It Came from Outer Space
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Movie Reviews of It Came from Outer Space
Movie Review: An early Sci-Fi Gem from the fifties...
Summary: 4 Stars
The great thing about 1950's sci-fi movies is the way in which they took the psychological fallout from the Soviet-USA Cold War confrontation that dominated the decade (paranoia, McCarthyism and the "Red Scare", fear of the atomic bomb), and turned it into edgy science fiction that's unlike any present-day moviemaking. Some of these relatively low-budget films were awful, but others have stood the test of time to become classics of the genre. One of the best is 1953's "It Came From Outer Space", which features a great plot, solid acting, and is based on a story created by the great Ray Bradbury, one of the best sci-fi writers of his generation. Richard Carlson, who also starred in several other classic sci-fi films of the fifties, is John Putnam, an amateur astronomer and scientist who lives in the desert outside a small town in Arizona. The townsfolk consider John to be a loner and something of an oddball, but he does enjoy the love of Ellen Fields (Barbara Rush), a pretty schoolteacher who thinks that he can do no wrong. John's relationship with Ellen has earned him the ire of the town's sherriff (Charles Drake), a down-to-earth, cowboy-type fellow who can't understand Putnam's interest in "weird" things like science and astronomy and who wants Ellen for himself. One evening both John and Ellen watch as a huge meteor crashes near an old mine outside of town. The next day they investigate the meteor's crater, but only John makes it to the bottom, where he sees a large spaceship which is promptly buried in a landslide which nearly engulfs him as well. Ellen believes his story, but others are doubtful and laugh at him, and even the local radio stations make fun of him. However, events soon begin to convince even the skeptical sherriff that something odd is afoot, especially when several townspeople begin to act in bizarre ways, such as speaking and behaving in a zombie-like manner and staring directly at the sun for long periods of time. As it turns out, the "townspeople" are actually aliens from the buried spaceship, and the real humans have been abducted by them - including Ellen! Although the sherriff and some other townsfolk wish to attack the aliens (out of fear and paranoia), Putnam suspects that the aliens are actually peaceful and only want to repair their spaceship and leave. I won't give away anymore of the plot, but the storyline of "It Came From Outer Space" actually is decades ahead of its time, and strongly resembles modern sci-fi (such as "Star Trek") in showing that even strange "aliens" are not always hostile and can be peaceful if given a chance. This attitude comes directly from the stories of Ray Bradbury (for example, "The Martian Chronicles"), where aliens aren't always the bad guys and humans aren't always the good guys. It's this moral complexity that makes "It Came From Outer Space" stand out from the other (and often more simplistic) sci-fi films of the decade. As an added bonus, the DVD set of this film will be a delight to all fifties sci-fi movie buffs. It has a short documentary entitled "The Universe According to Universal" showing how "It Came From Outer Space" and other fifties sci-fi movies were made, the theatrical trailer, and a commentary by film historian Tom Weaver. Overall, this DVD set is well worth the money, IMO. Recommended!Movie Review: The DVD Falls Just Short of Meteoric
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a wonderful movie, even in the flat 2-D we are offered on this DVD. I've actually never seen this movie in its original 3-D splendor, but I've been told it was stunning.The story is, by today's standards, typical for the 1950's science fiction film. Handsome, rugged scientist (Richard Carlson of Creature From The Black Lagoon fame) and beautiful girlfriend (Barbara Rush) witness a meteor crashing to ground in the Arizona desert, only to learn it is a spacecraft from another world. No one believes them until people begin to disappear, and later return as almost robotic zombies. But this story was based on a Ray Bradburry short story, and that story, combined with wonderful script writing, takes this from a bland sci-fi popcorn muncher to a thinking man's (at least on the B-grade movie level) story of paranoia and terror that ultimately shows the weaknesses, and the strenths, in humankind.
What most young people today don't realize is that this film was a first of many kinds. It was the first science fiction movie to portray aliens as anything but blood thirsty. It was the first of the desert sci-fi films. It was one of the first films to use the theremin for the eerie, wavering, electronic music we all associate with science fiction films from that era. It's the first time a movie used the perspective of the "monster", by letting us see through its cyclopian eye.
The lonely desert landscapes are almost alien in themselves, sweeping and harsh, and seen many times in the long shadows and gray light of dusk. The soundtrack is mono that has been encoded to stereo, which sound wonderful on a home stereo system. The acting is top notch, and the special effects, though dated, have that comic book Buck Roger's feel that was bigger than life in the 1950's.
The extras here are nice, as well. There's a really nice documentary about the movie and a few other films in the same genre. There's a audio commentary with film historian Tom Weaver. There also a nice photograph and poster gallery, as well as the theatrical trailer, production notes, and a brief cast and filmakers section.
The only reason I don't give this DVD five STARS is because they didn't include a 3-D version of the movie. Maybe that's asking too much for the ... price tag, but darnit, Univeral has been so commited to releasing wonderful horror and sci-fi gems to DVD in wonderfully restored condition, that I can't help but wonder why it was decided not to offer this rare and exciting way of viewing the movie. Especially after the glowing way it is described in the docummentary included on the DVD. What a missed opportunity for Univeral and for the fans of this wonderful movie. That aside, this is a lovely package and a wonderful edition to any science fiction film fans collection.
Movie Review: One of the first classic alien invasion Sci Fi films
Summary: 4 Stars
One night astronomer John Putnam (Richard Carlson from "Creature From the Black Lagoon") is watching the night skies when he sees a flash in the desert night sky. Dragging the pretty Ellen Fields (Barbara Rush from "When Worlds Collide") with him, he goes off to investigate what he thinks is a meteor. But what he discovers at the bottom of the creater is not a giant meteor but a space ship composed of glowing hexagons. Of course, back in town nobody will believe him, not even Sheriff Matt Warren (Charles Drake) who also likes Ellen. But then people start wandering around town in zombie-like trances and our heroic astronomer starts to figure out that there is an alien invasion taking place in his little town, which means the little love triangle here need to be put on hold. "It Came From Outer Space" was one of the first 3-D films (you can easily guess what parts were directed out at the audience) and provides a nice mix of cheesy horror effects with eerie sci fi music. The original story is by Ray Bradbury and has all the earmarks of a pulp magazine alien invasion story. Of course, this was a period when UFO sightings were starting to be covered in the press as well. The story has a strong resemblance to "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," but remember that this 1953 film came out three years earlier and if you are looking for elements of paranoia about the Commies the subtext is a lot stronger in this film. Also, the recent film "Evolution" clearly uses this Fifties Science Fiction classic for its basic framework. Director Jack Arnold was one of the kings of Fifties "B" films having done not only "It Came From Outer Space," but "Creature From the Black Lagoon," "Tarantula," and "The Incredible Shrinking Man," all of which are films you need to screen at some point as you learn all about the roots of contemporary science fiction.
Movie Review: It Came with an important documentary bonus film
Summary: 4 Stars
It Came From Outer Space is sort of comforting 1950s nostalgia in sci-fi. The story line is unusual for the 1950s Cold War era. The Aliens are extremely ugly, but claim to have souls like us. They did not come to invade and when they do take over our bodies they mean no harm. Their reason for being on Earth has human logic to it i.e. their spaceship has an engine failure and they just want to make repairs and be on their way...and in the meantime they only to be left alone.
The black and white photography does not date the film so much as give it context and a kind comforting nostalgia, but it is however have stereo-sound.
John Putnam (Richard Carlson) the hero is a romantic dreamer misunderstood by the townsfolk and ridiculed for claiming that the "meteor" that fell to Earth has a lot more going on. Only his girlfriend, the, at times, hauntingly beautiful Ellen Fields (Barbara Rush) stays by his side ~ although she screams a bit too much.
Because they kept much of the Bradbury treatment the dialogue is unusually poetic. Note the linesman Frank Daylon's description of the mirages in the desert and the sound humming in the wires.
The big bonus for me was the Documentary on the history of Universal sci-fi films and the comments of Bob Burns sitting next the blue one eyed monster used in the film. The documentary points out that the 1950s sci-fi films reflected the paranoia of the Cold War. Monsters taking our neighbours over - the communists' brain washing people we know and never suspect as subversives. Death from the sky - flying saucers.
The commentary over the film suggests that an extra in an army corporal's uniform at the "meteor" crash site is comedy writer-performer Morey Amsterdam, later of the Dick Van Dyke Show, but they're not sure.
It Came From Outer Space really belongs in the collection of anybody who loves 50's sci-fi.
Movie Review: Timeless
Summary: 4 Stars
While not in the class of "Them" or "The Incredible Shrinking Man", "It Came From Outer Space" is close to the top of the 1950's Science Fiction heap. This was only the second film that Jack Arnold directed and his experiments and innovations here would serve him well four years later when he made his "Incredible Shrinking Man" classic.
In this film, Arnold experiments with the genre, not showing his monster until the very end (an unintentionally hilarious scene where Richard Carlson recoils in stunned horror despite being warned in advance). This idea works because he also experiments with point of view, showing much of the action from the POV of the monster, with some kind of membrane attached to the camera lens. This is interesting because the viewer immediately begins to identify with the monster, even though the monster does not speak until later and there is no attempt to do a voice-over of its thoughts.
It is always interesting to watch a "3D" movie in just two dimensions because you have to try to imagine the effect. Plus there are scenes that seem strange until you realize that they were constructed and filmed for their "3D" effect. For example, at one point Carlson returns home and finds a dust trail that the monster leaves behind. To a rising suspenseful score Carlson opens his closet to reveal the "horror of horrors"-empty coat hangers. As Carlson opens the door Arnold cuts to a shot from inside the closet looking through the hangers at the horrified Carlson-which must have looked very cool in "3D". The monster's theft of his clothes was not an essential plot element but it made for a good effect.
Barbara Rush (who would later play villainess Nora Clavacle on Batman) was a real dish and she gets some good scream queen moments, the best one when a local kid in a spaceman suit surprises her.
Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.