A Scientist at the Movies Reviews by Greg Paris

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Title: Earth vs. the Flying Saucers

Date of theatrical release: 1956

Details:

Hugh Marlowe (Dr. Russell A. Marvin)

Joan Taylor (Carol Marvin, nee Hanley)

Donald Curtis (Maj. Huglin, Liason Officer)

Morris Ankrum (Brig. Gen. John Hanley)

Director: Fred F. Sears

SFX: Ray Harryhausen

Score: 1/2

The Review: Yes, even grade-B science fiction films from the 50's can be classics. And no, I'd never seen this movie in its entirety, with its now-classic special effects by Harryhausen.

From the opening ominous tones of the omnipotent narrator, to the honeymoon couple about to have an "extreme" experience, to the military response to visitors -- this is a catenation of stereotypes, but it dates from the forefront, as they were being invented. The general theme, Earth's potential invasion by an alien power, has been around before and endures today, but this film was one of its earliest expressions.

Although now, in a nearly 50-year retrospective, the old V2 and Vanguard launch platforms seem laughable, many of the concerns hold up. Of course, the US military fires the first shot in the now-stereotypic "going off half-cocked" mentality usually attributed to the military by many 50's sci-fi flicks. But there is sufficient ambiguity to the reason for the aliens' visit that, in this case, such stereotypes may actually be correct -- after all, what seems like a prime feature of their saucer design is a retractable radar-dish-like disintegrator ray, which is aimed "down", i.e., not the obvious direction for interplanetary debris removal when underway. And as the genre has led us to believe, most visitors do turn out to be malign. This is a curious approach to xenophobia, originally assembled in the same time-frame when the US was carefully nurturing its own international xenophobia -- and closer-to-home as well, if one brings the McCarthy hearings to the table.

Classic SFX in the final reel with the battle of Washington DC -- even if you've never seen the movie, you've probably seen these effects, since they've been a mainstay of 50's sci-fi retrospective festivals and outtakes since their premiere. Great counterculture nihilist revenge fantasy on bureaucracies and their artifacts; and an excellent example of Harryhausen at work.

(27-Feb-05)

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