Tonight's Movie: It! The Terror From Beyond Space (1958) - A Kino Lorber Blu-ray Review

The '50s sci-fi film IT! THE TERROR FROM BEYOND SPACE (1958) has just been released on Blu-ray as a Kino Lorber Special Edition.

As I've shared here before, I came late to watching '50s sci-fi, but over the last dozen years or so I've seen a significant number of these films. IT! THE TERROR FROM BEYOND SPACE was one I'd not yet caught up with, so it was a pleasure to see it for the first time via Kino Lorber's crisp Blu-ray print. I quite enjoyed it.

The movie takes place in 1973, 15 years after it was released. As the film begins, Col. Carruthers (Marshall Thompson) has been rescued from Mars, where his ship crash-landed. It's not an entirely happy rescue as all of Carruthers' original crewmates have died, and Carruthers is to be court-martialed for their murders.

Carruthers insists that a fearsome being kidnapped and killed his crew. Some of the rescue team members are skeptical,, especially Col. Van Heusen (Kim Spalding), though Ann (Shawn Smith) in particular would like to believe Carruthers' version of events.

And then one of the rescue ship's crew members is killed while Carruthers is with others and clearly couldn't have done it. It quickly becomes apparent that a murderous beast is on the ship, and events spiral from bad to worse as the crew tries to find a way to survive until they reach earth.

This is a very good, efficient (69 minutes!), and suspenseful film which somewhat called to mind THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD (1951). It has a bare bones budget with somewhat cheesy effects, but Jerome Bixby's script does a nice job laying out conflicts, characters, and story; while there's not a great deal of depth, there's just enough there to make for a compelling film.

Most importantly, the actors sell it all, causing the viewer to forget the cheap sets and focus on their peril.

Thompson, who had physically aged considerably in the few years since MGM films like DIAL 1119 (1950), does a good job as the troubled protagonist. Shawn Smith (aka Shirley Patterson), who also appeared in the sci-fi films WORLD WITHOUT END (1956) and THE LAND UNKNOWN (1957), is Ann, the spunky leading lady. But why on earth does Col. Van Heusen nickname Ann "Chicken"?

The highlights of the film for me, even more than the leads, were character acting favorites Ann Doran and Dabbs Greer as married crew members serving on the rescue ship. They do a lot with small gestures to convey unspoken affection and connection.

More importantly, Doran as the ship's doctor is a key crew member, and she's no shrinking violet. She alone conducts the autopsy of the first crew member killed, dealing with a corpse with every bone broken and every bit of liquid removed. And she doesn't bat an eye.

Yes, as with Margaret Sheridan's character in THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD, the women on the ship pour out coffee, but they're also tough characters who make important contributions and don't collapse from fear. Sci-fi films of this era were notable for providing better-than-average roles for women, and that's the case here.

Looking ahead a couple decades, this movie would perhaps help inspire ALIEN (1979), with its strong female lead in Sigourney Weaver.

The movie was directed by Edward L. Cahn and filmed in black and white by Kenneth Peach.

The nice-looking Blu-ray print is from a new 2K scan of the 35mm fine grain.

Kino Lorber's Special Edition comes with reversible cover art and a limited edition cardboard slipcase. The impressive extras include a 45-minute documentary and three (!) separate commentary tracks, by Craig Beam, Gary Gerani, and a joint track with Tom Weaver, Bob Burns, David Schecter, and Larry Blamire. The trailer and a gallery for eight additional films available from Kino Lorber are also included.

Fans of '50s sci-fi will definitely want to add this to their Blu-ray collection.

Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.

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