Them!

US (1954): Sci-Fi/Horror

That ol' cinematic devil the A-bomb has spawned a colony of giant murderous ants bent on destroying humanity in this, the seminal big bug movie (an obvious and oft-credited influence for Alien, 1979, among countless others). The special effects may be dated, but this brilliantly rational-sounding film has held up wonderfully in all other regards, including some starkly effective location work in the high Arizona desert, a genuinely inspired sound design guaranteed to bring on the creepy-crawlies, and an unexpectedly dry sense of humor (mainly personified by Grade-A egghead scientist Edmund Gwenn).

This is essential viewing for all those who consider themselves science fiction or horror fans. Heroic hardcase James Arness previously played for the other team as the titular character in The Thing from Another World (1951). (Andrew Wright, Amazon.com)

Gordon Douglas directs. Cast also features James Whitmore, Joan Weldon, Onslow Stevens and Sean McClory. Watch for Fess Parker as Alan Crotty. Was originally supposed to be filmed in color. Two days before shooting began a nervous studio cut the budget and the film had to be made in black and white. It was also supposed to be in 3-D. Some elements of the 3-D effects, such as the ants having extreme close-ups and the flame throwers shooting straight into the camera, were used in the film. This was Warner Bros.' highest grossing film of 1954. (IMDb)

 View the original theatrical trailer for this film on YouTube.com.

1 nomination