The Flux Capacitor 4.25.08: Week 31 - Ten of the Best
Posted by Owain J. Brimfield on 04.25.2008
A look at some of the best movies from the golden age of pulp sci-fi cinema, plus all the latest from the world of SF!
Welcome to "The Flux Capacitor", the column that examines the past, present and future of the science fiction genre. It's time for a regularly-scheduled break from our normal programming, as we once again take a look at TEN OF THE BEST, an intermittent feature here at "The Flux Capacitor" that highlights some of the better movies within SF sub-genres. I know we're a week behind schedule, but hey, better late than never. We're taking a timewarp back to the 1950s this week, to look at some of the best movies to emerge from the classic 'pulp' era of science fiction. 50s sci-fi tends to be associated, invariably, with drive-in cinemas, crappy monsters and Mystery Science Theater 3000, but that's a little bit unfair given the number of genuinely good quality movies to emerge from the same period (and I am going to be choosing some underrated picks here, rather than the obvious classics like Forbidden Planet, Them and The Day the Earth Stood Still). Time to educate your minds with:
TEN OF THE BEST: PULP SCI-FI FILMS
Destination Moon (1950)
A true sci-fi original, Destination Moon was penned by no less than Robert Heinlein, and represents one of the first major American science fiction films. Add to that a couple of well-deserved Oscars for visual effects and art direction, as well as a typical Soviets vs Yanks plotline, and you have yourself one of the movies that kickstarted the whole pulp sci-fi genre. The movie, produced by SF guru George Pal, concerns the space race itself, accurately predating the whole shebang by a good seven years or so when Sputnik was launched, and also represents a surprisingly thoughtful take on the whole notion. Of course, in the movie the heroes are persuaded that should the evil commies be the first into space, they'll be able to establish a moonbase and rain down fiery missile death on the US of A - a concern that becomes secondary once the US astronauts find themselves stranded on the moon with insufficient fuel to return.
The Thing from Another World (1951)
You may know this better in the guise of John Carpenter's seminal remake The Thing, and while this movie is undoubtedly no match for the Kurt Russell-led classic it's still a damn fine film in its own right. Adapted (somewhat loosely) from an old story called Who Goes There?, the film features an air force crew under siege at an Arctic research base, having unwittingly unfrozen an alien beastie that's thirsty for human blood in order to reproduce. It's one of the first really successful horror/SF crossovers, and also - one for the fact fans! - was the originator of the phrase "watch the skies". Although its impact on new viewers may well have been diluted by the aforementioned Carpenter opus, not to mention a couple of old Doctor Who serials with a similar theme, it remains an undisputed landmark of 50s sci-fi cinema.
When Worlds Collide (1951)
Based on a 1932 novel and another classic produced by SF veteran George Pal, this is one of the first successful cinematic depictions (in science fiction at least) of a doomsday scenario. As a renegade gas giant marches into the solar system and encroaches on Earth with malicious intent, scientists begin the construction of an ark to carry the cleverest and wealthiest citizens off the planet and land them on the gas giant's moon, which happens to be conveniently Earth-like. The film gains points for not relishing the destruction of our planet (although there are some memorable scenes of a flooded New York later on) and for concentrating instead on the increasingly frantic scientific endeavour to save Earth from the collision. The final moments on Zyra, while definitely embodying a B-movie style, present a satisfying climax, too. Soon to be remade as a Spielberg production, it'll be interesting to see what changes are made to bring the film into the realm of scientific plausibility.
It Came from Outer Space (1953)
Despite the overwhelmingly shlocky title and the bizarre implementation of a 3D viewing gimmick, this movie is a rarity inasmuch as it treats the alien invaders as benign travelers rather than the malevolent intruders so commonplace in cinema at the time (it's perhaps unsurprising to learn that the original screenplay was created by sci-fi master Ray Bradbury). The film sees a meteor crash land in the desert under the watchful gaze of a hobbyist astronomer. Of course, said solar object turns out to be a crashed spaceship, and when local people begin to disappear concerns begin to grow that an invasion is underway. Our protagonist soon discovers that the visitors are in fact intelligent wayfarers whose ship had the misfortune of malfunctioning over our own little rock, and the aliens are, somewhat surprisingly, soon on their way with little more than the odd passerby having been subjected to a little harmless brainwashing. Whether you treat the movie as a sci-fi classic or just another B-movie (my own view is that it's somewhere between the two), there's no denying the fact that it was vastly ahead of its time when depicting the initial stages of contact between humans and alien lifeforms.
This Island Earth (1955)
Perhaps more famous as the subject of a merciless roasting at the hands of the MST3K crew in that show's feature film spin-off, this movie deserves to be remembered as one of the most visually arresting sci-fi efforts of the decade. One of the first films in the genre to be produced in Technicolor, it's certainly a sumptuous treat for the eyes, and some of the effects have aged remarkably well (if not the character design of the aliens themselves). The plot, too, is atypical of its time and a step above its contemporaries, and features a race of aliens seeking to find the top scientific brains on our planet to assist them in defending their own planet against hostile invaders. There are some complex character motivations going on, but it's still the visual element that makes this film a must-see for any self-respecting film buff.
Conquest of Space (1955)
The one true 'Marmite' entry on this list. Considering that as great an authority on the genre as John Clute has passed judgment on Conquest of Space as being an awful film, who am I to argue against its shortcomings? An egotistical twat, that's who. While the effects in Conquest may be clumsily implemented in places (particularly the rather-too-obvious matte backdrops), there's certainly no denying their ambition, and were we to look at the movie with the eye of a 50s filmgoer, this would surely be an impressive spectacle. The screenplay, too, while limited in scope (concerning as it does a spaceship on its way to Mars, with not a whole lot of note actually transpiring in the film), has some intriguing theological and philosophical ideas. Let's just disregard the fact that the heroes are eventually saved by a Christmas snowfall on Mars, and instead enjoy one of the least kinetic (in a good way) SF movies of the decade.
Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956)
One from the top drawer of stop-motion animation maestro Ray Harryhausen, this tale of an infortuitous miscommunication leading to all-out UFO war is the blueprint for any number of flying saucer invasion flicks, as notably homaged by both Independence Day and Mars Attacks!. As earth-invasion movies go this is far and away one of the best the 1950s had to offer, with a whole bunch of (hand animated!) devastation unleashed upon cities around the world - hey, that's right, not just America this time. It's thematically a cousin to The War of the Worlds, and while maybe overshadowed by that movie is still resplendent in its own right, and features a unique means of defeating the evil (read: misunderstood) alien menace. George Adamski would be proud.
20 Million Miles to Earth (1957)
Or as it might also feasibly be titled, Kong from Space. Another Harryhausen effort, this time allowing the man himself to get his hands dirty and animate a detailed creature, in this case a Venusian biped that looks exactly like something from Jason and the Argonauts. After a team of American astronauts return from the titular twenty million miles away (the planet Venus to be precise), they crash land and inadvertently lose a specimen creature they had brought back for examination. The creature escapes, and fueled by our planet's healthy atmosphere begins to grow and grow, causing panic wherever it treads. The alien, who like Kong is a poor innocent prone to attack only when enraged, goes on the run from the military, getting into a nasty scrape with an elephant (yes, really) before being gunned down atop the Colisseum. Available in color for the first time as part of a 50th anniversary treatment, this is a monster movie with a difference.
The Terror from Beyond Space (1958)
Otherwise known as "the movie that sued Alien". And, wouldn't you know it, Ridley Scott's masterpiece does indeed seem to be a bit of a rip off when compared to this movie. A spaceship is dispatched to an alien planet with the intention of rescuing a previous crew, who are found dead with the exception of one slightly insane survivor. Turns out, of course, that the first crew had been picked off by a rather nasty alien serial killer, which manages to get on board the rescue craft and spends the rest of the flight back to Earth picking off the crew one by one. Years ahead of its time, the film is genuinely suspenseful (helped along no doubt by its speedy running time of a little under seventy minutes) and features an impressive wodge of firepower as the crew attempts to blow seven shades of shit out of the alien peril, before following Ripley's train of thought and eventually blasting the creature out of the airlock. Imagine you'd seen this before Alien, Halloween or any other sci-fi/horror trailblazer, and then tell me which seems more clichéd.
I Married a Monster from Outer Space (1958)
These film titles just get worse and worse, don't they? Thankfully, I Married a Monster is much better than the Z-grade title would suggest. The fantastically daft plot sees a young woman discover that her new husband is, yes, a monster from outer space. Thankfully for her and her fellow humans though, it transpires that the alien and his friends aren't hungry for blood - they're hungry for pussy, as all the female creatures on their home planet were killed, and apparently sex with humans is almost as good. Naturally enough for the conservative American audience of the 1950s this is a horrific proposition (had the movie been made the following decade, things would likely have swung a different way), and our heroine Marge sets out to prevent other women from being rogered by the alien sex-pests. Yep, it sounds rubbish, but surprisingly it turns out to be a rather enjoyable little film.
...AND ONE OF THE WORST
Robot Monster (1953)
It features an alien named Ro-Man, a weapon named a Calcinator Death Ray, and a device named the Billion Bubble Machine. And, despite having a fantastic poster, it's unremittingly awful. Thankfully, its awfulness is of the "so bad it's good" variety and thus the film remains an entertaining watch after a few beers. Ro-Man himself is basically a guy in a gorilla suit wearing a tin-foil space helmet, and his quest to conquer the earth is derailed when he, yes, falls in love. Still, all credit to director Phil Tucker, who somehow oversaw a film on a shoestring budget that turned in seven-figure returns at the box office.
The Infosphere
Brett Ratner is in talks to direct a remake of The Incredible Shrinking Man with Eddie Murphy in the lead.
Has Eddie Murphy been in anything good in the last decade? I pretty much expunged the guy from my memory after Norbit. Plus, anyone remember his last foray into the sci-fi genre - The Adventures of Pluto Nash, anyone? Thought not.
Moon Bloodgood has signed on for the female lead in Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins. She will play a no-nonsense, battle-hardened member of the resistance at war with the machines.
A good choice to carry on the franchise's tradition of strong female leads (well, ok, a strong female lead), the cast for this one now looks pretty damn solid.
Guillermo del Toro, writer/director of Hellboy II: The Golden Army, has said he would like to do a third film if the upcoming sequel does well, but no more. (courtesy of Sci Fi Wire)
Del Toro does strike me as the kind of man who'd prioritize his vision over any potential financial rewards for prolonging the franchise, and I wouldn't be surprised if we did see a third Hellboy outing in a couple of years.
Frank Miller is planning to bring his own comic, Hard Boiled, to the big screen. The three part comic revolves around Carl Seitz, an insurance investigator who suddenly discovers he's a psychotic assassin/tax collecting cyborg who also happens to be the savior of the robot race.
Not one I'd heard of, but the premise sounds genuinely original, and Miller has surely learned a lot from Rob Rodriguez on the set of Sin City, so this could be one of the more unique comic adaptations to be announced of late.
Fox has green-lit a second season of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, picking up 13 new episodes of the SF series, Variety reported. (courtesy of Sci Fi Wire)
As always, nice to see original sci-fi programming getting a boost like this, and kudos to the producers for creating a genuinely compelling addition to the Terminator franchise. Hopefully the show will end up running until the movie is released.
And finally…
As always, reader feedback and suggestions are welcome, I respond to everything so just drop me a line or leave a comment. You can also check out my column "The Wonder Years" over at 411 Games. Next week in "The Flux Capacitor" - we're off to the wild wild west. Until then - keep watching the skies.
