Invaders from Mars (1953 film)

Still from Invaders from Mars (1953 film), depicting a Martian leader...

Invaders from Mars (1953)

Summary

A curious adolescent boy confronts aliens who have set up base in his backyard, using mind-control on the local townsfolk. Determined to stop the invaders, who have already co-opted his father, the boy attempts to warn others, but when local law officers also succumb, he teams up with an astronomer and a doctor, and the trio must fight together to repel the insidious intruders.

Tobe Hooper filmed a 1986 remake updated to the 1980s, which otherwise follows much the same plot.

Details

• Release Date: 1953
• Country/Language: US, English
• Genres/Technical: Science Fiction, Horror, Fantasy
• Runtime: 1 hr 18 min
• Starring: Helena Carter, Arthur Franz, Jimmy Hunt, Leif Erickson
• Director: William Cameron Menzies
• Writer: Richard Blake (screenplay)
• Producer/Production Co:
• View Trailer: (link)
• IMDb: (link)

Ratings

MPAA Ratings

• Rated: PG (mild Violence)

Tentacle Ratings

A rough measure of how "Lovecraftian" the work is:

• S____ (One Tentacle: Debateably Lovecraftian; has almost no direct connection to Lovecraft's work)

Not particularly Lovecraftian, but an ancient evil from space, buried in a farmer's field where it drags curious victims down into the Earth to alter their brains, could likely find their way into a scenario for a campaign set in the 1950s or any other suitably paranoid time and place. The film also (intentionally) runs on some beautiful dream logic and nightmare imagery, and might make suggest a fun option for a Delta Green version of the Dreamlands.

Note: This rating is not intended as a measure of quality, merely of how closely related to Lovecraftian "Weird" fiction the work is.

Reviews

Review Links:

• Nigel Honeybone at HorrorNews dotnet, (link) - "...The eerie atmosphere was chiefly created by the sets, all of which were subtly distorted, suggesting menace in every angle and shadow.... Invaders From Mars can hardly be described as a great science fiction film, but enough originality went into its making to lift it out of the category of simple schlock...."

Synopsis

 Spoiler Section (Highlight to Read)

A curious adolescent boy confronts aliens who have set up base in his backyard, using mind-control on the local townsfolk. Determined to stop the invaders, who have already co-opted his father, the boy attempts to warn others, but when local law officers also succumb, he teams up with an astronomer and a doctor, and the trio must fight together to repel the insidious intruders.

Notes

Comments, Trivia, Dedication

• There was a 1986 remake of the film with the same name by Tobe Hooper, which follows the same basic plot.

Associated Mythos Elements

• Race: "Mutants"
• Race: Martian leader