1956 science fiction movie
Rating: 15/20
Plot: It’s pretty much described in the title.
This would just be Bad Movie Club fodder without the amazing Ray Harryhausen effects, quaint in a good way and pretty stunning in black and white. Which reminds me–the dvd I grabbed of this includes a colorized version. Why? I can’t imagine color making these titular extra-terrestrial vehicles any more menacing. The scenes of the saucers gyrating and hovering behind moving cars or buildings are really cool, and even the big finale where the ships are crashing into national landmarks in D.C. are great even though it’s slightly less realistic than the destruction you’d see in a Godzilla rampage. I think it’s all more endearing because it doesn’t quite look real. Of course, the sound effect used does manage to make them more menacing. I also really like how the aliens sound in this although they are, with their shambling movements and stiff arms, a little goofy. And how cheap do their helmets look after Hugh Marlowe puts one on? Speaking of Hugh Marlowe, did you know his real name was Hugh Hipple? And did you know that Clint Eastwood is in this movie somewhere? I couldn’t find him and didn’t really see any characters squinting. Other notable effects: a zoom from Earth that must have been the coolest thing a lot of people had ever seen in 1956; some great fake-car driving, including one scene where Marlowe is mauling his poor wife who says he’s “starting something [he] won’t be able to finish” while blowing past another car which makes you wonder how fast she’s driving (seriously, watch that scene closely); a cool brain-reading effect with a dangling revolving carnation; planes exploding and hitting the ground, a realistic-enough effect that makes up for the terribly fake running-around-in-a-forest-fire effect; and a final shot of Hugh Hipple’s hairy back. It’s cool seeing Washington D.C. in the 50s which looks pretty much like Washington D.C. now. Speaking of that scene, how would you like to be killed by having the Washington Monument fall on you? I guess if you’re going to be killed by a Masonic phallic symbol, you might as well get killed by one of the most famous ones, right? Also, there’s a shot of an old guy running around on the mall that is completely awesome. A big 50’s sci-fi score (not that I’m complaining this time), some dopey voice-over narration, and references to the rice paddies of the Orient date this somewhat, and Earthlings seem a little stupid and trigger-happy which made me want to root for the aliens even though I’m closer to an Earthling. Still, this is some fun 50’s science fiction, worth watching because of the Harryhausen and because they don’t pull their punches in the destruction of some of our most notable landmarks.
