THE HIDEOUS SUN DEMON (1958)
Tagline: Thermodynamic horror from outer space!
(Sci-Fi, Horror, Monster By Day) [PG]
Note – This movie did not originally have an MPAA rating, but I think it would land at a PG. For more sensitive people maybe even a PG-13.
No, Gil, you must let us doctors play our games, won't we? We are like acorns, you know? We like to show off.
In this one, a scientist named Gilbert ends up getting exposed to a ton of radiation. Because in the 50s radiation caused everything from acne to being bulletproof, Gilbert inherits the horror of turning into a lizard monster when hit by sunlight. To make matters worse he has a thirst to kill anything in his path, and I mean anything. Can the authorities and doctors find a cure before it’s too late?
First off, for a movie that was panned by critics, this one is actually outstanding. Complete with everything you would want in a 50s sci-fi b-movie, and a couple of things you wouldn’t. I feel like this monster costume for the Sun Demon is one of the better ones in early sci-fi. At the time it cost $500.00 to make, but by today’s standards, that’s about $4,800.
Acting-wise this movie is pretty solid. Robert Clarke plays Dr. Gilbert McKenna the scientist affected by the radiation. Clarke had several sci-fi films under his belt including BEYOND THE TIME BARRIER and THE MAN FROM PLANET X. He was also in the horrifyingly bad FRANKENSTEIN ISLAND. The female lead that gets the most screen time is a woman he is trying to win over named Trudy Osborne who has what seems like some “mob ties” in the film played by Nan Peterson. From what I can tell, this movie was Nan’s first role, but she ended her career acting doing several episodes of THE TWILIGHT ZONE between 1959 and 1964. The rest of the cast is lesser-known, but all seemed to take the film seriously and did a great job. You will read reviews bashing the acting if you continue to research this out, but for 50s b-movie sci-fi, it’s above par.
I loved the atmosphere and pacing in this movie and we don’t get many wasted scenes. It never feels like it’s dragging and no one is shying away from letting you actually see the Sun Demon in daylight. It seems like the crew was proud of this costume. I will say the script is shaky at times. It’s kind of an odd statement to make when you tell Ann (who was trying to help Dr. Gilbert) not to cry, but in the same sentence say perhaps she should cry. I mean – at least throw in a sentence in between that first statement and the second statement just for explanatory reasons. I also don’t think the fact that Dr. Gilbert had an alcohol problem needed to be part of the storyline or his egregious act against a dog in the film, however these elements probably did make the film more controversial at the time. Even by today’s standards, this would probably send the PC crowd into counseling for 5 years.
Oh yeah, in case I didn’t mention it. This movie is not PC at all. If you are looking for something to soothe your sensitive side, look elsewhere.
For me, this was a 5 out of 7. I really liked it overall and the costume was the icing on the cake. I do wish we had gotten a more well-rounded ending but it didn’t hurt the overall concept.
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