The Monolith Monsters (1957)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

John Sherwood

Writers:

Jack Arnold (story) and
Robert M. Fresco (story) ...

Release Date:

December 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Horror

Tagline:

Mammoth skyscrapers of stone thundering across the earth!

Plot:

Rocks from a meteor which grow when in contact with water threaten a sleepy Southwestern desert community.

Plot Keywords:

Water | Rock | Desert | Saline | Schoolteacher

Cast

Lola Albright	...	Cathy Barrett
Grant Williams	...	Dave Miller
Les Tremayne	...	Martin Cochrane
Trevor Bardette	...	Prof. Arthur Flanders
Phil Harvey	...	Ben Gilbert
William Flaherty	...	Chief Dan Corey
Harry Jackson	...	Dr. Steve Hendricks
Richard H. Cutting	...	Dr. E.J. Reynolds
Linda Scheley	...	Ginny Simpson
Dean Cromer	...	Highway Patrolman
Steve Darrell	...	Joe Higgins

Also Known As:

Monolith (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

77 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Finland:S | USA:Approved | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Backlot, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Trivia:

Universal Pictures released this film on a double feature with Love Slaves of the Amazons (1957).

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When the camera dollies in on the comatose Jennie, it’s shadow appears on her.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: From time immemorial the Earth has been bombarded by objects from outer space. Bits and pieces of the Universe piercing our atmosphere in an invasion that never ends. Meteor, the shooting stars on which so many earthly wishes have been born! Of the thousands that plummet toward us...

Movie Connections:

Featured in Watch the Skies!: Science Fiction, the 1950s and Us (2005) (TV)

One of the Best Sci-Fi 50's "B" Movies !

Ok you Sci-Fi B Movie Fans! This is an "A" of the "B" movies! It has it all..dialogue with "talk-over" at times that reminds me of "The Thing" and the interplay between characters is terrific. The special effects for this movie are very good, considering the time frame...the plot pretty good, and the actors fair as well.

The Plot is pretty typical of the Sci-Fi Movies of the time..there is a town in the middle of the desert, a child who ends up traumatized by her first encounter with the "entity". The female lead is a fairly independent woman on her own making her living as a teacher..the male lead is a geologist who is in love with the teacher...and they find themselves instant "guardians" of the girl after losing her parents. Then, it's the race to find a way to beat the monoliths before it destroys their town. The only thing missing from this one is the usual Nuclear Radiation theory that was so prevalent in the Sci-Fi movies of this time. It's just a plain old fashioned meteorite that causes the trouble in this one!

Enjoy this great Sci-Fi "B" movie....!!