The Film
I love 50′s Sci Fi movies. Some of them are so good they transcend the genre and are considered classic films in their own right. The Day the Earth Stood Still, Forbidden Planet, Invasion of the Body Snatchers and The Incredible Shrinking Man are four personal favourites from this type. Then you have the ‘so bad they’re good’ kind epitomised by Plan 9 from Outer Space. This Island Earth falls into neither bracket. It’s decent SF but lacking in enough areas to stop it reaching masterpiece status.
While it’s not unusual for films of the era to be preoccupied with the then relatively new concept of atomic power what sets this apart is it’s pro-atomic stance. Fear of the bomb and the effect of radiation was one of the top two topics for science fiction of the time (the other being the communist threat) but it usually manifested itself as a danger to nature in films like Them! or The Incredible Shrinking Man. Here it’s presented as a force for good.
Scientist Dr. Cal Meacham (Rex Reason) is looking into practical uses for atomic energy when he’s contacted by a secret organisation led by a man named Exeter (Jeff Morrow.) Having had a glimpse of the miraculous technology at their disposal, he can’t resist the offer to join them. Whisked away in a pilotless plane to a hidden location he finds himself working on a secret project with a group of top scientists. Before long, it becomes clear that they aren’t working for any earthbound government but rather an alien race from the planet Metaluna. After a foiled escape attempt, Meacham and fellow scientist Ruth Adams (Faith Domergue) are transported to the doomed planet in the hope they will become it’s saviours.
