THE EARTH DIES SCREAMING (1964)

THE EARTH DIES SCREAMING (1964)

Tagline: Why Were They Out To Kill Every Living Thing On Earth?

(Sci-Fi, Aliens, Zombies) [PG]

Note: This movie was not given a rating by the MPAA. It would have landed a [PG] or even a [G].

You're kidding yourself, Nolan. What happened earlier this morning, that was no accident. Whoever did it, won the war. All they're got to do is to move in and take over, and then it's every man for himself.

This story revolves around a mechanical alien invasion where some of the dead who were not killed in the gas attack is turned into zombies set on doing the bidding of “The Signal”.  Can the surviving humans led by the courageous Jeff Nolan discover how to defeat their mysterious foe, before THE EARTH DIES SCREAMING? 

One thing I noticed pretty fast in this one is that it’s basically a remake of TARGET EARTH only they threw in a bit of a zombie element. I will say the robot alien designs are good, but if you are going for that, just do the TARGET EARTH thing and give us something goofy. The designs in this movie are decent, but they could have been a bit more fun or a bit more menacing. This movie also has a group of survivors that isn’t entirely likable. Unlike TARGET EARTH, however, this group is a bit braver and willing to take on the threat.  

The acting in this movie is pretty solid. I couldn’t stand some characters, and I really liked others. When that happens and you have a bit of a balance, you have a chance at a great movie on your hands. Willard Parker is solid as Jeff Nolan. He is kind of the heart of this film and for most of it, we are just kind of waiting for him to do something. Fortunately, we are not waiting long. Virginia Field is also good as Peggy Hatton. She isn’t married to Quinn in the movie, but she acts like she is because Quinn convinced her she’d feel safer that way. Thorley Walters plays Edgar and this dude is basically worthless for 99% of this movie. Walters nails the role though, it actually made me wonder if he was drunk while this was being filmed. It doesn’t look like anyone in this movie had any sci-fi experience prior to this flick, but they all do a pretty solid job so I don’t have any complaints.

I am guessing the budget wasn’t mind-blowing, but they do a pretty good job with what they had. The opening sequence is actually pretty haunting just in the sense that we see planes falling from the sky and cars crashing etc. Having said that, the plane falling from the sky actually exposes a plot hole when Jeff starts evaluating why the people that survived the gas attack survived it. There is also a bit of an odd scene where Quinn is trying to escape in a car and stops for gas. Only hardly any of the gas seems to make it into the car, he's just letting it spray all over the place. I don't know if this was meant to show that he was in a panic, or that gas was just so cheap in the 60s, spraying it all over the place didn't really matter that much?  

My thought is that they wanted a bit of a horror feel here so that is how we got the zombie element thrown in, but the movie would have been fine without it. Also, just by today’s standards, the film comes across as slightly goofy rather than scary. Part of the problem is that these robot aliens walk so slowly, you could see one coming from across the parking lot, go see another movie, and come back and stand in the same spot, and the robot alien would still be about halfway to you. It’s the stuff of legends when it comes to sci-fi, just not very horror. 

Overall this is a pretty fun movie with a lot going on in a short amount of time. Even with the 9 minutes of no talking to set the stage, the cheese is meticulous and entertaining. This one gets a 5 out of 7. 

GRAPHICS ARE THE PROPERTY OF LIPPERT FILMS AND ARE USED FOR REVIEW PURPOSES ONLY. 

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