1950s Science Fiction: It Came From This Island Earth

[@Stewart118Tyler]

The 50s really was legitimately a golden age of sci-fi. So many gems.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Yep and we built on them in subsequent decades.

[@richardzelenka9437]

These are in my top ten. I love 50's 60's science fiction. I rewatched, "It came from outer space," As you said, it is deeper than average.

[@terrytalksmovies]

I like all eras of SF movies. Quality will stand out regardless of the decade.

[@jeffmartin1026]

Two very enjoyable films. I've watched each of them multiple times - not my all-time favorites but always worth a viewing if I run across them on TV.

[@terrytalksmovies]

I feel the same about The Core. Every now and then I have to watch it.

[@rgmax6205]

You nailed it with these two. Both are in my top 5 of 50s Sci-Fi. I never get tired of watching them. I like It came from Outer Space a little more. It has a great plot, interesting desert scenes and the scene at the Sheriff’s office really hits. Great job on this one.

[@terrytalksmovies]

The joshua tree as alien thing motif works, too.

[@brettcoster4781]

Two great films to kick off this series. I have the same Blu-ray as you, a DVD copy of It Came from Outer Space, and I frequently watch them. It's an excellent idea you've started so I'm looking forward to later episodes.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Thanks for the feedback, Brett. I think up these things and throw them out there but until I get an echo, I don't really know if they work. 😀

[@brianartillery]

"If you're smart, you'll get this whole area sealed off... Until we know what we're up against." I have watched both of these movies, dozens of times - and they still entertain me. Not many more modern films do that. Films from a time when people could actually write beautiful dialogue - ICFOS has the Sheriff's classic, and oft sampled '92°' speech, and Frank the linesman's flesh-crawlingly creepy (and accompanied by a disquieting keening tone way down in the audio mix) "You see a lot of things out in the desert" speech. In 'TIE', Exeter explaining the Interociter, and later, the war with Zahgon, are so beautifully written, you believe every word. Great movies, that I am glad nobody has attempted to reboot. Cheers, Terry, it was nice to meet some old friends again. Tidy. 👍👍👍

[@terrytalksmovies]

I have a theory that the Metalunans started the war with Zegon and Zegon beat their arses. The leaders on Metaluna don't strike me as brave freedom fighters.

[@stephenmccue2793]

I saw a special 3D version of It Came From Outer Space at the picture house maybe 1975. Got a pair of the old 3D glasses to watch it with. The shot with the helicopter seemingly landing on top of you was impressive. Fab movie, great aliens and movie effects. This Island Earth is also a brilliant sci fi movie. Loved the idea of the interrociter lol.

[@terrytalksmovies]

I love the interocitor design. It looked just alien enough to sell the concept.

[@ErwinGiesemann]

I always love that one alien disguises itself as Barbara Rush in a fabulous cocktail dress.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Why wouldn't you? It's a lovely frock.

[@DavidTSmith-jn5bs]

Those two films bring back so many memories! I first saw them on Saturday afternoons on "Creature Features" and other shows that adopted their format. They fit right in with "It! The Terror from Beyond Space" and "Fhe Time Travellers." The Quatermass films were also fun to watch, especially "Quatermass and the Pit/5 Million Years to Earth."

[@terrytalksmovies]

The Quatermass Films were fun, though I'm not a fan of Brian Donlevy as the prof. Too dumb and shouty.

[@creech54]

Excellent SF Sat.! Two of my favorite '50s sci-fi movies! Another great dialog sequence in ICFOS is when the Sherrif talks about how more murders are committed at ninety-two degrees Fahrenheit than any other temperature. This idea was later expanded into the short story "Touched with Fire ".

[@terrytalksmovies]

Yep but the sherrif needed anger management training and needed to accept that Ellen had a fiancee.

[@taker68]

I think the interociter is just a TV with a triangle screen. And a laser gun. Saw both of these as a kid and later on. Solid 50s sci-fi. Great stories even if the heroes are a bit square jawed.

[@terrytalksmovies]

It was also a surveillance device and a Skype machine. 😀

[@peterkarargiris4110]

I remember first seeing I.C.F.O.S in the 70s and being more startled by the Joshua Tree that Ellen screams at than by the reveal of the aliens true form. I re-watched the bluray recently and my only slight regret was that the aliens lacked emotions. I know this was typical for the time but imagine if they displayed sadness at the loss of their people. Not until the Star Trek T.O.S episode 'Devil In the Dark' (to the best of my knowledge) did we get a truly emotionally touching alien. Great movie - a true classic ! This Island, Earth I saw again a few years ago at a late-night cinema screening with Creature From the Black Lagoon and War of the Worlds - loved it. Cheers Terry.

[@terrytalksmovies]

The joshua tree motif was great. It shows that the desert is an alien place to colonisers. It really worked to enhance the mood.

[@palmercolson7037]

I don't think the aliens were supposed to be seen as unemotional. I think they were annoyed and fearful as their leader said close to the end of the movie. We were just the weird (and disgusting?) looking and overly emotional primitive aliens that they didn't want to deal with.

[@denniskristos3800]

Not very often does a content creator let you see Interruption notices much less a descriptive passage of said interruption superimposed over the ongoing vid. I got a chuckle outta that part, Terry. Domestic terrorist canine, huh? That's about the way I'd describe my chow hound dachshund, (RIP) who, would steal and scarf down slices of pizza off the coffee table (if the box or plate, more often than not, was left unattended). Movie nights and birthdays, always proved to be a challenge for the family. .. lol BTW, good observations on both films and I agree, they are films are golden age and fun to watch Sci-Fi chestnuts.

[@terrytalksmovies]

I thought I'd keep the camera going. Sarah was okay with it. Sometimes you need to let randomness into a video. It can work in favour of the whole piece. 😀

[@alphawoolf5981]

This Island Earth is just a travelogue honestly. The heroes go through it all and they do nothing. It's essentially an amusement ride. They solve the interossiter puzzle and then go on an adventure, the saucer returns them to earth, and that's it lol. And yet I like it. It's also notable for an appearance by Coleman Francis (The Beast of Yucca Flats, The Skydivers, Red Zone Cuba) playing the delivery man of the exotic parts.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Yep. Travelling all that way to be told "Too late!" is a let down.

[@simonxag]

The "heroes" are not the heroes. Cal is an educated fool, bribed with expensive toys to make monstrous weapons: the journalists in the 1st scene are wise to him and point it out by asking sharp questions; he snaps up the bait offered to him like the dumbest fish in the pond. Though Domergue nails her "women men don't see" academic, it's Morrow's Exeter who's the tragic hero. Exeter tries to do his duty and to do the right thing and is painfully aware that the 2 are not the same. He explains his position to a glibly moralizing Cal and points out that he gained his understanding from Earth - hint to the audience that what is being discussed is not outer space. Later he begs the 2 humans to not judge Metaluna from what it is but what it has and could be. He lies that an invasion of Earth would be peaceful and consensual (because it's his duty and because he wants to believe it), but the lie is obvious to all and he can't help but be aware of this. Finally he finds himself alone with no place left in the universe. The (not very accurate) interstellar setting is used to put the audience in the position of islanders caught in a conflict between ruthless superpowers: it doesn't look much like a conflict between good and evil, but a tragedy where fools like Cal and even good men like Exeter just create to destroy.

[@jackfriend4u]

@@simonxag very nicely put.

[@daveroche6522]

This Island Earth was/remains quite enjoyable - however the MST3K version is beyond epic - always a treat to rewatch.

[@terrytalksmovies]

MST3K is better mocking bad films than stomping on good ones.

[@MichaelRowe-cv3oq]

Greetings from the UK...Two of my all time fave Science Fiction films,I've had them both on dvd for many a year.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Thanks, Michael. Enjoy the last of your summer, mate.

[@dantreuthart9146]

Every now and then I enjoy rewatching these two movies. Thanks for the reviews. I'm looking forward to seeing "Der Rest ist Schweigen" (The Rest is Silence, West German 1959) at our local theater The Dryden. After the screening there is a discussion with Senior Curator Peter Bagrov.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Nice! I hope you enjoy it.

[@guy_incognito]

This Island Earth has a full Bluray HD Transfer. Unfortunately it is cropped to widescreen -- which involves zooming in on the original 4:3 transfer, thus degrading the resolution. However, the original 4:3 transfer in HD is available as a separate feature. The HD Transfer is excellent and reveals lots of delicious detail of the planet surface and the alien spaceships. The disc I have (Region 1) has lots of additional features. The production process was over two years, probably due to the extensive lab work (the explosions, for example, appear to be colour separations) but the colour photography and VFX are way above the standard B movie of the time. The Monitor on Metalunar is played by Scotty from The Thing -- so much for "watching the skies".

[@terrytalksmovies]

The blu-ray I have looks good, and TBH I'm happy with that.

[@philtonge7522]

Nice! 'This Island Earth' is always lovely to revisit. And I'll have to rewatch 'It Came From Outer Space' after all these years. Fun Fact: the UK band The Very Things sampled the dialogue from the latter film on their first album 'The Bushes Scream While My Daddy Prunes'. Keep up the good work Terry!

[@terrytalksmovies]

Will do. Thanks for the support. 😀

[@Laceykat66]

New set? Looks good. Good review of It Came From Outerspace, though I always laugh at how the aliens take over the bodies of the men and put them in work clothes but when they take over Barbra Rush they have her in a strapless cocktail dress with earrings. Very practical to repair interstellar spaceships. I laugh at that every time. This Island Earth, which I never saw until the Blockbuster Video era, is another great example of a movie that took the title of the original story and little else. The "Based on" should be changed to "inspired by." I agree with you that the "romance" was totally tacked on and if Hollywood was different back then they would have scrapped this story altogether. In fact, our hero, Cal, never actually "saves" the damsel in distress at any time in the movie. A lot of science fiction films in the 1950s actually had strong female characters who were more than secretaries and were expected to DO things to move the story along. This is not one of these films, unfortunately. Good job as usual and I look forward to your next SciFi Saturday.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Thanks! The Barbara Rush cocktail dress was weird but it did look evocative when she was standing on the rock in the desert with the wind blowing. This Island Earth has more flaws but it still hits as a classic example of the genre in the 50s.

[@Laceykat66]

@@terrytalksmovies I agree I wish I could rock the outfit Barbra wore. It was just so out of place in the desert not to mention the practical outfits the men were in. That is Hollywood. It was like they were married to put the women in work clothes even while admitting they worked. Great job as usual. See you next week if not sooner.

[@brewstergallery]

It the Terror from beyond space please. Great show thank you,

[@terrytalksmovies]

Already did it a while back. 😀

[@sepalot100]

This Island Earth is my All Time Favourite SciFi-Flick! As of all I know the talented Milicent Patrick who designed the Creature from the Black Lagoon, created the Metaluna Mutant also.

[@terrytalksmovies]

I'm so glad Millicent is getting her dues these days. Belated but well-deserved.

[@keithf_]

Two terrific 1950s movies here, Terry. 'This Island Earth' - WOW, you began your science fiction cinema journey with a very good example of the genre. As I recall, I'd seen a fair few 1950s science fiction movies - some great, some lousy - before I saw TIE. When i first saw it I wasnt rxprcting a classic, but only a few mins in I'd already bern wowed by the quality visuals on offer. IMO, TIE is one of thr best half dozen or so science fiction movies of the 1950s, and what a great drcade it was for science fiction cinema. You see, there were actually some good things to come out of the McCarthy era 😉

[@terrytalksmovies]

There so much iconic stuff in TIE. It still lands because of those things. The only clanger is Meachum mentioning god to the aliens.

[@jackfriend4u]

your wish to see a fan cut of "It Came from Outer Space" reminds me of my desire to see the whole "William Hurt turned into an ape-man" section of "Altered States" removed. Just set it up and show the aftermath! but "showing it" actually does nothing for the film in pace, plot advancement or creating any kind of added mystery...cool make-up effects notwithstanding.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Altered States is wonderfully silly. I didn't mind the apeman bit but we each have things that annoy the shit out of us in movies.

[@richardpalmer9794]

I had a small 8mm reel of clips from It Came from Outer Space. Now I have the 3d Blu-ray. The 3d is not subtil which I think is great. If you have 3d, you want it to be noticed. It makes a good double feature with Creature from the Black Lagoon in 3d.

[@terrytalksmovies]

I'm not really in love with 3D. It never adds enough to be worth the hype.

[@bgarvey21]

Thanks for a great Idea Terry, I think I will watch both of these again tomorrow. I recently just bought the 4K of It Came from Outer Space and it is a nice upgrade from the Blu-Ray. By the Way I really enjoy your car videos keep up the great work.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Will do. There's a fourth car video that will be out on the channel in a week. 😀

[@m9078jk3]

I noticed a colorized version of It came from Outer Space for sale on my Amazon Fire TV so I bought it and am watching it. I do have the original on DVD

[@terrytalksmovies]

I don't think it needed to be colourised but it doesn't piss me off that it was.

[@jpotter2086]

Two masterpieces from a loaded decade! A region free player is a must anywhere. Licensing w/o borders, now!

[@terrytalksmovies]

Yep. I'm happy that 4K doesn't have those issues.

[@joseluisherreralepron9987]

Both of these have long been favorites. I first saw them both in 1980 on TV. A little local station would show double features on Saturday mornings. The Blu Rays for both are great. I have a 3-D set and ICFOS is just a joy in 3-D and it has the 3-track stereo interlock soundtrack which is a real hoot TIE has a gorgeous Technicolor transfer from Shout and has the Perspecta soundtrack, which I actually find kind of distracting and irritating and usually watch it in mono instead. It's a triumph of pulp imagination for sure.

[@terrytalksmovies]

I think my coffee of TIE may be the Shock Factory transfer. The space scenes look REALLY good.

[@ClutchCargo001]

I saw TIE and Outer Space many times on weekend SF TV venues. And while they were fun, even at 10 years old, I knew these were near misses. Good, but not War of the Worlds, Body Snatchers, Forbidden Planet, Earth Stood Still, Shrinking Man, Thing From Another World good.

[@terrytalksmovies]

They're honest movies and that Bradbury dialogue in ICFOS is equal to any in 1950s science fiction cinema.

[@ClutchCargo001]

@@terrytalksmovies Yes, they're pretty good. I just rewatched both recently myself. But they rarely make any top 10 list of 50's sci fi. So, you just like them a tiny bit more than I. But they are NOT top grade 50s sci fi. They fit comfortably with Tarantula, The Blob, The Fly, and the Deadly Mantis.

[@JohnMinehan-lx9ts]

The neat thing about This Island Earth is that "Hank Kimball" form Green Acres played the assistant for Cal Meachum. It was a good movie, it had a sort of realistic take on science fiction has a kind of "good people facing a real challenge" vibe (sort of like The High and the Mighty or Island in the Sky).

[@terrytalksmovies]

Same with movies like The Monolith Monster.

[@steveosteveareno2670]

It's commonly difficult for me to comment , as to say " oh yeah, I've seen that". I don't want to be that guy. I always enjoy your commentary,my brother from a southern hemisphere mother.😊

[@terrytalksmovies]

Glad to have you part of the gang, Steve. Take care, stay well.

[@williamthompson286]

Terry I must apologize.The TV movie I was thinking of is Night Slaves directed by Ted Post. It was based on a novel by Jerry Sohl. Like, It Came From Outer Space, towns people are used as labourers to fix an alien space ship.🛸

[@terrytalksmovies]

These days, they'd use an app to hire day workers.

[@tobyhines7587]

Hello Terry another good one I recently streamed it came from outer space Barbara rush looks fantastic in her evening gown. Also I like this island earth I'll watch that again soon. Just for info I like looking at your movie collection I I see you have the Flint movies I really like those I remember watching them in the 60s I thought he was the coolest. I'm using talk to text sorry for the run on sentences.

[@terrytalksmovies]

That's okay, Toby. The Flint movies are groovy. A Bond pastiche that creates its own style and ambience is kinda rare and Coburn had all the charisma.

[@borusa32]

Two of my favourites.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Great choices. I think I did well for the first in the series.

[@williamwilson5127]

Terry, if you are in the market for an Interociter, buy the real thing... don't waste your money on one of those models. They are the handiest thing for intergalactic communication.

[@terrytalksmovies]

I have enough problems with intraplanetary communication. I'd settle for an interocitor which was a 4K video projector with a turntable, a 4K player and maybe a decent internet connection.

[@jackfriend4u]

"he's got a big telescope in his backyard"... if i had a dollar for every time some guy tried that line on me, hehe!

[@terrytalksmovies]

You need guys with better lines. They should at least make an effort. 😀

[@latenightdoublefeaturepict2048]

Great vid - love both of these films - especially It Came From Outer Space 😊

[@terrytalksmovies]

It Came From Outer Space is definitely the better of the two.

[@latenightdoublefeaturepict2048]

@@terrytalksmoviesagreed - I watched Fiend Without A Face again recently- I guess a horror/scifi hybrid? Cheesy but fun!

[@pipe2devnull]

Part of the Russell Johnson film festival.

[@terrytalksmovies]

It won't be a long one...

[@gorymarty56]

I love these movies

[@terrytalksmovies]

Both extremely groovy films.

[@rondemkiw4492]

All the aliens in THIS ISLAND EARTH look like Gough Whitlam.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Gough was an alien space god.

[@JohnMinehan-lx9ts]

The Aliens are following the "Prime Directive."

[@terrytalksmovies]

The Prime Directive is a really bad piece of policy. Aliens died because of it.

[@alastairward2774]

I didn't think I'd seen It Came From Outer Space but all of a sudden the scene where someone insists on seeing the aliens face to face is very familiar. I've probably seen This Island Earth by itself but again all I can recall is the MST3K release.

[@terrytalksmovies]

The MST3K version does a disservice to TIE. It's too good a film to be used like that.

[@captlazer5509]

Love the look of This Island Earth, too. Plot wise it's all over the map. Exeter zaps prof Carlson for no reason, what's Carlson going to say to the authorities? I was forced to help aliens. Would have been nice to see more of the Metaluna and Zagon war. Likely the Zagons were the good aliens. The ending never made sense for me either, Exeter ditches his spaceship into the ocean because he's out of fuel and he is not feeling well. I think he didn't want to be an Area 51 lab rat or go prison and his technology ending up in the wrong hands. Ah, lots of plot holes to love!

[@terrytalksmovies]

I agree. The Zagons were probably the goodies.

[@shawnskinner1979]

Hi, great video as always Terry! Quick question, I just researched and wrote a blog about The Commitments 1991. Aparently the soundtrack album was a massive hit in Australia and looking at the sales figures 1 in every 50 Australians bought the album. My question is, Do you see a lot of Commitments dvds and cds in the op shops you visit? 😊

[@terrytalksmovies]

Not that I noticed but then I'm not looking for them, either.

[@modernrelic7092]

"They didn't want our precious resources." Are you sure? They could have come for our precious bodily fluids.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Sex workers would oblige for a price.

[@modernrelic7092]

@@terrytalksmovies lol 😂

[@JohnMinehan-lx9ts]

Caesar has a lesson for us all . . . .

[@terrytalksmovies]

Caesar is a good doggo.

[@JohnMinehan-lx9ts]

One of the stories that make up The Martian Chronicles talks about a Mexican American farmer who is a colonist on Mars talking about the Martian Desert compared to the desert in the US. So that seems to be something that appealed to Bradbury. Jack Arnold did a lot of good science fiction films but he also did The Mouse That Roared, one of Peter Sellers's best US films.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Arnold also did some great episodes of 1960s TV shows.

[@m.e.3862]

I remember the first time I saw This Island Earth and recognized the footage of the ship blasting asteroids and docking at the ruined planet from an episode of Wonder Woman. I guess they had the rights to use that footage and repurposed it for the show. Also you could get M.A.G.G to craft a mini Interociter to put in a shadow box for display in the man cave 🙂

[@terrytalksmovies]

Episodic TV in the 70s and 80s was shameless about using footage from better works. The studio owned the rights, so they snipped the out and used them.

[@ClutchCargo001]

@@terrytalksmovies Why re-invent the wheel? They owned it, they re-used it , more people got to see it.

[@Skaramine]

Looking up some dates, I can see the origin of the Martian Manhunter concept in It Came From Outer Space. J'onn first appeared in 1955, two years later, and a shape-shifting alien unintentionally stranded on Earth, and making do with the situation. J'onn was initially uglier, well, thicker of brow, a hatchet nose and other frightening features, before his existence became known. The 50s really were a gold mine where some of my favorite characters came from.

[@Skaramine]

The cynic in me laughing at Exe fitting into Georgia with his fivehead.

[@Skaramine]

I like this format.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Thanks!

[@steveosteveareno2670]

You're describing my uncles! 😊

[@Skaramine]

@@steveosteveareno2670 oops!

[@christyler6920]

If you have never seen "Mystery Science Theatre 3000 the Movie" then do yourself a favor. The movie they "talk over" in the movie is 'This Island Earth' and it's hilarious. And although I LOVE 50's sci-fi movies, This Island Earth deserves this treatment. It's so po-faced and characterless. Might not be your cup of tea, but I love it.

[@terrytalksmovies]

I first saw MST3K in the nineties. It's hit and miss for me. 😀

[@fredblonder7850]

This Island Earth was the first movie (or anything else) to portray aliens with enlarged heads.

[@terrytalksmovies]

What about The Thing (1952?)

[@fredblonder7850]

@@terrytalksmovies The Thing’s head is not disproportionately large compared to the rest of its body.

[@terrytalksmovies]

Okay, 1953 Invaders From Mars.

[@JohnMinehan-lx9ts]

"if you were really a scientist, you would have had a camera . . . ."

[@terrytalksmovies]

and a slide rule.

[@Nedski42YT]

While watching TTM talking about these two movies something went ding in my head and I checked out a scene in another 1950's science fiction movie. "It Came From Outer Space" and "This Island, Earth" and "Earth vs. the Flying Saucers" all have scenes with the hero and heroine driving in a car while the alien(s) fly over them and scare the poop out of them. I wonder how many other movies have scenes like this? I'm pretty sure that several episodes of "Adventures of Superman" TV series have scenes like that. Whatcha think? 🤔

[@terrytalksmovies]

Dunno. I think we can get caught up in triviality when, for me at least, it's more fun to look at the broader picture of what this says about the culture that created the movie.

[@Nedski42YT]

@@terrytalksmovies Culture is for yogurt. Agree to disagree! 🤪

[@jackfriend4u]

what was that desert that seemed to turn up again and again in films of this period?...its beautiful and hopefully not since become some sort of suburban tract1

[@terrytalksmovies]

Mojave Desert. It's still there.

[@JohnMinehan-lx9ts]

Well, they were trying to end someone's war . .. . .

[@terrytalksmovies]

Unless they started the war. I don't think Metaluna was the good planet.

[@richardhart9204]

Does anyone here know the, Normal View, song?

[@terrytalksmovies]

Not me. 😯

[@richardhart9204]

@@terrytalksmovies Do a KZbin search for. - MST3K normal view.

[@moknbyrd]

With today's tech, someone should be able to create a functioning Interocitor screen. (

[@terrytalksmovies]

They won't because most movies look really shitty in a triangular format. 😀

[@PuncherOfAbs]

The water scenes from the creature from the black lagoon is like a ballet dance with a timid male dancer is trying to get close to a female .... but to shy. I could picture to swans doing it and every time the female turns to look at male. The male swan tucks his face under his feathers.

[@terrytalksmovies]

It's real quality.