外星恶客

Out of the fifties &#39B&#39 Science-Fiction monster movies, this easily ranks as the best. It&#39s most notable as the film that ALIEN is an unaredited remake of, thus giving it a certain historical significance. The intriguing plot is about the rescue of the only marooned survivor (Col. Carruthers) of an ill-fated expedition to Mars. The authorities, pig-headed as usual, falsely assume that he murdered his fellow crew members, so that he&#39d have more provisions to survive hence he is being brought back to Earth to face court-martial for murder. (There is also a somewhat interesting plot reversal here: Most movies of this nature usually begin with the ship leaving Earth, enroute to its otherworld destination, while, in this case, the &quotstory&quot is believed finished, and begins as the characters take-off from the other planet, returning to Earth). As the rescue ship is leaving Mars, a lurking, ominous shadow is sn in the lower compartment. (A frightening, atmospheric moment, aomplished through shr economy and simplicity). Carruthers insists of his innocence to his fellow captors, claiming that his original crew mates were slaughtered by a hostile, unsn presence on the desolute red planet, but thr-guesses as to their reaction to his unusual plea. Naturally, he can&#39t prove it, and 50&#39s space authorities were not very alien conscience at the time. (As a side-thought, &quotunsn menace&quot may remind you of that highly &quotoriginal&quot BLAIR WITCH). As everyone sacks out, a hapless supporting charactor whose name is at the bottom of the casting list (guess what will happen to him?) hears something in the lower compartment. Despite your futile &quotdon&#39t go down there, you jerk!&quot pleas, he does just that, and is appropriately killed (more like thoroughly obliterated) by the shadowy figure with insatiable blood lust on its mind. In the victim&#39s case, dereliction of duty and shr cowardliness would have bn the wise decision. The scene is actually well-directed (for a change) and develops much suspense, as the entire film surprisingly does. The crew finally catches on that they have an unwanted ship crasher on board, and try every possible means at their disposal to eliminate it, but the unknown creature sms to copping an anti-death attitude. Proving to be an even more clever, worthy adversary, &#39IT!&#39 also hides out in the ventilation shafts of the ship (now that should ring a bell). Cahn&#39s forceful direction generates considerable tension as the malevolent stowaway works its way up from one level of the confined ship to the next, eventually leaving the remaining characters trapped at the top. The movie&#39s suspense is blunt and right to the point: &quotIT!&#39 has to kill them or starve, hence they have to kill &quotIT!&quot or die. Nothing like those &quotno two ways about it&quot choices. Rent it, or check for it on cable if you wish to know the outcome. For a low-budget quickie, IT! is quite impressive and memorable. The dreaded sense of claustrophobic tension, rendering the characters&#39 helpless entrapment, is highly effective. This is a production in which the limited budget and small sets actually work in favor of the plot&#39s scary ambience. The black white photography (Yes, it&#39s one of those!) helps to enhance its dark, crpy mood, and the sense of apprehension is quite high. (Modern day color freaks never sm to take that into consideration). The plot is also somewhat cynically ironic: If the creature hadn&#39t stowed away on the ship, Carruthers would have most likely bn found guilty of the charges against him. The intelligent script (s what I mean about &quotrareity&quot) was penned by noted Science-Fiction author Jerome Bixby (remember Twilight Zone&#39s &quotIt&#39s a Good Life&quot)? The picture&#39s taut editing eliminates any extraneous dross. (ALIEN tended to drag in its first hour with its sophomoric dialogue, and why did it have to include that stupid and ultimately counter-productive sub-plot of Ash being a robot, and further dragging the story down to another big bad conspiracy cliche? UNNECESSARY!!!) Director Cahn astutely kps the ruer-suited monster off-scrn and in the shadows through-out most of the procdings, kping your paranoid imagination on constant alert. Unfortunately, perhaps at the studio&#39s commercial insistance, it is a little over-revealed at the climax, but I haven&#39t claimed this to be the perfect masterpiece. The performances, though nothing award-winning, are nevertheless cool enough so that one becomes sincerely concerned as to their fates. Not many movies in recent times ever come close to achieving that. They can be over-produced from here to eternity, and usually only sud in being gloriously annoying. This film&#39s story is not really totally original (what is?), for it is based on A.E. Van Vogt&#39s &quotVOYAGE OF THE SPACE BEAGLE.&quot All ALIEN fanatics should track down an old used copy to s where the initial influence came from. As long as you&#39re not craving another CGI wind-ding, you may find it worthwhile. Just don&#39t expect the women to be Ripley precursors. This was still the sock-knitting fifties, sad to say.