THE BLOB (1958)

THE BLOB (1958)

Tagline: The management of this theatre disclaims any responsibility for heart attacks or damage to nerves.

(Horror, Sci-Fi) [PG]

Dave, look at me! Do I look like somebody's playing a practical joke? Am I laughing, or am I scared stiff?

It should be noted, that this movie does not currently have a rating on it. I gave it a PG based on what I think it might have been rated if it came out today. When I started watching this I fully expected it to be in black and white, but instead, it was in full color which was awesome. I mean, both are awesome, but it’s nice to know there is a color version of this out there.

In this thing, an alien object lands from outer space. An older gentleman that lives on the outskirts of town can’t leave it alone and discovered some moving goo inside. The blob starts moving about town and attacks at will since it cannot be killed, I mean trust me, they tried Trichloracetic acid, essentially the same acidic power of vinegar, fire, and bullets, what else is there? Steve Andrews (another 28-year-old teenager from a 50’s Sci-Fi movie) and Jane Martin his girlfriend are the only ones in town that seem to know what’s really going on. They have to battle with the cops who sincerely believe that Steve and Jane are pulling an elaborate prank as well as time. Can the town band together to destroy this growing menace?

Let me first say I fully respect that THE BLOB is a full-blown classic. It’s even got its own theme song where they talk about how awesome the blob is before we even know what it is. Pacing wise for its day this movie is on par with any and there are some pretty cool effects for the blob itself. It looks like a candy factory had a gel tube leaking or something. It’s pretty effective and they even added red dye to the blob itself as the film moved along to indicate it had eaten more people. What the movie really isn’t however is scary or atmospheric in the classic sense. They seem to have traded that in for the cast which is very solid.
 

Steve McQueen played Steve Andrews who is kind of a lady's man that needed to be put in his place. As I mentioned earlier McQueen was 28 years old playing this role but he’s playing a teenager. Steve actually looked quite a bit older than 28 probably due to being a smoker. Jane Martin is played by actress Aneta Corsaut who was 25 at the time, yeah, she’s also supposed to be a teenager. In fact, every teen in this damn movie probably wasn’t a teen. Aneta Corsaut is probably most famous for being Helen Crump on “The Andy Griffith Show” but was also a regular on “Matlock” and “Days Of Our Lives”. 

One thing I really liked about this film was the soundtrack. Some movies from the era can be a bit grinding sound effects and soundtrack-wise, this feature isn’t loaded with electric nightmare-sounding spaceships, ear grinding robots noises, or mad scientist labs with that weird-sounding machine in it. What is that thing? This movie is straightforward and easy on the ears. 

This is a flick I wish I owned and may still buy, but there are some better movies from the era out there. Overall I have to give this one a 5 out of 7. I do wish we had gotten to see a second installment because it almost feels like this movie was setting up for one. It is said the movie ultimately made $40 million dollars altogether on a $240,000 budget. 

GRAPHICS ARE THE PROPERTY OF TONYLYN PRODUCTIONS INC. AND ARE USED FOR REVIEW PURPOSES ONLY. 

Please check out the link below by clicking on the picture. Because no one should die buttonless.