The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)

Director:

Jack Arnold

Writers:

Richard Matheson (screenplay)
Richard Matheson (novel)
(more)

Release Date:

April 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Almost beyond the imagination . . . A strange adventure into the unknown ! [UK Theatrical]

Plot:

Whe Scott Carey begins to shrink because of exposure to a combination of radiation and insecticide, medical science is powerless to help him.

Plot Keywords:

Cat | Insecticide | Spider | Cellar | Giant Spider

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Grant Williams	...	Scott Carey
Randy Stuart	...	Louise Carey
April Kent	...	Clarice
Paul Langton	...	Charlie Carey
Raymond Bailey	...	Doctor Thomas Silver
William Schallert	...	Doctor Arthur Bramson
Frank J. Scannell	...	Barker (as Frank Scannell)
Helene Marshall	...	Nurse
Diana Darrin	...	Nurse
Billy Curtis	...	Midget
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Lock Martin	...	Giant (scenes deleted)
John Hiestand	...	KIRL TV newscaster (uncredited)
Joe La Barba	...	Joe (milkman) (uncredited)
Orangey	...	Butch the Cat (uncredited)
Regis Parton	...	Bit part (uncredited)
Luce Potter	...	Violet (uncredited)

Directed by
Jack Arnold

Writing credits
Richard Matheson		(screenplay)
Richard Matheson		(novel "The Shrinking Man")
Richard Alan Simmons		uncredited

Produced by
Albert Zugsmith	....	producer

Original Music by
Irving Gertz		(uncredited)
Earl E. Lawrence		(uncredited)
Hans J. Salter		(uncredited)
Herman Stein		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Ellis W. Carter

Film Editing by
Albrecht Joseph		(as Al Joseph)

Art Direction by
Robert Clatworthy
Alexander Golitzen

Set Decoration by
Russell A. Gausman
Ruby R. Levitt

Costume Design by
Jay A. Morley Jr.
Martha Bunch		(uncredited)
Rydo Loshak		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Joan St. Oegger	....	hair stylist
Bud Westmore	....	makeup artist
Jack Kevan	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Lew Leary	....	unit manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
William Holland	....	assistant director

Art Department
Floyd Farrington	....	props (uncredited)
Ed Keyes	....	props (uncredited)
Whitey McMahon	....	props (uncredited)
Roy Neel	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Leslie I. Carey	....	sound
Robert Pritchard	....	sound

Special Effects by
Charles Baker	....	special effects (uncredited)
Fred Knoth	....	special effects (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Everett H. Broussard	....	optical effects
Roswell A. Hoffmann	....	optical effects (as Roswell A. Hoffman)

Camera and Electrical Department
Clifford Stine	....	special photography
Tom McCrory	....	special photography (uncredited)
William Walling	....	still photographer (uncredited)

Music Department
Joseph Gershenson	....	music supervisor
Harris Ashburn	....	music supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Universal International Pictures (UI) (as Universal-International)

Distributors

• Universal Pictures (1957) (USA) (theatrical)
• Ultra Pictures Corporation (1964) (USA) (theatrical) (as "A Universal-International Reissue")
• MCA Home Video (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Universal Pictures (Spain) (2006) (Spain) (DVD)
• Väinän Filmi (1957) (Finland) (theatrical)
• MCA/Universal Home Video (USA) (laserdisc)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1993) (Finland) (TV)
• Universal Pictures Finland Oy (2006) (Finland) (DVD)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1980) (Finland) (TV)

Runtime:

81 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Spain:T | Australia:G | Finland:K-16 | USA:Passed | West Germany:12 | Sweden:15

Company:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Trivia:

Scott Carey's cat was played by feline actor Orangey, according to the book "Hollywood Cats".

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Look carefully when Scott is running from the cat and from the spider. In the close-up shots Scott has a shadow. In the distant shots he has no shadow because he wasn't really there, he was just placed on top of the film!

Quotes:

[closing soliloquy narration]
Scott Carey: I was continuing to shrink, to become... what? The infinitesimal? What was I? Still a human being? Or was I the man of the future? If there were other bursts of radiation, other clouds drifting across seas and continents, would other beings follow me into this vast new world...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Muppet Babies: The Incredible Shrinking Weirdo (#4.3)" (1987)

Soundtrack:

The Incredible Shrinking Man Theme

Thoughtful Sci-Fi

Instead of the typical blood and gore screaming sensationalism of many 1950s sci-fi films, this is an amazingly well thought-out film that is underplayed and even philosophical.

There are some amusing moments in the film, such as when we discover Scott in a dollhouse, but much of the story is handled seriously -- the topics of being different, surviving in an unsympathetic world, crass commercialism, and loneliness are well portrayed.

The theme of the film is what is really amazing. Despite the rather schlocky title, we are given a view of humanity's place in the universe. The final sequence is an imaginative portrait of the balance between the macrocosm and the microcosm.

The film is more than it first appears. Definitely see this one.