The Colossus of New York (1958)

A brilliant surgeon encases his dead son's brain in a large robot body, with unintended results...

Director:

Eugène Lourié (as Eugene Lourie)

Writers:

Thelma Schnee (screenplay), Willis Goldbeck (story)

Stars:

John Baragrey, Mala Powers, Otto Kruger

Cast

Complete credited cast:
John Baragrey	...	Dr. Henry Spensser
Mala Powers	...	Anne Spensser
Otto Kruger	...	Dr. William Spensser
Robert Hutton	...	Dr. John Robert Carrington
Ross Martin	...	Dr. Jeremy 'Jerry' Spensser
Charles Herbert	...	Billy Spensser

Storyline

Jeremy Spensser, genius humanitarian, is killed in an accident just after winning the Nobel Peace Prize. His father William, a brilliant brain surgeon, works on the body in secret before burial; later revealing to his other son Henry that he has the brain on life support and hopes to encase it in a robot body! The resulting being is large, strong, and develops many strange powers. Initially it has Jeremy's gentle personality but this, too, begins to change, and a year later it decides to end its long seclusion... Unusual piano music score.

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Plot Keywords:

brainwave | kaiju | gin martini | psychotronic film | brain | 

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Taglines:

Towering above the skyline ~ an indestructible creature whose eyes rain death and destruction!

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Unrated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally released on a double-bill with The Space Children (1958).

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Goofs

When Jeremy (the Colossus) crashes through the glass wall at the end of the movie, the very next scene there is a woman lying on the floor and the man to the left of her looks down at her. In the scene following, the Colossus starts shooting eye beams. The eye beam then hits the woman, now standing, and she falls to the floor, in the same position.

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Crazy Credits

The opening credits text rises out of New York harbor, as its reflection on the water sinks to the bottom of the screen.

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Connections

Featured in TJ and the All Night Theatre: Colossus of New York + When Worlds Collide (1978)

User Reviews

An underrated atmospheric thriller

The conventional wisdom is that this is a mediocre movie. Yet I find it strangely affecting. A man's brain is placed in a large robotic body, but it's not the usual mad scientist bit. The scientist is a desperate father and the brain belongs to his son (Ross Martin), killed(?) in an automobile accident.

Encased in his robotic body, the son longs to see his own son. These are mad scientists with family values!

The only music in the movie is provided by a lone piano. The motivation for this decision was probably more economical than artistic but Nathan Van Cleave's score echoes the fear and melancholy that permeates the film perfectly.

Not a great film, but one every sci-fi and horror movie fan should see.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

June 1958 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Colossus of New York

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1