.com&twu=1&usg=ALkJrhiwlFKsFYsmr3RvDYNT-OuiTMztgg

[Genus Unknown]

So has anyone seen any of the movie adaptations? I'm assuming they don't keep the "unknowable color" element, because that would be literally impossible to film, right?

[catamount]

I saw 'The Curse' years ago on cable, but I don't really remember it. I'll have to netflix it and do a compare and contrast against TCOoS.

[Carlo_Nino]

Genus, I have seen the movie and here's what they do about the color.  They take Boris Karloff who at the end falls into a well (of sorts).  It's really a pit but that's their nod to the well in the book.

When he emerges he's something of a green radiating type of figure but it's as if he's been bronzed.  So he walks like an automaton with wooden movement.  Again, his face looks like "Box" from Logans Run since its been dipped in this radioactive-something from the pit.  His color is green and he has something of an oscillating border around his frame.  Sort of like ghost-Obi Wan Kenobi with green instead of blue.

The flick is a nod to Color and attempts to be it's own thing.  It's also done in a Victorian mansion and less of a farm. 
If you want to know what the movie is like just imagine a poor mans version of, "The Abominable Doctor Phibes" with Vincent Price right out of the 60s.

[Bulbatron]

So has anyone seen any of the movie adaptations? I'm assuming they don't keep the "unknowable color" element, because that would be literally impossible to film, right?

In 'Colour from the Dark', the colour is a sort of light blue / turquoise sort of colour.  It doesn't look all that special, but the effect it has on the farmhouse and the food and whatnot is done quite well.

[fishy]

Genus, I have seen the movie and here's what they do about the color.  They take Boris Karloff who at the end falls into a well (of sorts).  It's really a pit but that's their nod to the well in the book.

When he emerges he's something of a green radiating type of figure but it's as if he's been bronzed.  So he walks like an automaton with wooden movement.  Again, his face looks like "Box" from Logans Run since its been dipped in this radioactive-something from the pit.  His color is green and he has something of an oscillating border around his frame.  Sort of like ghost-Obi Wan Kenobi with green instead of blue.

The flick is a nod to Color and attempts to be it's own thing.  It's also done in a Victorian mansion and less of a farm. 
If you want to know what the movie is like just imagine a poor mans version of, "The Abominable Doctor Phibes" with Vincent Price right out of the 60s.

a bit off-topic...but both are good films.

[PaulofCthulhu]

I'm going to have to give Yog Radio another go: I'm not terribly interested in the RPG stuff, but it sounds like they cover other Lovecraft/weird stuff too, which is intriguing.

We do cover various things (especially with the newest podcast "News from Pnakotus" - which Chris & I do).

On the Yog Radio show we've interviewed a number of people in the past including:

Robert Fuest (Dr Phibes)
Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator)
S.T. Joshi
Dan Harms (Cthulhu Mythos Encyclopedia)
Brian Lumley
Mike Hodges (Flash Gordon)
John  Hough (Legend of Hell House)
Brian Aldiss

and many others!

Coming up in our next show will be a number of interviews from a recent convention, including one with Kenneth Hite.

Here endeth the plug!

[rhorsman]

Sounds great Paul!