Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956)

Extraterrestrials traveling in high-tech flying saucers contact a scientist as part of a plan to enslave the inhabitants of Earth.

Director:

Fred F. Sears

Writers:

Bernard Gordon (screenplay), George Worthing Yates (screenplay)

Stars:

Hugh Marlowe, Joan Taylor, Donald Curtis

1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Hugh Marlowe	...	Dr. Russell A. Marvin
Joan Taylor	...	Carol Marvin
Donald Curtis	...	Maj. Huglin
Morris Ankrum	...	Brig. Gen. John Hanley
John Zaremba	...	Prof. Kanter
Thomas Browne Henry	...	Vice Adm. Enright (as Tom Browne Henry)
Grandon Rhodes	...	Gen. Edmunds
Larry J. Blake	...	Motorcycle Cop (as Larry Blake)

Storyline

While driving through the desert with his wife Carol Marvin to a military base to send the eleventh rocket into Earth orbit to assist the exploration of outer space in Operation Sky Hook, Dr. Russell A. Marvin and Carol see a flying saucer and accidentally records a message on their tape recorder. Once in the base, Dr. Russell is informed by his father-in-law and general that the ten first satellites mysteriously fell back to Earth. When Dr. Russell decodes the message, he encounters the aliens, who ask him to schedule a meeting with the leaders of Earth in Washington in 56 days in order to invade Earth without panicking the population. Dr. Russell develops an anti-magnetic weapon that becomes the last hope of the human race against the hostile aliens.

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Plot Keywords:

sonic weapon | alien | rocket | flying saucer | invasion | 

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Taglines:

Flying Saucers Attack!

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Genres:

Action | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

July 1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

Invasion of the Flying Saucers

Filming Locations:

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

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation,Clover Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Whilst Dr. Marvin, his wife, the major and the police officer are being transported in a saucer, a large view screen is displaying their movement away from earth. One of the shots displayed is of earth and the moon with a haze-like fog. This shot is taken from the opening credits of "The Day the Earth Stood Still". Actor Harry Lauter, who played the generator operator in "Earth v The Flying Saucers" also played the tank soldier in "Day the Earth Stood Still" that Klaatu handed the damaged device to that "would have allowed the President to study life on the other planets".

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Goofs

The car interiors don't match. They must have used a Ford interior for all scenes. He is driving a 1955 Mercury. Outside shots show a light and dark interior of a Mercury and inside it is all Ford.

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Quotes

Dr. Russell Marvin: Both Carol and I are subject to the same atmospheric disturbances that may have affected other observers, but there is a qualitative difference, when you're a scientist.

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Connections

Featured in The Projectionist (1970)

User Reviews

Excellent B-movie and intro to '50s SF

As has been pointed out by most reviewers on IMDb, this film has all the perceived elements of cold war-period American cinema. However, what also should be considered is the influence it has had on contemporary SF movies and TV.

Hugh Marlowe, Joan Taylor and, especially, Morris Ankrum are well-known B-movie actors: they appeared in everything from Westerns to SF, with lots of stops in between. Thus, this film (complete with all the other stalwarts of '50s and '60s "Bs" who appear therein) can be seen as a progenitor of later low-budget productions which rely on a cheap yet capable cast.

At the time it was released (1956), Ray Harryhausen was proving his expertise with stop-motion special effects, later to be given much larger budgets in '60s colour productions. "Gumby" and similar TV items owe much to this man, as does Aardman Productions and, possibly, Dreamworks.

It has already been indicated (by others) that "Mars Attacks" owes its saucers to this film. So, too, "ID4" has a debt, as does "Dr Who"! (Specifically the outfits worn by the aliens - that leaden 'dome' on top of their environment suits belongs to a famous adversary of the good doctor - check out a couple of Tom Baker serials!) Be that as it may, Fred F. Sears does an acceptable job as director; Curt Siodmak supplies a clever screenplay based on Don Keyhoe's book (Keyhoe also wrote 'non-fiction' accounts of UFOs); and some of the dialogue is definitely quotable! IMDb has some ripper examples.

Watch it and enjoy it. Strip some of our contemporary SF of CGI and they really do lack substance in comparison with this entertaining and funny movie. OK. You won't gasp and ooooh. If you have a love of '50s B-movies however, this one is a 'corker'!