The Day the Sky ExplodedA scientific experiment gone leaves the fate of the world hanging in the balance in this sci-fi thriller. The United States, the Soviet Union, and Great Britain join forces to launch a manned space mission, but things go terribly wrong and crew leader John MacLaren (Paul Hubschmid) is forced to abandon ship shortly after blast off. MacLaren safely returns to Earth, but the rocket continues to sail through space, eventually reaching the sun and causing it to break apart. The consequences are immediate and disastrous -- asteroids pummel the planet, Earthquakes and extreme weather conditions tear at the world's major cities, and the world's scientific community bands together in a last-ditch effort to stop the disaster before it's too late. Le Danger Vient de l'Escape (released in the United States as The Day The Sky Exploded features top-notch cinematography from European horror legend Mario Bava. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Unknown WorldAssembled by the same production team responsible for the minor sci-fi classic Rocketship X-M, Unknown World isn't quite in the same league as its predecessor. The plot is set in motion by Dr. Jeremiah Morley (
Victor Kilian), who theorizes that mankind could save itself during a nuclear attack by resettling far beneath the earth's surface. To prove his theory, Morley builds the Cyclotram, a combination drill and exploratory vehicle, with the financial assistance of playboy Wright Thompson (
Bruce Kellogg), who insists upon joining the expedition to the earth's core. After several hair-raising adventures, the Cyclotram and its surviving passengers reach a cavern nearly 2000 miles beneath the surface. The cavern contains all the necessities of survival save one: the atmosphere renders anyone living within its walls sterile. Deciding that it isn't worth hiding in the center of the earth if only one generation will survive, the explorers endeavor to get back to the surface -- but who will survive this journey? The obligatory female lead in Unknown World is played by
Marilyn Nash, who'd been discovered by
Charlie Chaplin for the 1947 film Monsieur Verdoux. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Phantom from SpacePhantom from Space is a far better film than its lurid title and skintight budget would indicate. The scene is Santa Monica, where the community is plagued by what seems to be a serial killer. Thanks to a pre-credits sequence, the audience knows that the murderer is a visitor from outer space, who becomes invisible upon shedding his spacesuit. Government agent Hazen (
Ted Cooper) teams with LAPD lieutenant Bowers (
Harry Landers) to track down the extraterrestrial fugitive. It gradually develops that the space man is not a predator, merely a very frightened and defensive individual, but by the time this realization is made, it's too late for him. Efficiently directed by
W. Lee Wilder (
Billy's brother), Phantom from Space boasts some very impressive special effects for a film of its type, courtesy of special-effects technician Alex Welden and optical effects specialist
Howard Anderson. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Crash of the MoonsCrash of Moons consists of three half-hour episodes from the mid-1950s science fiction TV show Rocky Jones, Space Ranger.
Richard Crane stars as Jones, spaceship commander for the United Worlds.
Scotty Beckett costars as obligatory comedy relief Winky, while
Maurice Cass is Professor Newton and shapely
Sally Mansfield is navigator Veda. The 39 Rocky Jones episodes were constructed cliffhanger style, enabling the producers to reissue them as 13 ersatz "feature films". Per its title, Crash of Moons concerns two inhabited planets which seem inexorably headed for an apocalyptic collision. The film boasts some impressive special effects-impressive, that is, by 1950s TV standards. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
