I Finally Watched: 'Earth vs. the Flying Saucers'

The movie I finally watched this week is a classic sci-fi movie from the 1950s: Earth vs. the Flying Saucers.

Scientist Russell Marvin (Hugh Marlowe) and his wife Carol (Joan Taylor) encounter a flying saucer on their way to work at Project Skyhook, a government space program that has been launching “birds” into orbit. After a saucer destroys the Skyhook campus, they learn the aliens are trying to contact Russell. He makes contact and learns about the aliens’ plan to invade Earth. With only a few months to spare, Russell, Carol, and teams of scientists around the world try to develop a defense against the aliens’ superior firepower.

Sound familiar? It should. Not only is Saucers kind of like a fifties version of Independence Day, complete with the destruction of monuments in Washington, DC—but with stop-motion animation and stock footage instead of computer-generated imagery—it is the foundation for many alien and UFO movies that followed.

Saucers may have scared audiences when it was released, but it is now a fun, quick, vintage flick; it is cheesy and endearing, a good dose of Red Scare–era science fiction. It’s something I’ve been meaning to watch for a long time, mostly because of the iconic scenes with the Washington Monument and Capitol. Plus, I’m a sucker for fifties sci-fi movies; I love films like Saucer and Invasion of the Body Snatchers. (Despite my love of the 1970s, I’m not a fan of Invasion’s 1978 remake. I’ve never seen the 1993 or 2007 remakes.)

There is much to appreciate and like about Saucers, especially in its contemporary context. Though primitive now, the special effects are impressive; they are, dare I say, realistic—at least those associated with the saucers and their movement. The saucers spin and move realistically, and a lot of attention is paid to the process shots to ensure the images work together, including continuity of shadows. The landings and retracting compartment don’t work as well, but that’s okay. The sound effects are also great, notably the sounds the saucers make and the translated voice of the aliens, which is overdramatic and creepy in that fifties sci-fi way. Speaking of voices, I love the strong, assuring, and informative voiceover during the beginning and select segues to provide needed information between scenes. It tells viewers everything that happened conveniently and cheaply offscreen, as Crow T. Robot would say. (It is hard watching Saucers without thinking of an MST3K treatment. It is right up Joel [or Mike] and the ‘bots’ alley. In fact, they may have lampooned it. I’ll need to check the episode list.) The font used in the opening credits is also menacing but endearing, another lovable hallmark of the era.

The effects are especially impressive because Saucers predates Sputnik and the advent of the Space Age by one year. It’s easy to see that some research went into the design of the “birds” launched by Skyhook, and the few depictions of Earth from afar were designed before any real-life examples. I could be wrong, but the characterization of the aliens—fragile humanoids with big eyes and protective suits—is pioneering. However, that stereotype of aliens may have been established years before the movie, but Saucers is more than likely the earliest movie I’ve seen it used. They are not the most limber aliens I’ve seen, though.

The movie also features these very prophetic lines: “They expect to terrify us with a display of power. They’re contemptuous of our defenses.” Shock and awe from outer space!

Saucers has its shortcomings. The acting is stilted by current standards. There is a lot of obvious stock footage, and some of it does not fit. For example, shots of artillery shooting at saucers menacing Washington, DC, include mountains in the background. Also, some of the stock footage is familiar from other sci-fi movies, including the 1956 Roger Corman doozy It Conquered the World (which did get the MST3K treatment). (Featuring the release of Saucers, Invasion, and Conquered, 1956 was no doubt a good year for sci-fi movies.) However, other footage is cleverly used and integrated with effects, including a midair collision turned saucer strike and sobering footage of a battleship exploding. Also, the movie ends very abruptly and without finality, unlike many sci-fi flicks. It’s almost like the writer gave up. Also, I don’t remember the aliens saying exactly what they wanted or why they were menacing Earth.

One thing that surprised me is how progressive the Marvin’s relationship is. It is still quite patriarchal, but Russell and Carol are more than a husband and doting wife: they work as a team. Carol has a prominent role in the research and is intelligent and sharp, which is unexpected from a female role in a fifties movie—or perhaps I’m being unfairly biased toward the era. Not only that, but Carol is driving when she and Russell encounter the saucer at the beginning of the movie. That surprised me. Also surprising is the fact they’re married because Russell looks a lot older than Carol. In real life, Marlowe was 18 years older than Taylor. Yowza!