The Quatermass Xperiment (1955)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Val Guest

Writers:

Richard H. Landau (screenplay) &
Val Guest (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

June 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Beware of "THE CREEPING UNKNOWN!"

Plot:

A missile, launched by the team led by Prof. Quatermass, lands in the English countryside. Of the three members of the crew...

Plot Keywords:

Rocket | Alien | Astronaut | Hospital | Rocket Crash

Cast

Brian Donlevy	...	Prof. Bernard Quatermass
Jack Warner	...	Insp. Lomax
Margia Dean	...	Mrs. Judith Carroon
Thora Hird	...	Rosemary 'Rosie' Elizabeth Rigly
Gordon Jackson	...	BBC TV producer
David King-Wood	...	Dr. Gordon Briscoe (Quatermass' associate)
Harold Lang	...	Christie (man who helps Victor escape)
Lionel Jeffries	...	Blake
Sam Kydd	...	Police sergeant questioning Rosie
Richard Wordsworth	...	Victor Carroon (spaceship crew member)

Also Known As:

Shock
The Creeping Unknown (USA)
The Quatermass Experiment (USA)
X the Experiment (UK) (informal alternative title)

Runtime:

82 min | USA:78 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Italy:T | UK:PG | USA:Unrated | West Germany:12 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Bray Studios, Down Place, Oakley Green, Berkshire, England, UK

Company:

Hammer Film Productions

Trivia:

The British Board of Film Censors had instituted the use of the "X" certificate in 1951 to indicate that certain films had themes that might be too strong or intense for persons under the age of 16. The film's title exploited the fact of receiving this "honor" by the spelling of the word "Xperiment".

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: As Victor stumbles out of bed while his wife sleeps, a crew member is reflected on the glass doors.

Quotes:

Insp. Lomax: Nobody ever wins a cold war.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Bring Something Back: The Making of 'The Quatermass Experiment' (2005) (V)

Quintessential 1950s Sci-Fi

A secret rocket expedition to Space unexpectedly crashes back to Earth. One lone astronaut is found to have survived only he's disheveled, not quite himself as he seems to be on the verge of some bizarre transformation! And what happened to the other two astronauts on board - all that seems to be left of them is two empty spacesuits?! How and why? What and when? A mystery that needs unraveling, a strange journey into unknown previously unexplored territory and a scientist hero named Quatermass whose methods the viewing audience are not always going to be inclined to agree with even if he is in essence correct in his line of thinking on many levels. A likely inspiration for many later film and TV works including THE BLOB, THE FLY, "The X-Files" and much more. Science fiction does not get much better than this film which grips you with its terrific suspense as we see Victor Caroon (played as a tragic and terrifying figure all at once in a terrific performance from Richard Wordsworth) go where no man has gone before in more ways than one might imagine.