Village of the Giants (1965)

Director:

Bert I. Gordon

Writers:

H.G. Wells (novel)
Bert I. Gordon (story)
(more)

Release Date:

20 October 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

She's 30 feet tall!

Plot:

Delinquent teens ingest a substance and grow to 30 ft tall, then proceed to take over a small town.

Plot Keywords:

Giant | Growing | Teen | Duck | Kidnapping

Cast

Tommy Kirk	...	Mike
Johnny Crawford	...	Horsey
Ron Howard	...	Genius (as Ronny Howard)
Joe Turkel	...	Sheriff (as Joseph Turkel)
Beau Bridges	...	Fred
Joy Harmon	...	Merrie
Robert Random	...	Rick (as Bob Random)
Gail Gilmore	...	Elsa
Tisha Sterling	...	Jean
Tim Rooney	...	Pete
Kevin O'Neal	...	Harry
Charla Doherty	...	Nancy
Toni Basil	...	Red
Hank Jones	...	Chuck
Jim Begg	...	Fatso
Debi Storm	...	Cora
Rance Howard	...	Deputy
Vicki London	...	Georgette
The Beau Brummels	...	Themselves / Singers
Ron Elliott	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
Ron Meagher	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
Declan Mulligan	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
John Peterson	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
Sal Valentino	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
Freddy Cannon	...	Singer
Mike Clifford	...	Singer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Orangey	...	Giant Cat (uncredited)
Christopher Riordan	...	Go-Go Dancer (uncredited)

Directed by
Bert I. Gordon

Writing credits
H.G. Wells		(novel "The Food of the Gods")
Bert I. Gordon		(story)
Alan Caillou

Produced by
Bert I. Gordon	....	producer

Original Music by
Jack Nitzsche

Cinematography by
Paul Vogel

Film Editing by
John A. Bushelman		(as John Bushelman)

Art Direction by
Franz Bachelin

Set Decoration by
Robert R. Benton		(as Bob Benton)

Makeup Department
Nellie Manley	....	hair styles supervisor
Wally Westmore	....	makeup supervisor

Production Management
Frank Caffey	....	production manager
Curtis Mick	....	assistant production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
James A. Rosenberger	....	assistant director (as Jim Rosenberger)
Carl 'Major' Roup	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Ross Wheat	....	special prop constructor

Sound Department
John R. Carter	....	sound recordist (as John Carter)
Arthur Cornell	....	sound effects (as Jack Cornall)
Charles Grenzbach	....	sound recordist

Special Effects by
Herman E. Townsley	....	special effects (as Herman Townsley)

Visual Effects by
Farciot Edouart	....	process photography
Bert I. Gordon	....	special visual effects
Flora M. Gordon	....	special visual effects (as Flora Gordon)

Camera and Electrical Department
Thomas Morris	....	camera operator (as Tom Morris)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Leah Rhodes	....	wardrobe supervisor

Music Department
Jack Nitzsche	....	conductor
Charles Paley	....	music editor

Other crew
Toni Basil	....	choreographer
Joseph E. Levine	....	presenter
Marvin Paige	....	talent coordinator
Dorothy Yutzi	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Berkeley Productions
• Embassy Pictures Corporation
• Joseph E. Levine Productions

Distributors

• Embassy Pictures Corporation (1965) (USA) (theatrical)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2005) (USA) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Barris Kustom City  customized hot rod

Also Known As:

Runtime:

81 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Pathécolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Warner Bros. Ranch - 411 North Hollywood Way, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Berkeley Productions

Trivia:

Ron Howard plays a boy genius who invents a super growth formula. He later played the same kind of role in "Land of the Giants: Genius at Work (#1.21)" (1969)

Goofs:

Continuity: The first moments when we see the giant sized dog in the movie, the now large sized pet is no longer wearing his dog collar around his neck like he was previously prior to his growth. Most likely due to his having grown out of it. No point after that as a giant sized dog is he seen wearing a dog collar. Seconds after the dog is shrunk down by the antidote at the end of the film, now at his regular size he has his collar around his neck again.

Quotes:

Merrie:Fred, what's going to happen to us?
Fred:I don't know. As long as it lasts, I guess we'll have to live with it.

Movie Connections:

References War of the Colossal Beast (1958)

Soundtrack:

The Last Race

Beach Party Meets The Amazing Colossal Man meets Wild in the Streets

What do you get when you mix the children of famous Hollywood actors (Beau Bridges, Tisha Stirling and Tim Rooney), a couple of former child stars (Tommy Kirk and Johnny Crawford), a then current child star (Ron "Ronny" Howard) and a future one hit wonder (Toni "Micky" Basil) with a hack director (Burt I. Gordon). You get one of the biggest camp classics in the history of film. This film attempted to mix the then popular beach party flicks with the fading giant human pics. Gordon must have really been desperate for a hit because he figured that if he couldn't get Lloyd Bridges, Ann Southern and Mickey Rooney he could at least get their children to play in one of his quickie drive-in movie features. It's fun if you like camp, but as far as a great film, I'll stick with the films this mess rips off.