Village of the Giants (1965)

User Rating:

2.6/10   

Director:

Bert I. Gordon

Writers:

H.G. Wells (novel)
Bert I. Gordon (story)
(more)

Release Date:

20 October 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

She's 30 feet tall!

Plot:

Delinquent teens ingest a substance and grow to 30 ft tall, then proceed to take over a small town.

Plot Keywords:

Teen | Miniaturization | Growing | Mod | Shrinking

Cast

Tommy Kirk	...	Mike
Johnny Crawford	...	Horsey
Beau Bridges	...	Fred
Ron Howard	...	Genius (as Ronny Howard)
Joy Harmon	...	Merrie
Robert Random	...	Rick (as Bob Random)
Tisha Sterling	...	Jean
Charla Doherty	...	Nancy
Tim Rooney	...	Pete
Kevin O'Neil	...	Harry
Gail Gilmore	...	Elsa
Toni Basil	...	Red
Hank Jones	...	Chuck
Jim Begg	...	Fatso
Vicki London	...	Georgette
Joe Turkel	...	Sheriff (as Joseph Turkel)
Beau Brummels	...	Themselves / Singers (as The Beau Brummels)
Ron Elliott	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
Ron Meagher	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
Declan Mulligan	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
John Peterson	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
Sal Valentino	...	Himself (as The Beau Brummels)
Freddy Cannon	...	Singer
Mike Clifford	...	Singer
Debi Storm
Rance Howard	...	Deputy
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Orangey	...	Giant Cat (uncredited)
Christopher Riordan	...	Go-Go Dancer (uncredited)

Directed by
Bert I. Gordon

Writing credits
H.G. Wells		(novel "The Food of the Gods")
Bert I. Gordon		(story)
Alan Caillou		(writer)

Produced by
Bert I. Gordon	....	producer

Original Music by
Jack Nitzsche

Cinematography by
Paul Vogel

Film Editing by
John A. Bushelman		(as John Bushelman)

Art Direction by
Franz Bachelin

Set Decoration by
Robert R. Benton		(as Bob Benton)

Makeup Department
Nellie Manley	....	hair styles supervisor
Wally Westmore	....	makeup supervisor

Production Management
Frank Caffey	....	production manager
Curtis Mick	....	assistant production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
James A. Rosenberger	....	assistant director (as Jim Rosenberger)
Carl 'Major' Roup	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Ross Wheat	....	special prop constructor

Sound Department
John R. Carter	....	sound recordist (as John Carter)
Arthur Cornell	....	sound effects (as Jack Cornall)
Charles Grenzbach	....	sound recordist

Special Effects by
Bert I. Gordon	....	special effects
Flora M. Gordon	....	special effects (as Flora Gordon)
Herman E. Townsley	....	special effects (as Herman Townsley)

Camera and Electrical Department
Farciot Edouart	....	process photographer
Thomas Morris	....	camera operator (as Tom Morris)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Leah Rhodes	....	wardrobe supervisor

Music Department
Jack Nitzsche	....	conductor
Charles Paley	....	music editor

Other crew
Toni Basil	....	choreographer
Joseph E. Levine	....	presenter
Marvin Paige	....	talent coordinator
Dorothy Yutzi	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Berkeley Productions
• Embassy Pictures Corporation
• Joseph E. Levine Productions

Distributors

• Embassy Pictures Corporation (1965) (USA) (theatrical)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2005) (USA) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Barris Kustom City  customized hot rod

Runtime:

81 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Pathécolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

Backlot, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company:

Berkeley Productions

Trivia:

The beer that the delinquent teens drink after crashing their car is the once popular Blatz Beer.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: After the giants return to normal size, there is a shot of a man on the courthouse steps, and the shadow of the camera is visible in the bottom left hand corner.

Quotes:

Merrie: That boyfriend of yours is gonna get the daylights beaten out of him. And how do you like that?

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Movie Macabre: Village of the Giants (#4.5)" (1984)

Soundtrack:

When It Comes To Your Love

The Silly Side Of A Land Of Giants

Fun! Fun! Fun! Great Casting! Great Music! Before this film, we had other "Giant Movies", such as The Incredible Shrinking Man, but a recent YouTube viewing of Village Of The Giants has made me wonder if "Village" is the best of the lot. It has a sense of B-Grade fun that is hard to capture on film...without looking too stupid that is. The dance scene alone, with the little boy grabbing the giant girl, makes the film a winner. And note the music for the dance scene...brainwashing music!

Story elements and character names (Genius) and Ron Howard were all shifted into a Land Of The Giants (1968,ABC) episode called...Genius At Work. However, LOTG played it out in a straight faced way that was demanded by producer Irwin Allen. You could say that LOTG is the best straight Giants show ever and "Village" is the best silly/sexy Giants show ever. Both have a place.

Interestingly, probably like other corners of the world, in 1970s Australia, this film was replayed on network TV every year (at midday), but now it is gone from TV, thank god for the DVD release! Attention Hollywood: Don't remake this film today, "Village" is a product of the 1960s, it is about the 1960s mentality and 1960s music, it would not fit in this century.