Zotz!

Zotz! is a 1962 fantasy/comedy film produced and directed by William Castle. It stars Tom Poston, Julia Meade, Jim Backus, Fred Clark, and Cecil Kellaway. The plot is about a man obtaining magical powers from a god of an ancient civilization. It is based on Walter Karig's 1947 novel.

Zotz!
Directed byWilliam Castle
Produced byWilliam Castle
Written byWalter Karig
Ray Russell
StarringTom Poston
Julia Meade
Jim Backus
Fred Clark
Cecil Kellaway
Music byBernard Green
CinematographyGordon Avil
Edited byEdwin H. Bryant
Distributed byColumbia Pictures
Release date
October 3, 1962
Running time
87 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

A brilliant but peculiar professor of Ancient Eastern languages, Jonathan Jones, finds that an amulet sent to his niece Cynthia by a boyfriend from an archeological dig has magical powers.

Whoever has the amulet in their possession can 1) cause great pain by pointing at another living creature, 2) cause time to go into slow motion by saying the word "Zotz!", or 3) cause instant death by simultaneously pointing and saying "Zotz!". Both government and Communist agents immediately develop an interest in the amulet's possible military use. (This is a metaphor for the age of nuclear weapons, as the novel was written two years after atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki).

In the meantime, Jones and rival professor Kellgore are both in line for a promotion to take over from retiring Dean Updike as head of this California university's language department. A new colleague and possible romantic interest, Professor Fenster, is startled by Jones' behavior, particularly at a party thrown by Updike's wife that turns into chaos.

Cast

Promotion

During the initial theatrical run, theater patrons received a full-size plastic replica of the amulet as a promotional item. In color, size and design, the replicas were essentially identical to the film amulet, with the additional feature of a small hole drilled at the top, for a key chain.

DVD release

On October 20, 2009, Zotz! was released on DVD as part of The William Castle Collection box set by Sony Pictures.[1]

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See also

References
  1. "The William Castle Film Collection". amazon.com. Retrieved 5 December 2010.
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