ALL SCI-FI

[Bud Brewster]

Arch Oboler, the man responsible for "The Twonky" (that bizarre sci-fi comedy about a walking-talking television set that meddles into the life of its owner) wrote, produced, and directed this somber film about five survivors of a world-devastating nuclear war.



Most of the story is set in Oboler's own house (designed by Frank Lloyd Wright) amidst a bleak desert landscape. However, we never see much of the house's interior, and what little we do see makes it look rustic and simple, in keeping the movie's bleak post-apocalyptic world.

The characters are a varied lot: a mountain climber, a young mother-to-be, an African American, a fatally-ill bank teller, and a disillusioned idealist. The film deals exclusively with their personal interaction as they come to grips with the state of the world; they argue, confide, empathize, discuss, ridicule, and reconcile.



The good in each of the noble characters is brought out by the challenging situation — and the bad is brought out in the less noble one. James Anderson plays a German who soon displays his belief in Arian superior, especially when dealing with Charles Lampkin (small role in Cocoon), an African American who is clearly willing to put the tragedies of racial injustice behind him and work with his fellow survivors to create a new and better society.





Susan Douglas Rubes is the only woman in the group. The hardship is especially difficult for her because she is pregnant and terrified that the radiation which poisons the urban areas will extend to the group's isolated habitat and affect her child.

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William Phipps (one of the first three victims of the Martians in War of the Worlds, the man with the memorable line, "Welcome to California!") owns the house where the others come to seek shelter and companionship.



They form a close cooperative group and struggle to survive, but the German is clearly the fly in the ointment, and we all know that his skewed self-image will eventually cause tragedy.



The story is told with care and patience — as it should be — so if you don't have the temperament for a thoughtful, slow-paced tale of human survival, you should pass on this one. But if you enjoy films like The World, the Flesh, and the Devil (which is a perfect companion for Five), you're in for a great movie experience.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

Wow, eight Photobucket link failures in one new post! Could be a record.
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...or not...

WayneO
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[Robert (Butch) Day]

Bud, most of the pictures are now displaying.
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Common Sense ISN'T Common

[orzel-w]

[Bud Brewster]

i haven't had any trouble with jpegs displaying in the last few days, and I've been posting stuff all day today. I made the post above and then didn't make any changes at Photobucket, so it ain't my fault.

And they're fine now (10:15 pm EST, 2/26/2015), so maybe it has something to do your connection speed.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

[Bud Brewster]

I deleted the former jpegs and reloaded them. Photobucket strikes again . . .

Now, does anybody have an intelligent comment about the movie? Hmmmm?
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Eadie]

After the review I borrowed the movie from Butch. I'll watch it tomorrow and post my comments.

[Bud Brewster]

I look forward to hearing what you thought of it. (Like I said, you run with the big dogs, Eadie. )
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

[Bud Brewster]

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The trailer is somewhat dark, but it's watchable.

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____________________ Five (1951) trailer


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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Okay, all the pictures are Imgur jpegs now. I'm gradually replacing all the damn Photobucket jpegs.

Now, I'll ask again. Does anybody have a comment about this fine movie? Hmmm?
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bogmeister]

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This one was a little better than I remembered when I watched it again recently, with a very serious tone and a literate script. I've read that it's the very first film to depict a post-holocaust scenario, followed later by such cheesy stuff like The Day the World Ended (1956) and other serious ones such as The World, the Flesh, and the Devil (1959).

The very frightening aspect to this one, after the entire concept of most people being dead, is that even with almost no one left, there still are people like the character 'Eric', who can't let go of the more despicable character traits in humanity. He's been described as a 'Nazi,' but that's a simplistic description. He is racist, of course, and also used to lording over others, as well as being catered to.

In the end, he suffers a kind of delusion like most of the other characters, unable to fully grasp what has happened. Only the character 'Michael' seems to absorb all the reality of what's occurred and he's the surest bet for survival.

But survival to what? After he and the woman pass away, whether in 10 years or 30 years, that's it for the human race, eh? Fini. Grim!

FIVE has finally been released on an official DVD (Feb. 3rd, 2009) from Sony, 58 years after the film was released:

BoG's Score: 6.5 out of 10




BoG
Galaxy Overlord Galactus

[Bud Brewster]

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I'm surprised by two things concerning this movie.

The first thing is that I personally like it — despite leaning strongly towards less downbeat movies than this one.

The second thing is that BoG was lukewarm about it, despite being enthusiastic about many other movies that seem to fall into this category. I'm often surprised by what BoG liked and didn't like.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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IMDB has 8 trivia items for this movie. Here’s a few of the ones I found the most interesting, in the blue text.
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~ Filmed in a house called "Cliff House" designed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It was the home of the film's producer/writer/director, Arch Oboler, and sat on his 360-acre ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains along Mulholland Highway. Outdoor scenes were filmed on his property as well as other nearby locations in the Santa Monica Mountains.

Note from me: We never see much of the interior of this Frank Lloyd Wright house, which seems odd in view of the fact that the architecture would have been awesome.

~ According to TCM's Robert Osborne, this is the first feature film to depict the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust.

Note from me: I miss the late Mr. Osborne on TCM. But Ben Mankiewicz has been an admirable replacement.

~ The character of Eric, the bigoted quasi-Nazi, was a good warm-up for actor James Anderson, who would take on his most famous movie role, the monstrous Robert E. Lee Ewell, so memorably in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) more than a decade later.

Note from me: James Anderson has a brief role in I Married a Monster from Outer Space. He wasn't a nice guy in that one, either.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)