- Directed by Edgar G. Ulmer
- Written by Aubrey Wisberg, Jack Pollexfen
- Stars Robert Clarke, Margaret Field, Raymond Bonx
- Run Time: 1 Hour, 11 Minutes
- Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTyfzd-sg3A
- Get it from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3FiB6t9
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
This is mainly a classic example of early 1950s science fiction, but it’s got some horror elements with alien scares, peril from space, and conniving humans. It’s certainly dated, but that adds to the fun. We enjoyed the watch.
Spoilery Synopsis
In the dark castle on the hill, a man wonders what happened to the girl and her father. He expects that he’ll be dead by morning as well, but he intends to fight. He’s a reporter, and he writes down his story about meeting a man from Planet X face to face. We flash back…
A new planet has arrived from nowhere, and it’s all very mysterious. John Lawrence and Professor Blaine talk about mysteries from the sky. The new planet isn’t going to collide with the Earth, but it’s going to come really close. Professor Elliot discovered the new world, and he’s gone to Burry Island, the place that’s going to be closest to the new planet.
John goes to the remote Scottish island where Elliot is staying. He’s met by Enid, the professor’s daughter. They drive up to the old castle on the hill, where he meets Elliot and Dr. Mears, whom John doesn’t like. Mears just showed up two weeks ago, one of Elliot’s former students. Elliot admits he’s not sure what’s going to happen as the planet gets really close in a few days.
John and Enid go for a walk on the foggy moors, and John likes what he sees, in all the meanings of the word. They find a strange metal thing on the ground that looks like a bomb or missile. Dr. Elliot can’t explain it either, but he thinks it may have come from outer space, as the metal is unknown. Mears points out how important that metal is to science.
After dropping John off at the inn in town, Enid gets a flat tire on the foggy old country road. She sees a flashing light out on the moor and finds a space rocket that has landed out there. She looks in the window and sees an alien face inside. She screams and runs all the way back to the castle.
The old professor thinks she’s imagined it all, so she takes him out there; Mears skulks along behind them. When Elliot looks in through the window, there’s no one inside. A beam from the ship shines on the old professor, who goes into some kind of trance. He feels better later and tells the whole story to John.
When John sees the spaceship, he says it looks like “A big diving bell,” and the professor says there’s not much difference between water and space, so why not? Then they see the spaceman, who appears to be holding a gun. It collapses as the alien tries to adjust his space suit.
The alien soon recovers and gets up. They try to communicate, but that doesn’t work, so it follows them home to the castle, much to Enid’s surprise. Dr. Mears wants to use math to communicate with the alien. John doesn’t trust Mears, and Mears knows it.
Alone, Mears works his math with the creature, hoping to learn something he can use for profit. He has no plans to share his knowledge with anyone else. He overpowers the very weak alien and turns down the gas it breathes. He goes in and tells Elliot that he’s had no luck.
Enid goes into the room with the creature and screams.
John returns and finds Enid missing, as is the creature. He and Mears walk back to the spaceship to see if they are there. They aren’t there, so John goes back to the castle, leaving Mears there.
The constable and another man arrive to talk to Elliot. Some men from the village have vanished. John’s not willing to tell them the story, but he’s willing to take the constable out to the moor and show him. They go back to where the spaceship was, but it’s not there now, and neither is Mears.
Back in the village, the second villager shows up and says that Professor Elliot went off with the alien and Mears. John says what he knows, which sends all the villagers off in a panic. The constable reports that the phone lines are out, so they try to signal a passing ship.
Meanwhile, more villagers are starting to work for the alien, all mind-controlled. John finds more men out by the alien ship, digging.
Scotland Yard sends two men; the ship did get their message. They want to bring in the military. John says he has a plan, and the police decide to go along with it. They give him until eleven o’clock– the planet will be at its closest at midnight.
We cut to the opening sequence, as John writes out his story before time runs out. He goes to the ship, where he encounters Elliot and Mears. He tells Elliot to walk back to town. Mears explains what the alien is doing; there’s going to be an invasion since the alien’s planet is dying. He tells the mind-controlled slave workers to walk away, and they do it.
The alien comes outside, and John tackles it, turning his valve off. It soon dies. He sends Enid and Mears to safety, but the alien, not as dead as it would appear, gets back up. Mears decides to run back to the ship as the army starts shooting at it. Mears get shot in the back by the soldiers before the ship explodes.
Meanwhile, Planet X gets really close to the Earth, and everyone watches as it passes harmlessly. John and Enid discuss how the government is going to cover it all up. Enid thinks the creature was friendly, and Mears was lying about the invasion.
Brian’s Commentary
The 1950s were known for their atomic horrors and flying saucer movies, but this is one of the early ones, and it was very influential in what followed.
We don’t know what Mears did back in the day for John to distrust him, but the feeling is obvious. Any planet that came that close to Earth would be a much bigger deal than the film suggests. Also, we don’t know for sure at the end what the creature’s motivations were, invasion or just exploration? Mears is the only real death in the film, and the soldiers did that.
The alien is possibly the least emotive creature ever filmed. It’s just a fixed head inside a glass helmet, no moving mouth, blinking eyes, or anything. Well, I guess that does make it pretty alien. The acting is good, the pacing is fine, but the alien really makes it hard to take seriously.
Kevin’s Commentary
The science is pretty bad, but it’s a decent watch for entertainment. The alien and effects are simple and dated. It was a great year for science fiction, “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” “The Thing From Another World,” and “When Worlds Collide” were all released in 1951 too. This is one to either relax and enjoy for what it is or make fun of it mercilessly. It depends on the mood you’re in.